Marketing is not as “fluffy” as we used to know it 10 years ago. Marketing is like a microorganism – it evolved, it became more dynamic and spread across various channels. 10 years ago, we were relying on channels like direct mail, POS and cold calling to increase retail footfall, generate brand awareness and increase sales. Nowadays, these techniques alone won’t cut it as our digital shop fits more the globalisation market trend (kind of like “think global, act local”).

When thinking all things digital last year and what I need to do to improve my products, I have considered adding artificial intelligence (AI) to my inbound marketing campaigns to look “cool”, “market forward” and leverage in the mining of the abundance of customer data I receive. I have also considered optimising AdWords rating to boost my Quality score and calculate keyword proximity and combine it with Google Console to boost SEO website results. There are so many things out there to measure, improve, optimise the digital journey of a customer that can give you a headache and break the bank at the same time. So what better to do than start googling “best digital trends 2018”.

My top 10

1. Micro-moments. Mobile-friendly content that is directly targeted at the consumers “real-time”. The average person checks their mobile phone 140 times a day. Brands need to ensure that their content is spread amongst plenty of platforms, from social media to their website to YouTube and even in-store. Any content produced has to be rich, engaging, relevant and helpful to answer popular consumer questions. It also has to be SEO optimised to hit the desirable organic Google rankings, which brings me to the next hot topic.

2. SERP. Apart from the organic and paid results, now we have the rise of SERP features: any result on a Google search engine results page which does not derive from a traditional organic result. SERP includes review stars, image results, paid results that are bought through keyword bidding and any data that appears on panels or boxes. You need to monitor the features that show up on your keywords and steal traffic. I personally use SEMrush to track UK SERP features and I find it quite useful.

3. UX and UI Design. Why should a marketer know at least the basics of a UX/ UI design process? Because it is part and parcel of managing the creation of a website and the generation of a digital experience for the customer. UX helps with the user research, the architecture of the content, site map and its elements and the UI is the visual, creative and inspirational part of the website. Imagine owning a restaurant and wanting to take a picture of a dish for promotion. UX design would be the placement of the cutlery, where the condiments go, the table mat to use, whether the ingredients will be in slices or chunks. The UI is the ingredients all placed, the splashes and combination of colour that gives our dish that distinct “oomph” and brings it to life.

4. HTML, CSS. Might be a niche being a marketer who knows coding, however, reading a bit around the subject never hurt anyone. Same as UX/UI design, having some basic coding knowledge helps with the communication with the tech teams and cast a clear vision so developers build something that customers want. I have seen lately some job descriptions for digital marketing manager positions that state HTML and CSS or Adobe Suite as a requirement. These job descriptions sound very specialised, however, we will see the digital marketing role expanding in the next couple of years to include more tech-based knowledge. User experience will be king by 2020!

5. Mobile-friendly. I do not really have to dig into this subject more. With the new Google ranking changes, if you do not have a mobile optimised website, you will fall way down on the search engine results pages. See point No.2 SERP for additional information.

6. Local marketing. See also community marketing, see also local area marketing (LAM). Because even if you are a big brand, your target audience is segmented into local communities whether you like it or not. Getting Google reviews, for example, increases the quality of the online content and, consequently, the quality of the business ranking. Local marketing can also increase the feeling of personalisation of a product or a service and foster emotional engagement, which are my next two hot terms.

7. Purpose Marketing. It is about time us marketers stop doing something “just for the sake of doing it” and actually give a purpose to our existence. It helps when it comes to strengthening the positioning of the products or services offered and of the overall brand and can really give a competitive edge against competitors. It also helps with the trust and transparency you can build with customers. The purpose marketing article on Marketing Week is a great read.

8. Personalisation. Might be difficult but worth doing. There are so many devices and channels you can use to reach people and respond to their questions at the fastest rate possible. The way I see personalisation is the same way Starbucks uses their app: you don’t have to wait at the queue for your coffee anymore; you log into your app and they already know what you usually order and how you drink it. They even know which store you ordered from last. The only thing you have to do is order your favourite coffee when you are 5 mins away from your local shop. Just as this keeps me using the app, us marketers we need to utilise making personal content for our customers to consume. Not only in the form of apps, but also targeted vouchers, being able to be found on local search engines and even personalised website experiences.

9. Chatbots. Mentioning the speed of answering, these virtual robots can build and maintain relationships with customers who demand answers when they need or want them, without waiting for hours in a callcentre queue or waiting for an email response. This might sound a bit brattish, but this is the reality. Depending on the industry as well, chatbots can be a competitive advantage. And they are not that expensive to implement on your website either.

10. Influencer marketing. Some think of it as a 2017 “buzz” word, others think it is a waste of money. Still, customers miss this authenticity and relevancy of a product and influencer marketing can fulfil that need. Taking quotes from an influencer and using it in advertising or using their photos and videos in some form of paid media can elevate a brand into the consumers’ eyes. Plus, influencers help create content for us as marketers to use and repurpose when needed.

+1. Everything intertwines in digital marketing  because the technology we use to promote our services and products online crosses over. Why haven’t I mentioned app development at all as a trend for 2018? Because not all brands can afford an app. And it is something that we can discuss more in depth in another blog.

 

Thank you for reading my blog. Please feel free to comment below or email me on vdiamanti@gmail.com with your comments and feedback.