Here are the biggest digital marketing trends
leading into 2019:
Topic Clusters
Search engines are now favoring clusters of
content that surround a particular topic, as opposed to keywords. If you want
to stay at the top of the search rankings, you need to develop these content
clusters that link to one another.
To do this effectively, you need a broad topic
outline that covers the most pertinent subcategories. Then, the surrounding
content should have specific, long-tail keywords that connect back to the
original outline with the same keyword.
This boosts your overall performance since any
page performing well will result in the entire cluster performing well. This
moves you further and further up the rankings.
In addition, choosing topics in which you have
proven subject matter expertise or knowledge will give you an even better
ranking, since search engines are now prioritizing the value and relevance to
the user.
Shorter Video Ads
Internet users have much shorter attention spans
than they once did, so it’s possible to lose a viewer with a long video that
would’ve worked a few years ago. Audiences tend to engage with shorter ads,
such as under 10 seconds, so you’re also getting more for your efforts.
Businesses are more likely to use shorter video
ads in the coming year, so you want to work these into your strategy to ensure
you stay with the current trends.
Chatbots
Chatbots are becoming more popular, due to their
ability to address basic customer service needs and help businesses interact
with more customers. Chatbots also create two-way communication between your
audience and your business, which improves your customer satisfaction and your
response time to messages. Both of these aspects will boost your search engine
ranking.
Chatbots have a reputation for providing negative
user experience, leading many businesses to hesitate to include them in their
marketing strategy. Overall, however, customers are pleased with the use of
chatbots and the ability to access information 24/7, so there’s no reason to
hold back on this trend.
Chatbots also operate in Facebook messenger
often, which has a click-through rate of 80 percent. This offers incredible
potential for how a chatbot can lead to more sales for your business.
Blockchain
Blockchain is quickly becoming a necessity for most
industries, but one of its most overlooked potentials is in marketing.
With the poor attention span of many internet
users, it’s more difficult to draw attention from content and keep your
audience engaged. Blockchain can be used to incentivize customers to watch
advertisements and engage in some way, whether it’s sharing, tagging, liking or
commenting, through a Basic Attention Token (BAT). This technology breaks up
the monopoly of digital ads to trade on the value of online attention and
engagement and reward the audience that’s willing to interact.
Influencer Marketing
Social media influencers are achieving more
influence in recent years, gaining significant followings on multiple social
media platforms. Social media isn’t new, of course, but its reach is continuing
to grow. Positioning yourself with the right social media influencer can make
all the difference.
In the past, businesses were able to have
influencer endorse products openly, but consumers are becoming more aware and
are less receptive to this marketing tactic. Because of this, a subtle approach
is needed to gain the benefits of a social media influencer.
Businesses with successful social media
influence develop mutually beneficial, long-term relationships with
influencers, so both receive more organic endorsements. These relationships not
only provide you with a steady outlet for your promotions, but it also makes
influencers less likely to abandon your brand.
Transparency
Fields like advertising, marketing and sales
have a negative connotation, with the belief that these representatives are
only out for their own interests, using deceptive and aggressive tactics to get
sales.
As a result, consumers are more skeptical and reluctant,
as well as being more difficult to impress. The easy access to reviews and
testimonials also gives them more information about a product or service’s
strengths, and more importantly, its weaknesses.
Now, businesses are addressing this issue with
transparency, openly admitting its own shortcomings, faults and negative
feedback to show loyalty and dedication to customers. They’re also encouraging
two-way communication on a public forum to not only build more trust with a
specific customer but also to show their efforts to other potential customers.
Mobile Optimization
Though it may seem obvious, mobile optimization
is one of the most important aspects of your digital marketing strategy to
address in 2019. Though many businesses already work toward mobile-friendly
sites, more and more users are switching to mobile. Google is even prioritizing
mobile-friendly sites in search rankings.
