As soon as you get used to the intricacies of a new social media-based platform, it seems like the next viral phenomenon has already taken off (looking at you, TikTok). With so many sites to browse, articles to click and videos to watch, how can companies actually make a splash?
We spoke to two LA marketing firms that know a thing or two about getting your message heard. They told us about strategies ranging from video advertising to integrating 5G network technology with augmented and virtual reality. If you think that sounds as cool as we do, read on.
According to Kate Figueroa, vice president of internet marketing at Scorpion, you might be more engaged in this post if it were a video. Figueroa says that progressively interactive platform is a trend to watch going into next year and beyond. And she would know. Scorpion provides design and internet marketing strategies to legal, healthcare, franchise and home service sectors across the country.
How does your team stay on top of the latest trends in marketing, and what trends do you predict will have the biggest impact on your industry in 2020?
At Scorpion, we always strive to stay educated and ahead of the curve when it comes to digital marketing trends. We do this by constantly reading and subscribing to various industry news websites, blogs, vlogs, podcasts, newsletters, etc. We also attend industry conferences and seminars, and we encourage a strong collaboration among team members (not only on our direct team but across the marketing department) to share new information, data, trends and research.
In my opinion, the biggest trend is the rise of video advertising and making sure our clients’ messages can reach their target audience through video, whether on social media, YouTube or directly on search results pages. Video continues to rise in popularity year over year. That’s why YouTube is the number two search engine in the world (behind Google), and why you see more and more companies advertising with video on YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, etc.
Video continues to rise in popularity year over year.’’
Of the trends you’re tracking, are there any you plan to incorporate into your work?
Absolutely. One of the biggest changes we’re seeing is the need to have a diverse media mix. This isn’t a brand new trend, but it’s a strategy that the majority of our legal clientele has been slow to fully adopt. Most of our clients rely on search engine optimization (SEO) to get organic traffic and exposure and paid search advertising (PPC) to drive in leads immediately. While both of these are important foundational pillars of any online marketing campaign, businesses need exposure in the top or middle part of the marketing funnel: things like content marketing, social media advertising, display advertising, video advertising.
Marketing is about getting your unique message to the right people, at the right time, in the right place. And a healthy mix of these products is the way to do that. So we’re really encouraging all of our clients to expand their current strategy to include these channels.
Social responsibility initiatives are based on the idea that it’s an individual’s (and often a corporation’s) civic duty to do tangible good amid mass production. Heidi Capnerhurst, digital investment director at MediaCom, suggests that the impact of such initiatives can also help put your organization on the map. Considering that MediaCom uses data to help businesses unlock growth, we’re all ears.
How does your team stay on top of the latest trends in marketing, and what trends do you predict will have the biggest impact on your industry in 2020?
One of the key elements to identifying trends in this industry are events like CES, SXSW and E3. They showcase technologies and innovations that will be at the forefront of our culture. We also keep our finger on the pulse of new content by going to events like the Digital Content NewFronts and Upfronts. We monitor consumer trends and behaviors to form insights, curate content and create strategies for our clients that go beyond a typical media plan. We’re in an industry where, if we are on top of what’s next, we can help usher it into the now.
One of the most prominent trends that we see is the call to social responsibility. Is there a cause that your brand is supporting or corporate goals that are aimed at bettering society? Businesses have always had a social responsibility. But never has it been so front and center of conversation and advertising.
We must not forget that storytelling is an art and science.’’
Of the trends you’re tracking, are there any you plan to incorporate into your work?
We see a few trends bubbling under the surface, such as e-gaming, consumerization of artificial intelligence and augmented reality, virtual reality and mixed reality. However, underpinning most of this is 5G. We need to examine how we can leverage 5G with other technologies such as AR/VR/MR to obtain faster speeds, so we can consume more content and take advertising to the next level.
Personalized out-of-home experiences and even AR created for users by users (with software like Facebook’s new Spark AR studio) makes this possible. Amid all this, we must not forget that storytelling is an art and science. Now we have even more of an opportunity to create unique, purposeful content geared toward our specific audiences, garnering sentiments that spur brand loyalty.
