Digital marketing trends have been shifting towards technology and innovation in recent years. Ad networks have made significant improvements in fraud detection and prevention mechanisms. However, there is still room for growth and improvement in this area. As a result, tracking and reporting tools are constantly evolving to meet the changing needs of digital marketers.
We predict significant shifts in this direction as technology and data create insights on which business owners can act. So, what does the digital marketing landscape look like in 2024?
Current digital marketing trends
1) More featured snippets
When you have a question, you type it into Google and select the article that best answers your question. However, the solution can sometimes be found in a paragraph near the top of the results page. This section frequently features an image and all of the information in a single box. This featured snippet is provided by Google and other search engines to encourage users to stay on the results page.
When Google already has a comprehensive list of answers to the question you’re aiming to answer, you need to use this snippet to provide an attractive sneak-peak into the rest of your article – one that’ll encourage people to read the entire thing. Ensure that your article description contains content that will persuade visitors to visit your website for additional information.
You can also make your how-to listings lengthier so that searchers must click through to see the entire list. Ratings and reviews can also be utilized to improve the content and offer information about the credibility and authority of your website.
2) Verified Google local listings for Digital Marketing
Google My Business can help your local businesses create a strong and visible online presence. A Google My Business listing can help with “near me” searches with a geographically specified service area. Customers can discover more about your business by looking for your firm on Google. With a Google My Business listing, your operating hours, address, and user ratings are all visible to a potential customer at a glance.
Verify and update your Google business listing to ensure that the information displayed is accurate. This will also help you to avoid fraud in case someone else claims your listing as their own.
3) Voice search
The ubiquity of voice search features on mobile phones and at home has resulted in a considerable change in how people search. Let’s face it: some individuals prefer to use Alexa, Siri, or Cortana over typing on a keyboard. Our voice searches are not the same as our standard keyboard searches. Someone looking for a steak house restaurant in Boston might type “Steak house restaurant Boston” into Google. On the other hand, this person would ask Cortana, “Where is the closest steak house restaurant?”
4) Image search
How can your brand leverage image search to boost your online presence?
Add high-quality images with descriptive keywords to your online content. In order to use image search, instead of typing in a search term, people typically upload images and information about a product. The search results then return similar products and details on where to purchase them. If your target market uses Pinterest, you should also consider advertising there.
Latest social media trends & predictions
1) Interactive marketing
Including interactive elements on a website is a terrific approach to keep visitors interested and learn more about the business. For example, you could do something as simple as adding a calculator to your website. You’re giving your visitors something useful while also learning about them from their data input.
The following are examples of interactive marketing:
- Tests and quizzes
- Questionnaires
- Calculators
- Competitions
2) Interactive ad formats
Ordinary static banners are quickly being replaced with interactive ads that provide new experiences and engage users. These advertisements can be used to make shopping fun, run surveys, or even immerse you in video game trailers on a publisher’s website. Adsterra Social Bar, for example, is a sophisticated combination of In-Page Push and display formats that entices users with TikTok- and Instagram-style notifications, chat heads, stories, and a variety of other sticky graphics. Why would people glance at traditional banner advertising after enjoying a nice OS-friendly widget or tapping a vibrating chat icon with a smiling girl?
3) Shoppable posts
Having a link to your business in your profile or advertising a specific product/service in your Instagram stories is becoming popular and even practically necessary. Shoppable posts have been added to Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook, making it easier for shops to sell on social media. Shoppable Posts on Instagram allow customers to see, like, and buy things without leaving your post.
As a bonus, you’ll be able to reach out to new prospects, lower buying barriers, and expedite the sales cycle. A business owner or representative must first create a business account before generating shoppable content. Once it’s up, you should link it to your Facebook page and your product catalog.
4) Apps for messaging
1.3 billion people use Facebook Messenger every month, with approximately 10 billion messages sent between individuals and businesses. People want the ease of purchasing and receiving services from the comfort of their own homes, but they also desire the speed of in-person interaction. Social media messaging apps can provide that quick service.
If you want to improve your customer service and boost client satisfaction, then you should set up more communication channels, such as WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, Telegram, and Twitter. With these tools, you can not only make communication and interaction simple for your customers, and personalize them.
Install widgets or plugins on your website so that customers can contact you right away. Additionally, allow conversation only when someone is online.
If no one answers, leave a note informing customers when to contact them and direct them to another way of getting you.
5) Social media stories for digital marketing
Almost every app now has a story feature, including food delivery apps. Social media stories are an excellent way to promote products, events, and even share behind-the-scenes footage.
Your followers will be captivated if you share a behind-the-scenes look, a discount coupon, or a limited-edition product through your stories.
You can also increase the overall value of your social media by:
- Adding user-generated content tagged with your brand to your stories.
- Make simple animations and films that show how your product works. Use polls, Q&As, and quizzes to engage viewers with your content.
6) Influencer marketing
YouTubers, TikTokers, and even successful dog trainers are now considered influencers, and many of them are worth millions of dollars due to the amount of influence they have. One doesn’t need to be well-known or recognized as a local hero to be an influencer. They simply need to have a dedicated audience that is engaged and respects their opinions. You can collaborate with folks who have large social media followings on new platforms to see what happens. A small but loyal audience may be more beneficial to you than a vast but disengaged audience.
To guarantee that your message and objectives are correctly communicated and that you are working toward the same goal, your values must also match the influencer’s values.
