Marketing is all about finding new customers, retaining existing ones and building brand loyalty, among many other things. Marketing as we know it today is about Facebook ads, YouTube videos and using images to promote your brand on Pinterest and Instagram while tweeting about it on Twitter. What are the top trends for marketing in the New Year?
10. Videos, Games and Apps Will Rule
Visuals have and will always be very powerful tools for communicating marketing messages. That is why videos are poised to become even stronger marketing tools in 2014. Games and Apps that audiences can download on their phones will also be used with greater propensity to target, involve, entertain and engage with audiences.
9. It has to Be More Rewarding
Now more than ever, marketers need to give customers solid reasons why they should stay with them. The process of promotion, advertising, brand building, reinforcement just has to be more rewarding. Whether it is a freebie or reward points that enable buyers to get something, it doesn’t matter. The entire process has to be more rewarding.
8. More Power to Twitter
Yellow Buffalo, a Twitter based stationary store recently drew my attention and I couldn’t help but marvel at just how powerful twitter can be for a small business looking to market itself on a small budget. You have to spend little more than some time everyday to promote your offerings with innovative Tweets and that is all. With Twitter ads you can definitely do more on this platform if you want to.
7. The Power of Images
Whether its Facebook photos or Twitter, Pinterest or Instagram you just have to keep unleashing the power of images if you want to increase recall value for your brand and products/services.
6. Cold Calling Is In
Yes, if you are selling services like banking and insurance among others, cold calling is definitely in. It’s perhaps the only way you can have a voice with customers.
5. Collaborating with Customers
Marketing’s greatest impact in 2014 and beyond will be to ‘know how’ to inspire customers. This can only be achieved by working with them to understand their needs and empowering them to find and evaluate your offers and support them from purchase to after.
4. 2014 will be the year of patience
More brands will realize that consistency in delivery of useful and entertainment content is the key to building long-term relationships with customers. 2014 will see the launch of a number of amazing content platforms, as well as a number of brands that actually go out and BUY media companies instead of developing content factories on their own.
3. Building Response Is Important
Building awareness about products and services alone cannot drive a business. What is really important is to build response at every touch point. Every interaction with one’s customers needs to build the brand, deliver core benefits, and drive conversion. In 2014, this will drive all marketing efforts.
2. Audience Empowerment
It is bound to be the year of audience empowerment, hyper fast change and associated reactivity in a lot of areas. Smart and resourceful marketers will chart this course with information and careful planning whereas the less informed ones will realize the importance of information and its power.
1. Content is No more King
Most of us have long held the belief that content is king. In my opinion, this is no longer the case. Why? The answer to the question is pretty simple, if not obvious. Whatever you see on the web (well, everywhere actually) is nothing else but content. Text, videos, audio, images – all of it is content. Which is why content is no longer King.
More trends to spot:
- http://www.forbes.com/sites/cherylsnappconner/2013/12/21/5-top-seo-and-online-marketing-trends-for-2014/
- http://blog.kissmetrics.com/content-marketing-2014/
- http://smallbiztrends.com/2013/12/2014-business-marketing-trends.html
- http://www.convinceandconvert.com/social-media-strategy/three-digital-marketing-trends-for-2014-and-beyond/
Have you spotted more marketing trends for 2014? Please share with us!
