With each year that passes, the world of digital marketing appears to get more complex – and 2022 has been no different.

On top of managing established components and existing digital-marketing-fan-favourites such as SEO, email marketing, web design and branding – marketers are now posed with the hard task of juggling up-and-coming social channels along with evolving social norms and ever-changing regulations to satisfy their audience.

That’s why we’ve put our heads together at Shape The Market to review the top emerging and existing trends in 2022 to help you prepare your marketing strategy for the year ahead.

Whether your ultimate business goal is to extend your reach, boost awareness or generate leads – it is always a smart idea to keep yourself abreast of the latest digital marketing trends.

Let’s dive right in!

Did you know that, according to a Havas Media Meaningful Brand study, a whopping 53% of people say they are willing to pay more for a brand that takes a stand?
That’s because consumers feel that when they use a product or service of a socially responsible company, they are doing their part and are spending their money in accordance with their values. So, the more socially responsible the company, the more supportive its community and consumers become.

That’s why it’s a great idea to outline a mission or purpose outside of your central operations that not only contribute to a noble cause but also attracts consumers and in turn to channel monetary value for shareholders.
And no– we’re not just talking about sprinkling in a few buzzwords.

With digital consumers becoming increasingly alert to greenwashing and false campaigns – pretending to show support can only put your credibility and risk. Instead, ensure your actions are meaningful and communicated to the wider public or prospects in your company’s wider marketing strategy.

For example, Netflix has been praised for its strong support for its workers and their families with its ground-breaking offer of 52 weeks of paid parental leave – compared to the industry average of 18 weeks – both to the birth parent and non-birth parent.

From sustainability to gender neutrality to staff wellbeing and support, take some time to consider what ethical values are important to you – and how you might by balancing profitability with activities that are beneficial for society.

Social commerce is projected to reach $1.2 trillion globally by 2025 according to an Accenture study – a growth that’s three times faster than traditional eCommerce.

Surprised?

If you’re a bit of a social commerce newbie – social commerce refers to the use of social networking websites such as Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter for the purposes of promoting and selling products and services.

As platforms work behind the scenes to enable customer payments without leaving social media apps, brands big and small will be able to significantly shorten the distance from discovery to conversion in 2022.

And particularly if you’re a start-up or small business – take note of this one.

Long gone are the days a hefty advertising budget is required to be successful in the business realm, and a new era has begun where budget-friendly social commerce features such as Instagram shopping or TikTok’s Shopify partnership can even prove more profitable than paid ads.

For example, Clean skincare brand and small business Plant Mother experienced this first-hand after seeing a 100% increase in revenue and a 1280% increase in referral traffic after launching their Instagram shop in November 2021.

Is your business next?

Even today, countless organizations are still lagging behind and creating content that is incompatible with so many of their target audience owing to outdated design practices or even a lack of awareness of the importance of these digital practices.

However, as brands strive to incorporate more inclusivity into their communications efforts – the concept of accessibility in the digital marketing world has become increasingly popular.

Simply put, digital accessibility refers to how usable a website, app or other digital experience is by all possible users, regardless of their ability or disability. disabilities and/or impairments.

And not only does an accessible website ensure fair and equitable access of your information to everyone, but it also follows that it will help to boost conversions and engagement – so it’s great for boosting business.

Here are some simple ways that you can optimise your website to make it more accessible:

• Make sure your entire website is easily accessible using a screen reader

• The overall website functionality should be available using only a keyboard

• Ensure all visual content is accompanied by a text alternative

• Create text transcripts for all video and audio content on your website

• All videos on your website should contain closed captions

• Avoid videos or audio on your website that play automatically or ensure there are easy methods to pause or stop such videos

• Avoid placing images on top of text

• Use a straightforward layout for your website that’s easy to follow with clear and descriptive headings and labels

• Ensure that text can be easily resized up to 200% without loss of website content or functionality

• Include multiple ways your users can access different pages in your web design (For example, a navigation menu, search bar or footer sitemap)

Data can be a wonderful thing.

We all know by now that consumer data is a great way to shape meaningful and memorable marketing strategies and is essential in providing consumers with useful information and relevant ads.

However, as the world operates increasingly online, the possibility of sensitive data being hacked or leaked is a real worry for customers and brands alike.

And with 73% of digital consumers declaring that they only use online services promising high data protection and souring levels of digital consumers taking more steps to protect their privacy online – marketers in 2022 need to focus on building a data protection strategy that is customer-first.

But what exactly does that mean?

A consumer-first data protection strategy means re-evaluating practices when it comes to measuring and accessing different audiences – helping your beloved consumers to feel secure and in control of the data they share.

Building trust can be an uphill battle that takes time.

Start building trust among your audience by being open and honest about how and when you collect personal information, using this to show ads that are valuable to customers, as well as putting users in control of their data.