7) Social media with NFTs and cryptocurrency
Even if you aren’t a cryptocurrency investor, the emergence of online currencies and non-fungible tokens (NFTs) in the period between 2020 and 2021 has been too explosive to ignore.
On the surface, this might not seem like a trend that will impact your marketing plan, but recent events indicate otherwise.
Now is the moment to consider how your organization can jump on board. You should consider what NFT and crypto-assets can do for your brand. This is especially important now that social media platforms like Twitter are aiming to integrate cryptocurrency payments. If that doesn’t convince you to jump on board, then look at the growing trend for display tools that promote in-app NFT purchases.
We believe that more firms will follow Facebook or Meta in pushing NFT display options and avatars. It would be best to work out how to convert your organization to the new internet, or internet 3.0, using NFTs and the metaverse.
Latest web development trends and predictions
1) Mobile-first websites
As desktop usage declines, more websites are being developed with a mobile-first strategy. When a website is created, it is also optimized for the smallest screen possible to provide the best experience for mobile users, with elements that make mobile use easy to prioritize. These features include small navigation menus, touchscreen-friendly button placements, reduced text content, and collapsible menus.
If your website receives more than 75% of its traffic from mobile devices or your analytics show a constant growth in mobile traffic, mobile-first design is the way to go.
2) Gamification
Consider the pre-digital McDonald’s Monopoly game: buy a Big Mac, collect game pieces, and win prizes. The marketing plan is both simple and successful. Gamification is still a hot topic in digital marketing trends. Examples include playing the wheel of fortune or completing a puzzle to receive a discount. In addition, an online scavenger hunt pushes visitors to scan each page for hidden things to win a prize (a discount, free download, etc.).
You might want to integrate games in your adverts to improve brand exposure and user engagement. Gamification also encourages visitors to come back to your site.
3) Artificial Intelligence in digital marketing
Artificial intelligence (AI) has enabled more intuitive reporting and automated routine processes such as site traffic monitoring and conversion rate optimization (CRO).
As AI develops, it will evolve from automated chores and campaigns to forecasting what customers will want next. AI technology can analyze more significant amounts of data and do it at a faster rate than humans. As a result, it can use big data sets to assess client behavior and purchase history. This can help you with recommending a specific item or deal or even customizing an advertisement.
This form of targeting will increase conversion rates and create the impression that you know what your consumers want without being intrusive or bombarding them with useless offers.
4) Augmented & Virtual Reality
Brands use virtual reality and even augmented reality to give tours of their facilities, lead people through their creative processes, and showcase their products using interactive 3D models. Small enterprises will most likely adopt AR/VR technology when it becomes more readily available.
IKEA has nearly nailed the art of selling furniture and is now experimenting with augmented reality. Customers may use their app and augmented reality to view how furniture such as a couch would look in their home before coming to a store.
5) Google RankBrain
RankBrain is a part of Google’s core algorithm that processes search queries and determines the most relevant results using advanced machine learning.
Google wants to make it as easy as possible for its consumers to find adequate information, and RankBrain makes that possible.
In addition to high-quality content, RankBrain considers shorter keyword phrases, average time on site, and conversion rates.
Examine your content and think about the keywords you’re employing, as well as the type of query or problem it addresses. When combined with your statistics. this information should assist you in taking advantage of Google’s search algorithms and improving your search engine ranks.
6) Personalized content
From calls to action to landing page language, your material must be tailored to the specific customer you’re attempting to reach. Buyer personas can assist in creating content that speaks directly to each consumer category in a unique and relevant way at each stage of the buyer journey. This increases engagement and loyalty while also increasing sales and conversions for your firm. So, what is the most effective method for creating tailored content?
Start segmenting your clients and leads by integrating your CRM software with your CMS or website. Simply including a customer’s name in an email or sending relevant communications (such as weather, national holidays, or sporting events) might help you establish relationships.
After employing personalization techniques, nearly 90% of US marketers saw measurable results, with more than half reporting an increase of more than 10%.
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7) Automated marketing
As a business owner, you don’t have time to email every new subscriber, track down abandoned carts and arrange specials and promotions on social media and by email. This is where marketing automation tools may help. You can create ads and campaigns, set a “trigger” or release date, and then let the software do the rest. It also keeps track of metrics to assist you in identifying problems and making improvements.
8) Chatbots
People still want to take advantage of the convenience of internet buying while also receiving personalized, accessible customer service. Chatbots connect with website visitors using the same AI as voice search and smart assistants. The AI collects additional data to learn more about clients, provide recommendations, respond to questions, and offer a unique experience.
Small and medium enterprises can benefit from chatbots by providing 24-hour service, critical information, and concerns. Chatbots will have saved businesses over $8 billion by end of 2024.
9) Video marketing
Videos will be the most popular content type in 2024. Customers adore them because they are engaging. Since this content format has one of the highest conversion rates, you may promote both new and old products with videos.
To make emails more personalized, deliver information faster, and avoid information overload. you can include videos in your email marketing campaigns. After all, emails with videos receive eight times the number of clicks as conventional emails.
Product videos provide clients with a greater idea of scale and specifications than words or photographs can.
Conclusion
Digital marketing will continue to expand, drawing more advertisers and publishers for mutual benefit. If you would like to make the most of 2024 and draw more customers to your brand, keep these trends in mind. By ensuring your strategy is data-driven, your process is automated, and your campaigns are creative and data-security compliant. you can make a splash with your brand this year.