With so many users going mobile, you can’t
afford to lose a follower because of poor optimization. Small issues, such as
links too close together, a poor zoom function or text that’s too small can be
all it takes for a customer to abandon your site and move on to the next.
Voice search is on the rise, thanks to personal
assistance devices like Amazon’s Alexa, Google Assistant and Apple’s Siri.
Nearly one-third of the 3.5 billion searches performed each day are voice
searches, which use natural human speech patterns to determine the searcher’s
intent.
If you think you can use the same strategy for
voice search, however, think again. Voice search differs from a desktop or
mobile search in that you get fewer results. If you want to be one of the sites
that comes up, you need to tailor your SEO strategy for voice search.
Voice recognition technology is only expected to
improve and become more popular as well, which has the potential to disrupt
marketing altogether. User experience and SEO have been the main focus of most
marketing campaigns, but these aspects become irrelevant with a short search
and no search results screen.
While there’s no clear answer to tailoring your
strategy for voice search, a bit of brainstorming to understand the nuances of
the human voice. How users tend to phrase voice searches and what types of
phrases are prioritized is worth your effort.
Artificial Intelligence (AI)
Artificial intelligence has become a hot topic
in marketing recently, and though many are still unsure of its applications and
limitations, it’s starting to find its place in marketing campaigns.
A widely implemented form of AI is chatbots,
which improve customer service with lower costs and fewer resources. They’re
also quicker than humans and offer targeted, personalized services to any
customer at any time.
On a larger scale, the same capabilities of AI
that make chatbots so effective can be applied to many aspects of marketing,
such as forecasting, personalization, segmentation, and data analysis. The
possibilities are truly endless, so it’s best to get on board before AI takes
the marketing world by storm.
Final Thoughts
Marketing trends come and go, some of which
reshape the industry and others that may just fade into the background. If you
want to be successful in your marketing efforts year after year, it’s important
to be able to identify the upcoming digital marketing trends and stay ahead of
the competition.
Meta description: From chatbots to social media
influencers, here are the top digital marketing trends leading into 2019 that
you should include your strategy now.
Keywords: digital marketing trends 2019
Social post: Are you ready
for 2019? Check out the upcoming trends we’re looking out for.
Artificial Intelligence, or AI, transformed the
digital landscape in more ways than one. Image-recognition software,
semi-autonomous vehicles, medical robots and other AI-enabled technology are
all possible with this revolutionary technology.
For marketers, AI also presents opportunities we
never could’ve dreamed of. With AI marketing, digital markets can improve
personalization and generate better performance and profits, adding to an
already strong data-driven focus.
With AI, the consumer experience can be
personalized in a way that’s easier and more cost-effective. This allows brands
to achieve incredible gains through a deeper understanding of the customer
base.
Learn more about the applications for AI in
marketing and see how it can revolutionize your marketing campaigns.
What is Artificial
Intelligence (AI)?
Artificial
Intelligence is simulated intelligence in machines that are
programmed to “think” like humans and mimic human behavior. At its best, AI can
rationalize and take action to achieve a specific goal, which has virtually
limitless real-world applications.
AI automates repetitive learning and discovery
through data and adapts through progressive learning algorithms. By finding
structure and patterns in data, these algorithms become a predictor and the
machine can optimize itself.
AI works on a much larger scale than the human
mind, however, which gives it the ability to analyze larger data sets and more
detailed data. On top of that, the more data AI has to work with, the better it
learns and the more accurate the predictions will be. Because of this, AI gives
you a competitive advantage, since the one with the best data has the edge.
Targeted Searches
Search engines have come a long way from the
days when you needed to know the exact product name to find what you were
looking for. Search engines with AI are getting smarter and more capable of
discerning your intent behind a search, so it’s able to provide you with more
relevant results.
By using the techniques employed by AI-enabled
search engines, businesses can help customers find the product or service
they’re looking for, regardless of how jumbled the search term became.