In addition, with Google phasing out third-party cookies and more and more digital ad consultants urging companies to collect zero-party data (whereby customers proactively share their data directly with a business) it is becoming increasingly imperative for businesses to integrate data collection methods that prioritize consumer privacy.

Did you know that interactive content receives two times more engagement than static content?

The fantastic thing about interactive content is that it boosts engagement by making sure that users aren’t only visually stimulated and mentally engaged – but also physically engaged with the use of their keyboard or mouse.

And with digital consumers now seeking out content experiences that go beyond the traditional text or visual formats, interactive content has been one of the fastest-growing trends in marketing for a while now, and you can expect that to continue well into 2022.

Make sure you’re staying ahead of the curve by coming up with immersive and innovative marketing materials that keep your audience hooked – making your brand a memorable one and hiking up those conversion rates.

Start offering your consumers that personal connection, engagement and pizzaz they’ve been pining for by experimenting with exciting interactive features such as 360-degree virtual reality videos and 3D images, augmented reality materials – or even just a simple poll or quiz!

It’s no secret that influencer marketing is one of the latest trends in 2022 – and it’s only set to gain more traction in 2022.

While there used to be a time where marketing and customer service were formal processes and consumers enjoyed being addressed by company representatives as ‘sir’ and ‘ma’am’, digital consumers today are after something quite different.

With a more human-centred and conversational communication style now reigning supreme as the most popular format, influencer endorsements today are presented to viewers more as a recommendation from a friend, than a formal ad.

This can be a really effective way of developing authentic connections and accessing different, more diverse and/or much larger audiences, helping you boost your engagement and following much quicker and more efficiently than applying organic growth strategies alone.

And if you’re aiming to target a younger demographic, this could be a particularly smart route to take – with Gen Z being almost twice as likely to make their purchase decisions based on influencer recommendations, according to Marketing Dive.

“But is this an option viable for my small business?”

With social media is home to a myriad of influencers of different sizes, niches and communities, the short answer is yes. Don’t fret – there’s an influencer just waiting is someone out there for everyone.

Depending on your business’s size, niche, and budget, you might decide to venture out and explore the realm of Nano influencers (5k – 50k followers) and Micro-influencers (50k – 150k followers).

Whilst these influencers might have a lower reach than the bigger names out there- don’t let their smaller follower counts deceive you. These creators often have highly engaged audiences that have developed a solid personal relationship with them, giving your business the perfect opening to slide in and swipe some followers.

*Shameless self-promo incoming*

Outsourcing refers to the practice of hiring a third-party marketing company to complement your internal workers – and is arguably one of the most important social media marketing trends you should be incorporating into your digital marketing campaign.

The great thing about outsourcing your digital marketing operations to an award-winning agency such as Shape The Market is that you’ll have access to a diverse group of experts in the digital marketing field with a breadth of experience who remain up-to-date with the latest developments.

That cut’s your job in half and boosts the effectiveness of your digital marketing campaigns and translates to real results in a way that only an expert who’s in-the-know can do.

On top of that, you’ll be able to do all this whilst it minimising labour costs. Instead of having to hire dozens of internal employees, you’ll only need a few to work with the outsourced firm.

What’s not to love? Seems like a no-brainer to us!

In the last few years, personalised marketing has become a hot trend in the marketing world – and that’s not slowing down or stopping anytime soon.

In simple terms, personalisation refers to the process of knowing and understanding the needs, preferences and interests of both your existing and potential consumers – so you can cut right to the chase and present them exactly what they’re looking for at the time they’re looking for it.

From AI-powered chatbots to Smart Content on ads, emails and landing pages, the opportunities to personalise your business online are endless.

And when executed correctly, personalisation can help you engage customers better by supporting relevant communication and improving customer experiences- which in turn, according to marketing and intelligence platform Spectrum:

• Drives repeat purchases by 44%

• Increases sales by 20%

• Decreases customer acquisition expenses by up to 50%

• Hikes up your ROI – with advanced personalization offering an astronomical $20 return for every $1 spent.

In fact, Boston Consulting Group predicts that by 2022, $800 billion in revenue is likely to shift to the 15% of companies that hit the personalisation nail on the head in their digital marketing campaigns.

Are you one of them?

Whether you’re just starting out or a digital marketing whizz, it can be difficult to know where to start when it comes to optimising your digital marketing campaigns – particularly as the world of digital marketing appears gets more complex in 2022.

However, after dipping your toes into the latest trends in digital marketing with this article, you will have gained some valuable insight around the developments and changes you should be integrating into your digital marketing campaigns when you decide to dive in fully and take the plunge.

We want to hear from you – which digital marketing trends have caught your attention recently? Let us know in the comments below!

Browse our other blog posts at Shape the Market to discover more ways to leverage social media and digital marketing to transform your business.