Digital marketing is transforming—and it's not just because of ChatGPT. Dozens of new marketing technology trends have been developing across the internet, and they impact everything from how customers talk about businesses to how they interact with products before buying them. Every business, no matter how small, needs to have a plan for incorporating these technologies and preparing for their competitors to do the same thing. Consider these cutting-edge marketing technologies and what they mean for your business.
Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML)
AI and ML have played a role in analytics for years, and they're getting stronger. Through powerful reporting tools, marketers can comb through more data than ever before to find customer trends, buying patterns, and even predictive trends that enable them to generate successful marketing campaigns. When you can collect and parse through vast stores of data—which is only possible with AI and ML tools at today's volume of data—then you can predict trends and make more strategic marketing decisions, generate extremely detailed personas and personalized customer experiences, and even reach your customers through AI-powered chatbots that take the strain off your internal teams.
Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR)
In brick-and-mortar businesses, customers can hold and try on products. But online businesses couldn't offer the same thing—until AR and VR became advanced enough. Now, customers can place AR furnishings in their living rooms through their phones, enjoy immersive experiences that let them see products and services up close, and feel more connected to products they've never seen in person. Depending on your business, you can enable virtual try-on services for fashion products or use AR augmentation to make the product parcel more interactive and pleasing upon delivery.
Voice Search Optimization
The key to great inbound marketing is to make sure your business and products are easy to find as soon as your target market might need them. A lot of content marketing focuses on precisely that, so your products are front and center when customers search on Google. But more and more people are using voice, not text. How are you accommodating the growing reliance on Google Assistant, Alexa, and Siri?
Making sure your channels and content can be accessed through voice search is key. You also need to create audio and video content that prospective buyers can listen to.
Influencer Marketing 2.0
Influencer marketing is a vital strategy for most businesses. Whether you've sponsored podcasts, sponsored YouTubers, had social media influencers endorse your products, or collaborated with notable local figures in your community, this more social aspect makes your business both more trustworthy and more interesting.
But that was just influencer marketing 1.0. Influencer marketing 2.0 goes even more granular to capture the attention and loyalty of niche audiences. Finding micro and nano influencers who correspond directly with key facets of your target market helps you penetrate those markets. It also offers you more affordable options than trying to compete with big national or international names. Local influencers can also be on any channel—rather than just thinking about social media, you can even find on-air personalities by partnering with Mid-West Family and having radio-based influencers.
Micro and nano influencers focus on creating very authentic messages, which is great if you're a perfect fit but can make finding that perfect fit incredibly challenging. This is where AI comes in: you can use AI tools to identify likely influencers, evaluate how their influence is likely to impact sales and revenue, and streamline the process of reaching out to multiple influencers. AI can even mitigate the risk of fraud by detecting potentially fraudulent influencers or business arrangements that you want to steer clear of.
Data Privacy and Compliance
Marketing data is a very powerful resource, but it's also a potential liability. Customers are less and less trusting of organizations that know their information too readily, and they dislike companies that demand information or seem like they'll handle data badly. As a business, you must always comply with GDPR and CCPA regulations, especially if there's any chance you're collecting customer details from the EU.
Creating systematic data privacy and compliance procedures makes this simpler. It also demonstrates to your customers that you can be trusted.
Customer Data Platforms (CDPs)
For businesses of any size, CRMs have become a default tool. But CDPs take customer insights one step further. Through customer data platforms, you can get a holistic view of customers and market segments. As a result, you can understand what types of marketing campaigns work best, the impact of different content and campaigns, and suggestions for improving customer experiences.
See Where Each of These Emerging Marketing Technology Trends Fits Into Your Business
Cutting-edge marketing technologies are affecting the external and internal marketing processes of businesses of any size, and incorporating them into your emerging marketing strategies is essential.
At Mid-West Family Eau Claire, we partner with local businesses to give them better access to marketing technology trends, insights, and resources that make dynamic marketing more accessible. Reach out today to learn more about how we can help you maximize the benefits of these marketing technology trends.
