10 Trends For Digital Marketing In 2022
Where is digital marketing go in 2022? Here are the top 10 trends from digital marketing experts:
1. Trend: Email Most Important Channel. According to Melissa Sargeant, Chief marketing officer at Litmus, three trends have contributed to the prioritization of email: personalization, automation, and privacy. She anticipates tactics like dynamic and interactive email content, AMP for email, and new personalization strategies to rise in importance in 2022.
2. Trend: Loyalty is a thing of the past. “Loyalty programs will become a thing of the past and evolve into membership programs,” says Jay Myers of Bold Commerce. “People crave membership and community; it’s human nature. Marketers have captured this, and while loyalty points can provide value to consumers, they’re not inherently attractive. In 2022 brands will transform loyalty programs into true membership. And unlike loyalty programs that customers are hesitant to join, these membership programs will be so compelling that customers will pay to join. Brands will adopt a membership model and add value through benefits such as exclusive access to products, free shipping and offline events.”
3. Trend: Foresight becomes the new priority in 2022. “With increasingly direct access to consumers, brands will no longer wait until after the fact to get feedback on the campaigns, products and brand names they have launched to know what people think. They will avoid some controversy along the way.
4. Trend: Discounts are rapidly falling out of favor. “Brands have been eager to move away from using steep discounts to acquire new customers and instead look for opportunities to create value through their products and the role they play in customers’ lives,” says Sherene Hilal of Bluecore. “Digital has expanded the brand to provide customers with the types and ways of value. In 2022 brands will begin to replace unique products based directly on what they know about shoppers.
5. Trend: War On Data. “The data war will escalate and marketers will lose access to more of the data rely on,” says global marketing consultant Tim Parkin. “First-party data will be the foundation of all marketing initiatives. Many organizations that are not ready will scramble to collect this data to stay competitive.”
6. Trend: Video became the cornerstone. “Video will replace static assets as the cornerstone of all marketing campaigns,” adds Parkin. “Social media and streaming TV platforms will introduce new advertising products that emphasize video. Even the retail experience will see new innovations in using video to engage customers and increase revenue.”
7. Trend: Great Escape From Digital White Noise. “Instead of getting lost in the digital inbox, it’s finding savvy businesses in the mailbox,” says Jordan Stevens, a digital marketing consultant from Canada. “Initially, direct mail may be dismissed due to misconceptions about the channel. However, integrated campaigns give businesses the opportunity to reach millions of people on a more personal level than digital communications can provide alone. Overall, direct mail performance and engagement continue to climb. According to Canada Post, 92% of people surveyed read direct mail and 71% share it. When your audience is bombarded with digital information all day long, direct mail breaks through in a real, unexpected, nostalgic and tangible way.”
8. Trend: Advertising Postcards Reach People Where They Live. “Direct mail is a way of communicating with your consumers directly to their homes. It allows you to target your audience according to location and demographic profile,” adds Stevens. “Over the past five years, we’ve seen more and more advertisers use postcards to reach their audience, and we expect that trend to grow.
9. Trend: Digital Storytelling Separates Amateurs From Pros. “There has been a large focus over the past year on digital storytelling,” says author and founder of 3 Dog Write, Lisa Apolinski. Many companies are still making their stories and how customers have succeded with the help of the company’s products and services. Companies who can leverage persuasive storytelling will allow their digital content to create value and relatability and not just be content for content’s sake.”
10. Trend: Judgement Day For Facebook/Meta. “We have all had times when we thought Facebook was destined for downfall,” adds Apolinski. “I would expect Mark Zuckerberg to do a fresh reimagining of his brand. However, I think the overall success of Meta will be determined by whether Zuckerberg is willing to step out of running the company to allow new energy into the organization. If Zuckerberg continues to stay at the helm, Meta’s success is the same level of success as Facebook. 2022 will be a pivot point for the company and many organizations are being more conservative with spending with Facebook as they wait to see how this new brand is going to be accepted and what opportunities it brings.”