Holly Harper, Blue Bike Communications
It seems like everybody is kicking off 2020 with tips, tricks, trends, and “best-of” lists from the past and future. We’ve looked through many marketing trend lists and picked out our top 10 marketing trends for 2020 that are most relevant to small business owners and nonprofits (in some specific cases).
CHATBOTS - If your organization seems to always have the phone ringing off the hook, then consider employing chatbots on your website and mobile apps. Chatbots embedded on your website can answer simple questions by text or voice 24/7, leaving you free to focus on your core business. In fact, 63% of customers say they would consider communicating with a company through its chatbot. In 2020, chatbots will power 80% of customer service. Start by logging your call content with a simple spreadsheet, and if you find yourself asking questions - consider a chatbot!
VOICE SEARCH - If your organization gets more than 50% of its leads and sales from Google Search or other search engines, then get ready for voice search. You may have asked Siri a question, Google Assistant for directions or Alexa to play a song, so don’t overlook voice search for your own business. According to Single Grain, 34% of people use voice search to find information on a local business. Single Grain also reports that 50% of all searches will be via voice by the end of 2020.
AUTHENTICITY - If your organization is B2C, then make sure your content is personal, familiar, conversational, and on brand. According to Forbes, communication should be truthful, compassionate and humble. If not, your customers will be able to sniff out any inconsistencies between your messaging and brand promise. And let up on the gas of email blast newsletters! Customers are much more likely to respond to personalized communications. Kevin George from EmailMonks asserts that “personalized, triggered emails based on behavior are 3x better than batch-and-blast emails."
VIDEOS - If your organization wants to boost its search engine rankings, then consider integrating videos into the marketing process. People love watching videos so Google pushes up the page rankings. In fact, “video is 50x more likely to drive organic search results compared to text” according to Single Grain. Videos can be used across platforms (think YouTube, Facebook, embedded on your website, mobile apps, Instagram and LinkedIn) and can also be published as podcasts and transcribed as blogs. What kind of videos should you consider producing? Product demos and reviews, tutorials, live broadcasts, video messaging, and 360 degree video content are all good places to start.
SOCIAL STORIES - If your organization gets more than 25% of its new customers from social media, then consider starting the use of "stories" in your social media. The idea of stories: short, in the moment content (photos, videos, polls, stickers) that disappears after 24 hours. How are brands using it? The NBA posted a poll in Instagram stories to ask its followers who would win an upcoming game. Bricks and mortar businesses are geolocating their stories through Instagram Location Stickers so users can find them according to Jenn Herman, Social Media Examiner. Social media platforms offering “stories” include SnapChat, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and Skype among others.
CONTENT MARKETING - If your organization sells low volume, high ticket services, then your content marketing needs to be top-notch. Why? Here are the stats from Content Marketing Institute:
SEO AUDIT - If your website is a primary way customers learn about you, consider investing in an SEO audit to find out how your website is performing and ultimately how to increase traffic, leads and conversions. An SEO audit will reveal how individual pages are performing and some SEO tools will help you increase CTR by improving copy, links, meta tags, key words and even site architecture. A must-do for 2020, ensure your domain starts with https//. Not only will your site be faster and more secure, but more easily found by Google.
SHOPPABLE SOCIAL - If your organization sells high volume, e-commerce products, then your social media should be shoppable. Have you ever seen an image of something online and wondered, how can I buy that? Shoppable content means that while your customer is reading your company’s post, looking at your photos, or watching your company’s video, they can purchase the products they see within the platform. Last year, Instagram launched Instagram Checkout that lets users to do just that. While fashion brands have been experimenting with shoppable content for a few years, opportunities exist for other brands.
CULTIVATE REVIEWS! If you plan to acquire new customers, then you need to really manage your reputation through leveraging peer reviews, referrals, influencers, ratings, and testimonials. Reviews are not only important in consumer marketing but also in the B2B space by leveraging networks of peers. As we call into question the trustworthiness of information we find online, we are relying more and more on user reviews, peer reviews and referrals from people we trust. Leveraging feedback from employees, partners and customers will become increasingly important to your brand.
