27 Jan Top Ad & Marketing Trends to Dominate 2016
If the past few years have taught digital marketers anything, it’s that keeping up with effective Internet promotion techniques is no easy task as the online marketing and advertising industry grows increasingly complex.
A recent Gartner survey reveals that digital marketing is now the mainstream, and 98% of professionals say that online and offline marketing are merging. This creates a vibrant market in which consumer-led media habits dictate into which channels and formats advertising dollars should be funneled. Marketing experts predict these top trends will dominate the industry in 2016.
1.Digital ad spend will usurp search ad spend.
According to a recent eMarketer survey, digital display ad spending will eclipse search ad spending this year for the first time in the US. The categories of video, sponsorships, rich media and “banners and other” combined, will account for the largest share of digital spending at 47.9%— worth $32.17 billion.
2.Increased mobile functionality for websites.
According business2community.com, mobile traffic outpaced laptop and desktop traffic in several countries in 2015, including the US. It is not that the average time spent on desktop is decreasing per se, but that time spent on cell phones and other devices is rapidly increasing. This means that it’s important for companies to make sure they have incorporated effective mobile design into their site, while still providing regular updates for laptop and desktop preferences.
3.Video is critical to digital advertising success.
It is common knowledge that most marketers have already explored the power of uploading video ads to sites like YouTube and Facebook. Social platforms like Facebook are now using paid video ads, which are performing well enough for this to be a new standard in the marketing mix, says B2C. The numbers also show that video will command a large portion of ad spend allocated to digital in 2016 at 14.3%— up from 12.8% in 2015.
4. Major increase in paid reach for social media (bye-bye organic reach).
The world of social media is at the apex of a major change. Social giant Twitter Inc. has seen a stall in year-over-year growth in active users for the first time, and a significant drop in stock price. According the socialmediaexaminer.com, Twitter will create an algorithm that affects which tweets are seen in which streams, similar to Facebook’s EdgeRank, where only a portion of a pages’ audience are able to view content based on level of ad spend, and other social networks are to follow suit.
Experts predict that as networks adjust their algorithms, the only way brands can ensure they generate decent traffic is through social advertising.
5.Content marketing still reigns supreme.
Business2Community research shows that marketers still believe content marketing will have the greatest commercial impact for their businesses, even more so than paid, organic search marketing, and social combined.
Marketers are also “chasing” influencers as a way to acquire a larger customer base. Research suggests that there is a growing trend to get thought influencers and celebrities to mention or promote products, and it might grow faster then SEO, PPC ads, and content marketing collectively. Until then, content remains king as it retains its positive impact on bottom lines.
6. So does email marketing.
A recent AdWeek survey reveals that marketers still believe email marketing is a core pillar of their business. When ads and content marketing can get expensive and competitive, there seems to be comfort for most in having an email list. Experts expect a significant portion of paid, organic search and social media budgets to continue focusing on growing subscriber bases.
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