As an example, searching for a product on a
massive e-commerce platform, such as Amazon, only requires a general term. Like
Google, it will finish your search term and correct any typos in an effort to
give you the most relevant results. It also provides an advanced search
feature, which offers more targeted searches.
Programmatic Advertising
Programmatic
advertising is the automated process of buying and selling
ads. Advertisers and publishers connect to an ad inventory, through which they
can exchange advertisements. AI helps this process by using algorithms that
analyze user behavior and optimize the campaign for more relevant results.
Like other sales platforms, this is achieved by
targeting consumers with a high chance of converting. Basically, it’s targeting
the consumers searching with the express intent to purchase. Cookies also
provide insights to help AI tailor the campaign.
For example, AI and programmatic advertising can
be used to target apprehensive buyers by analyzing internet trends and
identifying preferences for better targeting. Matching the subscriber, cookie
data, and other data sets offer a clearer picture of consumer behavior. This
allows marketers to create better segments and duplicate audiences as well.
Market Forecasting
The customer experience is an important part of
successful marketing, and it’s receiving more and more attention with the recent
changes to the Google algorithm.
Marketers want to meet or exceed customer expectations as much as possible, as
well as determine if engagement will ultimately lead to the sale.
With AI, marketers can make better predictions
about market demand, giving them the information needed to nurture a prospect
or move on to the next opportunity.
For example, if you can gain an accurate
prediction of how much inventory you’re likely to sell, you know when to boost
your marketing efforts to get the sales. You can also double down on the
inventory you have in anticipation of higher-than-average sales.
Though it may seem outlandish, AI can also
analyze the conversations you have with a customer to identify your successes
and failures. It can then advise you on whether to continue with the prospect.
Content Curation
AI systems can find, compile and present
valuable content to your target audience by pulling information from different
data sets. This is a complement to your content marketing strategy, because you
now have relevant, highly targeted, curated content ideal for your audience.
Marketers can use AI to come up with marketing
strategies based on this data as well. If the content curation is targeting the
ideal customers with this insight, those insights can prove invaluable to
developing a strategy to communicate with your audience.
A similar technique can also be used to gather
information on prospects and send marketing messages to them. Over time, the
prospect is likely to subscribe or buy, since the offer is exactly what they’re
looking for.
Chatbots
Chatbots are a vital part of modern digital
marketing. AI-enabled chatbots provide responses to customer inquiries and
engage customers, leading to greater customer retention.
For example, a large business will struggle to
keep up with millions of customers, even with a full team dedicated to customer
service alone. Chatbots are available to address the minor needs of the
customer, engaging them and freeing up a representative to handle the more
involved questions and concerns. Chatbots are also available any time, day or
night, which is more practical than having a full team around the clock.
Ad Performance
The only way to tell if your marketing campaign
is performing well is with analytics, giving you insight into what is and isn’t
working. AI and machine learning provide detailed analyses and insights into
which advertising efforts are succeeding. This allows you to make more informed
decisions about where to direct your future campaign efforts.
AI shows you how many clicks an ad received,
which country or region they came from, what platform they came from, and other
valuable data. Using this data to inform your advertising campaign will give
you a higher ROI.
These same insights can also be used for future
predictions. Instead of focusing on right now, AI gives marketers a better
picture of overall trends to tailor the strategy for future goals and continue
to increase conversions along the way.
Dynamic Pricing
Predicting future market
trends is one thing, but being able to apply accurate dynamic
pricing strategy is another. This allows you to
optimize sales when the demand is high and find out when to offer discounts to
increase sales. AI is able to keep up with the imperceptible shifts on a much
larger scale than we can, giving you accurate predictions to keep with the
dynamic pricing trends.
Bottom Line
With marketing enhanced by AI, marketers can
rely on AI to determine the effectiveness of marketing campaigns and learn
where to invest for the best ROI. AI also improves the customer experience and
offers better opportunities for engagement, building a more loyal audience.
