Even groundbreaking products need exceptional marketing to succeed. New technology trends expand the scope & creativity of marketing practices. Brands that blend the latest technology trends with innovative marketing build a “one of a kind” presence.
Technologies define how people interact with each other and with brands. With each technological evolution, a person’s way of life gets a makeover. Companies looking to engage their audience have to get on board with the latest, freshest, and the trendiest.
Although human connect still holds relevance, it is now packaged with automation, screened by chat-bots, and juiced up by data-driven personalized marketing.
Hence the latest marketing trends always have something to do with the latest technology and its integration in marketing. Deciphering the next big marketing trend is all about recognizing top technologies and understanding their potential & scope in marketing.
AI for Marketing
Artificial intelligence has taken huge leaps in recent times. What AI does so effectively, is connect millions of data points within seconds and create an understandable cause-effect model.
This is a great method for tailor-made marketing focused on individuals as per their expectations and needs.
It has revolutionized personalized marketing and the best part is that it doesn’t take a lot of manpower. By automating intelligence, brands can create a smart funnel.
Voice Search
As the popularity of audio devices like Amazon Echo, Google home, etc. increases, voice search optimization is becoming more and more relevant for brand marketers.
As per PwC, more than 60% of people in the age group 25 to 64 already possess a device that supports voice searches and use it regularly.
The conventional SEO followed a purely text-based model which then extended to videos as well. Optimizing for Voice searches is a different ball game.
Voice searches are more “human”. When doing a voice search, people don’t phrase the question like this -” Places to buy pizza in New York”. They say “Where can I get a cheese pizza right now?”
This shifts the focus to long-tailed keywords that are very specific and answer the user’s direct query.
IoT ~ Internet of Things
Communicating with smart products has already begun. People make use of smart TVs, smart-watches, and many other products in their day to day lives.
This interaction with artificial objects is increasing by the year & it presents companies with invaluable insights on consumer behavior due to the more organic interactions between the gadget and its user. This collected data opens up a whole new world of personalized marketing, from companies directly to people’s smart homes.
Many startups are hiring app developers to create IoT solution applications. The connection of smart products with the feasibility of mobile apps is a recipe for scalable success.
Hyper-Local Marketing
Localized marketing isn’t necessarily new to the market but it has gained new significance due to the growing popularity of IoT.
Google commonly uses GPS to provide location-based search results. For instance, a person who searches coffee places on google will get results of coffee places near him.
This localized strategy is going to become more commonplace.
Geofencing + IoT
A virtual geographical boundary put in place for some pre-programmed action is the basis of Geofencing. For instance, if a person gets a welcome greeting on their phone, the moment they step inside the mall (triggering the geofence/virtual boundary).
This is a very successful marketing technique. No money or resource is wasted in converting an uninterested customer. Instead of geofencing, brands can target users who are inside the mall & near their showroom.
Add IoT to the mix and you create a sophisticated & hyper-personalized branding. For instance, a person can get notified that they are running low on milk while they are walking past a dairy shop.
Live Video
An amazing model for engagement, Live videos have changed the way brands communicate with customers.
Reasons why Live video is such an effective marketing strategy:
Each video is an Event
People wait in anticipation of the live video. In a post-COVID world, these digital spaces where people observe things simultaneously are very powerful “digital events”. They form a community of people and increase engagement.
LinkedIn Live is also proving to be a great place for successful B2B marketing.
Conversion
As per optinmonster, brands that use video marketing get 66% more qualified leads each year.
The live comments on videos & the interactive Q&A’s create a more intimate connection with people. A survey by Insivia revealed that viewers retain 95% of the intended message when watching a video compared to 10% when reading a text.
AR & VR
Augmented reality and virtual reality are very promising technologies with unlimited scope.
Snapchat & Instagram are popular for their interactive & exciting photo filters, an application of augmented reality.
Beauty brands, eye-wear companies, retail brands, etc have started to realize the potential of marketing with AR & VR.
Showcasing a visually captivating and transformative “before & after purchase” experience is a very motivating factor to buy the product.
Beauty brands show the new look after using their product, home decor companies show the home makeover that an apartment can have. These visual expressions are memorable and substantially increase brand recall & sales.
Omnichannel marketing
Due to the global pandemic, consumer trends have shifted drastically. Online stores were already on the rise before 2022 began but with the worldwide lockdown, these online stores saw a huge increase in web traffic and sales.
Inversely offline stores have suffered huge losses due to government restrictions on public places and the added customer preference for online shopping. This doesn’t imply that offline markets won’t bounce back, people still crave physical experiences and will venture back to offline stores once the pandemic is managed.
This intertwined relationship between offline & online has produced Omnichannel marketing; Reaching & engaging customers through all possible mediums. This can be through social media, web app, mobile app, offline store, AR/VR, etc.
Omnichannel marketing aims to connect with people from all walks of life. This makes sense for brands whose potential customer base is very big and spread across age groups and geographic locations.
Conclusion
The entry of new technologies disrupts existing marketing methods. Companies that jump to these newer methods of branding will make a unique presence in the market and command a larger user base.
There are many applications for any single technology & recognizing which can work well for a specific brand is the crux of marketing innovation.
Veronica Hanks is a tech savvy girl who loves to explore and implement the power of business applications and software. She is currently working as a senior business analyst and lives in NYC. Besides being a tech addict, she is also as avid traveler and love to share lifestyle blog.
