2020 is a dynamic year of innovation, implementation and creative explorations in the digital marketing arena. Technologies that were once considered overambitious and out of reach are now emerging as groundbreaking transformations. This year is all about automation, artificial intelligence, high-powered chatbots, Shopify SEO, voice engine search optimization and personalized consumer experiences.
As a digital marketer, staying abreast with industry trends is of paramount significance. You cannot afford to bypass these trends as they are integral to maintain competitiveness and relevance in the digital realm. In the context of this article, we will walk you through the top digital marketing trends to adopt this year.
Table of Contents
Here, take a look:
Artificial Intelligence
Artificial intelligence has penetrated the realm of digital marketing with multiple solutions and software that enhance customer service and social media marketing. AI-powered solutions have transformed how digital marketer delegate menial and repetitive tasks.
For instance, these tools can be used to extract consumer data from various online activities, websites and social media platforms. This data can be used to examine buying preferences and consumers behaviours and devise pragmatic and practical marketing strategies to attract these consumers.
In 2020, chatbots are a major feature of AI-powered language processing tools and software. These chatbots are much more refined and sophisticated than your average chatbot as they ca automate payments, and converse with the consumer like a real person.
Social Media and SEO
No matter if you are a financial advisor, a business consultant or a mentor, you can consult the best Social Media Marketing for Financial Advisors and Consultants who can help you grow your business through Social Media and SEO.
According to Samuel Hurley, co-founder,NOVOS “ It’s common to look at the 2 GA graphs of SEO and Social and see them correlating. This is largely down to branded search terms i.e. someone exposed to your social and then does a search via Google. This is not directly impacting your SEO performance i.e. your rankings. It’s simply generating demand to your website through another channel. However, this demand generation caused by people searching your brand + product names into Google is one of the best signals you can give google that your brand is an authority for that ‘non brand’ term. e.g. ‘my brand’ + “jeans’. The more people searching for that term the more of an indication it’s giving to google that your brand deserves to rank for those non brand terms. An effective way to build up this presence is either via social media. So, in the long term, social will have an impact on your SEO as will any other channel that contributes to brand building but the short-term immediate impact is the increase in brand demand via google. In 2021, or any other year for that matter, strong brand = SEO success!”
Samuel Hurley, co-founder, NOVOS
Video Marketing
The last few years have witnessed the rising popularity of video marketing and content, and this trend will maintain its significance for the years to come. Modern-day users and consumers are more likely to watch immersive videos than read a lengthy article. In 2020, videos are the most immersive and effective form of marketing materials and campaigns. For instance, if you are starting a graphic design business, you can create a great engaging video to market your business.
In fact, research reveals that videos have the potential to increase conversion rates, and over 50% of the consumers rely on videos to make well-informed buying decisions. Videos have penetrated the digital marketing realm with dynamic aplomb; and from introducing new products and services to maintaining consumer loyalty and brand image, they are a vital ingredient of the marketing mix!
If you are a marketing manager or leader, you must conduct Continuous marketing training for your employees to keep them learning about new trends of marketing especially during these difficult times.
Personalized Consumer Experiences
Modern-day consumers won’t settle for anything less than a tailored and personalized experience that is fully aligned with their expectations and needs. High-tech companies and large businesses are utilizing tools and metrics that allow them to tap into the consumer’s preferences based on their online experiences, and hence, they are able to offer highly personalized experiences.
Small businesses and digital marketers have little choice but to comply with this crucial requirement. Personalized marketing campaigns are an excellent strategy to boost marketing success and cement brand loyalty. Consumers are very specific about the kind of content, emails, subscriptions and products they desire, and they are attracted to brands who offer them such experiences.
The success of personalized branded giveaways, such as stationeries, free samples and others, have also increased dramatically. A poll revealed that 80% of the customers are more drawn towards brands that offer them personalized experiences. Moreover, 90% of the consumers are more likely to read personalized emails and interact with brands that attempt to tailor their experiences based on their preferences.
Influencer Marketing
The modern-day equivalent of word-of-mouth marketing, the power and influence of social media influencers is hard to ignore! Brands are increasingly tapping into the audiences of social media influencers, celebrities, popular bloggers, YouTube content creators and entertainers. You see, these social media influencers have vast audiences, who trust, admire and follow them, and rely on them to assist with their buying decisions.
Statistics reveal that 58% of consumers invested in a new product on the recommendation of an influencer. More importantly, 63% of the consumers revealed that they invest in products and services after exploring the reviews of their favourite influencers.
In simpler words, influencers help businesses refine their image, cement brand loyalty, penetrate new markets and new consumer audiences, and promote new services or product lines. For instance, baby care brands look towards real-life mothers who are bloggers and have an active audience of mothers who look towards them for advice and reviews. Similarly, travel bloggers are chosen by airlines, resorts and travel-related businesses to market their products to their audiences.
Email Marketing
For some people, Email Marketing is either the most underrated yet a reliable tool for marketing and generating leads while others take it as completely outdated because no one reads email marketing messages in 2020, depends on the person you are talking to.
Let me reveal the truth, Email is still and will always be one of the most essential marketing medium because the connection to the customer through email or (or other direct contact info like phone number) is incredibly valuable. I will back it with two big reasons.
Firstly, marketers don’t necessarily need to spend money on paid advertising to reach your potential customers when they can just do it through emails.
Secondly, if the reach on your social platforms plummet as it did on Facebook in the 2010s, you are still able to reach out to your followers without spending a single penny to an intermediary and that makes email addresses much more valuable and reliable than social media followers in this case. Even if the email open-rate is between 10% to 50%, the fact is that email marketing is still the most essential and inexpensive way to build a relationship with people.
The best possible way out in increasing your brand value if you can afford some penny to invest. Give people what others would not be giving for free or at lower prices and through that, you could easily hack your brand growth to rise exponentially. Just make them have believe and faith in your brand. Organize a giveaway and keep taking new emails from people which will help you build your brand. Now later send them cool offers or post with Killer Headings so that the conversion rate of email marketing progress and hence your brand results
Conclusion
2020 is a year of innovation, personalization and humanization. Brands need to ditch traditional marketing strategies and focus on humanizing their brands and interacting with their audience on a more deeper level. Entertainment and engagement have become more competitive than ever as the online users are flooded with content and information.
So, how can a digital marketer maintain competitiveness and audience engagement? By deploying AI-powered tools, big data solutions, high-tech software that provide insights into consumer behaviors and preferences, and allow businesses to deliver personalized consumer experiences. Remember: the modern-day consumer is highly empowered and will not settle for anything less than what they truly desire!
Rachael is a content writer at Pearl Lemon, who has written on a Ultimate Weebly SEO Guide, from colored diamonds to SEO software. In her spare time, she enjoys singing, sketching, cooking, and video games.