How the Pandemic Has Affected Account-Based Marketing
42 percent of B2B marketers say that the pandemic has changed their account-based marketing (ABM) business objectives, according to recently-released survey data, with 30 percent noting that their ABM budgets fell due to the global health crisis, while 26 percent saw their ABM spending increase. MarketingProfs

Despite In-Housing Trend, Clients Continue To Value Agency Relationships
Greater alignment with brand priorities brings increased value to agencies, according to newly-released Forrester report data of interest to digital marketers, which also showed that some 75 percent of brand decision makers were satisfied or very satisfied with their agency rosters. MediaPost

The Top Barriers to Creating Great B2B Content [Study]
Workload, resources, interference and changing priorities rank as the leading obstacles faced by B2B content marketers, according to recently-released survey data of interest to digital marketers. MarketingProfs

Google My Business launches new performance reporting
Google has added new performance reporting features to its Google My Business service, which now includes search term data from Google Search and Maps, among other new reporting information available. Search Engine Land

The Best Times to Post Your Social Media Updates in 2021 [Infographic]
One LinkedIn post a day published on Tuesday through Thursday between 7 to 10 a.m. or 5 to 6 p.m. are the top posting days and times on the platform, according to newly-released report data, which also covers other social media platform top posting times. Social Media Today

LinkedIn Shares New Usage Insights for Your 2021 Planning [Infographic]
Microsoft-owned LinkedIn (client) has released updated usage statistics showing that the professional social network’s LinkedIn Live video streams have increased by 89 percent since March, along with strong levels of member engagement — two of numerous statistics of interest to digital marketers. Social Media Today

Google Question Hub Is Open & It’s A Great Way To Find Content Ideas
Google has rolled out a new service showing unanswered search question data, offering U.S users access to its Question Hub for the first time — a feature previously only available in three non-U.S. nations. Search Engine Roundtable

Social networks will experience a pandemic-driven boost in 2020—but not equally
Greater than predicted numbers of users have flocked to social media this pandemic year, according to recently-released survey data of interest to digital marketers, with 150 million more global users for 2020 than previously estimated. eMarketer

Snapchat Shares New insights into Consumer Behavior and Trends
Mobile eCommerce, augmented reality (AR) campaigns and an uptick in video are among the key shifts in consumer trends and behavior, according to a newly-released user insight report from Snapchat. Social Media Today

Twitter expands API features for developers tracking the public conversation
Better integration of Twitter’s new tweet reply privacy control features are among an array of new API inter-connectivity changes, the social media platform recently announced. TechCrunch

B2B Businesses More Likely To Keep Third-Party Ad-Tracking Secrets From Customers
72 percent of B2B firms say they acknowledge ad tracking and don’t inform customers, compared to some 58 percent of their B2C counterparts, according to recently-released survey data. The report also noted that B2B firms were twice as likely to rate third-party ad platforms as having done a good job of explaining how data is being used. MediaPost

LinkedIn Adds New ‘Products’ Tab on Company Pages to Highlight Specific Products
LinkedIn (client) has launched new product highlighting features to company pages on the platform, in the form of a products tab, allowing digital marketers to augment products with testimonials and customer endorsements, along with noting an additional forthcoming services marketplace feature, the Microsoft-owned firm recently announced. Social Media Today

Some B2B Brands Are Going All-in On Digital Advertising
B2B digital advertising spending has largely skirted the sizable losses seen in traditional ad spend, and certain B2B brands have started shifted more budget dollars to digital media, according to recently-released eMarketer study data of interest to B2B marketers. ANA

The Road To Chatbots, Virtual Assistants For B2B Marketers, Per Forrester
The B2B buyer journey has changed almost entirely into all-digital experiences, and B2B marketers who rush the process by using traditional chatbots or virtual assistants risk losing customers, according to newly-released Forrester survey data. MediaPost

Facebook Expands Brand Collabs Manager to Include Facebook Groups, Adds New Group Post Options
Facebook has augmented its Brand Collabs Manager tool, with the inclusion of several new partnership location features aimed at helping influencer marketing and brand partnerships through the use of sponsored Facebook group posts, the social media giant recently announced. Social Media Today

One-Third of B2B Tech Marketers Say They’ll Meet Their Original KPIs This Year
42 percent of B2B technology executives say they’ll meet their revised 2020 key performance indicators, while 16 just say they won’t meet KPIs — two of several items of interest to digital marketers in recently-released survey data. MarketingCharts

Year-End Global/U.S. Ad Forecasts Improve Markedly
Three recently-released global advertising spending forecasts predict a much stronger outlook for 2021 than in 2020, with improvements in the global market especially better — up an average of 7.8 percent in the studies compared to 4.5 percent for the U.S. MediaPost

Salesforce strikes deal to acquire Slack for $27.7 billion
Cloud services firm Salesforce will pay $27.7 billion to acquire online workplace communication service company Slack, a move seen as likely aiming to bring tighter integration between the two platforms, Salesforce recently announced. Ars Technica

Google Search Podcast Carousel Updated With Larger Graphics
Google has tested significantly larger podcast carousel images within search results, a move that if rolled out would provide marketers greater podcast visibility opportunities in Google search results, and signify the expanding role that podcasts have held over the past year. Search Engine Roundtable

Instagram turns influencer branded content on its head, giving advertisers greater control
Instagram has rolled out features that will give digital marketers new branded content options for its Instagram Reels and Live products, the Facebook-owned social media platform recently announced. AdAge

Write to Reward Your Reader
The Harvard Business Review takes a look at the role and power of rewarding your reader in writing, an element that applies especially well for the material content marketers write. Harvard Business Review

Google Ads’ Smart Bidding Enhances Predictions & Insights
Google has launched updated features to its Google Ads offering, with new smart bidding to offer more relevant predictions and new insights, the search giant recently announced. Search Engine Journal

How Can You Improve Your B2B Virtual Event’s ROI?
47.6 percent of B2B professionals see post-virtual-event audience engagement as having the top return-on-investment (ROI) potential, followed by some 36 percent who said that making the virtual format more dynamic and interactive was a priority, according to recently-released survey data. MarketingCharts

Adweek Survey Finds 40% of Brands Might Seek New Agencies in 2021
75 percent of marketers have been satisfied with how agencies have handled the global health crisis, while a third performed better than expected during the pandemic — two of several statistics of interest to digital marketers contained in newly-released Adweek Intelligence survey data. Adweek

Both B2B Marketers and Buyers Increasingly Sold on Conversational Marketing
B2B marketing professionals have found email, online live chat, social media, and chatbots have all seen increased usage in 2020, while phone and video call use has fallen by more than 10 percent, according to recently-released B2B buyer communication survey data of interest to digital marketers. MarketingCharts

B2B Tech Firms Cut Marketing Budgets Due To Pandemic: Study
Despite an overall drop in marketing spending due to the global health crisis, budgeting for digital and content marketing are the most likely to see increased spending, while some 60 percent of B2B technology firm executives say that their key performance indicators (KPIs) haven’t undergone change. MediaPost