Best Digital Marketing Trends
for Affiliates: 5 Main Digital Marketing Trends
Businesses should plan to
spend more money on social media ads in 2021. Social media budgets accounted
for 24% of total US marketing budgets in the second quarter of 2020, up from
13% the previous winter. Advertisers are focusing more on audience retention
during the COVID-19 pandemic. This upward trend is predicted to last until
2021. People's online behavior, including how they research products, brands,
and organizations, has increased dramatically as a result of the pandemic.
This shift in customer behavior provides marketers with new opportunities to
reach out to new audiences and reconnect with existing ones. For a few hundred
dollars per month, a good social media marketer can develop a marketing plan,
make regular posts, monitor and drive customer reviews, and attract new
business. If your small business has been putting off adding social media
services to the marketing mix, now is the time to do so.
2. Go all-in on local SEO and Google listings:
One of the most important things you can do as a small business owner is to
make sure the local listings on various search pages are reviewed and kept up
to date. For B2C companies that mostly draw customers on a local level (think
dentist office or car dealership), the Google My Company listing is one of the
most critical aspects of search, and many business owners are shocked to learn
how many directories exist.
3. Improved availability communication:
According to McKinsey, the availability of products and services is the number
one reason customers are switching brands right now. Marketers can approach
this problem in a number of ways. Increase the number of days of product
inventory on hand or the number of time slots available for services. This is
the most obvious (though most difficult) solution. Make an attempt to think
beyond the box. As a result of more people working from home and more children
learning online, many doctors and dental offices for whom we work have
reallocated staff toward more daytime slots and fewer night and weekend hours.
When it's difficult (or impossible) to change stock levels or service hours,
timely communication is essential. Set reasonable goals and be honest about
what you can and cannot achieve. Consider placing a banner on your site for
high-volume items to indicate when they will be in stock. If you haven't
already, begin collecting customer contact information so that you can be
proactive in notifying customers of availability changes via automated text or
email.
4. Google Ads Automated Bidding:
While we're on the topic of automation, Google Ads marketers are constantly
tweaking and modifying commercials, keywords, and bids to get the most bang for
their buck. However, much of the tinkering comes at a price: more hours and
higher management fees. Google can adjust the bid in real time based on
previous moves thanks to automated bidding.
The idea of automated bidding
isn't new; it was first implemented in 2016. However, persistent changes,
especially in the last year, suggest that it will break out in 2021.
5. Increased Interactivity:
Using interactive elements on
your website or social media is a great way to provide value to visitors,
inspire them to engage with your brand, and learn more about them. If you're a
realtor, consider including a simple yet reliable mortgage calculator on your
website. You're now adding value to your visitors and also learning more about
them thanks to the data they provide in the calculator. This data can then be
used to refine personas and have better targeting.
Reference Post: 9 Key PPC Metrices
