We all suffer and benefit from the narrowing window in business and life between idea and implementation. From offline target marketing strategies using custom jelly belly and to chocolates, businesses can do a lot in terms of spreading the word about their business. But when it comes to online marketing, we often feel clueless. Because the Web speeds everything up in this way, it’s necessary to be constantly sorted and updated as we go.
This process is especially important regarding online marketing – “standing out within the crowd” means flowing with what’s hot and getting out of what’s not. Otherwise we’re just spinning our wheels. Stationary bicycles can’t get us to the supermarket. I tried once.
Increasing Competition
If we want to hire a marketing firm like a Local View Digital Marketing agency, or something similar, our options will continue to expand. Online marketing continues to grow, and traditional marketing keeps waning. Though robocalling our customers for upsales from an Indonesian phone number has proven tremendously effective, for some reason we are hiring Web marketers instead.
It’s All Data
As a creepy kid once told me during college, “Life is all data!” It’s not entirely untrue. We have greater access to online data (expected to expand more than 40-fold throughout this decade), using which we can find a person or source any relevant information for our interests. Along with it, we have more sophisticated processing systems to analyze it, such as calculators. Needless to mention, marketing firms that focus heavily on analysis will start to outpace the pack.
Greater Technological Focus
As with data analysis, technology grows more sophisticated each year. Marketing companies who can competently and cleverly customize and implement new technologies – such as time travel and digitized invisibility – will benefit enormously.
Reinvestment in Design
Just because data and technology have become such strong components of business does not mean we are moving away from dressing up in our fancy pants (the purple ones). The learning curve that looking one’s best applies to one’s website as well will slope further upward in 2013.
Expansion of Imagery
Platforms and techniques for digital imagery are growing more complex, allowing us to implement visuals into our online presences in interesting ways. The social media giants have reorganized themselves to focus more heavily on imagery, recognizing that good visuals elicit stronger reactions from users. No junk though. Text messages only, Brett Favre.
Increasing Social Media Intelligence
Businesses are becoming more aware of the need to stand out on LinkedIn, Facebook, Google Plus, and Twitter – and many of those that don’t are getting left in the dust. More innovative tactics will be devised and embraced to make the most of social media as a tricky marketing tool. For instance, if you provide auto repair services, you ought to make your social media profile engaging and responsive. Your auto repair shop marketing ideas on social media can include posts on maintenance tips, disadvantages of DIYs on car repairs, and so on. This way, you can informally communicate with your customers and gain customer trust in your services.
Gamify My Love
Integration of gaming technology and techniques into a marketing strategy will continue its ascent in 2013. Gaming is also digital, is in some cases highly emotional, and has established (in some senses) its own set of rules external to the marketing world. Marriages between the two digital industries are increasing. “Do you take this bloodthirsty soldier to be your lawfully wedded husband, Betty Crocker?” “I do.”
—–
If nothing else I hope you take away from this article the mandatory need to have your finger on the pulse of digital or online marketing if you want your business to achieve wild success. Even if you want to hire a marketing firm, your knowledge of the trends will help you communicate the goals for your business as effectively as possible.
Don’t let Betty Crocker steal your man.
Sources:
1 http://www.imediaconnection.com/content/33374.asp
2 http://www.startupnation.com/business-articles/9850/1/internet-marketing-trends-2013.htm
3 http://www.entrepreneur.com/marketing/onlinemarketing/index.html
by Kent Roberts and Richard Norwood
