Are You Thinking About Your 2022 Marketing Strategy? You Should Be!
In the B2C world, both in-person and online shopping are seeing increases in their respective numbers. The challenge marketers are facing is to manage to think on their feet as trends begin, change, and fastly fade away. Fortunately, with our experience of observations from 2020 and 2021 we can create a solid 2022 marketing strategy that will take everything into account. Trial and error through 2020 and the first part of 2021 has given an advantage to marketers and a good grasp on what to keep, what to change out, and what tactics to start implementing in a new strategy.
Social Media Strategy for 2022
One area that continues to be dependable for a solid ROI is social media. Some insight from the first quarter of 2021 provides a good indication that social media will be in your “keep” and “change” column for your 2022 marketing strategy. What is interesting enough is that the biggest boom in activity wasn’t where most expected it to be. Of course, social media is in the keep column, but you also might want to look into tweaking a couple things in regard to your social media marketing outreach.
For instance, Pinterest is now attracting up to 5 billion searches a month. This isn’t just searches for décor inspiration, either. People were searching for actual products on Pinterest at a rate of 20x higher than the previous year. This is an increase of 150% from their average 2 billion searches a month in 2016. We suggest searching Pinterest with queries that are related to your specific industry and see what comes up. Are you competitors there? What type of content do you see? This is a great first step to see if Pinterest is the right avenue for you.
Facebook is still the most visited social media site but TikTok has become the major platform for influencer marketers. The popularity of this platform happened so fast that in the beginning of 2020, TikTok influencer marketing wasn’t even an option and often fell under the “other” category. Over half of B2B marketers in the U.S. are finally now using Instagram, which is up from 30% in 2020, the platform actually did see their biggest decline in influencer marketers, down from 80% last year to 68% this year.
Experiential Marketing Strategy for 2022
We have come to the conclusion that virtual events are probably here to stay, for at least the foreseeable future. Brands have invested time and money into the increased technology that is necessary to help bring consumers together for various events on digital platforms. And the great news is that it actually worked! In fact, the majority of companies have noticed the same or greater attendance for virtual events than they’d previously expected for live events.
Since companies have been investing so much in technology that is necessary for virtual events, many organizations are likely to create hybrid events, with parts of the agenda that are accessible online. Incorporating a hybrid approach could involve the audience attending virtually or the speaker, or a mix of the two.
If you continue to host more virtual events there will be a need for an on-demand strategy. Whether it’s a recording of your event that already occurred or a curated curriculum of courses, speeches, or other events made available to your audience. By creating a 2022 marketing strategy for live and hybrid events, you’re allowing the option for remote viewing to any who may not be comfortable with in-person activities or simply can’t make the trip to the event. Some statistics show that at least 20% of attendance at events comes from the on-demand viewing option. You don’t want to miss out on the opportunity to cast your net to your full audience.
Seamless Multi-Channel Retail Experiences
As more and more companies adopt a permanent work-from-home policy and consumers revel in the convenience of in-home streaming, finding new creative ways to reach buyers is more important than ever. Buyers love and take advantage of a multi-channel experience- but 90% of them say that incorporating a seamless experience is where they are mostly likely to spend their money. Your in-store, online, in-app, and out-of-home advertising should all cohesively work together to identify your buyer, understand where they are in their buyer’s journey, and help persuade them to complete a purchase without skipping a beat between your various channels.
When many hear the words multi-channel, they think of a website, social media, and an app all working together seamlessly. Of course, that is very important to a healthy multi-channel strategy, but that is not all you should be focusing on anymore. Also consider the entertainment streaming services. This will provide another avenue for you to potentially reach new customers. Traditional ads might become a thing of the past, but Hulu has introduced interactive ads that will provide an even richer experience for prospects that have already expressed interest in what you sell.
Another option is to consider making the most out of your out-of-home advertising strategy. You might think that billboards and bus signs are an expired tactic- a think of the past that can’t possibly generate business. But there is a reason why out-of-home advertising is no longer called “traditional”. With the increasingly availability through consumers’ cell phones, tablets, and other wearable technology, marketers are now more than ever able to change how to utilize out-of-home messaging that can reach their buyers. Nowadays digital billboards can sync with a website that was viewed previously, there is nothing more omni-channel than that!
While it may seem impossible to completely predict the future and guarantee the results of these suggestions, you can plan for uncertainty by building out agile marketing plans and a comprehensive budget. If we have learned anything over the last 2 years, it’s that agile marketers are finding ample growth by testing new avenues and building a flexible marketing plan. By preparing to grow your brand’s reach through smart approaches to digital – there are some risks – but no doubt that marketers will be better prepared for whatever 2022 may bring!
If You Are Looking for Any Help With Your Current or Future Marketing Strategies- Please Feel Free to Contact The Spectrum Net Designs Team for A Free Consultation!
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