Happy New Year Folks! 2019 – can you believe it? Time sure does fly when you’re having fun.
With a new year, comes a whole lot of new. The consumer technology industry kicks off its year with CES where the latest and greatest advancements are showcased. For retail, the industry attends NRF, the world’s largest retail show for department and specialty stores, discount, catalog, internet, independent retailers, chain restaurants, and grocery stores. For us marketers, we’re interested in what new trends are around the bend that will not only benefit us but will be game changers for our clients in the coming months.
So, what better way to kick off the New Year here than with a list of predictions for the public relations, social media, and marketing industries.
Social Media Redefined
Let’s face it, many consumers are fed up with social media. It’s all too familiar – feeling as if privacy is being violated, thinking of something and then suddenly being targeted for it in your feed, constant headlines of political mistrusts. In 2019, if brands want to find success on social media, they’re going to have to press the restart button and become more genuine once again.
There was a time when social media was a two-way street and real conversations were happening. Consumers are looking for that authenticity again. Kick off the year with giving your messaging and strategy a close look and be sure that you’re not too bot-like on social.
It’s No Longer About Traditional Public Relations
For so long, PRs have been building awareness for their clients, and while still true, that might no longer be the only goal. It a data-centric world, everyone is looking for a return, who they reached, a sale, some sort of result other than the traditional PR placement. But how does one measure conversion rates?
In 2019, we’re going to have to consider how PR should blend with content, SEO, and social media, for a fully integrated approach in a very digital world. To add, PR could become more of a consulting service due to the shift.
Continued Focus on Mobile
Phone screens are getting larger, 5G networks are here – people are not slowing down. If your website isn’t mobile friendly, you should change your New Year’s resolution and get to work. I promise, it’s simple.
Google even provides a Mobile-Friendly Test, where you can input your URL and receive recommendations in seconds on what needs to be fixed, if anything.
Speaking of search… Voice. It’s all the rage. But, will it affect SEO? I’m thinking it won’t.
Conversational Marketing is the Next Big Thing
At the end of December, our President, Domenick Cilea, published a blog post on why he was keen on conversational marketing.
Companies like Drift are making it very easy to connect with those who are landing on your site, start a conversation, and gain leads, sales, etc. Interested? Give it a read here.
Looking Ahead
Now that you have my predictions, do you agree? Disagree? Have some predictions of your own?
If you’re interested in kicking off a new campaign and are interested in learning more as we enter a new year, contact us. Let’s talk!