When it comes to the world of digital marketing – one thing will always be true: Trends change and fads fade.
So how can you tell if a marketing trend is something you CAN’T ignore? Or if it’s on its way out the door?
You know I love to keep it real, so you can stay relevant. In this blog, I’m going to share with you my 5 MARKETING PREDICTIONS for this year
Hey, Posse! What’s up? It’s Alex.
Coming at ya this week with my personal predictions to help you level up your digital marketing this year and beyond.
But first, if you’re new to the crew – welcome!
My blog is here to help you understand the world of digital marketing, copywriting, and freelancing so you can create a business you love, find the freedom you deserve, and live life on YOUR terms. And I’ve got hundreds of tutorials waiting for you to read next.
Alright now, let’s get into it… here are my 5 marketing predictions for this year.
We’ll start with #5 on my list and end with THE BIGGEST ONE of them all… can you guess what it is?
#5 – Community-Building
First things first – in order for any marketing strategy to stick… you need to be focused on building a loyal community that shares your values. You should NOT be focused on simply “going viral”, buying followers on Instagram, or doing any of that outdated nonsense to “hack your growth”.
Why?
Because while that type of growth might look shiny and impressive from the surface…
It DOES NOT pay off in the LONG RUN.
You might see a spike in followers or subscribers – but what good is that if they aren’t aligned with your message or fall squarely in your ideal customer audience? In fact, I’ve seen first-hand how “going viral” isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.
I had a couple Instagram Reels go viral this past year and while my following skyrocketed, it became harder and harder to connect with my TRUE fans – the ones that have been following me from the beginning – thanks to algorithm changes that limit reach and engagement.
So I promise you, if you take the TIME (and yes, it does take time) to build a real community by rallying your audience around a shared set of beliefs and values…
Your marketing efforts will feel SO MUCH easier and effective.
Because when you have a community of loyal superfans, who are dedicated to your brand, they will buy from you again and again and again.
In fact, in my recent launch, 80% of the revenue came from EXISTING customers which means I didn’t have to pay a single cent to get those customers!
LISTEN TO THIS: It is WAY easier to turn a customer into a repeat customer than it is to turn a stranger into a first-time buyer. Especially now that it’s getting more and more expensive to BUY people’s attention online.
So why not focus on converting the people whose attention you already have? Even if you’re starting small. A small but engaged audience is FAR more powerful than a large and unaware audience.
So starting focusing on community building NOW.
Over the last few years, I’ve built my community from ZERO to over 300,000. And yes, while it did take time and hard work… all that work has paid off because no matter what algorithm changes come along, no matter how expensive paid media becomes…
As long I continue to nurture my community, my business will continue to grow as I launch new products and programs and increase my customer lifetime value.
And that brings me to prediction #4…
#4 – Omnichannel Marketing
Like it or not, linear marketing is OVER. The old school direct response mentality of “buy, die or unsubscribe” is DEAD. And any marketer who continues to optimize for immediate sales will struggle…
That’s because customers are savvier than ever and are no longer falling for a forced approach to marketing that pressures them to buy immediately or else…
What I’m seeing now is a MUCH longer sales cycle with 53.65% of my customers purchasing AFTER 60 DAYS. They’re taking more time to interact with my brand across multiple channels before committing to buying anything from me. In fact, the average customer interacts with my brand across 34 touchpoints before making their FIRST purchase.
That’s why you need to be diversifying your marketing efforts…
I hate to say it, but Instagram is no longer the be-all, end-all (I know that’s hard for me to hear too!)
With reach drastically affected by recent algorithm changes, having a “follower” on Instagram doesn’t mean much these days…
And the sad truth is that the majority of your followers probably don’t even see your stuff. Plus with scam accounts, spam comments and impersonators out there – Instagram is quickly becoming a place of frustration for a lot of customers.
While I still love Instagram as a platform and will continue to post content there this year, I’m seriously considering and ramping up my omnichannel marketing efforts and you should be too…
I’m talking Messenger, SMS, LinkedIn, TikTok, YouTube, Pinterest, and of course – the GOLDMINE OF MARKETING…
Your EMAIL LIST!!!
You want to give your audience multiple ways to engage with you…
Not only does that build more authority and trust… BUT it also gives your customer control over HOW they interact with your brand, rather than being forced down a funnel and pressured to buy on day 1.
And remember what we talked about in trend #5 – customers take LONGER to make their first purchase. It takes time (and repeated exposure) in order to build the like, know & trust factor, which is why omnichannel marketing is a must for any business this year…
And here are some stats to show you just how powerful this marketing strategy can be…
- Marketers using three or more channels in any one campaign earned a 287% higher purchase rate than those using a single-channel campaign.
- Customer retention rates are 90% higher for omnichannel vs. single channel.
- Omnichannel shoppers have a 30% higher lifetime value than those who shop using only one channel
Yeah. Those numbers are HUGE! So what’s the most powerful way to SHOW UP across these platforms…
Well, I’d like to introduce you what I call…
#3 – 3-Tier Video Marketing
Yes, you know video marketing would make this list! In fact, this has been a trend on every single trends and predictions video I’ve done EVER. Video marketing has been on the rise for YEARS. So this is nothing new.
Video marketing IS marketing.
So if you’re not already utilizing video as part of your marketing strategy, then it’s time to get with the program.
BUT I want to make sure we’re clarifying what type of video you should be focusing on…
I’m sure you’ve heard everyone say that “short-form video” is the future. And it’s all you should be focusing on. But HOLD UP. Because I actually don’t agree.
