The Marketing Playbook for 2024: Thriving Amidst Challenges

As a brand owner or marketer, you're no stranger to the ever-evolving digital landscape. 2024 has ushered in its fair share of obstacles – tightened budgets, a tumultuous advertising arena, and the demise of third-party cookies. But for the savvy few, these hurdles are mere stepping stones to greater opportunities.

In this climate of constant flux, staying ahead of the curve is paramount. Here's a sneak peek into the most influential digital marketing trends of 2024 and how you can leverage them to your advantage.

#1 AI: The Not-So-Secret Sauce

“According to a 2023 survey, 63% of marketing leaders are planning to invest in generative AI in the next 24 months.” - Gartner

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is the buzzword on everyone's lips, and for good reason. Industry disruptors like OpenAI, Anthropic, and Midjourney are redefining boundaries, captivating audiences with their ingenious advancements. Embracing AI is no longer an option; it's a necessity for brands that wish to remain competitive. Brand are leveraging AI in the following ways:

Content and CX

By 2025, 30% of outbound marketing messages from large organizations will be synthetically generated - Gartner. Generative AI unleashes unprecedented opportunities for marketers to create innovative and engaging content. This technology learns from existing data to generate new, unique digital assets across various modalities, including:

• Text: AI can generate marketing copy, news articles, job descriptions, and even short-form content like email subject lines for A/B testing.
• Images: Logos, product models, and human images can be generated or altered for different poses, aging, and other aspects.
• Video: AI can create immersive product experiences, event highlights, and multilingual versions.
• Personalized Ads: By assembling digital assets, ads can be optimized for personalization.
• Computer Vision: AI can improve image quality, develop digital twins, and create deep fakes.
• Virtual Influencers: Avatars and virtual influencers can engage customers on social media and provide customer support.

Shape Customer Decisions with personalization using Influence AI

Influence AI harnesses algorithms to automate digital experiences and guide user choices at scale, offering marketers a competitive edge. By combining generative AI for creating media assets, emotion AI for analyzing emotional states (using computer vison, audio inputs and other technologies), and federated learning for consolidating disparate information, influence AI optimizes processes against organizational goals and values.

Influence AI acts as a "choice architect," framing options to maximize influence while preserving freedom of choice. For instance, in the travel industry, AI could nudge users towards eco-friendly accommodation by displaying them prominently or offering incentives, subtly encouraging sustainable choices.

In e-commerce, AI could analyze a user's browsing history, preferences, and emotional cues to personalize product recommendations, enhancing the shopping experience and driving conversions. Retailers could also leverage influence AI to promote products aligning with their sustainability initiatives or ethical values. The financial sector could benefit from influence AI by guiding clients towards investment options aligned with their risk profiles and financial goals, ensuring informed decision-making, and building trust.

Ultimately, influence AI empowers businesses to shape customer choices intelligently, fostering personalized experiences, promoting desired outcomes, and strengthening brand loyalty. Advances in complementary technologies like Computer Vision will accelerate this trend further.

SEO Using AI

AI is evolving rapidly, and its role in SEO is becoming increasingly significant. Here are some specific ways in which AI is transforming SEO:

• Keyword Research: AI-powered tools like Semrush, Ahrefs, and Moz can analyze vast amounts of data to identify relevant and high-performing keywords, as well as predict future trends in search behavior. One can even use Chat GPT to validate keywords for relevancy etc.
• Content Optimization: AI can analyze existing content and provide recommendations for improvement, such as suggesting better headlines, formatting, or incorporating relevant keywords. Tools like Semrush, MarketMuse, Clearscope, and Frase leverage AI for content optimization. According to a survey done by Semrush, 53%?of the marketers surveyed saw engagement increase after optimizing content using AI and 49% said their rankings and traffic improved.
• Backlink Analysis: AI algorithms can analyze backlink profiles, identify potential link-building opportunities, and detect spammy or low-quality links that may harm a website's ranking.?
• Schema Markup Creation: AI-powered tools like Rank Ranger and Schema Pro can automatically generate structured data markup, improving search visibility and enhancing the way content is displayed in search results.

• Other SEO Tasks: AI can analyze website structure and navigation, identifying issues and suggesting improvements. It can monitor competitor strategies and provide insights for better positioning. AI-powered voice search optimization tools can help optimize content for virtual assistants.

While AI is transforming various aspects of SEO, it is essential to note that human expertise and oversight remain crucial. AI tools should be viewed as powerful assistants, enhancing, and complementing the work of SEO professionals, rather than replacing them entirely.?