STRENGTHEN YOUR BRAND - If you are looking to grow your market share and become a more valuable brand name in your area, then your brand strategy needs meaningful investment with original powerful awesome authentic content. According to Tara Robertson, Director of Customer Marketing at Sprout Social, there should be a focus on exceptional customer service by giving customers authentic, personalized content. Rachael Pederson, CEO of The Viral Touch & Social Media United agrees. “In 2020 the marketer who provides all-access, behind the scenes, contextual marketing wins. It’s the year of humanized marketing.”
VOICE SEARCH - If your organization gets more than 50% of its leads and sales from Google Search or other search engines, then get ready for voice search. You may have asked Siri a question, Google Assistant for directions or Alexa to play a song, so don’t overlook voice search for your own business. According to Single Grain, 34% of people use voice search to find information on a local business. Single Grain also reports that 50% of all searches will be via voice by the end of 2020.
AUTHENTICITY - If your organization is B2C, then make sure your content is personal, familiar, conversational, and on brand. According to Forbes, communication should be truthful, compassionate and humble. If not, your customers will be able to sniff out any inconsistencies between your messaging and brand promise. And let up on the gas of email blast newsletters! Customers are much more likely to respond to personalized communications. Kevin George from EmailMonks asserts that “personalized, triggered emails based on behavior are 3x better than batch-and-blast emails."
VIDEOS - If your organization wants to boost its search engine rankings, then consider integrating videos into the marketing process. People love watching videos so Google pushes up the page rankings. In fact, “video is 50x more likely to drive organic search results compared to text” according to Single Grain. Videos can be used across platforms (think YouTube, Facebook, embedded on your website, mobile apps, Instagram and LinkedIn) and can also be published as podcasts and transcribed as blogs. What kind of videos should you consider producing? Product demos and reviews, tutorials, live broadcasts, video messaging, and 360 degree video content are all good places to start.
SOCIAL STORIES - If your organization gets more than 25% of its new customers from social media, then consider starting the use of "stories" in your social media. The idea of stories: short, in the moment content (photos, videos, polls, stickers) that disappears after 24 hours. How are brands using it? The NBA posted a poll in Instagram stories to ask its followers who would win an upcoming game. Bricks and mortar businesses are geolocating their stories through Instagram Location Stickers so users can find them according to Jenn Herman, Social Media Examiner. Social media platforms offering “stories” include SnapChat, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and Skype among others.
CONTENT MARKETING - If your organization sells low volume, high ticket services, then your content marketing needs to be top-notch. Why? Here are the stats from Content Marketing Institute:
- Content marketing costs 62% less than outbound marketing and generates 3x as many leads.
- Small businesses with blogs generate 126% more leads than those without blogs.
- Content marketing rakes in conversion rates 6x higher than other methods.
SEO AUDIT - If your website is a primary way customers learn about you, consider investing in an SEO audit to find out how your website is performing and ultimately how to increase traffic, leads and conversions. An SEO audit will reveal how individual pages are performing and some SEO tools will help you increase CTR by improving copy, links, meta tags, key words and even site architecture. A must-do for 2020, ensure your domain starts with https//. Not only will your site be faster and more secure, but more easily found by Google.
SHOPPABLE SOCIAL - If your organization sells high volume, e-commerce products, then your social media should be shoppable. Have you ever seen an image of something online and wondered, how can I buy that? Shoppable content means that while your customer is reading your company’s post, looking at your photos, or watching your company’s video, they can purchase the products they see within the platform. Last year, Instagram launched Instagram Checkout that lets users to do just that. While fashion brands have been experimenting with shoppable content for a few years, opportunities exist for other brands.
CULTIVATE REVIEWS! If you plan to acquire new customers, then you need to really manage your reputation through leveraging peer reviews, referrals, influencers, ratings, and testimonials. Reviews are not only important in consumer marketing but also in the B2B space by leveraging networks of peers. As we call into question the trustworthiness of information we find online, we are relying more and more on user reviews, peer reviews and referrals from people we trust. Leveraging feedback from employees, partners and customers will become increasingly important to your brand.
STRENGTHEN YOUR BRAND - If you are looking to grow your market share and become a more valuable brand name in your area, then your brand strategy needs meaningful investment with original powerful awesome authentic content. According to Tara Robertson, Director of Customer Marketing at Sprout Social, there should be a focus on exceptional customer service by giving customers authentic, personalized content. Rachael Pederson, CEO of The Viral Touch & Social Media United agrees. “In 2020 the marketer who provides all-access, behind the scenes, contextual marketing wins. It’s the year of humanized marketing.”
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