When it comes to marketing your products or services to potential customers online, there are emerging trends that will impact you in 2019.
1. The Mobile Experience
The majority of customers are browsing the web on mobile devices. That means you need to optimize everything you do for the mobile environment. That starts with load speed. Google reports that 53% of visitors will leave a site if it takes more than three seconds to load.
2. Omnichannel Contact Points
Customers are interacting in all sorts of ways and they now expect you to do so as well. As technology has evolved, customers now expect to be able to connect with you by phone, email, chat, and social media and move seamlessly between platforms.
3. Utilizing Chatbots
The new customer dynamic is that they expect to connect with you on any platform they use. They also expect a nearly instant response. Research shows that the longer the response to their inquiry, the less chance you have to make a sale. Chatbots help mitigate this problem by providing instant responses. Sophisticated chatbots use natural language processing and AI to answer common inquiries and alert personnel to high-value prospects.
4. Content Marketing
With the proliferation of online advertising, getting your marketing message seen is getting more difficult every day. Getting someone to click on your ad and see your marketing materials is even harder. That’s why more marketers than ever are turning to content marketing as a solution. Creating content with real value gets more clicks. This is especially important in B2B sales, where decision-makers are more difficult to reach.
5. Video & Voice Services
It’s now cheaper and easier to produce quality videos than ever before. Combined with written content, it can be an effective way to get your message across. Voice services, buoyed by the incredibly fast adoption rates of smart speakers, will be more important in 2019.
6. Managing Reviews
When potential customers are searching for your business online, they pay attention to reviews. Positive reviews help creates confidence among consumers when it comes to purchasing decisions. Reviews are only second to personal recommendations when it comes to influencing consumers.
7. Target Marketing
Marketing has always been about delivering the right message to the right person at exactly the right time. Evolving technology allows more targeting to niche markets. This helps get your message to the best potential customers will optimizing your market dollars.
Geo-targeting, location-based targeting, geo-fencing, and custom audiences have now become standard tools. More companies are using data-driven marketing to connect with customers. Google calls it the 5A Model of Data-Driven Marketing:
- Audience
- Assets
- Access
- Attribution
- Automation
8. Augmented Reality
Apps that allow you to visualize products in your environment are becoming more prevalent and will continue to grow in 2019. This includes things like the ability to see a piece of furniture in your living room, for example, or visualize how you would look with a particular pair of glasses or makeup.
9. The Amazon Effect
Amazon has set the bar when it comes to online shopping experiences. Customers now expect every eCommerce business to meet those expectations. Shoppers now expect to be able to quickly find the products they want, compare prices and options, and read customer reviews. They want to buy using credit cards, e-payments, or bank drafts. They want no-cost or low-cost shipping and expedited delivery.
Sources
https://www.thinkwithgoogle.com/intl/en-gb/consumer-insights/10-digital-marketing-predictions-2019/
https://www.dmnews.com/retail/ecommerce/article/21040955/5-digital-sales-and-ecommerce-predictions-for-2019
https://communityroundtable.com/strategy/5-online-community-predictions-2019/
http://www.onlinevideo.net/2018/12/predictions-2019-coming-video-ad/