And while yes, I do think short-form video is great and I love using it in my content marketing strategy…
I don’t believe that short-form video ALONE is enough to drive long-term sales and create a community of loyal repeat customers. That’s why I recommend following a 3-tiered approach to video marketing…
Tier 1 – Short Form Video – GROW
Where short-form video really shines is when it comes to growth and getting a lot of new eyeballs on your content. As I’ve mentioned, I’ve had a few short-form Reels go viral on Instagram. It had millions of views and gave me tens of thousands of new followers
Which is great, BUT…
Followers does not mean customers.
And honestly – the vast majority of those followers will probably never become a customer and might even unfollow me at some point because they were never truly aligned with my message…
In fact, I’ve lost a shocking number of followers over the past month.
A lot of that is likely due to Instagram doing a big cleanup of bot accounts and fake followers, but I’m likely also losing a lot of “fairweather fans” who nonchalantly followed me after watching a viral video…
And then unfollowed me when they realized I wasn’t their cuppa tea and that is AWESOME. Because I only want the RIGHT people in my audience…
I want to find the RIGHT people, and then get them to stick around…
And that’s why long-form video is so important.
Tier 2 – Long Form Video – NURTURE
Long-form video is invaluable because this is the type of video that actually nurtures people and helps you build a REAL community that sticks with you and becomes your customers. Long-form video is where you’re able to actually deliver VALUE.
Because let’s be honest – there’s only so much value that can be delivered in a 30-second video.
But an 8-10 minute video is a lot more valuable to your audience. And if you take anything from this video then let it be this…
Customers demand VALUE before they buy.
Whether that value is coming through as education, entertainment, or inspiration doesn’t matter – but customers want real value before they commit to going any further with you.
YouTube is taking off for this exact reason and that is why it still reigns supreme on my list of hot predictions for this year….
People are craving more than 30-second dancing videos and memes during a midnight scroll sesh…
And if you don’t believe me, just take a look at these stats!
- YouTube is the #2 website by traffic in the US! You, it is the second most visited website in America, only come second to Google.
- Online video consumption has increased by 121% in the last 3 years.
- YouTube’s revenue increased by 21 times over the last 10 years! (from $1.3 billion to $28.84 billion).
- Youtube is projected to have 2.85 billion users by 2025.
So if you’re looking to start producing long-form videos, YouTube is clearly the place to be!
Now, the last tier…
Tier 3 – Live Video – CONNECT
This is where the magic happens! So if short-form video is how you grow…
And long-form video is how you nurture that new audience and convert them into customers…
Then LIVE video is really how you connect with those customers and RETAIN them for the long run.
LIVE video is so special to your audience because it’s totally unscripted. It gives them a real sense of who you are – and allows them to connect with you on a much deeper level.
And connection fosters loyalty.
Now, this doesn’t necessarily mean you have to go LIVE once a week and answer community questions or teach content LIVE (though that is great to do!) You could simply post candidly on your stories throughout the day and achieve the same effect.
It’s real, it’s unscripted. It creates connection.
And coming back to YouTube…
People and Blogs (aka vlog-style videos!) are the most popular YouTube video category, making up 32% of the videos posted on the site. Again, this just demonstrates how much people are craving connection.
Our customers want to engage with us on a deeper level.
Alright, next up…
#2 – A.I.
YES. A.I. is here, and it’s here to stay. But that doesn’t mean we need to be afraid of it.
In fact, we should EMBRACE it.
- Use A.I. to help streamline your content creation…
- Make your video editing quicker…
- Add subtitles to your videos…
- Use it for help with SEO…
- Utilize bots and A.I. chat funnels to help you capture more leads and give your customers more timely support…
There are SO MANY ways we can utilize A.I. in our businesses.
But listen to me very closely – A.I. is NOT a shortcut to building a brand people trust. Adding A.I. into your marketing strategy is a great way to save yourself some time when it comes to ideation, strategizing, and systemizing…
But it absolutely cannot replace the insight, value, personality, and high-level insight that a human can bring to the table.
So don’t fire your designers, copywriters, or proofreaders – just help them work more efficiently and effectively – and get the best of both worlds.
Alright, finally my prediction for the #1 marketing trend we’ll see this year and beyond…
#1 – Lead with VALUE and VALUES
This can relate back to so many of the things we’ve talked about already…
Customers are FED UP with being treated transactionally.
They don’t want to feel like they’re just a “lead” in your business. They want to be A PART of your brand. They want to feel valued, seen, heard, and respected. They don’t want you to shove a product or sale down their throat every single day.
The market is savvy and they no longer tolerate hypey claims, clickbait, or “free content” with no real value. And this is exactly why “the influencer” as we’ve known it is dead.
The market is BORED of vanilla content and perfect pictures that are all aesthetic and have no substance behind them. The same poses. The same palette. The same aesthetic feeds. The same “felt cute, might delete later”-esque captions.
I’m over it and I know I’m not the only one.
In fact, if you scroll through your social feed today, I guarantee you it looks a LOT different than it used to. For one, there are a LOT more videos, a LOT more memes, and a LOT more stories…
And that’s because people today crave something MORE than just pretty pictures and glossy highlight reels.
They want more:
- Captivating and inspiring stories…
- Funny and relatable anecdotes…
- Vulnerable shares…
- Practical advice…
- And values-based views.
People want a connection with the brands they interact with.
We want to rally behind those who share the same values as us and fight for what we believe in…
So today, the most iconic brand leaders are not “influencers”, they are “messengers”.
So if you haven’t already…
Let this be the year you lead with VALUES in your business. Don’t be afraid to STAND for something and call it out.
Create content that helps real people solve real problems…
Then WATCH as your business growth takes off…
Because your marketing “strategy” is simply you showing up as YOU, engaging with your customers, and offering them real value.
And there you have it – my predictions for the future of digital marketing…Are you already doing these things in your business or do have some new things to try?
Comment below and let me know!
Until next time, I’m Alex. Ciao for now!
