Cross-channel audience measurement and recognition are shaping up to be top priorities for marketers in 2016. The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) and strategic consulting firm Winterberry Group found that of the executives they surveyed for their The Outlook for Data: 2016 Snapshot report, 70 percent listed “cross-device audience recognition” and 58 percent cited “cross-channel measurement and attribution” as key recipients of their time and energies.

Speaking to marketers, media buyers, publishers and digital advertising technology executives, the survey found that 53 percent said they will focus on programmatic media buying for emerging formats, such as mobile and addressable television in 2016, while 43 percent will dedicate their time and resources to programmatic buying for already-established formats.

“This 2016 snapshot presents a clear picture of where data-driven advertising is headed,” says Patrick Dolan, executive vice president and COO of IAB. “While there are still technological challenges and a need for further workforce education, data-driven advertising is clearly front-of-mind for the industry.”

The survey found that the most important factors influencing the move toward data-driven marketing and initiatives in the coming year were customer demand (60 percent), measurability (48 percent) and the availability of first-party data (47 percent). However, it also found issues holding its adoption back: the insufficient availability and functionality of supporting technology (45 percent) and a lack of internal experience at the functional/operational level (35 percent).

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