5 Top Digital Marketing Trends That Are Defining 2019

As omni-channel and loyalty programs keep benefiting from better AI and integration, we see some very interesting trends in the marketing landscape.

Business owners and leadership teams never cease to seek new competitive advantages and ways to connect with their customers. Since digital marketing is fast moving – and certainly here to stay – you’d want to stay ahead of the curve. I feel somewhat fortunate that in the process of providing critical AI infrastructure to businesses worldwide, to mingle with some of the most notable CMO’s and CTO’s with whom we reciprocate so much knowledge. So far, in 2019, we are seeing the remarkable rise of five digital marketing trends worth discussing.

Here’s how these 5 trends are shaping the digital marketing scene:

New Technologies are contributing to improved customer service

Since companies have started integrating new technologies into their marketing systems they are seeing improvements in their marketing efforts. The two technologies that are proving particularly popular and worthwhile are artificial intelligence and augmented reality. Enhanced customer experience is the most significant contribution while they also improve marketing strategies as a whole.

Part of the enhanced customer experience is the personalization of services across the company. AI allows all the departments to have access to the data pertaining to the company. AR is allowing the customer to realistically experience a more static experience. This can include seeing how something looks from a mobile app without actually having the product on hand. It has been used successfully by IKEA, Nivea and L’Oreal to improve customer experience.

The importance of understanding how the digital landscape is continuously being transformed by these new technologies cannot be ignored. Therefore, it is essential that every business person and marketer dedicates some time regularly to keep up with these ever-changing trends. Understanding the abilities of new opportunities, like ad platforms or social listening tools, and being aware how they can help with their digital marketing should be a priority. New information about the latest technology, great new trends and assistance to marketing goals are readily available online through subscribed RSS feeds and the Facebook pages of the relevant websites.

Implementing one of these trends will make a big difference, but incorporating a number of them together will lead to an even better result as we enter the second half of 2019.

Social media and engagement

Social media posts have ceased to be monologues and companies are catching on fast. Brands are now using social media to engage with audiences, allowing them to understand what the customer wants and needs are. Communication includes social listening. By paying attention to conversations about their brand and that of their competitors, businesses can understand the type of content that gets the most response from their target audience.

Further steps can also be taken to increase social media engagement and build personal relationships with customers. These can include: Asking customers questions and replying to queries from them, creating engaging subject matter to post, and responding to queries within 24 – 48 hours at the most.

As we enter the second quarter of 2019, social media continues to be an important tool that allows for continued conversation through posts and comments. User-generated content that is popular with customers can be utilized to personalize their experience. The end result is increased brand awareness, strengthening of brand loyalty and an increase in consumer trust.

Yes, no doubt at SnatchBot we are adding an interesting twist to social: as we enable businesses to run with automated omni-channel communication, where we have social bots working alongside humans to provide a 24/7 customer experience through whatever social channel the user reaches out. This in turn helped businesses to turn their focus onto how chatbots and staff can improve loyalty programs.

Personalized Email Marketing

Consumers have a need to connect with brands, but companies have to realize that the overall picture is what makes the most lasting impression. Personalization is important to the customer and one of the easiest ways to ensure that they get what they desire is through Emails. Personalized Emails result in customers that are more loyal and they lead to more conversions.

Special care should be taken with Email marketing campaigns:

Firstly, personalized emails should not be general but created specifically for the different market segments. The promotions that they include should be targeted, showing the products or services that the customers are interested in. The content should not be long and boring and should make an impact.  Finally, present created content that represents the brand but is also engaging.

Consumers are using their Smartphones in far greater numbers to receive and access their Emails – 84 % of them according to a recent survey. Emails can now be read by consumers through the day as they go about their business, so companies need to make these more accessible and easier to read on mobile devices.

The content of the emails should be personalized and optimized so that it can generate leads and capitalize on the important mobile market.

Geo-marketing trends

The strategy of geo-marketing is not entirely new. New technologies in the field are giving more precise and accurate results. These technologies include geo-fencing, which brings businesses and customers closer. Like location-targeting, geo-fencing allows companies to attract competitor’s clients or to create awareness for their own brand.

Geo-marketing can be capitalized on in several ways:

Firstly, geo-marketing can be used to the advantage of a business when it is focused on areas with a heavy saturation of their target market. Secondly, digital ads can be sent out to mobile users from a specific geographic area. This way the business can target consumers that are within a specific radius of a competitor’s store. As soon as the consumer reaches the targeted area they get an ad for the business. These targeted notifications will spark an interest for the brand and will produce high engagement and brand awareness.

Video Shares and SEO

Video is an extremely popular way of engaging the consumer, but 2019 is the year where it has gained even more significance. User behavior is better understood by business owners through SEO. The need for search engines to constantly update is to ensure that user-friendly and engaging sights are being shown to users. These changing algorithms force businesses to adapt in order to keep their rankings intact and video is one way to ensure this.

Videos have proven to be highly engaging, reach a far larger audience, and develop strong emotional connections with viewers. Surveys have shown that video is the most shared item on social media. As a matter of fact, it is shared 1,200% more than text or links combined.  Optimized video content improves SEO rankings as long as it has keywords added into the video title, description and URL.

SEO ranked videos include keywords that vary according to the industry, and it’s always a good idea to make the title of the video a question, or answer to a question that viewers search often online for. Closed captioning can be added to video and the content should be optimized so that it is relevant, engaging and timely. Video should include high-volume keywords so that Google rear them and rank it accordingly. Video that is done properly can help increase social media engagement and generate solid leads. Video also creates an effective call to action and increased sales.

Improved SEO strategy is important for businesses and helps them get to know their audience. In order for businesses to get closer to their target audience they need a precise SEO strategy, and video is a sure way to achieve this.

Today’s business can’t afford to stop finding new ways for marketing their brands and services. Marketing tools are offering the opportunity for a leaner and more efficient way for businesses to run their marketing campaigns, while ensuring that every department contributes to their success. Personalized content, video, AI and AR are just some of the ways that digital marketing is contributing to enhancing their customer experience.

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