Many times has one heard this being said, ‘Digital is the future’, ‘Digital is the way forward’. Digital marketing is a field linked to data. Nearly 90% of the planet is on some digital medium or the other or has a certain digital presence. The presence gives rise to data being generated and stored.
Digital spaces are like windows in a person’s life, through which we can find out details like how a person looks, thinks, feels and does at all points of time. This sensitive information is a boon to marketers to sell their products or services to the people looking for them. The marketplace has become more organized due to the availability of specific data.
The data can be used to create digital marketing strategies that resonate well with the audience and create a seamless experience.
Here are a few emerging digital and online marketing trends to look out for in 2021:
- Smartphones are the most used device to look up information, shop online and carry out transactions. Hence, having a mobile compatible website or developing a mobile app, might seem a good idea as 39% of smartphone users prefer the company app as it is easier and faster to make a purchase.
- For younger audiences who do not respond well to display ads and many have installed adblocker, Influencer marketing is a good bet.
- Using Artificial Intelligence (AI) to segment and target audiences and enhance the user experience is a smart move since the revenue from AI has grown from 13.5 billion dollars in 2019 to 34.8 billion in 2021. AI can analyze the behaviour, demographic data and personalize the searches. This aids the audience in finding the shoe that fits. This enhances the customer experience.
- With the rapid online adoption, the share of digital video in 2021 is expected to grow to 15% almost two years ahead of earlier projections. In India, Youtube viewership grew 1.7 times in rural areas during the lockdown. Having a digital channel to promote and interact with the audience gives increased visibility.
- Brands resort to interactive content, which is seen to be trending on platforms like LinkedIn and Facebook. These interactive content like quizzes, surveys, open-ended questions, giveaways, polls increase the duration of audience engagement.
- Content marketing, the more it can be explored the larger the field gets. Concentrating on generating unique content is the heart and soul of digital marketing.
Customers have made it very clear that they prefer online and mobile commerce. It is now for the companies to decide if they want to move further away from real-life human interactions into an age of advanced, digitized self-service.
Understanding these trends requires being in touch with the basics of Digital Marketing and for that, a holistic approach such as MIT School of Distance Education’s Postgraduate Certificate in Digital Marketing is in order. MITSDE PGCM in Digital Marketing gives an overview of the latest happenings in the market, how technology is evolving and what are the key areas one needs to focus on to create a sustainable digital enterprise or asset.