Digital Marketing Trends to watch out for in 2020 [Guest Post]
Welcome to 2020 – a year where standing out online is (again) more important than the year before. So, let’s talk about where to focus your digital marketing strategies. If you were an expert in 2019, you might still be a little lost. Marketing is a space that constantly changes.
In fact, according to this VentureHarbour article, 76% of people think marketing has changed more in the past two years than it did in the previous fifty.
Here are a few digital marketing trends to look out for and to consider as you plan your own marketing strategy.
Instagram’s Prime
Millennials favorite social media platform, Instagram, may never be more popular than it is right now. It’s viewed as trendy and exciting; a place where everybody looks perfect and blemishes are filtered to disappear.
If you want to get in front of a young and impressionable crowd, you should definitely think about marketing on Instagram. Whether that’s through Instagram ads or just publishing fresh content from your business account, make it fresh and flashy, or you’ll just be another boring post that IG users scroll past.
Influencers
Staying on the Instagram and social media topic, influencers are also something to look into in 2020.
Tapping into another person’s dedicated audience can provide a more personal approach to marketing your brand and increasing traffic. Influencers are able to create quality content that stands out and (usually) knows how to connect with their audience.
But beware: some ‘influencers’ are no more influential than I am. The followings can be paid for and Likes can be purchased. Do your research and ask questions. Get the best deal out there and work with the influencer to plan every detail.
If you’re looking for some positive SEO from partnering with an influencer, make sure they have a strong website with strong SEO.
Video and Audio
Visuals always win. In 2020, I’ll take that one more step to say that video always wins. Putting money into the videos you create is more important than ever and I highly recommend hiring a video editor or finding a good one to work with.
Want to do something a little more involved (and something your competitors might not be doing)? Consider starting your own podcast to talk about the industry you’re in. At the very least, look into being a guest on podcasts relevant to what you do.
In the end, graphics win – but in 2020, focus on Video and Audio. Non-moving images are so 2019.
Snappy Emails
Before I talk about making your emails more exciting and fresh, make sure you include the above tips (about using video and audio) into your email newsletter.
For the text in your email blasts, you better be making it short and eye-catching. Make the subject line bold and don’t waste time when you dive into the text. You have ~2-second window to convince your reader to keep reading – and that’s only if your subject line was good enough.
For your email blasts, do some tests. Try out different content and different CTAs; keep track of what performs best and run with it. According to Coschdule, the best time of day to send emails is 10 AM, followed by 8 PM to midnight, and then 2 PM.
Facebook Ads
Like many other things, Facebook has become completely ‘Pay-to-Play’. And if you want to consistently use the social media monster to grow your business, you better be ready to spend a good chunk of change on ads.
The good news: Facebook ads can be very effective and you can reach your goal if you know what you’re doing. I’ve worked with ad experts who have a knack for targeting and seem to move the needle very, very far through paid ads on Facebook.
If you can figure out your audience and create the right visuals + text, your business could grow a ton through the use of Facebook ads.
The bad news: there are a ton of businesses using Facebook ads right now. You might have to put someone on the job of solely running Facebook ads and you’re definitely going to have to spend good money on your daily ad reach.
Student Marketers
Here’s something a little different – and something business owners should definitely look into.
In 2020, money is tight for companies and there are so many things to think about. If you can pass on a task to an employee or an apprentice, I’d highly recommend taking advantage of it. You don’t have to take every single task on by yourself.
My biggest piece of advice would be to hire a digital marketing apprentice to take over some of your digital marketing strategies. They are ambitious and excited, and they might have a better feel for what will connect with a millennial audience.
Whether it’s creating your visuals, or writing articles for your blog, or scheduling your social media posts – you should look into taking on a student marketer! You’ll help them out by providing real work experience, and you’ll help yourself out as well.
