RECAP 2022 Marketing Trends That Make the 2023 Cut

In the world of marketing, getting ahead of the game is (not surprisingly) the name of the game.

Keeping up with market shifts and industry trends is crucial to maintaining and establishing a credible brand with strong customer relationships. Marketers need to keep their finger on the pulse of the latest technologies, shifts in the market, and how to leverage a strong brand message.

Businesses need to connect in a meaningful way and continue to nurture those relationships while remaining a trusted source for information.

How this magic happens always looks different from year-to-year, so StellaPop is pulling together the recap on 2022 marketing trends to keep and what we predict businesses will need to consider to stay ahead of the game in 2023.

Let’s dive into the top trends from 2022 that we’re carrying into the New Year with us:

The 2022 Marketing Trends Highlight Reel

Inbound Marketing 

Over the last few years, connecting your target audience with their ideal content to build brand awareness has become critical to growth. This is otherwise known as inbound marketing, and your audience with high quality, valuable content tailored to their needs in hopes that they will further engage with your brand. For example, virtual events, courses, freebies, downloadable, etc.

Inbound marketing can help drive brand awareness and to build a credible digital brand by driving consumers to seek the content your brand is producing.

Native Ads

In 2022 nearly 23% of marketers leveraged native ads with huge success. Native ads target users through social media, search engine results, networked platforms, blogs and articles, and branded campaigns. With one-quarter of all marketers looking to native ads to foster engagement, 36% say it’s ‘effective’ as the baseline, and nearly 50% report that native ads are their top ROI-generating tactic.

With consumers viewing native ads nearly 50% more than regular banner ads, we predict 2023 will need to hang on tight to this strategy.

Content Marketing

We all know that content is king, with at least 47% of consumers reported to engaging with 3 → 5 pieces of branded content before making a purchase. With this much content needed to bring consumers across the line, consistent, high-quality, high-value content is critical to conversion rates. Content creation has been a cornerstone of 2022 and will only strengthen its place (we predict) going into 2023.

2023 Marketing Trends to Jump Onto Now

The new year brings a shift into a customer service-focused era. Replacing the old system of a one-way marketing funnel, 2023 brings the year of the flywheel, putting the customer at the center to attract, engage, and delight consumers while empowering them to become brand advocates.

With a focus on customer service, marketing tactics will take a natural and necessary shift:

1. Social Cause Focus:

Statistics show that 40% of Millennials and over 50% of Gen Z-ers want brands and companies that they invest in to stand up for social causes that matter to them. With aligned action in the areas of social justice, gender inequality, environmental change, and LGBTQ+ right, brands can further develop their brand messaging and voice while having an impact on purchase behaviors.

 2. Influencer Content 

The days of major influencing are gone, and the days of micro-influencing have arrived. Micro-influencer has a clear industry niche with a much smaller audience, allowing them to really connect with their audience, make credible recommendations, and engage with audiences. Micro-influencers tend to also have significantly higher engagement rates (sometimes four or five times higher) and more highly targeted content.

With more than 56% of marketers with influencer budgets working with ‘micro’s’, StellaPop predicts this number will continue to grow in 2023, increasing engagement, clicks, likes, subscribers, and ROI overall.

3. Customer Service Social Media 

In a recent survey, 20% of Gen-Z-ers and 25% of Millenials were found to use social media regularly to reach out to brands. Using social media as a customer service tool helps brands to leverage that 1-on-1 connection and communicate with consumers on their preferred platform. It’s easy to send links, surveys, discount codes, and other resources that customer service agents may need to elevate the experience.

With social media helping brands connect directly with customers, another 15% of marketers report turning to SM for customer service support in 2023.

4. Conversational Marketing 

Customer service-focused marketing is booming in the conversational space. With the user experience (UX) gaining more and more attention, businesses are focusing on streamlining their service from the minute they first engage with a brand to the point of conversion. This puts emphasis in 2023 on any touchpoint where a direct conversation B2C can occur: chat boxes, live chat, personalized EDM, social media DM, virtual assistance, and personal shoppers.

Keeping customers engaged from the first point of contact to the last requires a personal voice and instant answers for any questions or customer service needs they have. Ultimately this will decrease the bounce rate and work to increase ROI.

5. Video Content

A whopping 90% of marketers use short-form video to connect with customers and to rapid-fire deliver value, information, product answers, brand messaging, and easy-to-digest details. Keeping with a fast pace and short attention spans, marketers aim to engage their audience in 15-30 seconds.

With 1 in 5 marketers reporting an intention to invest more heavily in video content in 2023, there is no better time to start than now.

Looking for even more guidance?

StellaPop can help you lay out the plan for 2023.

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