Every year we see trends come and go. Some stand the test of time and stick around year to year, while others phase out faster than you can say “that is so last year.” Which is not necessarily a bad thing. As the new year approaches, so does a new set of marketing trends. While it is essential to plan ahead, you can never guarantee the future—case in point, the year 2020. No one could have seen that coming, and it certainly changed the way we market. For better or for worse, things happen. Keeping that in mind, here are five 2023 marketing trends you should consider using in your marketing strategy.
1. Focus on Customer Experience
This is one trend that never goes out of style because it should always be about the customer. It goes beyond just convincing your customer to buy from you. Customers are impatient, not only do they want their cake, but they want to eat it too. Customer experience is all about delivering a quality product, along with a quality experience. As mentioned above, the future is not guaranteed. While we can strive for perfection, not everything will go smoothly one hundred percent of the time. Create a seamless experience for your customer from start to finish, and beyond. After someone invests their money in your business, don’t just forget about them. Make sure to nurture that relationship with follow-up emails and ask them for their opinion. Gathering feedback can help you identify any potential pain points and help improve the customer experience even more. 73% of consumers say that customer experience is an important factor when it comes to their purchasing decisions. With that being said, only 49% of U.S. consumers say companies provide a good customer experience these days. If you are going to include only one 2023 marketing trend in your upcoming planning, make it this one.
2. Keep things visual
Visual content is more popular than ever these days and should not be overlooked. 65% of people are visual learners. That is over half of us. Do you really want to miss out on that large of an audience because you did not produce more visual content? Pinterest has become a very popular search engine these days, and all of those results are visuals. They are much easier to remember than plain written text, however, a good mix never hurts.
When it comes to your content planning for 2023, make sure you focus on images and videos. There is no need to scrap away written content altogether, just add in a healthy mix. Platforms such as Instagram, TikTok, and Pinterest are becoming the go-to for many people searching the internet for inspiration for anything from fashion to recipes and money advice. No matter your business area, you will benefit from visual content.
3. Get personal
If psychology has taught us anything, it is that people love to feel seen and heard, even by the businesses they are potentially going to buy from. Especially by those businesses, as they are going to invest their money in them after all. The easiest way to create a connection with your audience is by engaging with them on a more personal level. This can be as simple as addressing them by their first name in your communications with them. No, you don’t need to handwrite every customer a thank you note, though that never hurts. All you need to do is make sure you capture details from your audience whenever you can, including their first name, contact information, and birthday. The birthday can be used to send a special note and offer and remind them on their special day that you are thinking of them.
Traditional marketing efforts are simply not cutting it these days, with all of the ways you can reach your target audience. People are being bombarded with ads every which way, from billboards on the street to emails and ads on their phones. Start cutting through the noise to reach your customers by getting personal and helping your ads stand out more than your competitors.
4. Have influence
Influencer marketing is not new on the scene, but it is important. Word-of-mouth marketing has historically been one of the most effective forms of marketing. Influencer marketing is essentially that on a larger scale. Identify influencers in your business area and start reaching out to form relationships with them. If you can partner with trusted individuals with a following online, you can make a huge impact on your marketing efforts in 2023. Now, you do not need to work with someone that has millions of followers. A micro-influencer can be just as effective, if not more. The key to success with influencer marketing is finding someone who can create quality engagement with their audience. Sure, someone may be appealing with one million followers, but how many of those followers actually engage with their content? You may find someone with five to ten thousand followers who have fostered a community within them that values what they have to say and recommend. These are the people you will want to keep an eye on and potentially partner with. Influencer marketing is a great way to increase brand awareness, build trust with your audience and connect with a wider market.
5. Conversational marketing
Conversational marketing is a little bit different, but a popular method with many businesses these days. Instead of directing your customers to a lead generation form they can fill out, conversational marketing uses targeted messaging and AI automation to engage with people while they are on your website. By using intelligent chatbots with machine learning and natural language processing (NLP), your customers are able to have a two-way conversation with a brand. Conversational marketing is only going to get more popular in 2023, so this is one to really keep an eye on, even if you are not quite ready to use it yourself.
With the new year fast approaching, it can be overwhelming trying to wrap up your 2022 efforts and prepare for 2023. Make it easy on yourself, you don’t need to follow every fad out there. Pick a few of these 2023 marketing trends to focus on in the coming year and see what works for you. Consider a trial run for the first quarter, and if your methods don’t seem worth it, switch it up for Q2.
