8 Digital Marketing Trends To Watch Out For In 2022 And Beyond

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February 11, 2022 Marketing

Technology has infiltrated every aspect of our lives today, and its impact is visible in several industries. Marketing is no exception to the beguiling influence of technology. One simply marvels at how only 65% of the world’s population owned a smartphone in 2018, but today, this number has exceeded 80%. Consumers are now easily affected by constantly changing trends in the digital realm. What does it mean for marketers who wish to connect with customers effectively?

Reminiscing about 2021, marketers are motivated to speculate the future of the advertising industry for a world that hasn’t completely overcome the impact of the coronavirus pandemic yet. It’s estimated that 75% of people purchase their desired objects online at least once a month, indicating the increased dependence of consumers on e-commerce since the pandemic struck. Moreover, customers also tend to search for products online before purchasing them from physical stores. As the scope of digital marketing changes quickly, marketers must keep up with the industry trends to maximize reach and sales.

But how do you recognize the right trend(s) at the right time to incorporate them into your marketing strategies? One solution involves enhancing education regarding current industry trends via online learning courses. Professionals can leverage distance learning opportunities to learn about the future of digital marketing. Executives, marketers, and entrepreneurs can earn an online certificate to better understand marketing from a strategic perspective. If you’re willing to explore the ever-changing digital landscape, pursue a marketing strategy online course today and learn how to generate value through customer-centric digital marketing in 2022. That said, listed below are some digital marketing trends to watch out for in the near future. Implementing these could prove beneficial to all stakeholders in the long run.

1. Creating an omnichannel experience

What will marketing look like in 2022 and beyond? Experts consider omnichannel strategies the cornerstone of digital marketing in the post-pandemic business landscape. How do these strategies differ from traditional marketing? The omnichannel experience involves combining different marketing methods and platforms, and integrating them to create better consumer experiences. For instance, a company may choose to sell products through its mobile app, website, Amazon, social media, and physical stores.

Omnichannel allows businesses to achieve greater reach, traffic, and sales across numerous integrated physical and online touchpoints. This strategy ensures a brand’s continuous presence on all leading platforms, providing customers with a seamless, personalized shopping experience.

2. Neuromarketing

Marketers are now incorporating neuroscience into marketing to better understand customer preferences and how people react to different advertising techniques. For instance, marketers have utilized functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) for comparing customer reactions to different advertisements (including A/B testing) to enhance buying behaviors and outcomes. Today, we can observe companies such as Apple and Hyundai leveraging neuromarketing to design effective technologies for the consumer market.

For example, Hyundai used electroencephalography (EEG) to design its products, understand customer preferences and evaluate which design stimulates purchase decisions. Similarly, Porsche used this technique to improve the efficiency of its advertisements when the company’s marketing and research teams compared driving their vehicles with flying jet-planes. Researchers compared Apple and Samsung to realize that the former activates a person’s brain’s emotional areas while the latter stimulates the rational side.

However, while neuromarketing possesses the potential to revolutionize marketing campaigns, companies are still reluctant to invest in this technique with more vigor because of moral and ethical barriers.

3. Short-form video

Users’ attention span has decreased in the 21^st century, and modern-day customers respond to short form video more than any traditional content type. Digital platforms such as YouTube and Instagram are embracing the phenomenon of “shorts.” Experts say that an ideal video today must be less than two minutes long. These clips symbolize how fast-paced social media consumption has become and how consumers want to digest content these days.

In this way, short-form content quickly engages customers to convey a message. These “shorts” are the future of video marketing in which customers can watch marketable content that comprises just a few seconds. For example, popular artists on TikTok keep consumers engaged by producing short-form content that is quick to digest and engaging in this age of decreasing attention span.

4. Discounts losing favor

Discounts have always been an essential component of digital marketing strategies. However, a ‘weird’ trend discourages business owners from offering discounts now. It’s because discounts diminish the perceived value of services and products a business offers. Customers purchase readily from brands that offer discounts, but these are mostly one-time deals.

The perception of your business may suffer when you constantly slash prices. In 2022, many marketers will reconsider this design, or revitalize it in ways that do not make customers observe the brand as “cheap.”

5. Mobile-first marketing

Smartphones are gradually replacing computers when it comes to searching online for products. It’s estimated that 60% of all digital queries are made via mobile devices today. Also, Google’s mobile-first index approach has compelled marketers to prioritize consumers’ searches on mobile devices.

The pandemic created the environment for phones to become customers’ primary device of convenience. Therefore, creating mobile-friendly content serves as an opportunity for businesses to connect with consumers in their chosen format, thereby elevating a consumer’s experience while ensuring higher rankings in SERPs. So, your content (website, posts, images, and offerings) must be responsive.

6. Email will dominate

A recently-published Forbes article has identified email as the most successful marketing channel in the future. Some marketers neglect the importance of email marketing since they consider this method old-fashioned and ineffective.

However, marketing experts state that a personalized email can attract or retain customers better than many newer methods of reaching people. Since everyone has an email, marketers can communicate with potential customers without bombarding everyone with excessive messages.

Email marketing is also affordable, because of which 81% of small-sized businesses utilize this strategy to nurture leads. Moreover, marketers can combine automation with personalization to make email-based campaigns more attention-grabbing and effective in driving results.

7. Voice-activated technology

During 2017-2018, voice-activated technology became mainstream as customers became accustomed to using voice-related applications. Statistics indicate that over 50% of Americans use voice-activated devices in their living rooms today. Moreover, it’s estimated that 75% of families in the USA will own smart speakers by 2025.

Voice-activated technology allows people to interact with their devices with limited contact. Experts believe half of the online searches may become voice-powered queries in the future. Marketers must discover creative strategies to excel at voice-search optimization by incorporating chatbots to hone a customer’s digital experience on their websites. By inserting chatbots in their content marketing strategies, marketers can hope to engage more potential consumers and provide better support to existing ones.

8. Micro-influencer marketing

Influencer marketing is now an essential component of the digital marketing mix in an age where social media dominates other platforms. This strategy involves getting product mentions and endorsements from individuals with a large fanbase on social media. We can see several Instagram celebrities attracting millions of followers and promoting products online. It’s estimated that 67% of brands today utilize Instagram for influencer marketing, and almost 80% of marketers believe the platform is integral to their marketing campaigns.

However, some issues have undermined the popularity of this method. For example, influencers having fabricated followers (bots) don’t provide the reach marketers expect from such celebrities. That’s why modern-day marketers have come up with “micro-influencer marketing,” i.e., investing in lesser-known social media influencers with a smaller yet dedicated following on relevant platforms. These micro-influencers can authentically communicate a brand’s message to potential consumers. Hence, the future marketing-through-influencers may transform into micro-influencer marketing with a 60% higher engagement rate compared to influencers with irrelevant followers.

Conclusion

The digital marketing industry has changed rapidly in the past few years, and COVID-19 will make consumers even more dependent on online channels to do business. Therefore, marketers must prepare themselves for the trends that’ll dominate digital marketing in 2022 and beyond. These trends include mobile-based and voice-powered searches becoming mainstream. Marketers will have to invest in an omnichannel strategy along with email marketing to remain accessible and competitive. Moreover, companies will continue to employ neuromarketing and micro-influencer marketing to influence buying behaviors and sway customers. Therefore, we suggest integrating these trends with their marketing strategies can help marketers ensure better ROI in today’s tech-savvy world.