Regardless of industry, all modern marketing
efforts benefit from the capabilities of AI. It not only simplifies the process
and provides more cost-effective solutions, but it’s also more accurate and
effective.
With so many businesses getting on board with
AI-enabled marketing, you can’t afford to let your business fall behind.
Meta description: Learn how artificial
intelligence (AI) can improve your marketing efforts by providing valuable
insights and analysis for your current and future campaigns.
Keywords: AI in marketing
Social post: Discover the many benefits of
artificial intelligence for your marketing campaign.
Content has become the currency of the internet,
giving you limitless options to promote your brand, engage with your audience,
hit new target markets and provide value to your customers.
That said, content is about more than blog
posts. There are many types of content out there to keep your message fresh and
your audience interested.
Take a look at these eight effective content
types and learn how you can use them to drive growth for your business.
Infographics
Info + graphic, or infographic, uses graphics
and visuals to present information in an easily digestible way for your
audience. At a quick glance, a reader can often get all the same pertinent
information as they would from a longer blog post, making infographics a
popular content type.
Infographics get more views, shares and likes
than other content types, mostly because of how easy it is to absorb the
information. They also have viral potential and are shared far more often than
other content types, and they work particularly well for data, statistics and
research.
If you have a graphic designer on your team,
that’s the person to recruit to create infographics for you. These creative
professionals are experts at creating compelling visuals and organizing
information in a way that communicates effectively to an audience.
If you don’t have a graphic designer, you can
outsource your infographics or create
them yourself with plenty of services. This
route can be pricey, but worth it for the engagement you’ll receive.
It’s important to keep in mind, however, that
simply having an infographic isn’t enough for viral content. To make an
infographic that stands out, you still need to apply the same principles of
effective content and craft a specific, compelling message.
Memes
If you’ve spent even a minute on any social
media platform, you’re familiar with memes. By their very nature, memes
encourage sharing and have the potential to go viral. They’re also quite funny,
in most cases, which automatically gets more attention.
Unlike infographics, memes don’t require any
special skills or graphic design talent. Many
sites allow you to include your own text in a
standard meme format. If you have a funny idea or the mood strikes, put it in a
meme to share.
Memes may not be appropriate for your blog,
however. Memes are a social media phenomenon, so it’s best to keep them on your
social media pages. You also want to be sure that they still provide some value
and aren’t overused.
Videos
Videos communicate valuable information in a
concise, memorable way that is more likely to be viewed by a follower. From
music videos to office tours to how-to videos, there are virtually limitless
options for how you can use video to promote your brand and attract followers.
Videos are a more expensive content option, but
you can start small to begin with and see how they perform. As you learn more
about the role of video in your content marketing strategy, you can put more
effort and expense into creating professional videos.
Guides
Guides are super-sized posts that go into detail
about a topic, often far beyond the length of a normal blog post. They
typically include advanced information for your readers that’s backed by
research as well.
If you want to create guides, you’ll need a good
writer, a graphic designer and the right topic. This content should be top tier
and deliver the message in an effective, readable way, especially given the
length of the post. The graphic designer will need to fine tune the layout and
presentation to ensure the post is attractive and readable.
You can also present your guide as a free
download for your followers in exchange for email addresses, which boosts your
subscriber list.
Book Reviews
If your following reads books, a book review is
a great way to connect with them and present yourself as a thought leader. A
book review can be simple or in-depth, depending on how you choose to do it.
Keep in mind that book reviews aren’t suitable
for all industries, so be sure you have the appropriate audience and that
reviewing books makes sense for your brand.
Rants
A “rant” or opinion piece is a popular content
option, mostly because of its light tone and humor. If most of your content is
heavily researched and detailed, a rant or opinion piece gives you a chance to
express yourself more.
For a business, a rant or opinion piece should
be relevant to the industry, such as opinions on recent news or industry trends
and changes. With this option, you’re not only addressing popular topics that
are of interest to your audience, but you’ll also boost your SEO and
shareability.
