Digital Marketing at It’s Best – Top Trends for 2017

With Digital ad spend finally ready to take over TV ad spend this year, the spotlight is on for digital marketers. In today’s digital world, consumers are getting smarter at a faster rate than most corporations. Digital devices, especially mobile, make information available at customer finger tips whenever and wherever they are – digital marketing is more intricate than ever before. In fact, Mobile ad spend will spearhead digital ad spend growth with an estimated $45.95M spent in 2017 (YoY growth of 45%). Mobile is here to stay and so is Digital Marketing.

The spotlight is definitely on, but where should digital marketers focus their efforts?

  • Innovation
  • Transformation
    • Long term commitment to transform a company’s culture and evolve with business trends and consumer behaviors
    • “It’s the use of technology to create a better customer experience, improve products and services, and increase the effectiveness of business operations.” – insights.hpe.com
    • Goals: leverage innovation “wins” for long term strategies, lead trends (not chase them), trust the process
  • Big Data Analytics
    • The more connected we are, the more data we create – for digital marketers, this is the jackpot
    • “It’s not what you know. It’s what you do with what you know.” – Forbes.com
    • Goals: use analytics to drive marketing decisions, hire data scientists, create data models (predictive and propensity-to-buy), embrace the numbers
  • Influencer Marketing
    • Credible digital figures are trustworthy and influential, but there’s a cost and it’s worth it
    • “[Online influencers] offer not only global reach but credibility and trust.” – 
    • Goals: digital brands should create “genuine” relationships with influencers, include influencers in all digital outlets (video, social, community), remember influencers are human too
  • Bonus: Market digitally for Generation C (Gen C)
    • Aka, the YouTube Generation who are not necessarily in a specific age group, but are empowered by technology, highly engaged, and make calculated decisions
    • “Why are they known as Gen C? Because they thrive on Connection,Community, Creation and Curation.” – Meet Gen C
    • Goalsembrace video marketing, focus on unique content, provide an outlet for creativity, change the world

These trends will impact all digital marketing tactics including as social, email, and integrating marketing, which is why digital marketers have the spotlight. As corporations invest heavily into digital, ROI is scrutinized, but the intangible may have the biggest business impact.

Digital strategy and innovation is every corporation’s secret weapon – use it wisely.