Marketing is a complex and constantly changing discipline. While some aspects remain constant, such as the importance of appealing to the same basic human drives, the social context in which marketing campaigns take place changes over time and often unpredictably. Technology also advances over time, which changes how marketing is carried out.
For example, the advent of the internet led to digital marketing becoming an entirely new and specific field. Digital marketing is now the most popular and lucrative form of marketing for most businesses.
When it comes to predicting the developments in the world of marketing over the rest of the 2020s, there are many different factors that should be considered. Of course, the start of the decade did not go as expected, with the global pandemic sending shockwaves through all aspects of society including business. The long-term effects of the pandemic are likely to affect the world of business for years to come, even after vaccines are widely administered and lockdown restrictions are ended.
Social Media Developments
Social media sites and apps have always played a huge role in the world of digital marketing. Because social media platforms can fluctuate in popularity very quickly and unexpectedly, the specific platforms that are likely to be the most lucrative for digital marketing over the coming years are difficult to predict.
For example, the start of this decade saw the app TikTok becoming very popular very quickly, and marketers were quick to catch on to this. Even if this had not been the case, the general transition from image and text-based marketing to video content was already well underway. This seems unlikely to change any time soon.
While other apps (even the Facebook-owned Instagram) have started to wane a little in popularity for marketing, Facebook itself remains top dog, and has been able to adapt to market changes. For the foreseeable future, Facebook seems most likely to remain a key component of any digital marketing strategy.
The Role of Amazon in Marketing
It seems fair to say that online retail giant Amazon has well and truly taken over the world. More and more sellers are trading on the site, and for many businesses, knowing how to most effectively use the site’s features and interface to promote their products is a significant priority. These days, hiring a specific Amazon Marketing Agency is a routine part of doing business.
The Role of Traditional Marketing
When it comes to forms of marketing such as TV, radio, and print advertisements, the profitability (and therefore the popularity) of these channels for marketing is likely to decline as the channels themselves are increasingly replaced by the popularity of social media and online content. This change is unlikely to be instant but may perhaps have been completed by the end of the 2020s.
More traditional forms of digital marketing, such as email marketing, remain extremely popular despite the increased use of social media. However, it is difficult to predict anything with any certainty when it comes to technology!
About the Author
Bio: Ryan Flannagan is the Founder & CEO of NuancedMedia, an international eCommerce marketing agency specializing in Amazon. Nuanced has sold $100s of Millions online and Ryan has built a client base representing a total revenue of over 1.5 billion dollars. Ryan is a published author and has been quoted by a number of media sources such as BuzzFeed and Modern Retail. To connect with Ryan, check out @Ryanflannagan on Twitter or via Linkedin
