Digital marketing and PR trends are changing and evolving at WARP speed. One week your brand’s campaign strategy may hinge on micro-influencers – hashtag gifted – the next your marketing team is frantically decrypting the enigmatic intricacies of TikTok. The world of marketing is ALMOST too much to keep up with… almost  ;). Now that we’re two months into 2020, our marketing experts are dusting off the old crystal ball to round up 6 digital marketing and PR trends you’re going to see this year!

6 Digital Marketing and PR Trends 2020

Tanya’s PR Trends

Turn your customers into your biggest advocates and promoters:  You’ve heard of the marketing funnel, correct? Good… now wipe it from your memory! Seriously.

Believe it or not, the era of the marketing funnel has become dated! Why? Because this model is designed to position customers as an afterthought. Once people become a paying customer, businesses often consider them obsolete… that is until it’s time for a repurchase ;).

2020 will see a NEW model. It’s called the flywheel, and it’s here to stay. The flywheel positions customers at the CENTRE of the marketing model and capitalizes on word of mouth; the MOST powerful marketing tactic. By placing a heavier emphasis on customer engagement, interesting content and customer responsiveness on social media, you’ll empower your customers to become your biggest advocates. This will lead to customers who can market for you by promoting your business via their own networks both online and in-person.

Use native advertising: Native advertising and traditional advertising… what’s the difference? To put it simply, native advertising blends in, while traditional advertising stands out.

The detailed explanation? Traditional ads are the display banners you typically see at the top, bottom or sides of web pages. They’re designed to be eye-catching, bold and stand out from a website. On the other hand, native ads are subtly placed throughout editorial content and they’re supposed to blend in with the page they’re featured on.

Native ads don’t “look” or “feel” like traditional ads, so people are more likely to consume them. Did YOU know that consumers view native ads over 50% more than banner ads? Something to think about in the New Year!

Brit’s Social Media Trends

Social media listening tools: Instagram is a pretty crowded place nowadays, so it can be hard for your brand to find a voice and make some noise on social media!! But sometimes… it’s best to actually listen first. Have you heard of social media listening tools? These strategic tools help monitor social media channels for mentions of your brand, competitors, product or. service, and any keywords relevant to your business. This is incredibly valuable because it provides key information about what Instagram users are saying about your industry on a much larger scale. Digital marketers, such as myself, can then analyze that information and adjust social media strategy accordingly. Pretty nifty stuff, huh?

The digital detox: People are becoming increasingly overwhelmed by social media. Insert: The Digital Detox… and yes, this is very much a thing! What is it? To help offset the overwhelming presence of social media, more people are unplugging from technology and taking temporary time away from platforms like Instagram and Facebook. While I think it’s healthy and important for people to take these breaks, digital detoxes WILL affect reach and engagement of your brand’s campaigns. The solution? It’s now more important than ever for a brand’s social media presence to be as meaningful as possible, make an impact and provide value. Humanize your brand and make real and raw connections with your followers… so that Instagram and Facebook users don’t feel like they need to take a temporary break from you!!!

Kevin’s PR Trends

More emphasis on paid in 2020: Think your brand can rely solely on earned media? Think again! The good old days of depending only on digital word and mouth and organic “viral” reach has come to a close. PR will no longer rely simply on earned media in 2020. The great news is that there’s still many ways for your brand to gain exposure, and spoiler alert: it’s even more effective than earned media. There are going to be many more paid opportunities in social media and influencers popping up in the New Year, which will expand and increase campaign effectiveness. Facebook’s Ad Platform has access to the most advanced social media advertising targeting options. This will allow brand’s to better target by age, interests, behavior, and location; i.e. you can target specific groups of consumers who are interested in your brand’s products/services.

More data, research, and analytics in 2020: It’s about to get techy! Social platforms are about to take all of the guess work out of analytics. PR will lean more heavily on insights from data and research to design effective campaigns and measure impact in 2020. Platforms are beginning to develop in-depth analytics tools so that brands can get their products and services in front of the RIGHT eyeballs. Data driven marketing that matters!

** Bonus Trend!!! More strategic in 2020: PR will become a more significant part of strategic marketing campaigns.

Well, that’s all folks! What do you think about our digital marketing and PR trends for 2020? Let us know in the comments!