Whether you loved it or hated it, 2016 has been a year full of digital advancements that enriched our marketing life. Now, 2017 promises to bring even more. Here is a roundup for the trendswe can expect to see in the first two quarters of 2017!
- The ReBirth of Influencer Marketing
Influencer marketing has been a marmite topic: you either swear by it or are extremely skeptical.
Influencer fails shake the trust of consumers and have been covered by marketing news, with notable examples like Scott Disick or Naomi Campbell.
On the other hand, influencer campaigns have worked amazingly well and have proven they can be very valuable.
Either way, the shift now in 2017 is to micro-influencers, prioritising engagement and authentic audiences rather than vanity metrics like numbers of followers. Cases like the Beauty Squad by L'Oreal prove this is the way forward.
2. Virtual & Augmented Realities
From people running around trying to Poke-Catch them all to the mass hype of the upcoming Harry Potter AR game, it appears that new technology is here to stay and has the power to drive tangible business results.
This is a fantastic way of marrying the physical with the digital worlds and can have amazing applications in travel, fashion and gaming for 2017.
3. The Power of Mobile
It has been the most prevalent marketing mantra of the past three years, but mobile is marketing gold dust and will continue being so in 2017. With mobile video views growing six times faster and actually superseding desktop views, it is crucial that marketers pay close attention.
However it is not enough to serve content on mobile – now marketers need to optimise and cater all content for paid, earned and owned in a mobile environment.
From ensuring it in the data collection:
To creating bespoke campaigns:
To tailoring the message to the medium:
4. We are now Live!
Facebook Live gave Facebook a new lease of life (and now the Audio launch is opening a new path), with live video is prioritised in terms of organic reach and is becoming a part of people’s social behaviour.
Instagram launched live posts as well, something that fashion brands are harnessing already.
It is crucial to remember that social outlets will compete to get more and more functionalities and brands need to keep on top of them,
Even though the functionalities are there for outlets, the content should have a purpose. Posting for the sake of posting a live video can be disastrously boring. The content should be entertaining, informative or educational – if it doesn’t fit one of these three aims then why is it live?
5. Marketing with a Purpose
Communicating the synergy between a product and its contribution to a purpose doesn’t just help the brand image: Unilever insists that communicating sustainability pledges helps achieve 10% more sales than brands that don’t.
This enriches the story of the product and gives it a feel-good nature that adds to the customer's journey and could have the power to make the customer a brand ambassador. However a really important factor to keep in mind is actually being able to sustain the commitment to the purpose and make the promises a reality.
At the same time, showcasing an interest in the well-being of the consumer can be equally important and effective. In eConsultancy's roundup of the top 10 brands that use Tumblr to inspire positivity in young people, the engagement and social sentiment is clearly making a big impact.
Do you feel there should be any other trends on the top 5 list? What trends are you excited about?