Marketing is one of those things that is constantly changing and evolving. There are methods that are working great today that tomorrow could be useless. This means that if you are a marketer or business owner who wants to get the word out about your business, you will need to understand the direction that things are headed.
There are a number of trends happening that will affect how well you are able to market your business.
1 – Direct mail works even better
Many marketers have brushed off print marketing as being outdated and no longer relevant. Not only has direct mail been going strong, but it is also projected to be an even better method for marketing in the coming years.
One of the reasons is that many people don’t get much mail these days so your direct mail samples or video postcards will have more of a chance to be seen. Bills are paperless and paid online and email is the preferred way to communicate so there is less mail arriving in people’s mailboxes these days.
Since you are able to be highly focused on your targeting, you can be sure that your offers are going to your ideal customer which will bring some good returns on your investment.
2 – Third-party cookies being phased out
Many marketers have been in a panic since 2020 when Google announced it was going to phase out third-party cookies on Chrome. This is going to impact a lot of advertisers and people who make money through online ads. This doesn’t mean that cookies in general will be obsolete or that advertisers can no longer target their ideal customers online.
Although it remains to be seen what form it will take, there will surely be a replacement of third-party cookies so that advertisers can still expect a good ROI and publishers can make money through ads.
3 – User-generated content
User-generated content has been used for a few years now and is set to become even more prevalent in marketers’ toolboxes. This method of marketing works on a number of levels for advertisers and brands. The biggest benefit is the return on investment.
Since it costs less to use content that the users themselves are providing, there is more of a profit margin to be had when the campaign works. The other big benefit is that it is less work for the brand since they are asking their customers to make the content.
As more brands understand the power of having fans instead of customers, there will be more of a focus on user-generated content going forward. It will be more important for brands to keep current customers since customer acquisition costs will be higher.