The world of marketing is an ever-evolving landscape. With new technologies developing rapidly, the year 2023 is set to be an interesting one. Since COVID-19, Brexit, and the entering of a recession in the UK, consumer priorities have shifted considerably.
We're taking a look at the predicted 2023 marketing trends to help you prepare for the new year.
The Rise of Video-Based Content and Live Streaming
Video-based content has become a key focus in social media marketing throughout 2022, and we can expect this to become central to marketing in 2023. Video content is beneficial for multiple reasons; firstly, it retains the attention of viewers for longer than static images, and secondly, videos have greater potential for engagement. From TikToks to Instagram Reels, Millenials and Gen Z are invested in this form of social media content.
Live streaming content is also proving to be an effective marketing tactic. Data AI shows consumers spent around 548 billion hours streaming through mobile devices in 2021. With the addition of TikTok shop on the app, the role of live streaming in sales is set to skyrocket in popularity. At DMT, we have our own expert team who specialises in TikTok lives. Working with high-performing brands, our in-office studio has been an absolute hit in 2022, and we can't wait to see what they'll achieve in the New Year.
New Targeting Solutions
News began to spread in 2022 that Google aims to phase out third-party cookies by 2024 due to rising privacy concerns. Cookieless options for targeted marketing are a hot topic right now. According to PMW, non-cookie methods, such as leveraging first-party data, are set to be some of the most impactful methods of 2023.
Prioritising Customer Experience
Customers expect a personalised experience, made increasingly difficult by the eventual removal of third-party cookies on Chrome. It's crucial for marketers to understand the entire journey of a customer on their path to purchase in order to guide them to the correct pages and monitor performance.
Voice Search and SEO
Marketers are beginning to optimise voice search as a search engine optimisation (SEO) tool. This may be an opportunity to provide more highly customised searches. To answer readers' questions based on intent, businesses are using more conversational question-and-answer phrasing. This way, when consumers use voice search, they'll get accurate responses quicker.
Conversational Marketing
Conversational marketing uses targeted AI to engage with people while they're on your website. Chatbots are starting to use more developed machine learning and natural language processing to provide customers with a two-way conversation. Shifting away from overly automated bot responses is a huge shift for a lot of brands.
Interactive Content
Passive consumption and static posts are declining in popularity. Instead, audiences want content that is engaging and demands their attention. Marketers are developing online experiences which allow interaction between brands and their audiences. This includes quizzes, competitions, interactive maps, graphics, and videos.
According to the Content Marketing Institute, 81% of marketers agree that interactive content is a low-cost and high-impact content strategy capable of engaging a larger audience than static content.
Virtual Reality Tools
In 2021, Meta (formerly Facebook) unveiled their up-and-coming Metaverse. This fast-tracked the need for marketers to introduce hybrid and mixed-reality experiences. You might have noticed a few Meta-based ad campaigns this Christmas! For example, Bloomingdale's virtual mall which features the likes of Chanel and Nespresso.
Social responsibility
Consumers today prioritise brands that practise social responsibility by balancing their profit goals with socially beneficial practices. According to Forbes, nearly 90% of Gen X consumers said that they would be willing to spend an extra 10% or more for sustainable products, compared to just over 34% two years ago. Our blog on Greenwashing shows how you can commit to more sustainable practices and how to avoid greenwashing in your marketing campaigns.
According to a study by Facebook, 71% of consumers expect brands to promote diversity and inclusion in their digital marketing strategies. It seems that there will be a greater expectation for brands to become more socially responsible, this is also an opportunity to appeal to new customers in 2023.
Push Notifications
A few factors are driving the emergence of push notifications in marketing; one of the main ones is the growing use of mobile phones for news, updates, and communications. Secondly, as email marketing becomes increasingly saturated, the ability of brands to engage customers through this format is becoming more and more difficult.
Online shopping using apps is becoming a popular way to shop. Today, more than half of consumers are allowing push notifications on their phones so brands can get in touch with them. However, there is a fine line when it comes to push notifications. Business Of Apps states that push notification unsubscribe rates stay under 1% when the number of daily pushes is low. Once it hits a certain threshold (around 10+ pushes), those unsubscribes begin to spike.
The Internet of Things (IoT)
The Internet of Things (IoT) has become increasingly important over the last few years (think Alexa and Siri). This term describes a network of 'things' linked through sensors and software to connect and share data with each other over the internet.
According to Cisco, 500 billion devices will be connected to the internet by 2030. This means marketers should start thinking about incorporating IoT into their programs to remain connected with customers across channels.
Customer Loyalty
Retaining customer loyalty is set to be on the agenda for 2023. According to the Marketing Insider Group, the value will be placed on a recurring customer. Studies have shown it costs five times as much to attain a new customer as it does to keep a new one, so it's worth putting in the effort to keep your customers happy!
Influencer Marketing
While influencer marketing isn't new to 2023, brands are jumping at the opportunity to build more authentic-appearing connections with their target audience by appointing long-term brand ambassadors.
These mutually beneficial relationships allow the brand to build a clearer and more visible brand personality with its influencer partners. In return, the influencers can maintain trust with their audience by promoting the same brand over time.
Stay Tuned for 2023
2023 is definitely going to be an interesting year for marketing, with consumers valuing authenticity, privacy, and responsibility more than ever. With insane innovations in VR and AI taking place over 2022, 2023 will offer an opportunity for marketers to use advanced technology to engage more successfully with their audiences. Marketers' ability to leverage technological developments is what makes 2023 an exciting year to be in the industry! To stay up-to-date with the latest and greatest in the digital world, make sure you subscribe to our monthly newsletter.
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