When it comes to online marketing, the only constant is change. That’s why I love this industry so much – as a marketer, you are continually learning and re-learning. It certainly keeps things interesting, to say the least, and allows for that spark never to die.
Digital marketing is a complex process with many moving parts. To ensure your marketing strategy is the best it can be, you’ll need to keep up with the trends. Think of the digital marketing industry like this: If marketing were a house, online marketing would be the foundation, and marketing trends would be the shingles to protect it.
Here are some digital marketing trends you can expect to see in 2022:
Video Marketing Will Have an Even Bigger Impact
In 2021, TikTok became the most visited website by surpassing Google. Considering one is a social media platform for uploading videos, and the other is a popular search engine for everything from online purchasing to searches, this was an achievement that few people saw coming.
Short-form videos are ideal for catching the attention of time-strapped consumers. When done correctly, they can keep people’s attention spans limited. For small businesses, this is excellent news. Short reels are easy to produce and often low-cost. But if you want to make sure that potential customers aren’t swiping before your video is over, you’ll need to capture your audience with killer offers, entertainment, or stunning views.
Video marketing helps you connect with customers and has a considerable impact on search engine optimization (SEO). Videos are shared more frequently online than any other type of content, so they’re an excellent option for marketing your business to help you get in front of more customers.
AI Will Continue to Impact Marketing
Artificial intelligence (AI) is already present in marketing, with chatbots helping automate marketing initiatives and personal assistants such as Siri, Alexa, and Google taking over customer service.
AI can help validate marketing strategies by testing different ad copy and images with the same target audience before making any significant changes or announcements that you hope will positively impact sales. AI can also measure marketing campaigns, track your marketing budget, and even identify which marketing channels are bringing in new customers.
Influencers Continue to Drive Sales and Bookings
Another thing that the rise of TikTok tells us is that consumers are no longer limited to Google and other search engines for inspiration. Your consumer’s next purchase could potentially come from a TikTok reel or Instagram post as quickly as it would from a Google search.
With this style’s popularity, influencer marketing has remained a success. Influencers on sites like Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok can help you develop new customer categories for your business. And this is a trend that will continue; today’s teenagers report placing greater trust in influencers than traditional celebrities when it comes to buying products.
The key to influencer marketing is identifying and interacting with the right influencers. You don’t need to pay a top influencer to capitalize on this trend. A lesser-known influencer with a similar target demographic may have just as significant an impact as a more popular one.
Organic SEO is Still Important
While social media is an important marketing tool, don’t overlook building traffic to your website. Search engines continue to be a popular tool for purchases and booking travel.
Today’s Internet users value authentic content. They prefer organic material to sponsored advertising, with organic search accounting for more than half of all traffic. Adding a blog to your site is one of the most effective methods to attract organic visitors. Blogs help attract traffic and convert visitors into paying customers by providing high-quality content relevant to your clients.
SEO enables targeted marketing initiatives that focus on keywords related to what customers are searching for online. SEO is here to stay, and the right marketing strategies can help you get in front of customers looking for your services.
Content Marketing Will Get More Personal and Nuanced
Because of the rise in digital marketing, today’s consumers have become immune to traditional marketing methods such as banner ads and commercials. The rise of social media marketing and influencer marketing has also made marketing a bit more impersonal.
With the rise of social media, the consumer only sees what you want them to see, creating a superficial barrier between what’s real and what isn’t.
Luckily, many marketers are now shifting to marketing strategies that engage users personally by marketing campaigns surrounding parties, weddings, holidays, birthdays, etc. These strategies help companies gain more trust and rapport with their consumers by showing them what happens behind the scenes.
The marketing trend that will become even more prominent in the next few years is marketing campaigns surrounding events. Events such as weddings, parties, and holidays help companies gain more trust and rapport with consumers by showing them what happens behind the scenes.
Virtual Reality Brings Customers Closer than Ever Before
The virtual reality trend has gained significant momentum since Facebook acquired Oculus VR in 2014. As well, with Facebook’s Metaverse, you can expect virtual marketing to expand exponentially in the coming years. Facebook’s Metaverse is a virtual reality platform that allows users to interact in a computer-generated space, creating virtual communities and an online environment.
Virtual reality marketing is one of the most immersive ways to market your products and services. The marketing slogan “seeing is believing” will become obsolete as virtual reality becomes more widely accepted as a marketing tool.
Implementing These Marketing Trends in 2022 with Copper Content
The best approach to keep ahead of the most current marketing trends is to plan ahead of time. If you’re ready for 2022, Vibrant Marketing has you covered. Our team can help you with everything from content marketing to SEO, as well as a tailored digital marketing strategy for connecting with your target consumers, improving your brand, and increasing your sales.
Connect with us today to learn how to help you make these marketing trends work for you in 2022.