A recent article from Adweek discussed the top 2021 marketing trends to expect. We’re going to break down some of them and discuss why they’re essential.
1. Continued Covid Recovery
2020 brought forward innovative, contactless options for consumers, such as curbside pickup and delivery. As the economy begins to recover, the question businesses have on their minds is which new customer behaviors and expectations are here to stay and which ones will fall away?
Josh Cole, CMO of Sky Zone, an active environment for adults and kids with gravity-defying aerial attractions, answers, “Currently, we have clues to act on. Case in point: how many restaurant brands, from Chipotle to Red Lobster, believe the elevated usage of home delivery will persist and are thus investing in operations such as ghost kitchens, which offer pickup and delivery only. Post-pandemic, business leaders must be clear-eyed in evaluating their earlier forecasts and deciding whether to continue with related priorities or adapt to unexpected realities.”
With the second wave of Covid currently hitting the country, making decisions that continue to involve proactive and preventive measures remains at the forefront. Developing new ways to connect to your audience and customer base can seem overwhelming; however, a great digital media strategy is the key.
2. Increased brand collaborations
Collaborations between brands and celebrities/influencers have been popular since the historic Michael Jordan and Nike deal in the 1980s. But more recently, brands have been partnering up with each other to form successful campaigns. Starbucks and Spotify, Gucci and The North Face, and Dior and Nike are just a few partnerships formed this year.
In fact, Starbucks and Spotify gained a lot from their collaboration. Spotify’s streaming service was integrated with the beverage brand’s popular mobile loyalty program, My Starbucks Rewards, which includes 10 million users. It enabled customers to curate playlists for Starbucks stores. Starbucks got access to Spotify’s audience base. At the same time, Spotify was able to grow its subscriber base with reward point incentives through Starbucks.
Having an unexpected partnership between brands captures the media’s attention, generates social buzz, and allows for a cross-audience marketing reach. The best part? Brand collaborations work well even under tightened budgets. This 2021 marketing trend is bound to be a fun avenue for brands to explore!
3. Cookie-less advertising
Typically, a New Year’s resolution to cut down on the sweets is a good thing, but in the case of advertising, it has thrown the industry for a loop.
In January 2020, Google published a blog post announcing that Chrome, the industry-leading browser, would be phasing out support for third-party cookies. The initiative, known as Privacy Sandbox, is set to make the web more private and secure for users while also supporting and permit advertisers to track and measure their audience.
While many questions remain on how digital advertising campaigns will be affected, marketers are improving access to valuable first-party data. First-party data is information collected directly from your audience or customers and includes:
• Completed surveys
• Customer feedback
• Data from behaviors, actions, or interests demonstrated across your website or app
• Data you have in your Customer Relationship Management (CRM)
• Social data
• Subscription data
The move away from third-party cookies allows better transparency in the industry. It ensures the consumer remains the core focus. Getting a jump start on utilizing first-party data is a plan that should be adopted sooner rather than later.
4. Increased social media marketing
Customer acquisition has become a top goal among brands, especially within the realm of social media. Transactions alone aren’t creating strong brand connections or long-term revenue growth.
Jason Thomas, head of global research at The Carlyle Group, predicts that “… it is likely that the most salient disparities in two years will be between companies within the same industry, as some management teams focus on reinventing their businesses while others endeavor to return to January 2020 levels with only minor adjustments.”
The world of eCommerce has completely reimagined the online customer experience with social media at the center. Social media’s original purpose is to provide a fun way to connect and discover new people, places, and brands. These elements are severely lacking within in-person experiences and events, so consumers turn to social media to fill that void.
Forrester, a market research company, predicts that spend on loyalty and retention will increase by 30% in 2021. This statistic provides insight into an opportunity to create social strategies that will unify the customer experience.
TOTAL Advertising is a digital marketing agency devoted to working with our clients and helping their businesses grow their success. No matter your goals for 2021 and beyond, we can tailor or unique expertise and knowledge to fit your needs. Check out the video below to see a glimpse of what we’ve done for companies just like yours. Then, contact us to get your company marketing and advertising that will deliver real results.