Online Marketing Trends to Watch Out For in 2019

In digital marketing, looking towards the future is part of what makes campaigns so successful. Staying ahead of your competition can be made easier with predictive analysis. With the latest technology advancements making an impact in how consumers use the internet to search for what they need, better insights into online marketing trends are leading the way for brands around the world.

With ever-changing advertising techniques, we take a look at some digital marketing trends for next year.

Increase in Voice Search and Smart Speakers

Last year’s Google/SOASTA study stated that almost half of customers, or 47.42%, rely on their mobiles for search purposes. And not only using mobile but also its voice-activated speaker function, which works similarly to smart speakers (like Google Home and Amazon Echo/Dot).

As voice search increases, so does the need for user intent and contextual relevance, something Google already started to address with the Hummingbird algorithm. In digital marketing, integrating SEO practices with voice search doesn’t mean you have to throw away your keywords and start from scratch.

A focus on both conversation and long-tail keywords with ‘how’, ‘what’, ‘how to’, ‘why’, ‘who’, ‘where’, and ‘when’ are great to help answer customers’ questions. The more specific you are, the better it will be for SEO purposes.

Think with Google researched how smart speakers have been helping customer experiences and how they’re shaping modern consumer behaviour:

  1. Human relationship with technology. 41% of people using smart speakers described the feeling as that of talking to a friend or another person. People use ‘thank you’, ‘please’, and ‘sorry’ when using smart speakers, seeing them as more than just technology. Almost 70% of Google Assistant requests are made in natural language and not web search keywords.
  2. Ease of life for customers. Smart speakers let customer multitask by not requiring any typing, which also gives them access to instant answers and information.
  3. Brands’ helpers. Think with Google found that 52% of people with smart speakers would like brands to tell them about sales, promotions, and deals, and 48% say they would like brands to give them personalised information and tips on products that can make their lives easier.
  4. Part of users’ daily routines. Checking train times and setting reminders are only a couple of examples on how smart speakers are becoming part of daily routines, as stated by 72% of enquired people.
  5. The centre of the home. 52% of people surveyed keep their smart speakers in the living room, while 25% in the bedroom, and a further 22% in the kitchen, providing fast answers to all queries.

Additionally, optimising your Google My Business listing will allow you to take advantage of this increase in voice search. Searches such as business opening hours and directions are typically done on-site and, the more your information is optimised, the more chances you have of getting noticed.

Native and Personalised Advertising

Modern consumers fight against advertisement, as you’ve probably noticed by now with browsers now coming with ad blockers. This calls for native advertising to provide consumers with inconspicuous ads as they explore websites. Native advertising gives you a more effective ad campaign than conventional advertising because it allows you to have a real level of engagement with your audience.

Transparency is also on the rise, with multiple social influencers now stating when their posts are promoted. We think that platforms will very soon follow Instagram’s footsteps of how sponsored content is displayed, matching the audience’s expectations. And the Federal Trade Commission’s reminder that celebrities and influencers need to disclose their relationships with brands.

With the wide variety of data available through artificial intelligence and machine learning, it’s much easier to personalise your marketing campaigns than ever before. You can measure and target purchasing preferences, habits, browsers, and much more.

And this segmentation of audiences only increases; machine learning lets software like Google Analytics discover even more specific information. Emails, social advertising, and ad banners will have higher chances of reaching your intended targets.

Online Marketing Trends and Augmented Reality

Augmented reality is already being used by companies like IKEA, who introduced a shopping app (Virtual Reality Kitchen, IKEA VR Experience) in 2016 to make your life easier. It allows you to view how a specific piece of furniture would look like in your home and in real time.

Handy, right?

To put things into perspective, a study by marketsandmarkets.com values the augmented reality market at a predicted US$61.39 billion by 2023. With key players such as Google, Microsoft, Nintendo, Sony, and Apple continuously developing this technology, it’s only to be expected that it will become a major factor sooner rather than later.

Integrating augmented reality in your marketing campaign can be done through three easy steps:

  1. Put yourself in your customers’ shoes. How can augmented reality help make your customers’ lives easier? If it doesn’t fit in with your marketing funnel and sales objectives, then jump to the next idea.
  2. Explain the value for your customers. Let your audience know how you can help them benefit from using the augmented reality experience you’ve developed.
  3. Don’t complicate it. A simple and practical experience is all your customers will want, so don’t complicate things if there’s no need to.

Facebook Remarketing as a Tool

With a reported 2.20 billion monthly active users since March 31st of this year and 1.45 billion daily active users, Facebook has become the best platform for remarketing. Many companies use it to their benefit as a way to target visitors and make the most out of any lost traffic. Any website visitors are tagged through cookies and able to be remarketed to easily.

How does it work? A code is put on your website to trigger your ads to start following the tagged visitors around the internet. Facebook remarketing follows the same principle, but your ads are seen on Facebook when users scroll through their feed. This can be a great opportunity to increase your sales and conversion rates on your worst selling products.

Understanding how to better target and engage with audiences in our evolving digital world opens the way for successful marketing campaigns. Get in touch with us today to know how we can help you integrate the best and latest tools to reach your goals.

Written by
Marisa Garanhel
Marisa Garanhel

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