It seems there’s a new digital marketing trend every day of the week, making it easy to get completely overwhelmed and avoid social media for business altogether. Nonetheless, all digital media trends follow the innovation in the tech field and can help you adapt to consumers behavior like never before.
Utilizing these new customer touch-points has the potential to skyrocket your sales and give you a competitive edge. So stick around to explore the top 6 digital marketing trends that can double your income in 2020 and help you establish an omni-channel presence.
Instagram Isn’t Just For Posting Your Breakfast
According to the 2020 We Are Social report, there are over 1 billion active users on Instagram, with a 5.7% growth by quarter. 15% of Instagram users are over 13 and can be reached with advertising.
Facebook loses control over social media marketing services and it’s considered a ‘platform for old folks.’ It’s worth mentioning that the Instagram user base is the younger demographic – people under 30 – and it has the reputation of the platform that keeps up with the trends. Many would argue, Instagram’s rapid growth rate will eventually make Facebook obsolete and will help establish it as the most popular social media platform on the English-speaking web.
One more important reason why Instagram will blow the marketing world’s mind is visual content. Where can you get free digital marketing images and videos? Right, on Instagram. All its features like time-lapse video, “Throwback Monday” themes, stories where you can show behind-the-scenes life (they are more popular than the post BTW) mean that customers will be more engaged with your company.
You can reach your potential clients on the go. There is a desktop version for Instagram but who uses it? I can open it on my laptop only if my mobile phone has died – mobile version it’s where all the action is! And this is a real boon for social media specialists – you can get your clients wherever they are, whenever you want.
The Era of Voice Chat-Bots for Smart Retail
Believe it or not, chatbots will rule the digital world. According to Business Insider, more than 80% of businesses will use chatbots by the end of 2020.
What is it and why is it so popular?
A chatbot is a virtual assistant who streamlines your communication with consumers for their frequently asked questions. Applied to eCommerce, chatbots also guide customers through the sales funnel, help them find a desired product faster, place an order, make an online payment and follow the delivery process.
Chatbots are the driving force behind many digital services since unlike the live support assistant, a chat bot:
- is available 24/7;
- instantly responds to all clients’ queries;
- doesn’t require an intermittent schedule, management or training.
Customers often prefer chatbots to real assistants for an accurate buying history record, fast replies and reduced frustration from waiting time on the operator’s phone line. For instance, MasterCard switched to chatbots with natural language processing on Facebook, to streamline user payments:
Also, chatbots improve the convenience of your site. The clients don’t have to look for the number or type a long email if they have some questions about your product. By contrast, they quickly get what they want and leave your site absolutely satisfied.
Interactive Content is the Future
We bet you had to create content at least once in your life (the Facebook posts also count). All content creators have an aim to engage their audience and stay data-driven with their content. In 2017, a simple post could make a good conversion rate of your site, but we live in 2020 where the technology isn’t at a standstill.
Interactive content marketing is your up-to-date solution where the user can take part in the content, click on it, scroll, swipe, and interact with others online. For instance, social media influences can now tag products in their Instagram Stories that will allow users to buy them without leaving the platform:
But remember that this kind of digital marketing service isn’t focused on aggressive CTAs or irritating pop-ups. Its aim is to help a user get insights without the feeling of being triggered and enjoy the process.
Interactive content will give your business a competitive edge and engage your audience.
Voice-responsive Technology is Elevating the Industry
“Love it, hate it or barely use it, voice search is a modern marvel that will influence how content is discovered on the web,” writes Dominick Sorrentino from BRANTON.
Yes, that’s true – research shows that 50% of all searches are currently conducted via voice search. Why? People love talking, and this way is much easier than typing. Siri, Alexa, and Google Voice Search showed that the voice searching tendency is continuing to rise.
However, there are some challenges you can face. The site conversion may be lower as people will hear only one answer to their question and there won’t be any full page to scroll down. That’s where VSEO comes into play – marketers should remember that there is a difference between how people talk in real life and what phrases they use when searching online.
You have to learn the language your clients are using when searching for a particular product.
Typing style: cinema hours
Voice style: show me the hours for the cinema
Typing style: best Chinese restaurants in my area
Voice style: what are the best Chinese restaurants in my area?
See the difference? You have to pay attention to this factor if you want to keep up with a new trend and increase your ‘conversation rate.’
Don’t Forget About Video Marketing
Let’s have an honest discussion here, what do you pay more attention to – simple pictures or video content? Especially when you’re in the market for a new product like an electric scooter or home decor. In a world where 70% of content is accessed on mobile devices, people learn about brands by watching suggested videos on social media.
Live video is a super popular method of digital marketing and engages more people than pre-recorded videos. And it’s not only about YouTube, there are many other social platforms where you can stream your video: Instagram, Linkedin, Facebook.
Also, video marketing makes it really easy to recycle your content for all digital platforms:
- you can transcribe your text directly on the video. It’s where visual and auditory memory combines together;
- write a text under the video for better ranking.
Another kind of video content is a 1:1 video when you create a personalized video message rather than make phone calls or send emails. There you can offer your services, describe products, or simply say thank you.
Moreover, videos are rapidly becoming SEO-friendly and more searchable. Artificial Intelligence can transcribe the text to your video with voice recognition which makes it really easy to search.
Omni-Channel Approach Defines Digital Marketing
“What is omni-channel marketing?” you will ask.
It’s an integrated and seamless experience of using multiple platforms (apps, social media channels, different blogs) to stay connected with your clients all the time. Imagine, that you can deliver a relevant brand message across all possible channels.
For example, BonPrix – the second largest online fashion retailer in Germany – this year opened a number of brick-and-mortar product galleries that allow shoppers to scan tags and instantly buy online:
The problem is that people are overloaded with information – over 500 million tweets and 4 million blog posts are created every SINGLE day! As a result, your content can just fall through the cracks.
Let’s take a look at the example:
- Your customer gets a Facebook message about a seasonal sale while shopping in-store for products in their browser history;
- Your competitor’s fan gets a targeted ad about a seasonal sale for competitor’s weakest product categories.
Here every channel works on you and creates a unified message from your company. Omnichannel marketing puts the client at the center and adapts to their needs and kind of interaction.
With this approach, you will get the maximum ROI on your content marketing while your message will be really seen in the world filled with content.
