5 marketing trends to consider for 2022
As 2022 rushes towards us, it’s easy to forget that technology and marketing channels and trends are also rushing along incredibly quickly. Things change, people change and your business probably should be keeping up with at least some of these things.
I say this because even today, in late 2021, I’m still helping businesses to get started with Facebook. You can imagine how difficult it is to get your head across the Facebook of today, vs the one we started with back in the early 00’s.
So here’s a little nutshell of what I hear and see are going to be important in 2022. It’s a little food for thought when you get a moment to think about your direction and focus next year. I would love to hear your thoughts in the comments or please don’t hesitate to get in touch if you think you’ll need my help in 2022.
1. Short form video
Yep TikTok and Reels are here to stay for now and Facebook intends to launch their version any day now. If you follow me on Instagram, you’ll know that I have a love-hate relationship with this trend because it’s very much the playground of professional content creators. Which is cool BUT it is also very hard for the average person or small business to stand out or fit in and it kinda forces this sense of ‘sameness’ that you generally should avoid in business.
What to do about that?
You need to find your groove. Think about your audience and what they like, want and expect from you and keep working on developing a brand style and personality that is authentic and customer-focused. That may include short form video but it doesn’t mean you have to be like everyone else.
2. Flexibility in delivery of your products and services
Things aren’t going to go ‘back to normal’. Normal has a new definition now and that may mean you continue with the combined model of product and service delivery you’ve had during the past two years. We’ll see more of these online and offline hybrid models in all industries and you’ll be expected to keep up and keep ahead of what your customers and clients want and need from you.
3. Artificial intelligence (AI)
I’m just going to pop this here because AI as the norm is coming along quickly and those with the big budgets are going to be harnessing it to provide incredible customer experiences. Will you automate parts of your business or will you continue to provide ‘real’ support? Or a mix of both (no-one wants to be answering messages on a Sunday arvo). The opportunities presented by AI are many and you should at least be looking into it.
4. Alternatives to cookies and data tracking
This is a real tug of war at the moment. If you’re planning on doing any advertising in 2022 or hoping to use your website more effectively, you will need to get your head around the laws, the possibilities and the workarounds. You see - third party cookies are predicted to become a thing of the past by the end of 2022. The option of being tracked is slowly being put back into the individual’s hands and, unsurprisingly, we don’t like being tracked. So you’re going to have to work a little harder to understand and meet your customers needs. I’ve got plenty of ideas on how you can do that!
5. Defined purpose
Having a purpose is always trending. In a post-pandemic world, it’s expected that people will be looking more for values-alignment from the brands they support and the businesses they work with. If you’ve not yet set your purpose and identified opportunities to support or collaborate with other like-minded people/businesses then that could be another holiday project for you.
Ps. I should mention that your purpose should be genuine, not just a sales pitch. Don’t ask me how, but people can see right through that stuff and you’re going to feel icky about it too.
So that’s some of my thoughts…If you’d like more than a nutshell and would like to start thinking about a more defined strategy for marketing your business or community organisation in 2022, please book a free discovery call with me here or send me an email. You might also like to consider signing up for my 5 week social media strategy for business course - that’s if you want to cut straight to the doing!
✌️Erika