Keep in mind that a rant or opinion piece should
be occasional, since constantly ranting about a various topics can come across
as obnoxious. You should also avoid personal attacks or people-bashing, since a
rant isn’t meant to be angry or rude. Also, welcome opposing viewpoints to
prompt a discussion, rather than being guided by your ego.
Product Reviews
Product reviews can help you establish authority
and thought leadership in your industry. When you engage manufacturers,
developers, service providers and other industry professionals, you gain
respect and recognition within your niche.
Product reviews should include brief information
about a product, the creator, aspects you like, aspects you don’t like and your
recommendation. Complete your review with a call to action.
How-To and Tutorials
A how-to guide is one of the most popular
content types, especially in niches that are specialized or technical. With
their long introductions, they also offer long-tail search potential.
To plan a how-to guide, you need to identify a
problem that’s common in the industry, then draft a post that provides a
solution. There’s no limit to the possibilities for a how-to guide, especially
for certain industries.
Keep in mind that detailed explanations,
diagrams, pictures and videos are all helpful in getting your message across
and helping your audience better understand your guide.
A Few Things to Keep in Mind
Now that you have all these ideas for new and
interesting content types, remember that you don’t need to try all of them. Not
every type of content is suited to every brand, so if you don’t think that a
certain type of content works well for your business, don’t worry about
including it.
Still, don’t be afraid to experiment a little.
Sometimes business owners will avoid different content types because they don’t
know where to begin, they think it will take too long to create or they’re
afraid to fail. Many tools are out there to help beginners create all types of
content, so take a chance on something new and see how it performs.
Also, once you start learning how to create
different types of content, don’t go crazy including something new every day.
You’ll likely burn out and exhaust your ideas. Try a few new things each month
to see how they perform, then commit to including the successful ones into your
content calendar on a regular basis.
There are plenty of effective content types for
you to choose from, and the more content you use, the more compelling your
marketing strategy becomes. Content must always speak to the audience, however,
so no matter what content type you choose, craft a message that the audience
will share, listen to and learn from.
Meta description: Check out these eight
effective content types to boost your marketing efforts, and learn how to use
them effectively as part of your content marketing strategy.
Keywords: effective content types
Social post: Branch out from the blog post with
these 8 effective content types that boost your marketing efforts.
A creative block is one of the worst things to experience when you’re a marketer, especially if you’re working with a tight deadline. Drawing a blank for a creative campaign, or even a creative post, can be disheartening; but we’re here to help.
Everyone experiences a creative block from time to time and needs inspiration, so let’s take a look at these 17 engaging social media posts that are sure to elevate your brand.
Company Blog Posts
If your business has a blog, why not share to your target audience through your own business social media accounts? Your audience is already following you, so it’s relevant; and you may find that your content will be shared among them to generate even more leads.
Company Culture Posts
Internet users appreciate transparency and a more intimate experience when dealing with a business, which is why social media has become such a valuable tool for marketers. The best way to showcase your business is with an image or article that highlights your business, whether it’s recent news, an award, or just a behind-the-scenes shot of an office party, providing your audience with a glimpse into your company culture does wonders for your audience’s loyalty.
Industry News
News articles tend to be shared more than other types of posts, but most businesses are shifting their focus to in-depth, long-form content. While this is valuable for SEO, the occasional, topical story that relates to your industry can clue your audience in to trends and breaking news.
To get started, make a list of news sources, trade publications or websites that relate to your industry, and follow them on social media. When they share industry news, share it with your followers on a different platform to stand out and to show your audience that you keep up with your own industry trends.
Curated Content
Curated content is just content from other industry professionals. If you want to share topics that have already been written numerous times or you want to fill in your social calendar without taking the time to craft the post, sharing the piece and giving the original poster credit can help you reach your audience and encourage others to share your content in the future.
