The marketing landscape of 2024 is poised to be transformed by a confluence of technological advancements and evolving consumer expectations. To stay ahead your marketing will need to embrace the top trends shaping the industry and find the most impactful ways to implement them for your brand.
Here's our curated rundown of the top ten marketing trends to watch in 2024:
1. Conversational Marketing
Customers are increasingly seeking personalised and immediate communication with brands. This trend will see conversational AI, through chatbots, messaging apps and virtual assistant becoming more sophisticated, providing real-time, context-aware interactions that mimic human conversation.
The information you can collect off the back of these interactions is gold dust. Not only does instant messaging massively increase the likelihood of a sale, it provides you with customer feedback on how potential customers are reviewing your product and what questions you need to address in your product listing.
2. Machine Learning (ML) and Artificial Intelligence (AI)
ML & AI will continue to revolutionise digital marketing, with tools and algorithms becoming more advanced in targeting and engaging with audiences. The capability to generate AI-driven content will also see significant growth, as noted in Hootsuite’s 2024 report on AI usage in marketing.
Tip: Content is able to be produced faster than ever - just make sure that your branding and authenticity is not lost in the creation process.
3. Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR)
As the digital and physical worlds blend, AR and VR will offer new immersive experiences for consumers. Marketers can leverage these technologies to create engaging and interactive campaigns, providing consumers with unique ways to experience their products and brands. Some ways this could be useful to your company:
- Virtual dressing rooms for clothing and apparel
- Try before you buy experiences
- Product demos
- Customer onboarding flows and training programs
4. Ethical and Value-Driven Marketing
With consumers becoming more socially conscious, brands that align with ethical values and transparency will gain favour. Marketing strategies will need to focus on building trust and demonstrating a commitment to societal and environmental issues. Be careful not to greenwash, make sure you're authentic and genuine in your approach.
5. Video Marketing
The power of video content continues to gain momentum as one of the most, if not the most, engaging forms of content. With platforms like TikTok and YouTube shorts leading the charge, short-form video content will become even more important for brand messaging. And with platforms like Canva making short form video production quicker and easier than ever, this is now a cost effective marketing strategy that a company of any size can adopt.
6. Data-Driven Personalisation
The emphasis on first-party data will intensify, especially as regulations like GDPR and CCPA make third-party cookies obsolete. Marketers will have to rely on the data consumers willingly share to create highly personalised marketing experiences. If you haven’t already started focussing on building out a first-party data strategy (collecting emails, phone numbers, purchase history, product preferences) then this should be a key area for you to focus on.
7. Voice search optimisation
The rise of voice activated search adoption with tools like Siri, Alexa and Google virtual assistant mean that people are more commonly using their voice to search the internet. It is therefore important to make sure your website is optimised for voice search so that you show up in the search results. Semrush have a great article to get you started.
8. Self-Service Ad Platforms
The ad landscape will see the rise of self-service platforms, challenging the dominance of giants like Google and Meta. This democratisation will further enable small businesses to effectively run ad campaigns, with platforms like Amazon, Microsoft, TikTok and Disney expected to expand their ad offerings, with a focus on simple user-friendly experiences.
9. Commerce Media and Retail Media
There will be big advancements in social commerce and retail media, with publishers and retailers leveraging their first-party data to drive revenue through commerce marketing. Expect to see platforms like TikTok enhancing their shopping features and the introduction of shoppable ads on your favourite reality TV shows.
10. New Partnerships Between Major Platforms
Finally, as noted by Business Insider earlier this year, the potential partnership between TikTok and Google could signify a new era of collaboration between tech giants, leading to integrated marketing strategies that leverage the strengths of both platforms. Watch this space...
To excel in 2024's marketing environment it’s important for businesses of all sizes to integrate these trends into their strategies and plans for the year ahead. Adapting to these rapid changes and leveraging new technologies to connect with potential customers in meaningful ways will give you a solid advantage over your peers. And small businesses, with their inherent agility and adaptability, have the potential to reap significant benefits by being among the first to adopt and master these emerging tactics. It’s gearing up to be an exciting and progressive 2024!
To discuss how your business or team can get ahead in these areas, send me an email and we can start putting some ideas together.
