Digital marketing trends and innovations for 2019

Some years ago, Bill Gates wrote the book Business @ the Speed of Thought. In the book, He explained how technology and digital infrastructures can put businesses ahead of their competition.

However, the book already seems outdated…the internet in its early stages and the technologies integral to business operations back then are now obsolete.

But the basic premise of the book still stands- due to evolving technology, business moves fast. And so do their marketing efforts.

In 2013, 76% of those asked in Adobe’s Digital Distress survey felt that marketing had changed the most in the past 2 years than the previous 50. Well, this is Q4 of 2018, 5 years later. And digital marketing is still going strong.

1. Artificial Intelligence Will Get a Little Too Good at Profiling Buyers

Artificial intelligence will definitely be pulling its weight in the marketing world this year as AI is now powering customer segmentation, retargeting, push notifications, click tracking, you name it – in a limitless combination of possibilities. It’s even creating content now! How you put AI to work for your digital marketing portfolio depends on your goals and your channels. But if you’re not already working with digital marketing teams and partners who know and leverage AI in their marketing intelligence and delivery systems, you’re falling behind.

According to a study by Blueshift, 28% of marketers are using AI for product recommendations and 26% are using it for campaign optimization.

2. Omnichannel Marketing

Consumers are now more sophisticated than ever and find their information through many channels. Initially, multichannel marketing was introduced to allow prospects to communicate with businesses through various channels.

For instance, prospects can be introduced to your business through Twitter, Facebook ads, or stopping into your brick and mortar store. Email subscribers can communicate through email and website visitors can communicate through chat or comments.

But even though multichannel marketing was a step up from single-channel marketing, it didn’t solve consumers’ problems.

That’s why omnichannel marketing provides a better experience for your prospects because it provides a seamless and consistent communication process to prospects and customers across all channels.

To implement omnichannel marketing for your business, find a customer relationship management (CRM) program that helps you to keep track of your interactions with customers on different platforms.

3. Voice Search

With the improvement in voice recognition, voice searches have been increasingly getting more popular. Smart speakers can be used to order items and control smart devices your home solely through verbal command.

According to a study by OC&C Strategy Consultants, voice commerce was a $1.8 billion retail segment in the U.S. and $200 million in the U.K. in 2017. This value is expected to rise to $40 billion in the U.S. and $5 billion in the U.K. by 2022.

4. Augmented Reality or Virtual Reality

How powerful will your marketing be if your prospects can test your product right now before making any commitment? You can eliminate most of the risk that prospects take when they decide to buy your product for the first time.

Using augmented/virtual reality to release your product ensures that there’s no risk on your prospect’s part and shows that you are ahead of the game.

Here’s a breakdown between the two:

Augmented reality inserts objects into a real-life setting. This allows people to add an item to an environment and see how it will look like when the object is included in it.

5. Events and Experiences

They might seem like one-off blips on your marketing radar, but real-life events where people can network, celebrate, and hang out together are actually fuel for your digital marketing efforts.

Millennials, who now own big-time Fortune 500 buying power, have resurrected record players creating 12 times the growth in sales. This generation grew up in a virtual world, yet as adults, they spend their dollars inordinately on physical objects and real-life experiences.

So when brands decide to appeal to a younger, cooler market, they branch out into the real world, not just the virtual one. Pop-up brand experiences, festival appearances, local events small and large – any unique, colorful, tangible, memorable way customers can interact with your people and your products is the wave of the future

We like to keep our clients and audience informed with trends as we believe this has the power to shape up conversations and help define key strategic approaches to how they pursue their next marketing business goals.