5 Digital Marketing Trends You Can't Afford To Ignore In 2018

Full service agency The Works experienced firsthand how the world of digital marketing evolved at a rapid pace throughout 2017. Here, they look at five of the most significant trends businesses can take advantage of in 2018

Voice search continues to grow

2017 saw a major shift in the way people look for information. People use voice search because it’s faster, simpler and more user-friendly, with one in five searches now performed via voice queries through smartphones, tablets and voice assistants like the Amazon Echo or Google Home devices. As adoption of these devices continues to increase, people will become more accustomed to operating technology using voice commands, with 50% of all searches expected to be done by voice command by 2020, providing a huge opportunity for marketers who are quick off the mark in taking advantage of this latest shift. One of the most effective ways to do so is by adapting your content to focus more on longer search queries and use natural language that matches the conversational tone of voice.

The rise of the chatbots

Love them or loathe them, you’ve probably noticed a significant increase in the number of brands using chatbots to engage with potential customers, with everyone from H&M and Adidas to Just Eat and Pizza Hut now utilising this technology. They can be found on apps, social media or embedded on websites, allowing businesses to save money while generating more revenue, thanks to their ability to handle thousands of queries at once and work 24/7.

The rapid advancements in Artificial Intelligence are constantly evolving chatbots toward more complex interactions and better customer service, so we’re expecting to see a lot more of them in the coming year.

Mobile-first index could (finally) arrive

For years now, Google has been stressing the importance of responsive website design as the gap between searches on mobile devices and desktops continues to widen. This year might finally be the year where the mobile-first index hits, and although it’s likely to be a gradual roll-out, the power of mobile simply can’t be ignored. Without a well-designed responsive site, your website will not only provide a poor experience for the user, but will struggle to rank on search engines and miss out on a huge number of potential customers as a result.

Video marketing will become stronger than ever

Although video marketing is nothing new, the sheer amount of video content being consumed online is staggering. By 2020, it’s expected that video will represent over 80% of all internet traffic, which equates to five million years of video per month or one million video minutes every second. The engagement statistics for video ads is just as

impressive, with companies using video in their marketing growing revenue 49% faster year-onyear than those that don’t and 51% of marketing professionals worldwide naming it as the channel with the best ROI. Social video also generates 1200% more shares than text and images combined, making video advertising something every business should now be doing.

A bigger focus on personalisation

Personalisation was one of the big themes in digital marketing last year and is set to become even more important this year as consumers start to expect a personalised online experience. The focus will shift away from traditional static content to dynamically rich content to provide unique, tailored experiences for every customer. The sheer amount of data now available to marketers collected from social networks, online purchases, mobile apps and CMS means it has never been easier to develop highly customised targeting strategies. The digital marketing world will continue to change as we move through the next 12 months, but if businesses want to stand out in what is increasingly becoming an overly crowded marketplace, then it’s vital that the trends mentioned above are considered when planning, or you run the risk of your marketing strategy being so last year…