The digital marketing space is a very big place – and it’s growing in leaps and bounds all the time. Never sleeping, or even slowing down, it’s an exciting space in which to play. It’s also a complex and temperamental beast. To be successful in this space you need to hit just the right nerve in your digital audience to appeal to them and stay ahead of the competition.
While the rapidly changing face of the digital marketing space does create new opportunities just about every day, it’s not that easy to forecast what is going to happen next or where the next big opportunity in the future of marketing will lie.
Using the latest digital marketing trends as a yardstick, we’ve taken a stab at what we think the digital marketing trendsetters will be in 2017. Keeping up with these trends can help you decide where to invest your marketing energy for a successful outcome.
7 digital marketing trends you need to consider in your digital marketing strategy for 2017
Video content to take off
Users of social media are all about being ‘in the now’ – and they want ‘in-the-moment’ content. Videos have a huge impact – after all, would you rather watch a video or scroll through a ream of text? The answer is obvious. Videos demand very little of the brain, yet they are great for entertaining and educating – and they have an amazing potential to go viral. With the proliferation of smartphones and other mobile devices, more brands than ever before will make greater use of video content or live video streaming to engage with their customers.
Unique, high-quality content remains key
On one hand, the digital space is so saturated with advertising, websites, blogs and social, that businesses will need to rise above the noise if they want to have any hope of being noticed. On the other hand, attention spans have fallen off the proverbial cliff and are only going to get worse as technology advances and people become more impatient with what it’s serving up to them. To cut through the digital noise and address the problem of the goldfish-like attention spans, businesses will need to deliver unique, original content in which every word and line counts. And you’ll need to keep on top of measuring the effect of your content so you can keep tweaking it to meet you audience’s ever-changing needs, which brings us to the next digital marketing trend for 2017 – data interpretation.
Boom in data interpretation
Without the right data to guide it, any digital marketing activity is pretty much dead in the water. To know what’s working and what’s not, we need quantitative information about who’s buying what, when and why. We also need to know what messaging is pushing the right buttons in the leads generation and conversion process. While technology to gather quantitative information has been around for ages, recently greater strides have been made with data visualization tools to enable better qualitative interpretation of the data. 2017 will see more businesses needing to start using these tools in order to fine-tune their digital marketing so they can become better at funneling their traffic into sales.
More demanding search and social algorithms
Whether we like it or not, the enormous amounts of information being added to the Internet every second of every day means the search and social engines will continue to update their algorithms to decide which content gets priority. It’s all about providing users with a better experience by exposing them to more manageable amounts of content. If you want the search and social engines to like your content, it will be best to ensure your digital marketing strategy for 2017 is all about making sure your content is always unique, informative and helpful to your audience.
Mobile to dominate
Look anywhere and you’ll see people absorbed in their smartphones. Any marketer worth their salt knows that the key to success is adapting to and optimizing for the mobile market.
In fact, businesses are already getting with the programme, so to speak, by providing responsive websites that meet the ‘mobile-friendly’ rules of Google and other search engines. So, the smart money for 2017 rests on mobile-focused digital marketing, with the digital trend continuing to focus on optimizing the mobile experience for users.
Focus on niche markets
Given the digital marketing space is so crowded, one of the best ways to get better bang for your digital marketing efforts is to aim at niche markets. Success could be driven simply by going for more targeted, more social campaigns with almost personal-like content. Such a ‘less is more’ approach could actually work very well in light of the what’s happening in the search engine and social algorithm field, which is already forcing brands to be more selective with the amount and quality of content they post. In other words, build your digital marketing strategy for the new year around high-quality, mobile friendly content, which includes video and is tailored for specific market segments – after all, you can’t be everything to everyone. Get it right and you may just hit on the all-important ‘X factor’ that will send your content into the viral stratosphere.
Rise of immersive experiences
Who can forget the Pokémon Go phenomenon that took the world by storm this year?! What it revealed to digital marketers is that users are chomping at the bit for more immersive experiences. Experiences that make them feel they’re doing more than simply staring at a phone, tablet or laptop screen. Augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) are two technologies gathering momentum in this space. But there are also other ways to provide an immersive experience. For example, using 360 videos that make your audience feel like they’re part of the ‘moment’. Hosting live webinars and workshops are also ways to immerse your audience in your message. In 2017, be sure to watch the virtual space!
What do you think?
Let us know what you think the most important digital marketing trends will be in 2017.
If you want help to develop your digital marketing strategy for 2017 – one that will drive online leads through your sales funnel, then talk to us at Net Branding. We’re a digital marketing agency with a proven track record in delivering effective content strategies for forward-thinking companies.