Question Posts
It’s a common misconception that your entire social media account needs to be filled with in-depth articles and posts. Engagement is a benefit of social media that isn’t available with many other outlets, so take advantage of that by asking your audience a question to encourage interaction.
Taking a poll or asking a funny question for the purpose of engagement is good, but you can also take this opportunity to learn more about what your audience is looking for from you. Ask about content they’d like to see, current problems they’re encountering, or other questions about their needs, which not only gives you an idea for future posts, but also gives you insight about your audience’s pain points.
Product Videos
Videos get a lot of attention on social media and are more likely to be shared than other types of content, so you should be including product or company videos on occasion to showcase a new product or give you audience a peak into your daily operations.
Customer Reviews
If your business has a lot of good reviews and a dedicated customer base, let your social media followers see it. You can create a graphic with a review or testimonial to post, or share a customer’s post that mentioned your company to show your audience that you have a long list of satisfied customers.
Offer Advice
“How-to” posts and tutorials are helpful for your audience, but you can also condense this information into useful tips that are easily digested and quick to read. Make a list of the most important tips and tricks that you think your audience will enjoy, and post them periodically.
Memes and GIFs
In addition to other visual content, such as infographics, images, and videos, memes and GIFs can be used to put a fun twist on the same old post and catch your audience’s attention. This is not only on trend, but these types of fun, quirky content are becoming more and more popular among businesses. Just be sure to keep the message aligned with your brand identity and target audience.
Contests
Contests are nearly impossible to resist, so starting a social media contest that’s related to your business will boost engagement and participation among followers. You can also require people to like or follow your page to get involved, leading to more subscribers.
Before posting a contest, however, take care to be clear about your objectives, the rules and how you want your audience to participate. Social media contests are usually along the lines of liking, commenting or sharing a post for a discount or free gift, but the possibilities are virtually endless.
Frequently Asked Questions
If you receive many of the same questions over and over again, share a post that includes an answer to these questions on a regular basis. You can also “pin” these posts on your page so that they’re always quick and easy for your followers to find.
Infographics
Infographics are quick to catch your followers’ attention, thanks to their visual appeal and the wealth of information they can present. Whether you have a step-by-step guide, statistics, or other complex information, putting it in an infographic to post on social media encourages your audience to stop scrolling and start reading.
Links to Free Resources
If you have white papers, e-books or other downloadable content for your business, offer it for free in a social media post. This will not only show that you want to help your audience solve their problems, but everyone loves free stuff.
Podcasts
Internet users get tired of reading, which is why videos and podcasts are such popular forms of content. Share a podcast that’s relevant to your industry, or start your own and share it on your social media page.
Hiring Announcements
When you have new team members, take the time to introduce them to your audience on social media. Include photos and a little blurb about the new team members, then ask for everyone’s welcome and well wishes.
“On this Day” and National Day Posts
“On this day” posts or articles share information that happened on this day in history, which people love to read. You can choose to share these posts on a regular basis, or only share when you find an interesting fact or article that relates to your industry.
National Day posts work similarly to “on this day” posts. These include “holidays” like National Coffee Day, National Blueberry Day, National iPod Day, and much more, for each day of the year. Find the ones relevant to your industry and post them on your social media
Live Video
Live videos are popular on most media platforms, making it even easier to include video in your marketing campaign. Using the platform that works best for you and that has the largest following, create live videos each week with a theme that relates to your industry, such as weekly tips or fun facts, to encourage your audience to tune in.
Elevate Your Brand
We hope that this list of engaging social media posts gives you some ideas for how to tackle your creative block and connect with your audience more on social media. While not all may be appropriate for your business or industry, use these ideas to craft your own engaging social media posts that make your followers excited to see what you’ll post next!
Meta description: Check out these 17 creative ideas for engaging social media posts that elevate your brand and give your audience something to look forward to.
Keywords: engaging social media posts
Social post: Running out of social media post ideas? Get some inspiration with these creative ideas.
