Thirty five percent of attendees surveyed at this year’s eTail East event in Philadelphia this past August, said they did not have a clear marketing strategy in place for FY 2013/FY 2014. That’s 35 percent, in case you missed it. In addition, 50 percent said they do not have a three or a five year marketing plan in place. 50 percent, folks.

You might be asking yourself how that’s possible when some of the brands attending eTail and other large online retail events are some of the industyr’s leading retailers today. That’s just it – no matter how big or small a company is, it turns out that creating well-thought-out, strategic marketing plans in advance, is still a big challenge for many.

The 2013/2014 Retailer Benchmarking Report reveals lots of statistics around digital marketing progress and how companies are evolving amid an increasingly fast-paced multi-channel world. The survey was compiled from more than 125 retailer responses at the eTail East event, with the goal to better understand the larger ecommerce picture, get an idea of technology spending habits and understand industry trends. Verticals surveyed included but were not limited to; apparel, sporting goods, consumer electronics, travel and hospitality, mass market retailers, as well as specialty/niche. Respondents represented companies such as CVS Caremark, QVC, Warby Parker, Macy’s and more, and held titles like Director of eCommerce and Head of Marketing. Some other interesting findings:

– The top three marketing priorities for 2013 were: Social, SEO, Customer Acquisition
– On average, marketers spend 30% of their budgets on search.
– 80% of marketers said their spend on social media increased in 2013 over the previous year.

This survey marks the third year of eTail producing trend reports about technology spending and general digital marketing trends in retail. Take a read through the detailed findings here, and comment on how your firm stacks up below.