Digital marketing trends to watch for businesses and brands to have their best year in business yet!
After the last couple of years, it might feel as though we’ve passed through a lot. Whether it’s business-related or in our personal lives, one thing is for sure – we are most definitely living in a very digitalised space.
So if it feels like it’s hard to keep up, don’t worry, that seems to be the norm. The truth is that the industry changes at such a rapid pace that it can seem like we are constantly chasing it to keep up and more than that, constantly running to keep up with what trends it holds.
COVID changed the way in which B2B and B2C companies do business on a whole by essentially driving almost everything to the online space. Now, people go online for just about everything and most of the decision-making when it comes to marketing comes from that same space too.
So given at how much this space has evolved in such a short period and how much the digital marketing industry has had to adapt, what can we expect as trends for the year 2022?
Let’s explore some of the trends that stand out.
- TikTok’s continued rise
If brands haven’t already realised the importance of this social media platform then 2022 should be the year they do. The app is already sitting on 1 billion users and counting and its user engagement in the US is up to (on average) 850 hours per month.
In addition to its incredible engagement potential, the app was also the top-performing non-gaming app in 2021 with more than $110 million spent by users. Brands that are looking to drive sales amongst young consumers should be paying attention to figures like this…
- The rise of social commerce
You’ve heard of ecommerce but social commerce is one of the areas we need to be looking at this year. It’s never been easier to shop on your most frequented social media platform. During the pandemic, brands flocked to the different platforms and while the world is making its way back from that life, the social commerce concept has stuck.
In fact, it’s so strong as a trend for 2022, a recent Accenture study showed that social commerce has a growth rate that is 3 times faster than traditional eCommerce.
Still asking yourself if you should get in on social commerce? Apps like TikTok are partnering up with Shopify, Instagram is developing their shopping accessibility within the app, YouTube is enhancing their shoppable tags and you can even shop directly on Pinterest!
- Get ready for the YouTube explosion
While consumers seem to be moving more and more away from traditional TV, platforms like YouTube are giants waiting to be awakened in 2022. The potential that exists in this area with advertising spending is huge and if the figures are anything to look at (2021 YouTube global revenue $29 billion) then it’s really easy to understand that YouTube is competing up there with the likes of Netflix and its competitors.
- Storytelling and its social impact
You have no doubt realised that we’ve moved into an age where consumers are conscious about their decisions. Because of this shift, the ability for brands to remain transparent with their audiences is not an option, it’s necessary.
On par with this shift in consumerism is the fact that the trend of impactful storytelling is here to stay. It’s all about being able to create content that immerses your audience and puts them front and centre to your brand’s values, voice and style.
Brands need to focus on things like customer reviews and visual content that tell the story of your brand from different perspectives and in the most natural way possible.
Now is the moment to actively engage your audience and captivate them with the impact your brand can make.
- Consumer-driven content is KING
Gone are the days of shooting in the dark about what irks your audience and then trying to sell to them. Now, if your content is not consumer-driven you may as well be shooting in the dark.
This kind of content not only puts the needs of your audience first but helps you focus on the needs of your clients to help serve them better. How to achieve this? Easy, make sure things like surveys, polls, and any data you collect from your audience are used to help them solve their problems.
From being able to pinpoint what data your audience engages with to what bothers them and why you will be able to change the landscape of what messages you put out there for your clients. You will be talking to their pain points directly and addressing their issues and helping them figure it out.
Don’t be afraid to regularly ask your audience and clients what they want.
- The power of influencers
Tired of hearing about influencers? Maybe it’s time to change the way you look at this economy. Between 2019 and 2021, the influencer economy grew from $6.5 billion to $13.8 billion.
So what does that mean?
It means that never has the time been more right than to collaborate with influencers to help you reach bigger audiences and increase your sales.
Find out the kind of influencers your target market follows and bring your product/service to them. Get them on board and make influencer marketing an active part of your sales strategy.
Not only does this have the potential to promote your brand and take it to new heights with the potential of going viral but the audiences who follow the influencers can be more susceptible to discovering your product over someone else’s in this very large pool of things available to buy.
- Put accessibility HIGH on your list of objectives
2022 seems to be the year for making sure brands are made aware of the importance of inclusivity and digital accessibility means reducing barriers to enjoying a system’s design, tools, and technologies.
This is about putting your brand out there for everyone to enjoy equally and ensuring that your website to social media platforms is considered accessible.
Let’s put it this way, gone are the days when a lack of accessibility does not have the potential to stunt your business’s success.
Final thoughts
No one says the above trends are set in stone, nor are they the definitive list but for a brand that wants to make an impact and be successful online, these are the starting point that people should be looking at.
Not paying attention to the ever-changing trends can and will eventually hurt your business and your clients will be able to feel your insensitivity.
The last thing you want is for your business to have survived the last 2 years of the pandemic only to crumble because you were not in tune with the growing changes in the digital landscape.