Digital marketing is one of the most important tools for small business owners and marketers. Its relatively low cost compared to traditional forms of advertising and media make it a good option for companies with limited marketing budgets, without impacting ROI. Since many customers fast forward through TV commercials and don’t have a newspaper subscription, some marketing experts argue that even companies with massive marketing budgets should direct large portions of their marketing budgets toward digital marketing. Here we’ve outlined three digital marketing trends to look out for in 2019.
1. Consumers distrust Facebook
Facebook remains to be a significant tool that companies can utilize to reach their customer base at very little cost. Sharing valuable content and engaging with customers can happen directly in their newsfeed. If you already manage your company’s Facebook page, you might have noticed changes in your daily follower count, especially over time.
Many users have begun to deactivate their Facebook accounts, which reduces your overall number of likes. As they reactivate their accounts, these users will once again show up in your page likes total. Do not let this trend dissuade you from using Facebook as part of your digital marketing efforts. Just make sure to diversify your digital marketing efforts to reach customers you otherwise might miss.
2. Mail Chimp changed its email policies
Historically, email marketing platforms, such as Mail Chimp, only allowed companies to email individuals that opted into their email subscription lists. Changes in 2019 to Mail Chimp’s policies now allow companies to email other types of users, including those who haven’t specifically opted into your company’s email subscription list. This includes former customers.
This means that companies should take advantage of this change to create other types of email marketing campaigns to reach these individuals. Former customers who haven’t signed up for your email list can be emailed to join your email list or notified about upcoming promotions. This is one type of digital marketing campaign that could have a big impact in sales and engagement.
3. The fall of “experts”
Many former digital marketing experts are taking down their iconic digital marketing courses and programs in favor of new offerings. This includes Ryan Deiss of Digital Marketer who took down his iconic The Napkin Project training program. While some of the change might have to do with their own business trajectory, the market has become saturated with these digital marketing “experts” in a way that makes it difficult to know what to do. Instead, companies are relying on performance data and split testing to see what’s the best way to market their own businesses online.
Digital marketing will continue to be the way that companies are able to market themselves online. With a well thought out plan that includes a little bit of various digital marketing strategies, most companies can find success with digital marketing. As this year’s predictions show, it is important to not invest all of your company’s time and resources into one type of digital marketing. Instead, well rounded strategies will continue to perform best.