Christmas is fast approaching, and New Year hangs just around the corner — or shall we say “#newyear”? 2017 may be ending but it looks like mobile isn’t going anywhere, so this begs the question: Should you, as a marketer, join the bandwagon and make a resolution for the way you advertise, or should you continue on in the direction you’ve been taking since the beginning of the year? Perhaps you can consider the following mobile trends for 2018 to help you decide.
1. Hyperlocality
“Near me” or “nearby” mobile searches are quickly becoming the norm; a recent Google study found that a hefty 76% of mobile users who search on their devices for products nearby end up visiting the business within a day, and 26% of these searches result in a purchase. Imagine the extent of your influence if you can find a way to scatter your promotions around competitor locations.
2. Personalized content
Marketers have been tailoring content to the interests and needs of target audiences for several years now, but smarter personalization is needed now more than ever to hook the elusive “perfect buyer” in a highly competitive industry. Another Google study reports that 49% of smartphone users would want to shop on a site or app that suggests brands or products based on past purchases and views. Take the time to thoroughly know your target audience, and come up with your own definition of personalized content based on your findings. It might help to consider that you can actually create an opportunity to match content and consumer at every major touch point of your cycle.
3. SMS marketing
Did you know that 97% of all SMS are read within the first four minutes of being sent? Many marketers don’t realize that the purportedly old-fashioned way of messaging can be an effective channel to disseminate information — and the response rate is even greater than that of mobile advertising. It was predicted that for 2017, 23.5 million people would respond to business text messages; if you can get your customers to opt to receive branded SMS for 2018, more doors would open.
4. Instant messaging Apps
With mobile, it’s a lot easier for consumers to connect with brands. One of the most preferred channels for this is through messaging apps. Faster, and more casual than email, messaging apps allow consumers to speak directly with their favorite brands. The key here is the speed of responsiveness, of course, you won’t be able to respond to each and every customer right away. 2016 to 2017 saw the start of chatbots into messenger platforms, which have automated much of these processes.
As these channels continue to be a key touchpoint between brands and consumers, 2018 will see messaging platforms continue to add features beyond the chatbot like sponsored messages and destination ads, and we’ll see marketers adopt them. With so many messaging platforms out there, all you need to consider is where your target audience is spending most of their time on, then be there.
5. Video marketing
Video continues to make strides and there are no signs of it slowing down, in fact, video is expected to account for 82% of all consumer internet traffic by 2020 (currently this is at 69%). Mobile is a key driver this trend, it’s estimated that mobile video viewing is will grow by 25% by 2018 and 29% by 2019. Access to cheap smartphones and affordable mobile data plans have allowed people to easily consume video content on the go. Pretty soon video will be the preferred medium on consuming information over the internet. Get your brand started by adopting video ad executions on mobile.
Sources:
Google Data. (2016). How Mobile Search Connects Consumers to Stores. Retrieved from https://www.thinkwithgoogle.com/consumer-insights/mobile-search-trends-consumers-to-stores/
Google Data. (2017). Holiday checklist 2017: What to know about today’s mobile-first shoppers. Retrieved from https://www.thinkwithgoogle.com/consumer-insights/2017-holiday-shopping-trends/
Mintent. (2017). The Value and Importance of Personalized Content Marketing and Tips to Doing It Right. Retrieved from https://www.upwork.com/hiring/for-clients/value-of-personalized-content/
Taylor, K. (2017). 6 Trends That Will Impact Digital Marketing in 2018 and Beyond. Retrieved from https://www.kunocreative.com/blog/digital-marketing-in-2018-and-beyond
Truong, H. (2017). 5 Mobile-Marketing Trends That Will Dominate in 2018. Retrieved from https://resultdrivenseo.com.au/5-mobile-marketing-trends
Palgrave-Jones, J. (2017). 5 stats that prove 2017 is the year for SMS marketing. Retrieved from https://www.textlocal.com/blog/2017/06/16/5-stats-that-prove-2017-is-the-year-for-sms-marketing/
Contently and Ceros (2017). The Future of Media and Marketing is Video. Retrieved from:
https://contently.com/future-media-marketing-video/
Emarketer (2017). How Four of the Biggest Mobile Messaging Apps Stack Up. Retrieved from:
https://www.emarketer.com/Article/How-Four-of-Biggest-Mobile-Messaging-Apps-Stack-Up/1016221
Chi, C. (2017). The 5 Best Messaging Apps for Marketing in 2017. Retrieved from:
https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/best-messaging-apps-for-marketing
ZenithOptimedia (2017). Mobile devices to lift online video viewing by 20% in 2017. Retrieved from:
https://www.zenithmedia.com/mobile-devices-lift-online-video-viewing-20-2017/
