Trends in marketing – what every business owner should know in 2017

Micky Weis

15 years of experience in online marketing. Former CMO at, among others, Firtal Web A/S. Blogger about marketing and the things I’ve experienced along the way. Follow me on LinkedIn for daily updates.

Kopieret

Development or decline

Always strive to develop yourself and your business. Never assume things will keep going as they always have – they won’t. Many companies make that mistake and end up with agencies (e.g., for SEO or Facebook marketing) that lag behind because they can’t adapt to the latest industry changes.

Examples:

• Facebook now has stricter content validation requirements for ads. Clickbait used to be much easier. Marketers who once excelled at Facebook ads found themselves outdated when those strategies stopped working.
• Google’s algorithm updates can render certain SEO tactics ineffective or cause your rankings to drop if your site isn’t mobile-friendly – despite Google’s repeated signals that mobile optimization was becoming essential.

Search intent types and Schema

Google works with four search intent types: Do (transactional), Know (informational), Go (navigational), and Know Simple. While the first three have been used for a long time, Google has recently started leveraging Know Simple.

Example:

If you search “what is magnesium,” our blog post on Helsebixen appears as a featured result because it directly answers the question. A search for just “magnesium” yields multiple types of results – because Google is unsure of the searcher’s intent.

That’s why Schema markup will become increasingly important. You can tag your pages as articles and more, helping Google better understand your content and improving your chances of ranking for multiple results on the same query.

Facebook & e-mail marketing as a powerful duo

In 2016, I became very aware of how potent Facebook and email marketing can be together.

SEO and AdWords are no longer blue oceans. AdWords profits are tight, and the cost of SEO keeps rising. In comparison, Facebook still offers untapped potential, especially with tools like retargeting, Lead Ads, and lookalike audiences.

Money is in the list

We emphasize building assets for clients, especially email lists. Facebook is a great tool to grow your email list and then convert users based on their behavior after receiving your emails. Trigger-based and automated marketing offers exciting possibilities.

Marketing attribution is also maturing, and I’m eager to see its development.

The forest is full of trees, stay focused!

My best marketing advice for 2017: focus. It’s easy to get lost in the jungle of advice, guides, and tips about Facebook, Snapchat, Instagram, native advertising, content marketing, influencer marketing, and more.

The risk is taking on more than you can handle, doing everything half-heartedly, or worse, losing sight of what truly matters for your business.

Example:

I often see webshops focus on gaining social media followers while neglecting more crucial areas like AdWords, SEO, conversion optimization, and customer service.

I’d rather outrank competitors on Google than have more social media followers – it delivers far better business results.

At Sinful, where I work as Head of Marketing, our strategy is to focus on the essentials and execute relentlessly. It’s not glamorous, but it works – both short and long term.

Knowledge sharing: surround yourself with the right skills

Diversify your efforts across as many platforms and techniques as possible.

In SEO, you can’t rely solely on blackhat or whitehat strategies – you need a mix. Don’t limit yourself to a comfortable circle of marketers who always agree with you. Seek out experts with different approaches, even if you don’t personally like them.

Learn from the pros

In the US, fierce competition has produced many highly skilled individuals. Not just the big names – there’s plenty to learn from lesser-known professionals.

Keep an eye on LinkedIn’s changes in early 2017 for PPC. It’ll be big for B2B.

Always use your data. Don’t be overwhelmed by it, and don’t try to know everything. Personalization is still the most powerful tool, and more data means better personalization.

DATA is more crucial than ever

Collect as much data as you can – it’s the foundation of informed decision-making.

Beware of ideas not grounded in data

Data enables better decisions and helps grow your business. We all have ideas we think are brilliant, but your audience may not agree. Use data to learn what works and what doesn’t.

We use data every day – for product launches, campaigns, newsletters – everything. Yet many businesses ignore data analysis and instead follow intuition.

Facebook’s untapped potential

Many companies use Facebook advertising without considering the data. Target your ads precisely. Use your email list and website traffic to reach an audience with strong connections to your brand, improving conversion rates.

We’re only scratching the surface of Facebook’s potential – provided you implement data-based strategies.

Do what you can with what you have

Put yourself in the customer’s shoes and use common sense. Our digital presence doesn’t need to be as complicated as we make it.

Learn to listen to your customer

Would you listen to your own brand’s message at the time it’s delivered? We’ve gotten better at using data to determine when, where, and how to create content – and that trend will continue.

Think simple

You already have useful data: email lists, Facebook insights, website analytics, the weather, TV schedules. For instance, posting five minutes before a major TV show starts may be ideal because people are on their phones waiting.

So think simply, use the data you already have, and put yourself in your customer’s mindset.

How your channels complement each other

As in 2016, I’ll focus on aligning different marketing channels. View your marketing strategy from a bird’s-eye perspective and understand how the channels support each other.

If you bring in traffic from Google, set up retargeting campaigns based on what users viewed on your site. Be aware of your sales funnel and create micro-conversions that eventually lead to purchases.

Get people to sign up for your newsletter, have a strong automation flow ready, and capture quality leads.

Facebook tracking can work wonders

Facebook is pay-to-play. You have to spend money to reach your audience – but do it right, and it pays off.

Track your campaigns

Use campaign tracking in everything you do on Facebook. Distinguish between “paid social” and “social” in the UTM campaign medium field.

With goals set up in Google Analytics, you can see whether your Facebook spend converts. While direct sales from Facebook posts are hard to achieve, thinking in funnels – like newsletter signups and remarketing lists – can lead to long-term success.

Google Ads and demographics hold promise

2016 was exciting for Google Ads: sidebar ads were removed, a new text ad format launched, mobile overtook desktop, tablet bidding returned, and shopping ads grew – plus demographics for search became available.

Demographics will matter more

Being able to adjust bids based on age and gender adds a powerful layer of targeting. You can exclude irrelevant groups or tailor messages more effectively.

For example, a store selling only to women can craft distinct messaging for younger versus older women. Or a men’s store can address male customers while presenting another message to female shoppers buying for someone else.

Targeting is becoming sharper and more flexible – it’s just a matter of leveraging these segmentation tools wisely.

Invest in your most loyal customers

Many marketers still aim to be everywhere and produce content for every platform – often without the necessary resources. The result is fragmented, unfinished content.

Retain and nurture your best customers

After nearly three years in e-commerce, I’ve noticed most advice focuses on acquiring new customers, generating traffic, and getting social media likes. That’s fine, but your most loyal customers – the ones who actually buy – are the real foundation of your business.

Identify them, reward them, and give them a reason to keep buying and spreading the word.

Use newsletters, personal communication, and special offers

Your loyal customers interact with your content, buy your products, and talk about your brand. Focus on these relationships.

I hope 2017 will be the year we shift away from vanity metrics and towards the people who truly add value. Identify your loyal base, develop a strategy, and engage them with personalized marketing.