The COVID-19 pandemic and the lockdowns imposed by governments across the world have dramatically transformed consumers. The shopping habits have changed, and so has consumer expectations from brands. The digital marketing landscape continued to evolve throughout 2020 to keep up with the changing trends.
With 2021 around the corner, what are the digital marketing trends skilled marketers should watch out for? Here is a list of top 10-
1. Short-Form Videos
In many ways, TikTok can be considered the star performer of 2020. This video-sharing social platform’s popularity has been such that the likes of Instagram, Snapchat, and YouTube have adopted short-form videos in their own ways. Marketers should reimagine their video ads and serve them in bite-sized pieces for improved engagement in 2021.
2. Digital Marketing Maturity
Digital marketing maturity is all about the ability of brands or marketers to deliver the right message to the right person at the right time. As consumer expectations are increasing, marketers should look for ways to use technologies and data insights to achieve a level of marketing maturity that helps them improve the relevance of their content, ads, and services.
3. Voice Assistants
According to Statista, there will be more than 8.4 billion voice assistants in use by 2024. From smartphones, homes, offices, to even vehicles, voice assistants are expected to become a vital component of our day to day lives. Your website, app, and ads can be optimized for voice search to reach more people.
4. Taking a Stand
Modern consumers, especially millennials, want brands to take a stand on social issues. From racial injustice, sustainability to climate change, consumers now expect the brands they deal with to be socially conscious. Social platforms can be an excellent place for brands to demonstrate their support for such causes and improve their engagement with the consumers.
5. Brand Transparency
In this digital world, it is no longer difficult or time-consuming for consumers to find a good amount of information about global businesses. A simple solution to avoid fake news or inaccurate information is to be more transparent. In the following year, try to be more transparent about your values, goals, products, and practices as it could help improve customer loyalty.
6. Image SEO
While text-based content has its place, the demand for visual content is on the rise. According to a post on MOZ, around 19% of the search queries on Google return image results. This is an unavoidable statistic for any marketer. Focus on combining text with visual content to rank higher on search engines in this visual age.
7. Customer Experience Strategy for Mobile
Consumers no longer only want to purchase great products. They also want the purchase experience to be smooth and worth their time. As mobile sales are reaching new heights, 2021 will be the time for brands to work on their mobile customer experience. Understanding mobile interactions and investing in technologies like PWA and AMP are some ways to enhance the mobile experience.
8. AI and ML
Google now uses an artificial intelligence system known as RankBrain for search results. With regard to digital marketing, AI and ML have vast implications, ranging from improving customer experience, creating new business streams, content optimization, improved personalization, and more. As we move forward, look for ways to make use of these technologies for improved digital results.
9. Personalization at Scale
It is no longer adequate to personalize your marketing approach. You should personalize at scale for improved reach and engagement. If done right, you will be able to enhance the customer journey while also creating loyalty and engagement with personalized messages that are tuned as per their expectations.
10. Data-driven Ad Campaigns
Just like your website content, you should also focus your ad campaigns on the needs of your target consumers. Take advantage of tools such as Google Analytics and YouTube analytics to gather audience insights that you can use to improve your ads further. Learn, rehearse, and implement to increase the ability of your ads to strike a chord with the consumers.
Achieving Digital Marketing Goals in 2021
Every new year introduces several new digital marketing trends and changes. But thanks to the pandemic, 2021 is not expected to be one of the regular new years. Consumer habits have massively changed, and 2021 is expected to be a year full of understanding these changes and adjusting digital strategies to fulfil their expectations.
Focus on the digital marketing trends discussed in this post to start working on your marketing strategy and make 2021 a year full of growth and success.
