Alterian has published evidence that scrutinises how brands are engaging with consumers. Its based on qualitative and quantitative research in the UK and US.

The headline reports that 95 per cent of advertising spend in the 2009 had no impact on its intended audience.

By contrast the report finds that a third of consumers are actively engaged in social media and report a positive connection with brands.

According to David Eldridge, CEO, Alterian:

”We are witnessing is an era of individualisation. It is no longer adequate to adopt a strategy of mass broadcast and one-way conversation.”

Surveys are surveys that are typically used a tool to support a company’s own PR agenda. But this report is written by Professor Michael Hulme, an academic at Lancaster University, and speaks to a trend that cannot escape anyone in the communication, marketing or PR industries.

The risk, Alterian claims, is that brands will become irrelevant if they fail to engage with their audiences using relevant channels.

I’ll return to this report in future blog posts as it contains some great insight. Its only failing is that it stops short of describing how quickly these changes are taking place.