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Content marketing is well on its way to continuing its momentum. Every year opens and the progression of content marketing is still constant. The investment will seem to be on the rise and the effectiveness of this practice more important than ever. This is why we have concocted an article that gives pride of place to the trends we have estimated the most interesting for the year 2018. An overview.
From creation to diffusion, technological innovations are forcing brands to rethink their content marketing strategy to adapt to consumers’ new buying habits.
But then with a multitude of different platforms available to you in 2018, how to communicate the right message at different stages of the funnel? What formats of content and innovations to focus on to raise awareness, engage and retain? How to boost traffic and implement a content strategy that leads to conversions and sales?
As 2018 begins, this study shows that brands are increasingly taking content marketing seriously, increasing their investments in the field. In the same way, content and preferences evolve over time. We have compiled, below, the major trends for 2018.
The Growth of Augmented Reality
Beyond the buzz of VR, always expensive, too immersive and constraining, augmented reality presents a real opportunity in terms of applications for marketing. We can already see various uses here and there (Ikea app for example) and with the improvement of the technology, the user experience should also improve. And with companies like Apple pushing augmented reality, there is no doubt that technology will continue to grow.
Content Marketing Will Continue To Take Shares of Traditional Advertising
Initially, content marketing was the exact opposite of advertising. The cream of the cream content reached heights through its quality. Conversely, advertising was based mainly on the amounts paid. Nowadays, lines tend to cross – sponsored content, for example, halfway between content creation and paid advertising – and it’s important to keep in mind a desire to attract customers and prospects in the future. Offering quality content rather than trying to sell at any price (and at all advertising prices).
Hyper-Personalization of the Content
Earlier scenario was that the leading brands no longer just produce an article, audio or video, but merchants can now produce thousands of content for the same campaign.
You must be thinking the reason behind this massive increase. It’s simply the Hyper-customization of content by merchants to better meet the needs of their many customer segments.
In this regard, video channels like YouTube has recently unveiled new
tools to create personalized ads, video clips, etc., which allows brands to broadcast thousands of videos in a single campaign. The video a consumer looks and search is determined by a wide variety of factors, including, behavior, statistics, downloaded apps, and even where they are (physically, using Google data).
With all these numeric data points, tradesperson now access the data and information they need to deliver the exact quality content for the consumer. For example, a buyer looking for a consumer goods store could see a video about purchasing skills if he had just wanted to use his money wisely.
Content Accessible To Everyone
This is a relatively recent trend. Brands are beginning to pay attention to populations with disabilities (blind, deaf, etc.). We are still in the early stages but it is positive that some brands are now integrating these populations into their marketing strategies. An approach also facilitated by technological developments and social networks (Facebook, Twitter, etc.) facilitating, for example, adding a written description of an image for people who cannot see it.
LinkedIn 2.0
Whether for large brands or small businesses, LinkedIn is the platform of the moment. The end of the year 2017 has shown, LinkedIn seems to have found a second wind and finally comes to Facebook B2B. At present, it is a platform that should not be overlooked in terms of presence, visibility, and promotion. And with the contribution of video, LinkedIn is already at the top of the 2018 trend.
Facebook Is Looking For Itself, Instagram Dominates
Admittedly, in recent times, Facebook seems to be looking for a course. Between changes in the “news feed” and willingness to give preference to relations/friends rather than brands. In the meantime, Facebook is also full-fledged Instagram, taking advantage of photo and video trends (while relying on the FB network). The marks are there, the hearings are there. The year looks good for Instagram.
Snapchat Still Behind
Snapchat seems to be fighting to try to keep its head out of the water right now. The tool has had good hours but does not really see any growth. Despite recent updates – and the ability, from now on, to share beyond the network (a potential to use filters, always quality, to create a post) – the application is now more of the gadget than the marketing tool.
Influence Marketing In the Continuity
The statistics are in favor of influence marketing. With this, the number of “specialized” agencies continues to grow, current influencers structure their approach and have combined experience and we see, now, to increase the power of micro-influencers. The difference, beyond the prestige, will be on the ability of these influencers to develop relevant price models and, above all, provide statistics and demonstrate a return on investment. With a little more maturity, so-called influencers should be more easily identifiable by brands and leave room for “real” influencers.
The mobile will continue to take market share
The trend is in “mobile-first”. The experiments (contents) are created, in priority, to be seen on mobile (smartphone or tablet). It is now a virtual necessity (beyond having a site that is also optimized for mobile). More than half of the population consumes mobile content, and in the United States, an average of 3 hours per day is spent on their mobile.
The beautiful days of storytelling
Storytelling is the art of telling a story. Beyond the buzzword is the story of marketing well done? Instead of a piece of content without logic, storytelling involves creating a narration, staging a brand, a product, and advancing the story. Today we see all kinds of content created and published without a clear link to a brand or a product. With a little more maturity, storytelling – and marketing of quality content – will have to replace these poor content.
Data and statistics
Marketers are gaining experience, tools are improving and it is now crucial to provide quantified results. The way the best marketers stand out – beyond successful campaigns – is their ability to use statistics and data. Not only to make informed decisions and avoid wasting time and money but also to justify their results.
The growth of content recycling
Content recycling? In this case, it is about re-using existing content (and creating interaction) on other networks. Sharing is not enough. Sharing content that is relevant to each network and significantly differentiated is the key. If a blog article works pretty well, you can use key phrases on Twitter for example. The article presents figures or statistics? Create a visual with these and share on Instagram or Twitter. Etc. This is a winning strategy, not only because it relies on the use of quality content that has already found an audience but also because it saves time for marketers. Recycling content is easier than creating a new one.
Editing the content schedule
Instead of creating content on the base:
Audience> Message> Channels (a message for the audience delivered identically on all channels)
we hopefully see more of:
Audience> Channels> Message (the same message but adapted in its form and tone to the channels)
Finally, as the year rolls on, it’s important to remember that content marketing is not a sprint but a marathon. The efforts bear fruit over time.
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, but he's been dodging them using bullet time. That's just unfair!
