Advertising and marketing trends have always constantly been transforming through the years, but the rise of the pandemic has made this evolution more erratic than ever. The past year in particular is proof that our perception of “normal” can shift any time, and that changes in the marketplace that usually takes years to mature can be condensed in a few months, whether we like it or not.
These changes, of course, have a trickle-down effect, both on businesses and consumers alike. Expectations and demands from the market increased and shifted, leaving all service providers scrambling to change their overall business blueprint just to keep up with the pace. One of the many aspects affected by this is the way we entrepreneurs reach out to our consumers. As stores closed their doors, businesses found it necessary to change the direction of their marketing efforts, rotating budgets and shifting to digital advertising formats.
That was in 2020. We are now halfway through the first year of the new decade and the pandemic situation has had its changes once more. With vaccinations starting to roll out and little by little, society is opening up again. Going back to the old normal seems far off—if not impossible—in the future, but the climate of the market we now have is at least different from when the pandemic just started. In other words, we have a new normal. Again.
With this in mind, what can businesses like yours do to once again adapt to the environment? In this article, we will talk about some of the top advertising and marketing trends that you should catch up on before it is too late.
1. The rise of artificial intelligence
AI is no longer a new thing in the context of marketing and advertising, but expect it to grow even further this year and the years beyond. In particular, AI is your strongest weapon if you want to keep up with the ever-rising and changing demands of consumers who expect seamless experience and personalization amidst all the restrictions in place at present. Data insights will be even more important than ever, as well as cross-channel integration and the use of various digital advertising formats that can help you stand out from the competition.
Do note, however, that the web is also moving to a cookieless format at the moment, meaning consumers can now put a cap on what kind of data they can share for tracking (case in point: the iOs privacy rollout). To cope with this, make sure that you voraciously do A/B testing to gather as much data that you need for all your business plans.
2. Social media’s facelift
Gone are the days when social media channels can simply focus on improving brand awareness and creating engagement among their target market. With brick and mortar stores closing down or at least putting on restrictions, it has become second nature for the buying crowd to look at the nearest channels that they can easily reach out to, in this case, social media platforms. Websites will still be doing their jobs, but Instagram and Facebook, being some of the first landing pages where you first make contact with your customer, are expected to also be transformed as channels for purchase.
The good news is that these prime channels are also constantly reinventing themselves—Facebook and Instagram in particular—to make it easier for shoppers to purchase without exactly leaving their domain. Marketers and business owners like you, therefore, only have to make sure that your set-up is complete to utilize these features to the maximum.
3. The rebirth of influencer power
Remember a few years ago when market trends forecasted the end of the influencer era? Well, that seems to have changed again as these people remain to be one of the most powerful tools a brand can have in their marketing plan. This can be owed to the fact that consumers are encouraged to camp in again and limit their socialization for the past months, which, in turn, led them to tune in once more to these people as a way to deal. Then there’s also the fact that new channels like TikTok have soared in appeal and pull lately, giving these people more platforms to reach out to their clout. In particular, the content that is pushed by these people is a good venue to fill in the ‘in-the-moment’ connection that many shoppers crave—and this is expected to continue even as things go easier in 2021.
4. Retail advertising, version 2.0
The fact that digital advertising and marketing has been the obvious route of choice for many businesses in the past few months doesn’t entirely erase the fact that retail/physical advertising remains relevant in 2021. To put it simply, the lifestyle changes imposed by the recent pandemic have also made digital fatigue very much evident among the buying market, meaning people now have a higher chance of feeling over attacked by what they see online and crave for what they can appreciate outdoors.
The website Moving Walls has dubbed the latter as the “outernet,” which simply refers to the physical surroundings that audiences interact with again now that restrictions are lifting. Unlike your average OOH channels like billboards and huge mall installations, however, the outernet refers to other spaces that moving audiences interact with as they go through their still restricted lifestyles. This can be in the form of subway displays, kiosks, and even elevator stickers which are all non-traditional media but are equally effective given the context of 2021. If you’re a business owner who wants to keep your brand at the forefront of your consumers’ minds. Then these are definitely something you should keep your eyes on, too.
So what’s the main takeaway of the advertising and marketing trends that are expected to persevere this year? If you want to be ahead of the game, a good mix of digital advertising formats and retail display solutions is necessary. We here at BrandMaximizers can particularly help with the latter, with our diverse collection of display collections that can push your brand forward. Interested to know more about us? Click here to connect with us now.
