8 Digital Marketing Trends To Pay Attention To In 2020

2020 flipped everything upside down. Just as things were beginning to look up, the government announced a second COVID-19 wave and with it the highest level of national restrictions. Ireland became the first European country to announce a second lockdown. While the government’s stimulus program has helped boost the domestic economy and established companies such as DPD have been hiring new talent, a prolonged health crisis could dim Ireland’s economic growth. According to FocusEconomics, the country’s GDP is projected to grow by 4.3% in the coming year. This is a decline from October’s forecast of 4.7%.

One thing’s for sure though. The shift in digital marketing trends can’t be ignored regardless of your industry or products you offer. Only a while back, brands treated the need for an online presence as a mere formality. Now it’s a necessity for any business that wants to survive the economic slowdown. The message is clear, adapt or get left behind. These are the emerging digital marketing trends that are shaping online marketing in 2020:

1. Facebook is peaking, Instagram is taking over

Image/ Pew Research Center

Facebook and Instagram are among the world’s largest social media platforms. They’re also owned by the same company. But for a long time, Facebook has ruled the world of social media. It still has the highest number of active users. It’s, however, losing the younger generation to more visual and interactive platforms such as Instagram, TikTok, and Snapchat. According to Statista, only 25.1% of Irish Facebook users are aged between 25 to 34 years old while 18 to 24-year-olds account for 18.1%. For Instagram, 25 to 34 years old account for 30.1% of active users in Ireland while 18 to 24-year-olds make up 25.7%.

Rampant cyberbullying has contributed to Facebook’s declining popularity among the youngins. Facebook marketing is still important, but you might want to consider other platforms if your products target millennials or Generation Z. Ensure that you’re finding value on whichever social media platform you choose to use. Go where your audiences are.

2. Video marketing is important to any digital marketing strategy

In 2020, video content is no longer an option that you have to debate whether or not to include in your digital marketing strategy. The power of video content cannot be wished away. Cisco forecasts that video content will account for over 82% of internet traffic by 2022. If you haven’t started on video marketing, you should get on board now.

If you are still not convinced, here are more video content stats that will blow your mind:

• Video-streaming site YouTube is the second-most popular website in the world after Google.
• YouTube users view over 1 billion hours of video every day.
• Video ads on LinkedIn get 50% more views compared to other ad formats.
• 65% of YouTube users rely on the platform to solve a problem.

One of the reasons for the growth of video marketing is that video content is more engaging. You can also easily pass on so much information without taking up much time. Some of the types of video content you can leverage for your video marketing strategy include animation, how-to, and explainer videos.

3. Chatbots are taking over customer service

Image/ Wikimedia Commons

Chatbots are artificial intelligence software that communicate with your web visitors and help them to complete their goals on your website. They use both text and verbal chats to give your website a human touch. But it isn’t only your customers that find chatbots useful. It also collects insightful customer data that helps you to improve your business and service delivery. Chatbots allow for personalized and focused interactions between the business and its customers.

Some of the benefits of chatbot marketing include:

• 24-hour customer service
• Instant responses to customer queries
• Reduced staff costs
• Automated lead generation and qualification
• Access to quality customer data

4. Content marketing isn’t going anywhere, but you now need context

Content is still king. You still need to provide your audience with high-value informative content. But you now also have to pay attention to targeting and context. Google released a BERT update towards the end of 2019 that helps it to understand the use of natural language in search queries. Keyword stuffing won’t work anymore to your SEO strategy (it never did anyway) and you’ll have to keep user intent in mind when creating content.

5. Time to pay attention to omnichannel marketing

If you weren’t doing it already, then omnichannel marketing is now more important than ever. Omnichannel marketing refers to marketing across multiple platforms such as website blog, social media, mobile apps, and email. It allows you to offer a better user experience by connecting with your customers on several digital touchpoints. If you’re able to deliver a cohesive and consistent brand message across different channels, then you’ll unlock your potential and grow your business. You’ll enjoy more engagement, better customer retention, and higher order value and purchase frequency.

6. Marketing in messaging apps is levelling up

Image/ Wikimedia Commons

Social messaging are becoming more than just avenues for keeping in touch with family and friends. Businesses are increasingly taking a keen interest in messaging apps such as Whatsapp and Facebook Messenger. For example, you can now create a business account on Whatsapp and make a catalogue of your products. The messaging app 1.6 billion active users who send more than 55 billion messages each day. Messaging apps allow you to create short, personalized texts that are more effective.

7. Voice search is now a thing

Alexa, Siri, and Google Assistant are becoming more mainstream and with their growth, voice search is becoming a thing. If there’s one thing you should from this, it’s that your consumers prefer talking to typing. Content creators now have to shift their keyword research from focusing on text-based queries to spoken queries. To optimize your website for voice search, you should use keywords in natural, conversational language.

8. Your consumers want interactive content

Interactive content is also quicky becoming mainstream. Consumers want to be able to interact with your brand instead of just being fed information. Some of the different types of interactive content you can leverage are:

• Augmented reality ads
• Quizzes and polls
• 360-degree videos

Interactive content is very effective at educating the buyer. They offer a more immersive and engaging experience. Give your consumers content that’s memorable and fun.

Other new digital marketing trends that you can leverage include improved personalization of email marketing, automated and smart bidding for Google Ads, and the ability to shop directly on social media. These trends had been forecasted in previous years. The coronavirus pandemic only served to speed their adoption. Video marketing, AI technology, interactive content, and voice search are taking over digital marketing.

With the current economic situation, you have no time to stand in awe of how fast things are moving. Your buyers have moved online, so should you. Adopting these new tools and technologies will enable you to ride out the dark period and stay afloat. It might be too much to take in, especially considering that there are other business operations to run too. That’s why you should consider hiring an experienced digital marketing agency that can get you moving with the changes and grow your business. Get in touch with us today to discuss your digital marketing needs.