A new report from LG Ad Solutions says that nearly 30% of connected TV users have made a purchase directly from their TV screens over the last 90 days. The top categories of items selling to consumers via connected tv: clothing, electronics, automotive appliances, and groceries.

Chain Analysis shows that victims of hacking attacks paid out a record $1.1 billion to the bad guys in 2023 as ransom in exchange for a return of those digital assets seized by them. By way of comparison, $567 million was paid out in 2022. 2023 marks a major year for ransomware with record breaking payments and a substantial increase in the scope and complexity of such attacks.

Propeller Insights data on America's online shopping behavior: 75.2% of consumers surveyed believe they are savvy at online shopping. Meaning they're comfortable, confident, and adept at navigating online shops and the key functionality to execute their shopping online, but also they now feel really good at finding the best deals.

Insider Intelligence reports, global ad spending will jump 10% in 2024 up from growth of 6.3% in 2023. CNBC reporting points out, growth looks so strong now because the numbers are being compared to that period of a year ago when activity in the ad space was down. This is good news for the digital marketing space, small businesses may be paying more to advertise in the future.

The National Retail Federation report on consumer spending for the SuperBowl: 112 million people plan to throw or attend a party, and 16 million people plan to watch the game at a bar or restaurant. Total spending on food, drinks, apparel, decorations, and other related game necessities are expected to reach a total that is a record total $17.3 billion or $86 per person on average.

Data shows that nearly 90% of online consumers consult reviews before buying and research from CX solutions firm. Al shows that two thirds, 67% of consumers are concerned about review fraud.

Robert Poff, Brand Key's founder & president, released the study's results says, companies who've earned brand loyalty are 6 times more likely to get customer interest and purchases because they'll think of you first. It's simply harder than ever to earn customer loyalty, once you've got it and able to maintain it on behalf of your customer base, your shot at business success goes up exponentially.

The trend today is much less about either or, that is online versus brick and mortar, and more about an omnichannel approach that includes both online and brick and mortar working in harmony to make each of these retail channels stronger as a result of the other.

Data from Payments Intelligence highlights the challenges small businesses are facing today when it comes to accessing credit to support their businesses. Only 48% of small businesses generating annual revenues of 10 million or less report having access to business or personal financing.

A new report from Aspire, brands will be focusing their spend in 2024 on influencer marketing, heavily on Instagram & TikTok. Snapchat and X, formerly Twitter, are largely ignored as an effective channel for influencer marketing campaigns. Aspire's data shows that nano influencers w/ less than 10,000 followers support the highest average rate of engagement across social platforms tracked.