Let’s talk about the Digital Marketing trends that made waves in 2021 & what to look forward to in 2022. (Part 1)
One of the most important tools of marketing available today is Digital Marketing. With consumers using the Internet on a regular basis for a variety of purposes, including conducting their daily business, digital marketing stands to be the most effective tools. Click to know more about how Digital Marketing works
As a company, brand or business, you must stay one step ahead of the competition, and as a result, you can no longer rely on out-of-date marketing techniques. You need to think outside the box and figure out how to use the most up-to-date digital marketing trends to expand your reach.
Digital marketing, often known as online marketing, is the promotion of brands through the internet and other digital communication to engage with potential clients. As a marketing channel, this comprises not only email, social media, and web-based advertising, but also text and multimedia messages.
Digital marketing is defined as any marketing campaign that uses digital communication.
As the year comes to an end and we move into 2022. Let’s talk about some of the digital marketing trends that we witnessed this year.
The Top Digital Marketing Trends of 2021 are as follows:
AI in Marketing
The world has been buzzing about how Artificial Intelligence (AI) will eventually take over every area of your life. We don’t recognize it, but the transformation has already begun. Sixty percent of internet users have used an AI chatbot to answer questions across numerous apps and websites.
The majority of the content we consume on social media sites has been fine-tuned by artificial intelligence (AI) to keep us interested for longer! This technology is so incredible that it is expected to be a $190 billion industry by 2025, and digital marketers have a fantastic opportunity to take advantage of it.
There are numerous examples of AI performing previously unimaginable tasks, such as content authoring by Persuado, has been implemented for JP Morgan and Chase.
AI can perform a variety of tasks and operate as an extension for any digital marketer who understands how to use it. It is economical, precise, and highly effective. With so many large companies adopting these tools, every team should have a strategy in place to incorporate AI into their toolkit.
Augmented Reality
By definition, Augmented Reality is an interactive experience of a real-world environment in which computer-generated perceptual information enhances the things in the real world.
It has these basic characteristics.
1. Real-time interaction between real and virtual worlds
2. Accurate 3D registration of virtual and real items
While virtual reality creates a lot of excitement and gets people excited about big sci-fi notions, Augmented Reality is considerably more marketable. In terms of market share, experts predict that AR will continue to beat VR.
Brands are increasingly employing augmented reality technologies to improve the customer experience and boost revenue.
IKEA, for example, has its own app that allows customers to take a photo of their home with their iPhones and then test drive IKEA furniture in it. Users can move the furniture around to see how different angles affect the appearance of the furnishings.
Another exampl
e is Gucci, the latest premium company to integrate an Augmented Reality function to its app, allowing users to ‘try on’ footwear.
By pointing their smartphone camera below, the user can observe different footwear on their own. It allows users to switch between pairs by swiping left or right. Users can also capture images with the software, which can then be shared on social media or through messaging apps.
Voice Search Optimization
According to Review42’s voice search data, 55 percent of teenagers use voice search on a daily basis. This widespread adoption by the entire generation demonstrates just how popular voice search will become in the future.
There are a few reasons why Voice Search, a capability that we all got with our smartphones around 2014, is exploding this year. To begin with, smart speakers are becoming increasingly popular.
A smart speaker, such as Amazon’s Alexa or Google Home, has been purchased by 20% of households. People are starting to become used to this new behavior, as evidenced by the acceptance of devices that are completely voice search operated.
Secondly, Google claims that they have achieved 95% accuracy with their Voice Search. With higher precision of search, the ease-of-use factor for voice search has jumped up. Now with better accuracy to match what you ask for, and the ease of using your voice to get results makes the process personalized and attractive.
Third, and most importantly, it is predicted that by 2022, voice results will account for 50% of all online purchases. This represents a $40 billion opportunity for digital marketers to capitalize on. With so many growth indicators pointing to the rise of voice search, preparing your website for voice search will be critical in the future.
Personalization
If you want to surpass your competitors and stand out in the market, you need to concentrate on personalizing content, products, and emails, among other things. Personalization is the next big thing, and it’ll soon become the norm.
According to Instapage’s research:
- 63% of consumers are irritated by companies and their constant broadcasting of generic promotional messages.
- Consumers are more likely to conduct business with a brand that provides individualized experiences, according to 80% of respondents.
- Personalization appeals to 90% of shoppers.
Amazon and Netflix are the best examples of the power of personalization because they offer unique movie recommendations for each user.
Another great example is Starbucks. They launched a gamified smartphone app that tracks how many times a consumer has visited, their purchase history, and their location. Customers were able to customize their drinks and get prizes with this customized software.
The reward system feature in the app boosted revenue to $2.56 billion.
Automated & Personalized Email Marketing
Automated email marketing, as the name implies, involves sending emails to your consumers on a regular basis based on schedules that you create.
Email has traditionally been the most dependable digital marketing method. Promotional emails are an excellent method to keep in touch with your clients and inform them about your company’s accomplishments or upcoming sales.
However, most individuals have ceased replying to commercial emails as a result of overuse of bulk email approaches. Personalized emails are an excellent approach to reclaim your consumer’s attention and build a lot more engaged customer base.
According to Backlinko research:
- An email is 6 times more likely to generate a click than a tweet.
- Including a call-to-action button in your emails instead of just a text link can result in a 28% increase in click-throughs.
- In the last year, 78 percent of marketers have seen an increase in engagements.
It is critical for any business to make their customers feel special. Personalized emails do exactly that; they give the customer the impression that the company is much more than a fictitious entity, but rather a group of people just like them.
One of the most effective examples of automated email marketing is:
EasyJet had launched an email campaign that used customer data to tell each customer their own personal story. Customers’ travel history with the airline was used to create personalized stories that suggested and recommended where they should travel next. A total of 12.5 million personalized emails were sent, with a 25% higher CTC than non-personalized emails.
Video Marketing
Video marketing is one of the top digital marketing trends in 2021, and it is expected to remain at the top for the foreseeable future. Here are some statistics that demonstrate the significance of including a video in your list of digital marketing current trends. View the importance of video Marketing
According to Impactplus’s research:
- 72 percent of businesses report that videos have increased their conversion rate.
- 70% of consumers say they have shared brand videos.
- 52 percent of consumers say that watching product videos increases their confidence in making online purchases.
- Users are 50 times more likely to be driven by video content than by plain text.
According to Seotribunal, a video on your website is 50 times more likely to generate organic search results than plain text. What causes this to happen? Because users perceive video material to be more engaging, and Google prioritizes such sites in its search results.
However, simply making one video after another is insufficient. You should be aware of current video marketing trends, which include the following:
- Live streams on mobile
- Short-form videos
- user-generated video content
- Online Training & Educational Videos
- Video advertising
- Interactive AR content
- Shoppable Videos
- Virtual Events
And that’s a wrap for part one of our digital marketing trends list. Part two is coming soon with some very important trends that were an ace in digital marketing trends the past year and will continue to be important in 2022. Stay tuned!