As you probably guessed, each New Year brings more than fresh beginnings with it. Every New Year marks the start of introducing new digital marketing trends. While you may not think a lot changes from one year to the next, many things can change over the course of 12 months. Although that’s the case, some of a previous year’s trends may carry over into the year that follows.
Increased Popularity and Use of Smart Speakers
If you’re researching digital marketing trends for 2019, it’s likely you’ll come across discussions about smart speakers. There is no doubt that people love smart speakers like Amazon Alexa, Google Home, and Apple’s HomePod.
The popularity of smart speakers is continuing to grow, with 62 percent of smart speaker owners claiming they purchased their device within the last six months. Some people don’t seem content with “just” one smart speaker in their home as 45 percent of current owners say they plan on buying more devices in the future.
According to a study conducted by Nielsen, the majority of people use their smart speaker to listen to music. What may be even more impressive (and humorous) is that nearly 70 percent of people hold conversations with their smart speaker to have fun.
Smart speaker usage is higher over the weekend, with people using these devices for an average of 72 minutes per weekend day. During the week, people use their smart speaker for about 65 minutes daily.
A separate study performed by Adobe showed that 32 percent of consumers located in the United States own smart speakers. The same study predicts that number can reach 50 percent before 2019 even arrives.
What does all of this mean for your digital marketing in 2019 and beyond? It means your content needs to speak directly to searches performed with smart speakers. In other words, your content needs to provide answers to the natural questions people are asking. Your content will also need to be drafted so that it will show up in search results for “near me” searches and inquiries involving your physical location.
In addition, you may want to publish audio content to smart devices. The goal there will be to earn a spot on a user’s flash briefing the following day, which will keep your brand top of mind.
You should also keep an eye out for more opportunities to run advertisements on smart speakers. It’s possible that Google, Amazon and Apple will develop their own advertising platforms moving forward, which will make it much easier for you to purchase and sell ad space for smart speakers.
Increased Spending on Videos for the Internet
All indications point in the direction of the Internet catching up to television in the context of hours watched daily in 2019. Because the Internet will rival television for viewers’ time and attention so competitively, many companies will probably increase the amount they spend on digital videos while reducing the amount they spend on TV ads. An increased budget for video marketing? Isn’t that a marketing trend we can all get behind?
Continued Integration of Social Media with Third-Parties
One trend that will carry over into the New Year is the continued integration of social media with third-party applications. Having trouble understanding what this means? To understand what we mean, think about how Facebook allows its users to sign up for third-party services through their Facebook accounts. Allowing social sites like Facebook or LinkedIn to integrate with your site can help your website to provide a seamless UX for your site’s visitors, which can increase the power your website has a marketing tool.
Video Will Continue to Dominate
It’s common knowledge that a lot of people would prefer to watch a video instead of reading text about the same subject. With this in mind, it should come as no surprise that video will continue to gain in popularity throughout 2019.
It’s not only pre-recorded video that will be used more often for marketing purposes. Live video will be used more frequently as well. As streaming services continue to evolve and improve, live video consumption will likely increase, which will present great opportunities if you choose to employ our video marketing services.
Chatbots Will Become the New Normal
The novelty of chatbots faded in 2018, which is why we predict they’ll become the new normal in the New Year. In 2019, chatbots will probably become the first place consumers turn to when they want to do things like order a pizza or make a dinner reservation without having to download an app.
Just like your content marketing has to deliver information that your target audience wants and needs, you have to provide the channels consumers want to use to interact with your brand for your digital marketing to be successful. If you don’t have a chatbot yet, consider having a user-friendly chatbot developed.
Increased Social Activity from C-Suite Occupants
With many people distrusting news reports more and more, consumers want to hear from the actual sources these days. And that means consumers are craving more social activity from the occupants of C-suites.
If your CEO is willing to share his or her thoughts about a relevant subject on social media or through another means, it’s a golden opportunity for social marketing. Whether your SEO prepares blog posts, social posts, white papers or delivers a message another way, you can share what the person has to say on your social media pages and/or in your promotional messages.
Regardless of how you use the words of your CEO, increased social activity from C-suite occupants is expected to be one of 2019’s digital marketing trends.
The Seven Pillars of Digital Marketing Will Remain the Same
While new trends will emerge in the New Year, some things will remain the same. Taken together, the seven pillars of digital marketing – website, content, email, online ads, video, social and reviews and testimonials – will stay the same throughout 2019 and the years that follow.
At Musselwhite Marketing, we’re experts at making the latest digital marketing trends work seamlessly with the seven enduring pillars of online marketing. To learn what we can do for your brand in the New Year, contact us to schedule a discovery session now.
