Technology and market trends continue to change how businesses engage with consumers, and the coming year has a lot to offer in terms of social media and content marketing. Accordingly, it’s time to ramp up your marketing strategy for 2018. Your business needs a fresh perspective with emerging trends in mind.
Social Media
- Chatbots – The chatbot experience is not as robotic as it used to be. Chatbots, complete with customized voices and personalized messages, are being used by major brands to engage with customers via social media.
- Ephemeral content – Ephemeral content, a fancy term for a relatively simple concept, refers to anything that is temporary, and it’s quickly becoming the preferred platform for real-time marketing. Think in terms of Snapchat and Instagram stories. Storytelling with an authentic approach is the best way to engage followers, employing prompts to act fast and capture exclusive deals.
- Augmented reality – Virtual reality is already a thing of the past and is quickly being replaced with augmented reality. Apple and other major companies are taking advantage of the ability to project consumer images into the real world, and social media is exploring how this technology can be leveraged.
- Video – Content isn’t reserved for the written word anymore, and if video isn’t a part of your marketing strategy yet, it needs to be. Facebook Live is one example of how engaging to audiences a short video can be. You may not be able to have a real conversation with your target audience, but video is the next best thing.
Content Marketing
- Automation – Content marketing is time consuming, but luckily, automation is here to help. Email marketing is an easy first step, and you could easily get to a point where publishing and promoting your content is automated, too. This will save you a lot of time and will offer better results. It’s expected that automation will continue to govern marketing strategies, so you’ll need to grasp an understanding of the concept now before your content marketing strategy is left in the dust.
- Original content without the pitch – Consumers want quality content, but they don’t necessarily have to be interested in what you’re selling. Your content is a means of engaging consumers, and your product or service is merely an afterthought. Generating interest in your brand is the first step.
- Transparency – Consumers want authenticity above all else within your content marketing, and this trend is guaranteed to persist into the next year. What social initiatives does your business support? How do you treat your employees, and how do you respond to customer concerns? Content marketing is now about laying down all your cards, and letting your audience guide your venture.
- IoT advances – 2018 will bring impressive technology updates, and this includes off-screen content. How will your content be delivered if someone is driving or listening to a podcast? Start thinking now about how your content can be diversified across new forms of distribution.
Although you might have anticipated some of these trends, others may have caught you by surprise. If you’d like assistance in creating the most up-to-date marketing strategies, contact us for help in utilizing the latest trends.