The past two years have been revolutionary when it comes to the way businesses are marketed. The development and increased accessibility of artificial intelligence and machine learning have presented an opportunity for small businesses to compete on a global scale.
Inbound digital marketing is the way of the future. If you’re a small business owner, you can get ahead of the curve by looking at trends for 2020 and beyond. Here are five inbound marketing trends to jump on today.
Video Marketing
Video marketing is largely taking over the content marketing world. The idea behind it is simple: videos are eye-catching, visual, engaging, and easy to commit to. Think about it: why write a long piece of content and hope that people will read it when you can get the idea across in a two-minute video?
Whether you’re planning on creating a business selling strategy for the next few years or you’re in it for the long haul, video marketing is an incredible opportunity for expanding your audience and increasing your prospect base.
Live videos, in particular, are a powerful focal point for digital marketing efforts. Using cross-streaming capabilities through webinar providers like Zoom, YouTube, and Facebook Live will get your audience active and engaged.
New Social Media Channels
Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest still have an important role in social media strategies. However, there are new social media channels that you’d be remiss to leave out of your future inbound marketing strategy.
While many of the current social media moguls target the Millennial generation– a wise choice since Millennials are coming into their prime spending years— it’s not too early to think about Gen Z.
Gen Z started in 1995. These people have never lived in a world without the internet. They’ve learned from the mistakes of the Millennials and have new interests. To Gen Z, Facebook is for old people. Their focus lies in the untapped market of TikTok, VSCO, and UStream.
While Gen Z might not have the buying power yet, small businesses can plan for the future and start experimenting with these opportunities before they get lost in the noise.
Micro-Influencers
Influencers play a significant role in modern inbound marketing. That being said, as time goes by, trust goes down. Consumers are no longer putting their faith in celebrities with millions of followers. Instead, they want to hear from the everyday Joe or Jane that’s working hard for the money.
A micro-influencer has less than 500,000 followers. They may even have as few as 1,000 to 10,000 followers. The difference here is that the audience is engaged and has a connection with the influencer. As marketing experts around the world will be quick to tell you, most purchasing decisions are made from a place of emotion rather than logic.
Micro-influencers are the future of influencer marketing. For small businesses, targeting local celebrities or up-and-coming influencers to promote your goods and services is a smart move.
Email Lifecycle Marketing
Email marketing is still the bread and butter for many businesses. While sensitivity to emails has decreased, email lifecycle marketing is renewing the effectiveness of this communication channel.
With email lifecycle marketing, you use smart analytics and automation to truly personalize your content. Rather than letting people know what products are available that they might be interested in, you meet them where they are in the sales funnel.
Some common examples of email lifecycle marketing efforts include abandoned cart emails and lapsed customer incentive emails. These targeted efforts encourage an initial sale and keep retained customers for the long haul.
2020: The Year of Small Business Success
2020 will be the year of small business success. Choose one or a few of these strategies and start implementing them over the next year. Set key performance metrics and track your progress to make outcome-based decisions that will take your business to new heights.
