Digital Marketing Trends 2018

Digital Marketing Trends 2018

This is a good time to take a look at the trends in online marketing. What trends are there now and what can we expect this year? These are the digital marketing trends of 2018:

1. Advertising: less and less interaction, but more range

With 9.5 million registered users, Facebook is still the largest social media channel in the world. There is a good chance that your target audience will also be present here. Advertising on Facebook is not about interaction. The likes, reactions and shared messages play a smaller role in this. On the contrary, it is increasingly about scope, traffic and conversion contribution. In other words: how many people you reach, how many people end up on your site from social media and how many conversions you achieve.

2. Video, video, video

Nowadays, video is an integral part of life. As is said, video is getting bigger and bigger. According to Facebook, 70% of all its content will soon be video. Cisco even thinks that by 2019, 80% of all traffic on the internet will be video, or slightly lower than they initially thought.

As a company and an organisation, video can no longer be absent from your content strategy. However, a video quickly sounds like something expensive and difficult to produce. That is not necessary! Even with a smartphone, you can shoot good images. In this video we explain how to make a good video in 5 steps.

Actually, it’s mainly about adding movement to the content you share. You can also choose an animation, stop motion or cinemagraph (motion picture), for example: moving content not only attracts attention, but also adds experience to your messages and your brand.

3. Mobile everywhere

It is no secret that mobile is important and becoming more and more important. It is therefore clear to many brands that they must also be easily accessible and visible on the move. A mobile website is the first important step. But also on social media you can take into account the mobile use of your target group. More than 80% of the time we spend on social media is spent on our phones. You can respond to mobile usage by looking closely at your content. Use images and video and make sure what you create is also clearly visible on mobile screens. That way you stand out better.

4. Personal contact

The contact between the consumer and the organisation must be fast and easily accessible. With customer service via apps like Whatsapp or the use of chatbots and Facebook Messenger, you can reach people in a very personal way.

Another great thing is that you can save a lot of time with chatbots. You can train chatbots to ask some questions, so you don’t have to spend precious staff hours answering questions you get in chat endlessly.

5. Live in 3-2-1

Last year, live streaming really broke through on social media. YouTube live, Facebook Live and Instagram Live Stories are the most widely used platforms for mainstream broadcasting. If you want to reach better specific target audience, you can look at Twitter’s Periscope or Twitch.

At the moment it is mainly the end user who makes use of the livestream possibility. Although brands are discovering more and more live streaming, this option is still little used by companies. An ultimate opportunity for your organisation. For example, remember that live streams are almost always given priority over all other forms of content.

It is expected that live streaming will become increasingly popular in 2018. Especially now that it is possible to announce and promote your livestream on Facebook in advance by advertising it.

6. Virtually in the real world: AR

Perhaps you use Instagram or Snapchat yourself or have seen it pass you by somewhere: augmented reality, in short: AR. With this concept, a filter is placed across the real world. Although AR is now mainly known for the Snapchat dog ears or the rainbow that comes out of your mouth, there is also a future for brands in this area. By having a filter made and advertising it on a platform like Snapchat, you reach a lot of people. ING, for example, has already made use of this.

IKEA uses the technology in its new IKEA Place app to test products in your living room before you buy them. Saves you a lot with that new sofa if you know in advance that it doesn’t fit at all.

7. Temporary Content

Temporary content, also called ephemeral content, is content that disappears after a maximum of 24 hours or immediately after it has been viewed. Ephemeral content is not intrusive, but gives a feeling of exclusivity, having to act quickly and fear of missing out (FOMO). Make people curious about the content you share via, for example, Instagram Stories or Snapchat.

8. Deploying Influencers

There are thousands of influential digital influencers on the various social media. Digital influencers are people with prestige. They have many followers and fans who look up to them and follow their advice, so they have a lot of influence. By working with them, you can promote your product or service.

This is certainly not a new trend, but one that continues. What we see is that more and more influencers are coming in. That is why platforms and market places are now being created for small and medium-sized influencers and for every niche. As a company, you can respond to this very well by entering into a collaboration with influencers who are in your company.

9. Location based

Location based marketing uses the location of your target audience. Do you remember that we spend 80% of our Facebook time on our smartphone? During that time, the GPS is switched on and you can use it as a marketer.

Although this may sound creepy, it is often perceived as pleasant by the user, provided that you are relevant and fun for them. Think of offers in your café during Happy Hour or weekend deals in your webshop.
Your target audience can therefore see content that is relevant to them in a certain place and at a certain time. By also being present at these locations offline, you ensure that you also enter the field of vision of your target audience offline.

10. Stricter rules and legislation

On 25 May 2018, the new privacy legislation, known as the ‘General Data Protection Claim’ (AVG) or the ‘General Data Protection Regulation’ (GDPR), will enter into force in English. Hard rules on what is and is not allowed are very extensive. This makes it difficult to really prepare for the introduction of this law.

For online marketing, the law focuses mainly on:

• E-mail marketing analysts,
• Data collection and security
• Advertising targeting and other party tools
• Privacy statements, disclaimers and the user in control
• Processing agreements with partners.

Make sure you are aware of what the new privacy legislation means for you as an organisation. Do you save email addresses? Do you process orders? Get to grips with the subject matter so that you know what changes you need to make to your digital marketing.