Groupon reported a 419% increase in 2011 revenue to $1.6 billion, the company said in its first earnings report as a public company on Feb. 8.

Coca-Cola plans to invest as much as $650 million from annual cost savings into its future marketing efforts, the company said on Feb. 7.

Research and analysis firm Gartner's fourth quarter 2011 revenue increased by 12% to $427.7 million, compared with the same quarter in 2010. For the entirety of 2011, total revenue increased by 14% to $1.46 billion, an increase of 14% over 2010. Net income for the year was $136.9 million.

Andrew Frawley has been named president of marketing services firm Epsilon, the company said on Feb. 7. Epsilon said it has also named Catherine Lang as its new chief client officer.

JetBlue Airways redesigned its website and mobile site, and has also launched an iPhone application, all with the intent of personalizing and simplifying the customer experience, the airline said on Feb. 6.

Demographic marketing has long been the industry standard, but does it have a future? Andrew Bailey, chairman at Proximity North America; Michael Benedek, president and CEO of Datonics; Gary Reisman, principal and founder of NewMediaMetrics; and Liz Deutch, EVP, global director, customer engagement at Draftfcb, weigh in.

Email marketing is no longer a one-to-many communications strategy. Today's marketers realize that customized, personalized and timely messages are what drive open rates, click-through and conversion. Consumers expect your messages to cater to their unique interests and purchase patterns. Our experts offer up their best advice to help marketers take advantage of consumer expectations.

Imagine that you're about to interview a prospective new hire. You've read their resume, been briefed by HR and are feeling confident that your recruitment team has done their job well. Now, tear up the resume and step away from your desk. It's time to find out what the true value of this candidate is: their "ROL," or "Return on Life."

We're a month into the New Year. So, what's in store for major brands in 2012? I have a few predictions.