Running a successful business requires a “glimpse into the future” aside from everything else. Hearing predictions for the upcoming year and what to expect from them is always an awesome thing. That way you can stay on guard, and not be unpleasantly suppressed by a big new trend that just smashed its way in like a brick through a window. Of course, the problem is that everyone makes predictions and assumptions. This will be big, or that will collapse, it’s all rumors.
So what to do with all that information? A good piece of advice is to be realistic, a year won’t change much. You can see where and how things are moving, yourself. However there is that old saying, “Expect the unexpected”, or “Prepare for the worst and hope for the best”. This is just common wisdom for any situation – nevertheless, it is a good idea to apply it for the upcoming year.
Video Expansion
Video consumption grew in 2016. It became useful to implement videos to your marketing agenda, and the feedback was quite positive. Video use will probably explode in 2017. Why? Because it’s effective, that’s why. Videos generate more leads, more sales, more everything. People like to watch, more than they like to read, or at least so it seems. If you want a good marketing strategy for 2017 – use more videos. If you can make them interesting enough, you can create longer videos in a form of series that will lure people to come back and watch more. Also, you can stick to the good old short, attention-catching videos.
The Advertisement Giants
Predictions say brands like Google, Facebook and Amazon will advance even further in 2017, while their competition will fall back. This is more of a common sense than it is a prediction. The biggest industries in “the” industry are stomping on everything that stands in their way. Big surprise! Who didn’t see that coming? Realistically, here is one Martech trend that will continue into this year. Stick to Google and Facebook for advertisement and you will be fine. Social Networks still remain the foothold of digital marketing. However, it might be a good idea to improve your Social Network marketing strategies.
Social Networks may increase demand for quality and quantity of content. It is important to always stay organized and up to date with your marketing. You may want to add some tools to help you, if you haven’t already done so. There are plenty of tools that can be of great assistance, like tools for automation of Social Network posts, tools that measure marketing effectiveness or some kind of schedule template to help you organize. Be prepared for the upcoming content storm in advance.
Mobile Friendly
This prediction is quite certain. The increase of mobile internet data is imminent. In terms of martech, it may go from mobile-friendly to mobile-must in the upcoming year. Needless to say, those who haven’t made their websites optimized for mobile usage are going to be in trouble. If reading this made you nervous, then go optimize it, like – yesterday. Certainty is there because predictions say 75% of internet usage will be mobile in 2017.
Predictions from the Industry
Martech is facing a major upgrade that goes side by side with technological advancement. Both martech and adtech will probably consolidate in 2017. Also there a few other trends to keep an eye on in 2017.
- Bots and Chatbots – As the consumer’s numbers grow so does their communication with brands. To respond to such high number of inquiries has become important. Now brands are implementing chat bots that will utilize AI and machine learning, for full personalization of communications.
- Artificial Intelligence and Machine learning – Aside from chat bots, AI and Machine learning will surely impact personalization with the prediction of customer behavior, learning from them and presenting customers with best offers based on its prediction.
- Live streaming – Brands are already taking interest in this method of advertisement, taking users inside their house for a sneak peek. This has generated a lot of attention, and it will most likely generate even more in 2017.
- Personalization and Location marketing – Personalization of data has grown vastly over the years, and will most likely continue to do so. Will it come to a point where your search results are defined by your browsing history from a few months ago, systematically pointing out your preferences? Only time will tell. Alongside personalization comes location marketing or “contextual marketing” with the ability to hit you at the right moment with the right message using beacons, and geo-targeting-geo-fencing. With these two combined, marketer’s potential is truly infinite.
What awaits us in 2017 is predictable and unpredictable at the same time. The tides of marketing can shift and turn at any moment. However, as mentioned before, staying realistic and keeping a close eye on the trends is the key when it comes to playing it safe for your marketing campaign.
