The digital marketing landscape is constantly evolving, and as we enter the new year, you need to be on the lookout for digital marketing trends that will shape 2020. Technology continues to advance at a fast pace, so you can expect some of the trends to be focused around technology. Also, there is a pushback against the automation of interactions between consumers and brands and increased digitalization, and there is a desire to make marketing more personal again.
In addition, we will see some ongoing, older trends that are still very effective. To help you stay ahead of the curve, we will explore the best digital marketing trends of 2020.
Customer experience
We see a significant shift in beliefs about what marketing truly is. Marketing is no longer about trying to convince your audience to buy from you or work with your company. Today, the priority has moved towards offering an incredible customer experience that will keep them coming back for more. In a way when you focus on creating a positive business culture and offering incredible service, the marketing of your business almost takes care of itself.
The increase in online content gives consumers more power. So, when it comes to learning about your service/product, they are no longer passive. Your customers will not wait for you to tell them about how excellent your services or products are, they are instead going to do their own research.
What exactly makes a great customer experience? Convenience, efficiency, friendly service, knowledgeable, and flexible payment options are what consumers value most in their customer experience. In addition, areas more considered as marketing domain are also mentioned – brand image, mobile experience, design, personalization, up-to-date technology all add up to the overall customer experience.
AI-based automation
Over the last few years, we have seen significant advancements in AI and a great increase in the number of companies using automation and AI-powered technology to boost their marketing efforts. For starter, AI is one of the primary technologies behind smart assistants and voice search. It also made chatbots possible.
Automation and AI technology are helping to take a couple of grunt work out of marketing so you can focus on strategy and creating an incredible customer experience. According to SEO Perth, AI can also be used by a Google Adwords company to target potential customers.
However, it is important to remember that the human aspect of marketing is perhaps more important now than ever before. The scope is to use this technology to boost your marketing efforts. Big data, with support from predictive analysis and AI, will also help your brand learn more about your customers and audience. It enables marketing messages, and customers experience hyper-personalization.
Personalization
Advancement in technology and increased data collection has already had a significant influence on level personalization and what consumers expect from their interactions with businesses. In today’s marketing world, consumers are bombarded with marketing messages from several channels to the point where several consumers have started to tune them out. This means the standard advertising method is losing its effectiveness, and personalization has taken over.
Personalized marketing messages create a real connection between a brand and its target audience. According to a survey, 80 percent of consumers said that they’d more likely patronize a brand that offers a personalized experience. Marketing personalization is more than merely changing the name of the subscriber you are addressing in your email. Increased data collection and improvement in technology have made it possible to truly personalize everything from product/service recommendation to content and design.
Incorporating word of mouth with influencer marketing
Marketing has, for several years, rely on word of mouth to increase brand popularity, and now it is evolving into something new. Today, social media influencers can play an important role in digital marketing. In 2020, we are going to see several brands signed partnerships with social media influencers. This is basically word of mouth marketing, but with a more influential mouth.
Social media influencers have huge followings on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. Marketers know the importance of word of mouth, and they are embracing it even more in 2020 with the help of influencers. This is absolutely a trend you need to keep a keen eye on to ensure you are not left behind suggests Erik H. Gordon, who is a well-known entrepreneur.
Visualization
According to research, consumers prefer visual content to written content. To be convinced of this, you just have to take a look at the growth-focused social media platforms such as Instagram and Pinterest. Pinterest, Google, and a lot of other companies are also investing heavily in visual search technology. According to statistics, 62 percent of millennials say that they are more interested in visual search technology than any other new one.
Moreover, visual contents are easier to remember than plain text. Adding visualizations, images, videos, and infographics to your text does not only make it more attractive and interesting, but it can also help your content get absorbed by your audience.
Sentiment analysis
Sentiment analysis is the act of analyzing the reactions of customers and users to a particular service or product, usually on social media platforms or other places online. Posts and online reviews are not always in black and white. There is a massive gray area with varying degrees in between those posts and reviews. For instance, a customer may like a product on the whole, but something, in particular, gets in the way. Maybe the service/product is okay, but it’s not just what they were expecting.
This analysis mostly involves algorithms and data-collecting tools to get an online response to your business and evaluate them. Although this is not a new digital marketing trend, with technological advancement, the strategy is becoming more popular than ever before.
With the advances in natural language processing, computers can now understand the meanings behind what your customer says online, including emoji and slang. You can then use the data obtained to enhance not just your service/product, but also your marketing, sales, content, and social media strategy.
