Once upon a time, not that long ago, marketing was very one-dimensional.
Businesses plastered their best ad campaign on billboards or in flyers that went out in the local paper.
They may have even employed door-to-door salesmen. The infamous Kirby Vacuum salesman comes to mind.
With the invention of the radio, marketing saw its first leap into the digital age. Not long after, television took marketing another leap further.
But gone are the days of peddling your product door to door, or your 30-second commercial reaching a limited number of people in a limited time frame.
Digital marketing in 2020 is an all-encompassing net, not only able to catch more fish but to catch them at any time, anywhere.
This can be a little overwhelming for marketers, having this giant reach.
But never fear!
We’ve done the research and put together a list of the 5 digital marketing trends so you can tap into the benefits of these marketing strategies.
Artificial Intelligence
While it still may seem far off and futuristic, AI is alive and well, thriving in the tech we carry around on a daily basis.
AI can be used to analyze a customer’s search patterns and behaviors. It can track social media habits so businesses better understand how these customers are buying their products.
It’s projected that AI will grow into a $190B industry by 2025 (singlegrain). That’s only 5 short years from now.
Taking advantage of AI in your marketing strategy can help you expand your reach and target consumers you may not even know are the perfect client for you.
Video Marketing
Since the dawn of television, video marketing has proven to be a great outlet for showing your customers what you’re all about.
And in the age of the 12-second attention span, watching a video vs reading an ad is preferable to most consumers.
Research shows that most prefer to learn about a new product or service through video rather than other forms of marketing (Marketing Insider Group).
One of the biggest challenges marketers have faced in the past is the growing switch to mobile devices.
Lengthy sales pages are too cumbersome and too hard to read on the small screen of a mobile device.
Video allows you to give the customer the same information but in a much more efficient way for that ever-present mobile device.
Influencer Marketing
Influencers used to be only celebrities or athletes. But more and more we are seeing Instagram and YouTube personalities with large followings spreading the word about products or services on their social media platforms.
This type of marketing often comes across as more authentic. Especially if the customer can relate to the person raving about the product or service they are promoting.
A recent poll showed that 63% of consumers trust influencers’ opinions of products more than what the actual brand has to say about themselves.
Partnering with an influencer can help you reach a bigger audience, build trust with your brand, get more leads, and close those sales.
Social Media Stories
Snapchat was the first social media platform to come out with “stories”. The popularity of these 30-second video clips soon made its way into Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube.
With the disappearance of these videos after a set amount of time, marketers can really tap into that ever-growing “FOMO” (fear of missing out).
Other benefits of using stories are increasing your brand awareness, having a constant engagement with people who follow you, and it gives you increased traffic to your site.
Shoppable Posts
In 2019 Instagram unveiled “Instagram Checkout” which allows users to buy products within the Instagram app itself.
This was designed with the idea that customers won’t stop shopping because they have to switch apps or continue their purchase on a website.
Instagram reported that over 90% of their 1 Billion users are following active shopping brands and a lot of them are visiting their profiles daily.
The convenience of being able to buy products and services all in one spot will be sure to bring in more customers for your business.
Putting to work some of these 2020 Digital Marketing trends will no doubt help your business get the attention it deserves.
Don’t get left behind in this wonderful age of digital marketing.
Embrace it and use it to grow your business, in 2020 and beyond!
If you need assistance with your marketing, schedule Your Free Strategy Session today.
