2018 was a year of constant technological evolution in digital marketing trends to make our life easier than ever. In recent years, we have witnessed the emergence and growth of content marketing, the growing concern of brands to make their social media channels truly bi-directional. More recently we have noticed companies are driving to generate organic traffic instead of paid traffic (or ads). At the same time, we have also followed the phenomenon of smartphones, which make the population increasingly digital and informed wherever they are.

With some personal opinion, this article is all about digital marketing that will be on the agenda in 2019 and that should deserve the attention of digital marketing professionals.

So what are the main marketing trends for 2019? Let’s dig it out.

8 digital marketing trends to follow in 2019:

1. Content, content and more content

We all know that content is the king in digital marketing, but do the companies are investing in content marketing and realize the reason for this need? If they are not and if they still do not realize the opportunity, they should! It’s not for lack of warning. Good digital positioning is the first reason why you should invest in this area because the creation of original content that serves the users and their needs is closely linked with the positioning SERP (search engine results).

However, attention must be paid, because not all the content obtaining good results. Companies that have not yet defined a clear content production strategy are wasting time that they will hardly be able to recover in the near future. But, attention, it is not only at the level of positioning in search engines that content is important. Content creation also helps increase the credibility of businesses and consecutively the number of sales you make. Using these digital marketing trends a company can come out benefited as well as your business potential.

2. Video, virtual reality and augmented reality

Video is already one of the main formats of content and expected that during the next year it will be imperative. It is the simplest content format to “satisfy” a user looking for quick and original information. Your potential client wants videos that meet their needs and enable them to experience new dynamics without leaving the comfort of the sofa. I am talking of live videos on digital platforms, 360 ° videos that allow your customer to experience the product or service that your company intends to sell.

To follow these types of digital marketing trends, you have to respond with consumer’s desire to receive authentic, real and unfiltered content. Here too the importance of virtual reality will come. It begins to be insufficient to publish only the “providing the consumer with a more memorable and differentiating experience leads to the ever greater integration of Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality into brand strategies thus creating interactive content.

3. World mobile & AMP

The theme Mobile has stopped being a novelty in the last years, but nevertheless, this kind of digital marketing trends will continue for its constant and exponential evolution. Customers are increasingly using their smartphones to conduct all sorts of searches and make purchasing decisions. And to this, we must add the changes made by Google regarding the new model of indexing of websites – mobile-oriented – that make the top priority of brands a responsive website (it is true … many brands have not yet realized this) that overcome the risk of being penalized by Google in SERP.

We also know that the time users spend online is mostly mobile, which forces brands to see if all their channels are optimally optimized for this reality. You have to ensure Accelerated Mobile Pages (AMP) appearances that are already a determining factor of the SEO strategy of the brands. The Google search engine will “benefit” all brands that have a fast mobile website that promote a great user experience.

4. Chatbots and Digital Assistants

If they go unnoticed by the look and sensitivity of most users, we know that over the next few years, chatbots and digital assistants will be an important asset in the support, commercial relationship and customer service of brands with potential customers. Google, Facebook, IBM and Amazon (among others) clearly focus on Artificial Intelligence, making bots a key theme in the world of technology. A Gartner study says that by 2020 people will have more conversations with bots than with their halves… Are you familiar with these kinds of digital marketing trends?

5. Social Media Search

Social networks will have an increasing weight in the search of brands. Clearly, this is a phenomenon we have already seen more than ever. For consumers to find recommendations and assessments of your brands, you have to follow this digital marketing platform to sell services or products. It is more than social platforms where we find family, friends, and colleagues all in one place. Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Youtube, among others, are becoming real competitors of the search engines.

6. Instant Messaging

Instant Messaging, another digital marketing trends that increased over the years. It is currently having the same weight as Social Media for the Millennials. This data reveals the importance that brands should always assign with a personal brand speech, transparency and collaborative way to Facebook Messenger and Whatsapp that are perceived as central channels in communication.

7. Big Data

Do you know how much data is produced each passing day? About 2.5 exabytes (1 million terabytes). Here is the importance of Big Data, which is characterized by the analysis, study, and use of large and complex data volumes. Information (date) can be obtained through brand research, public surveys and user registrations and logins for purchasing products and services, and companies specializing in Big Data. Your smartphone, the websites you visit, the apps you use daily, and even some of the most innovative cars, are constantly saving information and data at all times. And the information available on users doubles with each passing year. As you can imagine, it is increasingly important to have someone who can “chew” all this information and turn it into insights for the business world. Over the next few years, this kind of digital marketing trends will boom the market.

8. User-centered experience

The large volume of information in online has created a new type of consumer, more informed, more selective and more complex. If your company has not yet bet on a personalized dialogue, it means you have not yet understood this evolution and the new needs of potential customers. You have to follow these types of digital marketing trends to understand pain-points and needs to be able to offer customized and almost individual solutions.

None of the trends presented are isolated from the others and in this case, the user-centric experience is directly related to Big Data. Do you know a better way to perceive and understand your customer than with the data that he or she generates by “browsing” the internet, searching for their interests and looking for answers to their needs? Big Data is the key to success. Remember … put your intentions aside and think about your consumer. A study by IBM shows that while 90% of companies say they are concerned about talking to their customers, 80% of them do not feel personally involved in the company’s marketing strategies. Want to know how much could improve your business if you get a sense of belonging?

Ending with a positive thought:

Adaptation to all digital marketing trends and technological evolution are imperative and every hour, day, month or year that passes represents a new challenge for all of us. Follow the upcoming marketing trends and see how you can take advantage, personally or professionally of all the opportunities that come with technological and digital developments. Do not let go of the path already taken by companies that bet on contents. You have to take advantage of automation to create scalable processes.