5 Top Digital Marketing Trends for the Year to Come

With the current state of the economy, customers have to think about what they buy more than ever. It forces brands to step up their game, requiring them to become more transparent and thoughtful with their messaging and strategies. The top digital marketing trends play a major role in the process, enabling brands to adapt effectively to the changes coming in 2023.

Responsible Consumerism

Customers are thinking about how their buying habits affect the environment. As such, they pay more attention to the social impact of the brands they buy from, expecting a certain level of transparency and social responsibility. Moreover, it has become much more than “green” initiatives.

• Green initiatives are still important to people, especially within industries where it is expected.
• Brands are expected to stand up and speak out against injustice.
• Social responsibility is expected to expand to ethical business practices.
• Consumers are starting to expect brands to use their resources for the greater good.

Because of these expectations, brands that do not match up will be left behind in favor of an equally high-quality brand that pays attention to its social impact. As brands look to put impact strategy at the forefront and promote their values, responsible consumerism will quickly prove itself as one of the top digital marketing trends this year.

Video and Audio Marketing

Traditional marketing still has its place, but video and audio marketing are becoming more and more important, especially video. People prefer to watch videos when given a choice, and it grows stronger every year. In 2023, video will dominate the top digital marketing trends because of the popularity of:

• Short-form videos
• Creator content
• Edutainment videos
• Live video content

In fact, video is one of the best ways to get attention. And as Rudy Mawer, CEO of Mawer Capital, states, “Attention is the new real estate. It is essential for expanding your online presence and creating a powerful brand impression to have people who can captivate an audience, market your product or service, and spread your message. Video content has been proven time again to be one of the most effective ways to keep viewers engaged.”

Audio marketing is also successful, and not just as a complementary aspect to a video. Instead, audio-first marketing is on the rise. An ad delivered by an influencer or podcast host comes off as genuine, and consumers are looking for authentic and genuine marketing now more than ever.

Artificial Intelligence

Artificial intelligence is growing by the day, and its uses are becoming more complex. ChatGPT is a great example since it helps automate many tasks for marketers, but it is only one of many tools already in use. AI powers marketing, which becomes more obvious when you think about the many ways it is used:

• AI helps marketers target the right consumers
• Personalized and automated marketing are powered by AI
• It enables marketers to understand their customers
• AI drives customer relationship management

As one of the top digital marketing trends expected in 2023, it is important to understand the technology and what it does, even if you do not utilize it in every possible way.

Customer Experience

Customer experience benefits greatly from AI. In fact, customer experience is one of the main uses of AI in digital marketing. Search engine optimization (SEO) is one example, with the measures in place meant to deliver users the most useful information it can. It also helps by providing chatbots for effective 24/7 customer service.

However, customer experience goes beyond AI. Interactive ads are on the rise, perhaps even deserving a place on the top digital marketing trends all on their own. Interactive ads improve brand recall, engage customers, and improve ad view times tremendously.

Conversational Marketing

While conversational marketing impacts customer experience, it is something worth talking about all on its own. More than ever, customers want quick responses, demanding a conversation now instead of later. Customers want a quick connection, and if they cannot find it, they move on.

Sales and customer service are no longer formal processes. Phone and email have been and will continue to be taken over by instant messages as this and other top digital marketing trends rise. Whether it be with a real person or a chatbot, the new conversational approach is designed to feel more like a human interaction than one between a customer and a business.

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