Survival of the fittest is one of the laws of nature, and – no surprise – also applies to the business world. Being fit in the business world includes keeping up with major trends, particularly when it comes to new gadgets and technologies. These days, tech evolves unbelievably quickly, and it’s important to make sure that our marketing strategies keep up. With the rise of the internet, we saw the rise of email campaigns. The popularity of smartphones led to a focus on mobile marketing. And it’s not only tech that changes – we’ve seen lately a big shift from traditional outbound marketing to new forms of outreach. So what are the next big things? This infographic from Column Five and Microsoft talks about the emerging technologies that are going to change the way that we market in the next year or so, as well as the most effective channels to use and the best way to frame your marketing campaigns. Let’s dive in and see what the future has in store.
- Know your tech. It’s about more than just smartphones these days. Virtual reality headsets such as Oculus Rift and Hololens offer amazing opportunities to reach customers in a whole new way. Wearable tech items let you target users based on their lifestyle and daily habits, embedded search engine upgrades help to connect consumers and brands on all sorts of social networks, and apps like Periscope and Snapchat give real-time access to potential customers.
- Spend wisely. Why spend huge amounts of your budget on traditional outbound marketing when content marketing is 62% cheaper? Focusing your marketing on the channels that offer the most impact will get you the most bang for your buck, so look at search engine marketing, banner ads, promoted posts, and other channels, and figure out which one makes the most sense for your business. Remember – images, videos, and episodic content are some of the best ways to get your messages shared.
- Think beyond consumerism. No one wants to hear a broken record. If the only thing you’re giving your audience is advertisements for your product, people will tune you out quickly. Expand your marketing to include meaningful messages about your company’s culture and social responsibility programs. Millennials especially are interested in brands that have a sense of purpose.
For myself and The ALEA Group, we have recently launched a new platform for B2B lead generation: MyLeads2Go and it’s receiving a lot of positive response. Please check it out and let me know what you think! As we near the end of January, what are your predictions for 2016? Are you incorporating any of these emerging technologies into your marketing?
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