We now live in a connected global village. Technology has changed the way that we shop, learn, and live, and it’s not slowing down. Every year there are new technologies that disrupt traditional ways of doing things and nowhere are that more visible than in the marketing sector.
Professional marketers have always relied on new technologies ever since the first days of the printing press, and digital technologies are making it easier to track, manage, analyze, and launch new marketing strategies that have an impact.
Marketing is in a constant state of flux, and the technologies that are affecting it most dramatically in 2021 are too valuable to be ignored.
Contents
1) Chatbots and Customer Service
There’s a good chance that you’re already using chatbots in your customer service strategy. But if you’re not, then it’s time to catch up. Already being used by big and small brands alike, chatbots are a valuable marketing tool because they allow your teams to prevent wasted time on basic customer queries.
That means that they can spend more time on those clients that need a more personal touch. The more streamlined your customer service, the better an experience your customer will have, and that’s good for brand loyalty and brand reputation.
2) Private Messaging Apps
Although a lot has been written about the benefits of WhatsApp marketing, surprisingly few brands are using it. Private message marketing is of incredible value, and as consumers move away from WhatsApp onto less controversial apps like Signal, Viber, and Telegram, there is a lot of scope for brands eager to get there first.
While email marketing remains essential, those messaging apps could be the key to a much more valuable marketing strategy.
3) Next Generation SEO
SEO has always been a challenging subject to get your head around, not helped by the fact that Google continues to make changes and updates to how they rank websites.
The BERT update in 2019 caused major upheaval and has resulted in many successful marketing strategies falling much further down a SERP than before.
It can be hard to keep up with those changes and ensure that your marketing is going to land effectively. So it’s often worth making use of digital agency consultants for more consistency.
4) Targeting Your Marketing
Ever see a repeated advert that has no relevance to you or your life? Most have, and the end result is simply being turned off that brand forever. That’s why targeted marketing is becoming such a big new trend in 2021. That’s because consumers simply love content that resonates with them.
When you can deliver the right message to the right person at the right time, then you can have a dramatic effect on your profit generation.
There are a wide variety of tools available for improving your targeted marketing strategy. And it’s something that you will certainly benefit from in 2021 and beyond.
5) Personalization and Analytics
There are suggestions that personalization is going to be the only way to market within the next few years. Don’t make the mistake of thinking that your personalized emails are going to cut it.
Now, consumers want personalized messages and connections at all times, and brands are going to have to start providing it or risk losing those customers.
Personalized messages are more likely to be read, and that makes it far easier to guide those consumers to the shopping cart. Use a professional marketing service to ensure that you have most effectively adopted a personalization strategy.
6) Smart Assistants
More people have smart assistants than ever, and sales of smart home hubs are only growing. If you are under the impression that Siri and Alexa are not relevant to your marketing, then think again.
For businesses, the rise of voice search is going to mean dramatic changes to SEO strategies and SERP performance. It’s going to mean a whole new way of thinking when it comes to creating content that will stand out as a featured snippet. Now, your content has to:
- Be conversational
- Utilize long-tail keywords
- Provide immediate answers
This may mean a complete overhaul of your existing content, but failing to shift to voice search SEO could have a very negative effect on your online visibility.
All businesses of all sizes need to take a fresh look at their marketing in 2021. If you’re using outdated methods or sticking to what you think works. Then your marketing is only going to limit your potential.
If you want to see continued growth in 2021, then knowing what to expect and what technologies are of the most value will see you reach the end of the year in a much safer and more comfortable condition.
