It’s 2019 and everyone seems to have gazed into their crystal ball with predictions on what the digital marketing trends for 2019 will be. However, in researching what people think those digital marketing trends are, not everyone agrees on what the they will be. Some folks say that voice search and AI are the things to watch for while others are continuing to say that content marketing is still king. Could both be right? Let’s take a look.

For the most part, there are a couple digital marketing trends for 2019 that people seem to agree on. For example, considering voice search and audio as a means of marketing seems to be a trend that nearly everyone can agree is going to be huge this year and in the future. With voice search apps and speakers like Siri, Alexa and Google Assistant, voice search is not only getting easier, it’s getting smarter. 53 million of adults in the US own a smart speaker, such as Alexa. (Edison, 2018)

Voice Search & Digital Assistant Use Increases

According to Google, digital assistants such as Google Assistant and Alexa, are going beyond simple “request and response” features. Digital assistants are evolving – learning – and will soon be able to predict, rather than react only, what the preferences of the user will be. Digital assistants and voice search are the future of marketing. By incorporating the data you already have – customer personas, demographics, buying behavior – you can start planning to integrate voice search into your marketing plans. 2019 will see an increase in voice search and digital assistant use, so be ready!

WHY YOU SHOULD CARE:

Digital assistants and smart speakers are only going to increase in use as the technology supports it. That is, since 53 million adults in the US alone own a smart speaker, that number is only expected to rise in the next year. Optimizing your marketing for smart speakers and digital assistants is not only a good idea, it’ll increase your visibility and the chances that you’ll appear when someone searches for products and services you offer.

Chatbot Use Becomes Mainstream

Chatbots are another digital marketing trend for 2019 that most folks tend to agree will have a big impact on marketing. What is a chatbot? Simply put, it’s an app that is setup to assist customers and potential customers with questions and problems 24/7 without the need of having a human responding to inquires or requests. And the idea has merit too – 55% of consumers are interested in interacting with a business using messaging apps to solve a problem and 40% say that they do not care whether a chatbot or a real human helps them, as long as they are getting the help they need (Hubspot, 2017).

Why are chatbots becoming more popular? Well, as I said, chatbots don’t need to be human; that is, when a question is asked or someone reaches out to support for help, it doesn’t need to be a human that answers the question or helps solve the problem. Having a chatbot can help move consumers up the awareness ladder closer to making a purchase. The work when you’re not, and that’s huge. In fact, 47% of consumers say that they would be buy items from a chatbot. (Hubspot, 2017). Chatbots definitely have their place in the digital marketing field and it’s only going to get more popular.

WHY YOU SHOULD CARE:

Chatbots work when you aren’t, especially when someone has a general question about your business, products or services. Providing these answers as part of a chatbot app can not only get your customers and potential customers the answers they are seeking, it gives the impression that they are speaking with a live person who is providing the answers they are getting, thus demonstrating considerate customer service. Remember, it’s all about the customer experience and a little less about the sale. And, to be completely honest, if you don’t invest in a chatbot, your competition will and it could make a huge difference on whether that visitor becomes a customer.

Video, Especially Live Video, Gains Popularity

The use of video as part of your organization’s marketing has been important for a while now, however, there’s now starting to be a twist. Live video, such as Facebook Live and YouTube Live are both gaining popularity and effectiveness in the digital marketing arena. Live video speaks to the generation of the “now” where everything is instantly available and is becoming increasingly popular with social media influencers, as well as celebrities, athletes and musicians.

Video itself has become nearly a necessity as a part of any digital marketing strategy. 73% of all Americans engage with videos on YouTube – over half of all Americans are consuming videos, a good portion of which were created for digital marketing purposes. Video has become the go-to way to reach the vast majority of people: millenials, gen-Xers, Baby Boomers – they all have one thing in common: they consume videos online.

WHY YOU SHOULD CARE:

Video is the way that people consume information – whether it’s news, weather reports or sports highlights or how to make that delicious dish you saw on Facebook, people are consuming videos more often and faster than ever before. In fact, most people would rather watch a video than read a page with the same information. Why? Well, it’s more interesting, more entertaining and can be done while doing something else. Wait, what? Yes, consuming videos can be done while people are engaged in other activities. Live video offers another level of video consumption – since we’re all about “the now”, it offers people to be able to watch AND interact with the video they are watching. Video, especially on your website, helps with SEO also. More businesses are turning to video to market their products and services and again, if you don’t, your competition will.

If It Isn’t Broken, Don’t Fix It

Ultimately, good content is still important. Whether it’s a video, podcast, blog post – whatever – make it valuable, quality piece of content. Chat bots are only good if you have the content to back them up. Videos that don’t offer any value or contain no quality information don’t help. Voice search from digital assistants will be no good if the content isn’t optimized for voice search. Remember good content still counts.

WHY YOU SHOULD CARE:

Content is king – it was drives your online presence. Curating your content is just as important as the content itself. Make sure your content is updated or removed when it’s old or irrelevant. If you are attempting to optimize for voice search or creating video content, do your research on how best to take advantage of those media. Visitors and customers are smart enough to know whether you’re just attempting to gain leads or foster a good business-to-customer relationship.

In conclusion, there’s a lot of predictions out there about digital marketing trends for 2019 and while they all might have some impact on how marketing evolves in the next several months, not all of them are worth investing your time into. Above, I’ve determined those trends that everyone seems to agree will be big in 2019 and that you should take advantage of. The others that have been left out, while important, won’t be as impactful.

Are there digital marketing trends for 2019 that we missed? Let us know!