As 2023 comes to a close, it’s time to look forward to 2024. But before that, let’s go back to the future…when we were staring into our crystal marketing ball to see what 2023 had in store for us. Did we hit the mark? Did we miss it? And what does the marketing landscape for 2024 hold in store for our industry?
In the previous article, we weren’t able to foresee two of 2023’s biggest shakeups. For one, Twitter became X and began to circle the drain. We may be seeing its death rattle, and you may have seen that we are leaving it behind. As they scare off brands and advertisers, Elon Musk and his supposed dedication to the free market continues to insult them on their way out to ensure they won’t return and then blames them for X’s downfall.
Beyond that, the algorithm deprioritizes posts with links to external websites, which is kind of the whole point of social media for marketers, and upcoming subscription updates, a paywall, restrictions on free accounts and blocking unregistered users mean that many won’t see these posts in the first place. So if it’s not a useful tool in achieving our KPIs, which has been our experience, what’s the point?
However, that’s not even the biggest news of 2023. You guessed it, it’s AI. Especially generative AI like ChatGPT and the legions of others that are popping up at a breakneck speed. It’s starting to become when, not if, brands will adopt AI in some shape or form. While it may never replace the human brain’s capacity for creativity, making connections that have never existed and thinking outside the box (at least in our lifetimes), there are many avenues for using it as a tool instead of a crutch. And we’re definitely exploring that.
As far as our predictions go? We thought we would see more brand building. Not just rebranding, but also focusing marketing tactics that focus on building the entire brand instead of just a single product. This would include communicating values like trust, reliability and customer focus. And during a year that saw many twists and turns in the marketplace, this turned out to be a great strategy. A big-picture, long-term focus is one that is made to withstand the tests of time instead of getting lost focusing on the smallest details.
Our next prediction was that authentic videos would continue to gain steam and help brands maximize conversions. And we’ve seen TikTok and TikTok-style reels only gain momentum and popularity. At this point, if brands aren’t finding some way to utilize honest, authentic video communication, now’s the time to start. Or if we had a real time machine and not the metaphorical one that we are using for this article, then hop in that and get started yesterday. Social media algorithms can’t get enough of this content.
And conversational marketing? Check. If you’re not building a rapport by talking to customers like real people, then it’s time to start treating them with the dignity they deserve. Not everything is about closing the sale. You wouldn’t walk into a party and just start talking about how great you are. Or maybe you would. But the point is that you shouldn’t.
Finally, we talked about how Google has some competition when it comes to search. Now more than ever, consumers are going to their favorite platform to find information rather than just typing it into Google and clicking on the first result. You can find information, locations for businesses and plenty of product reviews. When it comes to search, it’s time to rethink it.
What do you think 2024 has in store for marketers? Are you interested in implementing a forward-thinking approach into your marketing plans for the upcoming year? There’s no better time to start than right now. Give us a call, shoot us an email or slide into our DMs on social media. Let’s talk!