Hitting the Mark
Hitting the Mark is a comprehensive annual report reviewing the marketing communications of 100 brands across the Americas, APAC, and EMEA, evaluating them across four key pillars: acquisition and engagement, email experience, journey automation, and data-driven personalization. The research confirms that email remains the most powerful channel for building customer relationships and driving sales, achieving a global average score of 64%, while automation lags significantly at just 39%, representing a major untapped opportunity. Personalization continues to be the great differentiator, with top-performing brands earning the coveted CX Icon status by delivering smart, connected, and deeply relevant customer experiences. Acquisition remains the global blind spot, scoring only 45% on average, as brands struggle to grow their subscriber lists despite nurturing existing audiences well. The report serves as both a benchmark and an inspirational style guide, helping marketers move beyond batch-and-blast email toward truly connected, scalable, and human customer journeys.
In this guide, you'll explore
- Email remains the dominant marketing channel, scoring a global average of 64%, reinforcing its central role in customer acquisition, retention, and cross-channel journeys.
- Automation is a major untapped opportunity, with a global average of just 39% — most brands rely on single-step automations and miss the chance to build meaningful one-to-one relationships at scale.
- Personalization is the defining factor separating CX Icons from the rest, with leading brands like Rip Curl, Gant, and Dirtea delivering real-time, relevant messaging that drives measurable customer loyalty.
- Acquisition is the global blind spot, averaging only 45%, as brands underinvest in sign-up experiences, cross-channel growth tactics, and strategies to continuously grow their subscriber base.
- 100 brands across the Americas, APAC, and EMEA were scored and mapped onto a Customer Experience Quadrant, categorized as Momentum Builders, Rising Stars, Creatives, or CX Icons based on their personalization and automation performance.