4 digital marketing trends your brand can’t afford to ignore in the new decade
It is insane to think about just how much everything in the digital world has changed over the last decade. The beginning of last decade – in 2010 – the iPad was just being unveiled to the world! At the time, it was a ‘must have’ cutting-edge piece of portable technology. Now, it would be uncommon for a household not to have one. Technology and digital advancements shape the way that we think about digital marketing – trends in the way that users engage with devices and digital content impact how, when and where brands and businesses talk to their audience. Here are some trends for your brand to look out for in Digital Marketing throghout 2020.
Content, Content and more Content Marketing:
Content marketing is essentially the creation of digital content to share online. Content, or ‘digital assets,’ can take on many forms: videos, photographs, infographics, podcasts – honestly anything! There seems to be a constant stream of content formats that disappear as quickly as they came into fashion. One thing remains the same though: there is always content.
The new decade has well and truly started and it is essential for businesses to create. To create and share content that is branded, engaging, relevant and useful. Content provides… well, content (funny, we know!) for search engines to read. Having this content will increase your SEO rankings, demonstrate your brand values and present your business as experts. It is proven that consumers instantly build rapport with brands they feel provide authentic, unique and useful content.
The importance of video content:
As technology moves forward and content marketing becomes more prominent, different forms of content are going to out-perform others. Video content is becoming increasingly effective for a few reasons; Firstly – it is functional, versatile and engaging content. Videos capture the attention of consumers, while delivering personalised content.
Video content is becoming even more important for brands as the concept of ‘video SEO’ comes to fruition. When someone enters a search term in Google, video results from YouTube are among some of the first to appear. Visually, they stand out from text results, and because YouTube is owned by Google, they are always on the first page. Video content may be timely to create; but it can be utilised for many different purposes. It is perfect as organic social media content, in email marketing and is especially effective as ads.
The rise of ‘single use’ content:
‘Single use’ content refers to the fact that algorithms on social media platforms display organic posts to users at a high during the first 24 hours of being online. This means that unless shared, your posts are circulated throughout newsfeeds rapidly and then ‘fizzle out.’ Even though the content remains on your profile, it means that unless you are consistently posting new content, you are very unlikely to have great engagement levels or post reach.
This is obvious as stories on Instagram, Facebook and Snapchat become increasingly popular. Consumers are hungry for fresh content; they want to be engaged and interact with it. Stories are even some users preferred content! They appear at the top of news feeds and can be viewed quickly, easily and at a very fast pace. It’s a perfect opportunity to post personalised and intimate branded content, without disrupting the overall visual aesthetic of your account.
Visual and voice searching will be the next big thing:
The 2010’s bought with them the rise of voice searches. This came through forward-thinking technology like the Amazon Echo, Google Home and Apple HomePod. Along with these, personal assistants on mobile devices came to fame, with Siri and Google being rolled out and constantly being made increasingly smarter. While devices that respond audibly are popular, content developed needs to be optimised for it. It increases the vitality of SEO as these devices read the preferred snippets that are displayed in search engine results.
Visual searching isn’t a new thing to 2020. But it’s rise in popularity will be. For years, you have been able to reverse image search (upload an image) on Google, to search for ones that are visually similar. During 2019, Pinterest released the ‘Pinterest Lens.’ This tool functions as a reverse image search for all Pinterest posts. Like that pair of shoes? Take a photo, run it through the tool and discover more of what you love! As this method of searching becomes more popular, the demand for content rises.
As always, digital marketing is fast-paced and rapidly changing. It is easy to become overwhelmed trying to keep up with the trends. Not to mention running your business. As you progress through 2020, make sure that you produce genuine, consistent and relevant content, to engage and grow your audience. If you have one mantra for your 2020 digital marketing and social media management endeavors, make it: content, content and more content!
