5 New Digital Marketing Trends for 2024

The concept of digital marketing first came up when we realized that these new forms of technology can spread information about products and services much further and faster than conventional marketing. Companies began to use technology as part of their marketing strategies and they sometimes even abandoned the traditional way of marketing and switched to digital advertisements.

As we know, technology is a concept that is always changing and upgrading to make life easier and to connect everyone faster. Digital marketing thrives off of that concept. Digital marketing continues to adapt and update to changing technology in order to be successful in the future. In this article we will discuss 5 new digital marketing trends from 2024.

1. Short Videos

After TikTok's success during the pandemic, many social media platforms have adapted and started using their own short videos platforms. Youtube Shorts, Instagram and Facebook Reels are some examples of the ways that social media has adapted to changes in technology. Inside these short videos is an opportunity to advertise with short, to-the-point messaging that catches users attention. It does not take much of the users time and is so quick that many users do not notice it is an ad until the very end. According to the Digital Marketing Institute 86 percent of businesses use video as a marketing tool, and 92 percent value it as an important part of their strategy. So, videos and short videos continue to be a strong and important tool for marketers to use in 2024.

An extra feature that short video platforms have included are livestreams. According to Conviva, a company that analyzes quality of experience, content, and advertising including nearly 3 trillion real-time events per day, in their State of Streaming report 23% of global viewing time is spent watching live content on platforms like Facebook and Instagram, while the other 77% goes to on-demand content.

2. Omnichannel Marketing

Omnichannel is a term used to describe a business’s presence in all platforms for shopping. From a physical store to an app or website, products and services should be accessible to all consumers with no difference or issues. A customer can choose to shop online, add an item to the cart at the mobile app and pick up the product at the physical store seamlessly. In the past many businesses were “Single Channel” which means they were available in only one store or “Multi Channel” which is using multiple platforms but not in coordination. Omnichannel marketing provides a consistent experience across all platforms, whether online or in store.

Omnichannel Marketing is used to get closer and connect with customers to offer products and services the way customers feel more comfortable. There is a mixture of online and in-store shopping that happens. In fact, about 60 to 70 percent of consumers research and shop both in stores and online. Marketing presence is vital in every channel that the consumers choose to interact with brands.

3. Voice Search

Do these phrases sound familiar: “Alexa”, “Siri”, “Hey Google”? By now almost everyone knows where these phrases come from, even if you do not use them yourself.. Voice search has become a new way to look up products, interests and ideas. According to Readwrite, a report by Cabalys, in 2019 there were almost 20.7 million searches made by voice only in the first quarter of the year. The United States alone held 24% of the total searches coming from voice searches and China with 51%. This clearly indicates that a trend of voice search is something marketers have to stay on top of. Companies need to be aware of what people are searching and if users know what the next step is after using voice search to look up their product.

SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is vital for Voice Search since the information that will be displayed audibly will come directly from your ads. Some tips to keep your ads optimized are:

Write like a person: Think about how you would like to get an answer when you are asking a question to your friends. Your ads should be written as if your best friend is giving you instructions or recommendations for a product that you are researching.

Keep your contact information updated: There is nothing more annoying than getting wrong information, like driving to a business that has changed their address. Make sure your business information is up to date and clear.

Promote your content and get to the point: Most likely voice search will be integrated with Google and other search engines that work similarly. As you know, many ads will come up for your query and a small portion will be dedicated to be “featured snippets”. Featured snippets are the boxes that appear at the top of the search results and provide users with important information about their searches. Featured snippets are mainly where these search engines will get their answers from. Keep it simple, and use small consistent phrases to describe your product and catch the audience's attention.

4. ChatBots

ChatBots are computer programs that will simulate human interactions via voice or messages to allow humans to communicate with them as if they were real people. They work with artificial intelligence (AI) and will learn how to interact better with time and a record of interactions. Programs called “Natural language processing (NLP) Machine learning (ML)” process the data and deliver responses. Chatbots are an interesting and innovative way to interact with customers but most importantly to gather information and their preferences. As more users respond and interact, chatbots artificial intelligence will become more and more efficient. Having a chatbot option on your website is a good way to transform your digital presence.

Chatbots can be used to promote services, to do quizzes and to gather information on what customers prefer. They can also be a good customer service tool in order to provide support to customers while keeping the brand reputation. Social media chatbots are very popular. If you visit a company and message them, most likely, they will have a chatbot addressing your concerns, showing you important information and articles that will answer your questions.

Tracking orders is another use of chatbots. You only need to enter a tracking number or a reference number to get an outcome. Chatbots can be integrated to websites, social media, blogs and can improve the way marketing is performed.

5. Customer Experience and Retention

A critical part of a business is the customers. Creating an excellent experience but also maintaining them as customers is vital. In 2024, customers care more about having a memorable experience but also will check affordability and quality to make buying decisions. According to Forbes, considering a “customer-care portal that handles issues and after-sale support” is a good way to manage the customer’s experience. Many customers are looking for instant gratification, so applying marketing strategies that guarantee a fast delivery of a product or service is key to keeping customers loyal. Retaining customers is significantly cheaper than finding new shoppers and a loyalty program is a good idea for many companies to increase the number of consumers that return to shop.

We must investigate and adapt to all of these new trends to be successful and have a presence in the new technology filled world. New technology, like social media, is always helping us to get close to our customers and become a provider of service to them. Investing the right time and using the right tools will create a successful digital marketing strategy for your business.