Five Marketing Trends for 2016

FIVE MARKETING TRENDS FOR 2016

As we gear up for small business success in 2016 it\’s impossible to ignore the fact that your marketing, communications and promotional activity across all platforms need to be clearer and more focussed than ever before.

Here are the five key areas that will require your attention in 2016 in terms of marketability, reach and engagement.

BE EVEN MORE MOBILE FRIENDLY
You must make it easy for your customers to interact with you via their mobile. In 2014, 2.1 billion consumers owned smartphones across the globe (stats from the Internet Trends 2015 report) and the number is growing. According to the Global Web Index around 80% of internet searches are now done via mobile. What this means for you is that your website needs to be mobile responsive. In other words can a consumer do business with you via their mobile? Can they read your website? Can they pay for goods? Are your email mailers mobile friendly? If no – this is an area you need to work on immediately.

GET PERSONAL, VERY PERSONAL
Thanks to new technology it\’s now possible to make your email marketing more personal. Remember, your email contacts list is your best friend (and most effective marketing tool), and good friends have names. Consumers are aware of this and their expectations are higher than ever before. An email mailer that starts \’Dear Margot\’ will always grab my attention over a simple \’Hello\’. The Email Marketing Industry Census says that by 2020 78% of marketing will be personalized, so why not get the jump on your competitors and put it in place now?

CONTENT IS STILL KING
Everything you put out on the internet is content marketing and consumers are hungry for entertaining, informative and well written or visually arresting content. Due to the way we use our mobiles (see above) demand for content is at an all time high. According to the CMO Council 90% of Americans find custom content useful, and custom content makes 78% of consumers feel that the organization providing it cares about building a good relationships. What this means to you is that developing quality content must be seen as a priority. Consumers want customized content that’s tailored to meet their specific interests and needs, so bear this in mind when deciding what to share online in 2016.

VIDEO SAYS IT ALL
Millennials (aka key consumers) love video. The newest online platforms are visual, snappy and disposable. A Demand Metric survey in 2015 found that 74% of businesses reported that video content was outperforming all other content. Think Vine, Snapchat, and Periscope. As a small business you may not be working at the rapid fire speed of Snapchat but you can certainly improve your video content game, working at providing regular, fresh and engaging video content. And with technology now catering to the smartphone generation (with personalized videos and live streaming) you now have more ways than ever to market to your audience. In fact, in 2016 probably your hardest choice will be deciding what platform is right for you and your audience.

FACELIFTS FOR WEBSITES
According to research from Google the first impression of a website happens in 50 milliseconds – that\’s the blink of an eye. Therefore in 2016, there is no excuse to continue to showcase a dreary, sludgy, old-fashioned website. It will lose you business, simple as that. You cannot afford to fall behind your competitors and with the plethora of gorgeous, fresh and modern templates that exist today from sites such as SquareSpace, WordPress or Shopify, there\’s no reason you can\’t give your shopfront a budget-friendly facelift. Use lots of visuals, edit down your bio information and keep the look simple, clean and attractive.

Here\’s to a prosperous and fruitful New Year!