As we enter a new decade and tech continues to change at a rapid pace, here are the latest digital marketing trends and predictions we're excited to see in the upcoming year.
With evolving technologies, algorithm updates, and tools, keeping up with current digital marketing trends can be overwhelming. You can increase visibility and organic traffic through SEO. Build a brand with just your social media presence. Sell more with a well-managed PPC campaign. But, how do you know what to focus on?
The trick is in the adage: work smarter, not harder. Our digital marketing agency has to stay on top of current and future trends – so we’ve done the heavy lifting and research for you. As we move towards 2023, here are some digital marketing trends we’re keeping an eye on.
The Latest Digital Marketing Trends for 2023
1. Artificial Intelligence (AI)
Although artificial intelligence remains in its nascent stages, numerous examples of successful AI-driven marketing strategies emerged in 2023.
ChatGPT is another widely recognized AI tool that offers advanced text-based solutions for generating diverse written content. Capable of crafting jokes or developing short movie scenarios, ChatGPT is a remarkable resource that can significantly enhance your digital marketing approach.
Both DALL-E and ChatGPT are products of OpenAI, a company specializing in artificial intelligence research and deployment.
The future development of AI and its impact on marketing remains uncertain, but one thing is clear: AI will play a pivotal role in shaping digital marketing trends in 2023.
2. Data Collection
Going into 2023, businesses are expected to be more proactive in gathering data through different practices. Forms are one way to find out information about your customers that could support your sales funnel or even influence your next business decision. Even the most basic forms gather valuable information that can help you turn browsers into buyers.
If you use a CRM like HubSpot, you can input customer data like their name, email address, and phone number, then add them to your mailing list or keep tabs on their user activity when they visit your site. This will help your sales team better assess where the website user is in terms of their buyer journey.
3. Google Verified Listings for Local SEO
For businesses that operate on a local level, such as a plumbing company or a veterinary clinic, your Google My Business listing provides valuable information and helps establish your geographical location.
Having a geographically-defined service area with Google My Business listing aids in showing up for “near me” searches. It also lets customers learn more about your business within Google Search results. At a glance, your potential customer can see your open hours, address, and star rating left by other users.
In order to make sure the information displayed is correct, you should verify your Google business listing and keep the information up to date. The benefits of verifying your business are:
- You can manage your business information in Search, Maps, and other Google properties.
- Verified businesses are considered more trustworthy and reputable than unverified competitors.
- When you verify your business, you’re preventing fraud in the event that someone else tries to act as the owner and claims your listing as theirs.
If you’re not sure about your listing, you can check the verification status of your Google My Business listing. If it hasn’t been, you can start the simple process to get your business verified by Google.
4. Voice Search
Voice-activated digital assistants continue to be huge sellers, and let’s be realistic – some households talk to Alexa, Siri, or Cortana more than they speak to family members. The popularity of voice search both at home and on our phones has led to one of the most significant shifts in using keywords.
Think about it. When we type a search into Google, we phrase it differently than when we use Alexa for information. For example, a person looking for the nearest Cafe Javas restaurant might type “Cafe Javas restaurant ” into Google, but might ask Cortana, “Where is the closest Cafe Javas restaurant”. When writing content, choose your keywords based on the questions people may ask when using Siri or Alexa. This can increase your visibility, and this digital marketing trend shows no sign of slowing down.
5. Visual Search
Instead of typing a description into Google, users can now upload an image and get information about an item just from a picture. If they’re uploading a plant photo, the search returns species information, while a landmark image will return historical data. When a user searches for a product, it returns similar products and where to buy them. Google Lens, Pinterest Lens, and related search tools turn a user’s camera into a search bar.
How can your business leverage visual search? You can Add high-quality images tagged with descriptive keywords, introduce an image search into your online inventory, and (if your target market uses Pinterest), consider advertising on this platform. Brands that advertise with them get the benefit of boosted search results.
Additionally, consider the following:
- having an image sitemap will increase the likelihood of your images being discovered by search engines
- use descriptive file names for images before uploading them to your website
- add alternative text to all images aka “Alt tags”
6. Online Reviews
Online reviews can make or break your business’s ability to attract new customers or clients. While any company can talk up its products or services, other consumers can provide real, unbiased reviews. Having many reviews from verified sources can make your business stand out from the competition and start building trust before they even click on your website.
7. Automated & Smart Bidding in Google Ads
To get the best possible results from a Google Ads campaign, Ads specialists analyze every piece of data and continuously tweak and adjust keywords, bids, and ad phrasing. While this obsessive attention to detail gets results, it’s exhausting. A business owner trying to run a campaign may become completely overwhelmed and end up failing.
Enter automated bidding strategies. These allow Google to use machine learning to analyze the tremendous amount of data it has on its users to adjust bids in real-time. Ads specialists can embrace automated strategies while still being in complete control. Automated bidding isn’t anything new – Smart Bidding made its debut in 2016 – but most business owners aren’t aware of what it is or what it does.
It’s important to note that there are still plenty of human strategies involved in optimizing PPC performance. You can’t just set it and forget it and expect results – you still need to test everything, including testing automated bid strategies against each other.
8. Real-Time Messaging Platforms
Real-time messaging platforms have become a great way to reach customers efficiently. In the age of instant gratification, you need to do everything you can to provide prospects with as much information as possible – else risk losing them to a competitor. Expect to see more of these platforms pop up as businesses look to engage and provide better customer interactions.
9. Google Analytics 4
Google announced that in 2023, the well-acquainted Universal Analytics platform will be deemed a legacy tool. Don’t fret! Google Analytics 4, or GA4, is a new and improved version of the beloved UA – with a few more bells and whistles.
In GA4 you have the option to link to Google Merchant Center, Google Optimize, and BigQuery natively and for free! You can also add your custom reports to the navigation menu, making it easier to access the same view. You’ll also have access to anomaly detection, predictive analytics, deeper attribution models, and more!
We recommend setting up your new GA4 account as soon as possible. Not only does that give you extra time to acquaint yourself with the new marketing tool, but you can use your existing UA platform to compare your current goals, data, and traffic trends – just to make sure you’re reading the data properly and you’re set up to not lose any data after the transition.
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