2014 Digital Predictions

The Digital Marketing/Digital Advertising Field is constantly changing and evolving, especially lately. Earlier last year I decided to take a look at all 2014 trends that seemed to be emerging, as it's become apparent for certain industries that the marketing game is changing (if you hadn't already noticed) and everyone needs to shape up or ship out.

Social Media used to be quite the joke, and now it's finally emerged as a a revenue-generating channel, as well as one that's great at conversion assists. Content marketing has also become the latest revenue-generating fad over traditional online advertising, as it's much more helpful with conversions.

Mobile and tablets haven't come out of nowhere, but it seems that mobile and tablet conversions will skyrocket this year, as consumers have all felt comfortable enough to begin researching and purchasing on their devices, thanks to enhanced websites that are mobile-friendly, and reward programs such as Starbucks that allows them to pay through phones.

Take a look at the other predictions below, do you agree? 

The Necessity of the Social Media Strategist

It seems like in the past year or two, many various industries have decided they all NEED social media strategists, community managers and an actual social media strategy. Virtually no industry has gone untouched by the hands of social media and it has been very interesting to see how not only various industries are responding to the new challenge, but specific companies, both big and small are, as well. 

Every industry also has several shining stars, the incredible examples of a few companies who REALLY get it, and do more than just tweet or post on Facebook. They create campaigns that link throughout many different channels and encourages participation and loyalty to the brand, not just the initial likes. Then there are those who are either so late to the game they just hired the first person who was up for the job or they decided to take it on themselves without looking into it. 

For the industries that deal with consumers on a daily basis, the most successful small and large companies in the social spaces not only try new things, styles or new channels but they also CONNECT with their fans and people talking about them on a one-to-one basis. This is where the gold is for those social media strategists. This is why more than a college intern needs to handle your twitter account. 

No matter how large or small, I think it's been proven many times over the fact that simply responding to people talking about your brand, whether they're complaining or complimenting you can really solidify their bond with your company, create a lasting impression and even convert a hater into a lifetime customer. 

What do you think? Have you seen a rise in social media strategists now that many brands have realized it takes more than one hour a week to really make something happen? 

Down to the Wire for Facebook Timelines

It’s getting down to the wire and any brand who hasn’t switched over their Facebook pages to the new brand pages will be forced to at the end of this week. Facebook didn’t give brands an incredible amount of time to shift strategies and figure out their next moves, but some of the biggest and brightest brands have already taken first steps in the right direction.

It seems Facebook’s main reason for making this move is because they want brands to look at their Facebook fans as more than just someone to sell to – and I appreciate that. This move gives brands the opportunity to show the “softer” side of their companies with more stories, real photos that give a “behind the scenes look” and just helps to humanize the brand a bit more.

Anyone who’s a  community manager has probably hit a creative wall at one point with their Facebook posts and can sometimes forget that it’s not about SELLING when posting, it’s about story-telling and interacting with fans who already enjoy your brand.

Brand managers will also have to choose their tabs, photos and posts to highlight wisely. The initial fangate that fans click through to visit your page are now gone, so that cover page, highlighted content and tabs are more important than ever.

The milestone is a feature I really enjoy. It’s especially interesting to see Facebook pages such as Ben & Jerry’s who’ve added a variety of milestones featuring older ads, how they got started, etc – it’s an easy way to tell a great story and share the past everyone else may not know about. 

It'll be really interesting to see who's going to do well with these Facebook Timelines and how brands will get creative with all these new features. What brand is your favorite Facebook Timeline page right now?