It should come as no surprise that once-distant parts of the world now appear closer and closer, driven by the globalization of ideas, economies and politics. Nowhere is this truer than among the global elite, who tend to have more in common with one another than they do with the less affluent in their own countries.

The most successful luxury brands combine understated dignity with the ability to command attention when the time is right. This is reflected in nearly every aspect of advertising directed toward Affluents - subtle color palettes, limited copy, even sparse appearances by the product itself. Online, luxury brand advertisers see the best performance from ad formats that capture the same aesthetic.

After 21 years orchestrating hundreds of conversations and events with CEOs and CMOs representing every segment of luxury and given the furious pace of web-enabled change, here's my "dirty dozen" top challenges/opportunities facing luxury marketers and their brands today.

The rise of data-driven marketing has brands increasingly looking for insights that allow them to better target their most likely customers and eliminate any potential media waste. But with so many resources at their fingertips, marketers are still learning how best to combine different kinds of data assets. In fact, they're often either not using enough data, or basing too much of their plan on sources that only tell part of the target audience's story.

On Demand, premium channel subscriptions, TiVo, satellite radio - these are all services that have gained widespread traction over the past few years. With On Demand you can choose from hundreds of movies and hundreds of television series to watch with a click of your remote. Premium channel subscriptions such as HBO, Showtime, Cinemax and Starz give you the luxury of being able to watch your show/movie without being interrupted by commercial breaks. TiVo gives peace of mind to those "on-the-go" who do not have time to catch their favorite TV show when it's airing; the record feature allows you …

As noted in our column headline above, our research indicates that luxury goes way deeper than the affluent market segment. Luxury purchasers - adult consumers (18+ in age) who bought one or more luxury goods or services in the prior twelve months - constitute almost 20%, or about 46 million, of the 239 million adults in the United States.