In the U.S. alone, over 78% of the population actively use the internet. In addition, as of 2018, social media ad revenue reached an all time high of $27 billion. These are just a few of the many eye-popping statistics that demonstrate how the world of marketing is drastically changing.
Over the last decade, it is easy to see that these statistics are requiring companies to evolve in ways that utilize all of the amazing technology that is being developed. Gone are the days where a person could simply walk into a store, see a product that they like, and buy it right on the spot. Now, even when shopping in a store, you will find more and more people with their phones out, comparing prices and seeing if they can find a comparable product for a better rate. Why buy something right here if the online reviews aren’t satisfactory, and I can have this other version at my doorstep tomorrow?
This new way of life where people are not only spending exponentially more time on the Internet, but are also buying more and more items off the Internet, marketing agencies are continuing to evolve in some incredible ways.
In our article today, we’ll be exploring the Martech, marketing technology, landscape and sharing with you our top digital marketing trends of 2019 that we believe will help companies stay ahead of the curve and keep customers happy.
To learn more about the eye-popping internet marketing statistics, be sure to check out our recent post.
Voice Technology
From Siri to Alexa and every other virtual assistant on the market or on your phone, voice technology is here to stay. As a matter of fact, it’s not only here to stay. It’s here to take the Martech landscape by storm.
Google voice searches and virtual assistant voice searches are on the rise, being used on a daily basis by millions and counting. With this being said, it’s important to note that results are quite different when spoken as opposed to typed.
First and foremost, when inquiring about something, virtual assistants will typically only give one answer or a few options. This is incredibly different from the traditional format of typing a question. With the traditional way, you are provided a multitude of pages of results. So, when thinking about voice technology, it is more important than ever for companies to have higher Google rankings to make the virtual assistants’ recommendations.
Another thing to consider when thinking about Martech and voice technology is the fact that the way we speak can greatly differ from the way that we type. For example, if you wanted to find a good plumber, you might type “plumber” then the city you are in.
However, if you are speaking with a virtual assistant, you would speak more conversationally. Perhaps you’d say something along the lines of, “What plumbers are near me?” So, when thinking about what potential clients are customers are after, you may want to consider changing the tone to be more conversational to match how more and more potential clients are looking up information.
Video
Along with voice technology in the Martech landscape, video is also here to stay. Deemed by many as one of, if not the, most important digital medium to this day, videos continue to take the marketing and technology world by storm.
We’re in a world of constant distractions. There are so many different things that are vying for potential customers’ attention. Whether it’s social media, work, school, or anything in between, people only have a finite amount of time in a day. When it comes to looking for products, less and less people are relying on blogs or articles. We are finding that they’d rather watch a video. In the world of marketing, this means they’d rather watch a tutorial on how the product is used or watch someone using it than simply reading about it.
One type of video that has quite frankly exploded onto the scene is live videos. Facebook and Instagram both have this feature, and if you are interested in captivating your audience with the products and services that you provide, there’s little that will beat connecting with them in real time. Experiential marketing, which is a form of marketing that emphasizes the experience of the brand over the boring facts, is growing because of this trend in video technology. (To learn more about the difference between experiential and traditional marketing, click here.)
If you are in the marketing world and still haven’t upped your video marketing presence, you’re behind. Jump on board before it’s too late!
Chatbots
Let’s say you buy a new gadget. You can’t get it to turn on. You look online and can’t find any answers. So, you decide to call the company to get some answers and advice. You wait for 15 minutes to be connected with someone all to find out that they are going to have to transfer you to another representative who can help. You wait another 10 minutes. After all of this, you find out that there was just a simple button on the side that needed to be pushed. Sound fun? We didn’t think so.
While the example above may be a bit dramatic, we hope you get the point. As a potential customer, wouldn’t you rather instant message someone (or something) straight from the webpage and get the answer you are looking for in less than 5 minutes?
That’s precisely why Chatbots are another amazing marketing trend that will continue to grow in popularity. They are cost effective--don’t require breaks, benefits, etc, and they are also efficient.
More and more companies will be utilizing chatbots to help customers with easily answerable questions. As the technology continues to evolve and improve, there’s no doubt that chatbots and their capabilities will do the same.
Augmented Reality
There are two common forms of reality that are very popular: augmented reality and virtual reality. The main difference between the two is that virtual reality requires a headset and is a completely different “world” where augmented reality is a slightly altered reality. Essentially it’s a video or layering of sorts onto a real image or video.
Many businesses are jumping on board with this idea to give consumers a better idea of the product being offered. For example, some furniture companies have the technology to let potential customers “see” what the furniture will look like in their homes by using their cameras and augmenting the furniture in.
In terms of virtual reality, there are already many companies that are jumping on board to help create a favorable experience for their customers. For example, IKEA is a global company that allows customers to use VR in their app in order to try out different things before making purchases.
With more and more people buying online, augmented reality, and even virtual reality, is something that will continue to be improved and utilized in the years to come. It’s definitely something that other companies should start looking into for their customers.
Artificial Intelligence
In the coming year, the Martech landscape is going to be riddled with all different forms of artificial intelligence. Since, there were way too many forms to count that are trending, we decided to group the rest of the trends together into the category of AI.
This category includes predictive lead scoring, AI powered content creation, pay per click advertisements, and so much more. As machine learning and artificial intelligence keep learning about consumers and how to best target them with the products and services that they want and need, this marketing trend will continue to grow tenfold.
For one thing, using artificial intelligence is a lot less time consuming. Instead of having to program a system with different rules to follow, you can now program it to learn. It will actually learn any and everything it can about an individual, then determine an experience that is best suited for them. This will definitely change the marketing world and how potential customers are targeted.
When you actually stop to think about all of the things discussed and all of the creative and technological ways companies can market to their potential customers, it is quite incredible. From a world just a decade or so ago where the Internet was just picking up steam and Internet shopping was something of a rarity to now where practically everything is available at any time by just the click of a button.
If the world has advanced this well in this short amount of time, there is no telling what the future might hold in terms of digital marketing, and we can’t wait to see what’s next. We hope you found this article helpful in your journey to learning more about Martech and the top digital marketing trends.
