The results of the 2010 Digital Influence Index have been released and although the results are not shocking, they are still compelling. Unsurprisingly, the index leads with the insight that “digital dominates in consumer influence — but not marketing dollars spent.” The Internet is reliably the source that most consumers go to when it comes to making purchase decisions. They go to the Internet for recommendations, information, and online purchases. Still, however, less than 14% of marketing dollars are spent on digital mediums worldwide.

When looking towards the future the study summarizes that, “thirty-nine percent of respondents said they thought the Internet would be more important in the next two years, while 59 percent said its importance would likely stay the same. Three percent said it would be less important.” It definitely seems hard to picture a future where the Internet isn’t just as influential as it is today, but hopefully marketing spending will begin to reflect this trend.

What are your thoughts? As you look within your organizations or among your clients, do you see marketing spend out of sync with the influence of the Internet? What’s behind this gap? And what will it take to better align marketing dollars with influence?