Five Digital Marketing Trends We're Watching In 2020

Part of our mission as a digital marketing and web development agency is to stay abreast of the latest industry trends, technologies and initiatives. Here are five emerging digital marketing trends and applications we’ve been watching through 2019 and will be keeping a close eye on in 2020.

AI and Machine Learning

As we explained way back in 2018, artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning in the digital realm doesn’t mean Arnie arriving from the future and asking for your clothes, your boots and your motorcycle. It rather refers to computers being ‘intelligent’ and solving problems like we do.

It’s already being used to create royalty-free virtual photo stock, and there is massive scope for implementations that will make life easier for you and your clientele.

Chatbots

Over recent years, these little windows containing inoffensively named operators started popping up in our web browsers, asking us if we needed help. Initially they seemed intrusive, and downright useless when they couldn’t answer our questions.

Improved technology (AI) means they are now more intelligent and intuitive and can be invaluable for users trying to get quick answers, and business owners looking to streamline enquiries and reduce unnecessary tasks that humans would otherwise complete.

Chatbots are an automated application and not to be confused with live chat systems — which involve real people answering the user’s questions. Here is Drift’s Ultimate Guide to Chatbots.

Video Marketing

Young or old, everyone loves seeing videos online (they’re the new ‘TV’). They can be entertaining while telling a story, educating the viewer and potentially beginning their relationship with your brand.

Video marketing can be applied everywhere from your website and social media accounts to digital billboards and even screens in fast food restaurants. Here are some video content marketing stats to consider heading into 2020.

Micro Moments

As mobile use continues to grow exponentially, we will see the rise and rise of micro-moments continue. These intent-rich moments are broken down into four categories: ‘I want to know’, ‘I want to go’, ‘I want to do’ and ‘I want to buy’ moments.

This categorisation of the mobile user’s behaviour is reshaping the way we look at the traditional and set marketing funnel path of awareness, consideration and decision. We now need to anticipate conversion paths with interchangeable steps in which users can have numerous digital touch points.

Social media stories

In keeping with our increasing hunger for easily consumed, bite-size content, social media ‘stories’ blew up in 2019 and we believe they’ll only grow in popularity in 2020.

Originally invented by Snapchat, and later copied by Instagram, Facebook and now YouTube, Stories are short collections of photos or videos that users post to tell a story. The short clips are fun to view when you have a spare minute (or even 30 seconds), and the fact that they have a view limit and shelf life of 24 hours before disappearing creates a sense of FOMO — users just HAVE TO watch them.

If you’d like to talk to us about how to apply these (or any other) marketing activities to your digital marketing strategy in 2020, then please, send us an email or pick up the phone.