New year, new trends! Here are some digital marketing phenomena to keep your eye on in 2021. These trends are all set to take off or continue their upward trajectory in the new year.
Video Marketing: Especially Live Videos
Video content will continue to be a huge money-maker for businesses online in 2021. On average, videos capture and keep the attention of audiences more than photos or text alone. Expect to see the continued emphasis on video content across social media channels throughout the year.
You can also expect growth of live videos and live streams. Especially with the year we’ve had, where so many events have had to be hosted online, live videos have been gaining popularity. They are a creative and low-cost way to produce content that feels very personal and intimate to your viewers. Capitalizing on this growing popularity will likely prove to be helpful for businesses across many industries in 2021.
AI Content Creation
The development and utilization of artificial intelligence has been growing for some time now. Many larger companies have been using bots to chat with customers and respond to emails with quite a bit of success. Expect this trend to be taken even further in 2021. AI has begun to be used to create content for social media as well. This technology will likely roll out and become more popular throughout the year, as companies begin to see how effective and time-saving it can be.
Personalization
Unlike artificial intelligence, personalized content is nothing new, but its utilization will likely expand quite a bit this year. So far, most companies only go so far as to personalize emails with touches like individualized subject lines and addressing customers by their first names. However, with technological developments and changing online trends, look for more personalized content and ads on social media as well. Not only will the ads you see likely be targeted based on your online behavior, but they may be even more specific to you as well. Look for personalized discount codes, varied content between customers, and the like as we continue into 2021.
New and Changing Social Media Platforms
It’s pretty common knowledge that the world of social media platforms is ever-changing. There are updates to current platforms, new emerging platforms, and old platforms that lose favor. This will continue to evolve in 2021. Keep an eye on what current powerhouses like Instagram and Facebook do to stay relevant. We’ll also be watching the development of TikTok and Instagram Reels, and whether their popularity continues among younger generations. Finally, there are sure to be at least a couple of new platforms that enter the game this year and start competing for popularity. Platforms like Houseparty and Caffeine could really take off in 2021. Video-based platforms have been gaining popularity, and these are a couple of the front-runners to explode in the new year.
Growth of Influencer Marketing
Despite how overwhelmingly widespread it may seem as you’re scrolling through your Instagram feed and seeing ads and sponsored posts, many companies still have not taken up influencer marketing as a focal point of their marketing strategy.
There is room for exponential growth in the influencer marketing industry, and we expect much of that growth to occur in 2021. Influencer marketing tends to come with a lower price tag and less risk attached than most other marketing techniques. With the uncertainty, pandemic fear, and hard financial times across the country likely to continue, at least for the first few months of 2021, influencer marketing will be especially appealing to brands in the new year. Only time will tell, but the trends above all look poised to take off and dominate the digital marketing scene in 2021. Any other trends you see really exploding this coming year? Let us know in the comments!
