Mention socal digital marketing and you are constantly reminded of the changes that happen every day in this industry. We have crossed six months into 2021, and in this Covid-19 crisis, digital marketers are on the constant lookout for new strategies, tactics to gain customers for their customer's products and services. As per industry experts, 2021 is the year when the industry removes the dead dud marketing strategies and embraces new technologies to approach customers and boost sales. This article on "Future of Digital Marketing?" throws more light on the concepts.
Digital Marketing in the Future
A. Shoppable Posts
The Covid-19 pandemic has brought the never-before problems of social distancing and lockdowns in many parts of the globe. With customers on the lookout for easier ways to shop, digital marketers thought of the brilliant concept of Shoppable posts. So, when a customer browses a social media platform, he/she comes across a shoppable post (product/service) with the link given in the bio. The customer finds it easy to tap and buy the product or opt for the service. For example: the Clothing brand, Anthropologie uses the same technique to attract customers. Many brands are soon to follow the cue and shoppable posts will become the future of digital marketing strategies to boost marketing campaigns.
B. Programmatic Advertising
The marketing team finds it difficult to place advertisements on all channels that give valuable information regarding products/services frequented by the target audience. Programmatic advertising solves this challenge as it offers customers personalized advertisements on their favorite channels at specific places based on their interests/behavior. Companies that make use of programmatic advertising are - Expedia (tourism), BuildDirect (Home Improvement) and AirAsia (airlines). Programmatic advertising can be called the future of Digital Marketing, as it focuses on the Share of Attention of customers and can make way for the best advertising campaign. Yes, did we forget to inform you that it gives the best ROI?
C. Interactive Content
Digital Marketing experts are always on their toes to retain the loyal customers of their company, by various methods. The idea is to make customers not only shop but also interact via polls, online quizzes, signing for gift vouchers, and more. Yes, digital marketers will face a hard time creating content not only in words but also in web design. The website as well the social media posts should not only interest the target audience but also outsmart the competition. They also have to take care that the content matches the brand and objective of their organization.
D. Voice Search
There was a time when customers who opted for purchases on E-Commerce websites were above 25 years of age. Cut to the present, even children and teenagers have become regular customers of online shopping offers. And, they purchase a product or opt for service via the Voice Search method. With IoT-enabled apartments becoming famous with households, content managers along with the digital marketing team have their hands full in making the website/product content optimized for voice-friendly requests by digital assistants for the future. They need to focus on long-tail keywords, and also need to have deep knowledge of the target audience.
E. Influencer Marketing
The concept of Influencer Marketing is not new, as movie stars endorsed products/services in radio and television since the 1940s. However, the name "influencer marketing" stands apart. An individual with a huge following in social media platforms (for example, Instagram) is approached by brands to market products. But there are challenges, as the general public has become aware of the multinational corporations signing these influencers for large paychecks. So, there is corporate distrust, and the target audience makes a decision based on the influencer's credibility. This concept will stay grounded and will play a vital role in the digital marketing field.
Conclusion
True, there are other technologies that play a prominent role in digital marketing such as Augmented Reality, Virtual Reality, Artificial Intelligence, Chatbots and more, but we have focused on only the other four in this article. Digital marketers in the years to come will have to successfully include the emerging technologies in their strategies. This is to not only reach the target audience with precision, but also outsmart the competitors.