Operational Efficiency Improvement

By 2025, organizations leveraging AI across marketing are expected to shift 75% of their staff's operational tasks to strategic activities. – Gartner

The use of AI in marketing operations will simplify processes, decreasing obstacles and unnecessary repetition. This will allow marketers to focus on analyzing data and gaining insights. AI can optimize segmentation and personalization through orchestrating customer journeys and modularizing content. Key advantages include:

• Faster content creation and distribution across channels: AI removes bottlenecks in content production, enabling real-time decisions based on analytics and personalized experiences.
• Better customer experience and adaptability: Machine learning and analytics techniques convert data into proactive operations, delivering unparalleled efficiency and availability.

In the end, AI-powered marketing operations will unlock operational efficiency, allowing marketers to concentrate on strategic initiatives and improve customer experiences.

#2 Personalization: The Key to Customer Loyalty

“Companies can generate as much as 40% more revenue from personalization” - McKinsey.

“The global personalization software market hit an estimated $943 million in 2022 and is projected to reach $2.7 billion by 2027.” - 360i Research.

In today's saturated markets, standing out from the crowd is a constant uphill battle. Brands that deliver personalized, tailored experiences are more likely to convert one-time customers into loyal advocates. In fact, 60% of consumers admitted that personalized shopping experiences make them want to return and buy again.

Personalization can help brands improve:

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Consumers no longer view personalization as a luxury; it's an expectation. Three-quarters of customers expect brands to offer personalized experiences after sharing personal information. Simple gestures like birthday offers or personalized product recommendations can go a long way in fostering lasting connections with your audience.

Challenges to personalization:

40% of marketers say their biggest challenge with personalization is linking to data-related technologies, while 34% struggle with poor data quality. - Experian

Deprecation of 3rd party cookies and access to the data required for personalization improvement are the biggest roadblocks to personalization according to marketers. That is where first party data is going to play a bigger role going forward.

#3 First Party Data Infrastructure

The role of the first party data in marketing is not new, brands such as Amazon, Netflix, Facebook, TikTok etc. have been using firth party data to personalize product experience for the users. It is with the demise of 3rd party cookies and other privacy measures implemented worldwide that first party data has emerged as one of the prominent and widespread forces in the world of marketing. First-party data is information collected directly from your customers or audience through their interactions with your brand, such as website visits, transactions, social media engagements, and surveys. It's highly valuable for businesses because:

• It provides accurate, trustworthy insights into customer preferences and behaviors.
• It enables personalized marketing and customer experiences, fostering loyalty and repeat business.
• It allows for targeted marketing campaigns that resonate with specific audience segments.

Leveraging first-party data can lead to significant business outcomes:

• Improved customer retention and loyalty through personalized recommendations and experiences (e.g., a subscription service offering curated packages based on usage patterns).
• Brand differentiation by tailoring products, services, and marketing campaigns to unique customer needs (e.g., a cosmetic brand quickly adapting to emerging beauty trends).

Building a robust first-party data strategy is crucial for long-term, sustainable success in today's data-driven world.

#4 Content: The Neon Sign in a Sea of Noise

“Typical internet user now has an attention span of just 8 seconds” - Microsoft

During his investigation marketing expert, Ron Marshall, encountered a staggering 487 ad messages and promotions before ending his breakfast. With the average customer bombarded by thousands of ads daily and shrinking attention span of internet users, capturing consumer attention has become an art form.

Short form videos, podcasts, and CTV (OTT Streaming) are rapidly growing as preferred mode of content consumption. Short-form video content is emerging as the tool of choice for marketers seeking to deliver their message in a matter of seconds with TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube remaining the dominant platforms. In addition, OTT streaming is also rapidly growing with the OTT market expected to reach $316 billion in 2024 (Statista). Low-cost ad-supported subscription plans are adding to the growth momentum and creating more opportunities for marketers to advertise their products on these platforms. Podcast is another content form gaining popularity worldwide with more than 500 million people worldwide expected to listen to podcasts in 2024 and the value of the podcast market is growing at a CAGR of 25%-30% according to various estimates.

But it's not just about brevity; creativity is the key to standing out. As attention spans dwindle, brands must embrace experiential and interactive content campaigns to keep audiences engaged. Take a page from Mars Wrigley's book – their "No Bounty" campaign, which played on the controversy surrounding their Bounty chocolate, generated a staggering 75 billion impressions and went viral on social media. Apple’s “Study With Me” video campaign served as a virtual study companion for viewers who were looking for that type of content while also highlighting the capabilities of Apple’s MacBook Air product. It generated 18 million views on YouTube.

#5 Social Listening: The Secret Weapon

“76% of marketing professionals stated that social listening tools will inform marketing strategies in 2024” - Brandwatch

Did you know that a mere 1.5% of online discussions about brands originate from the brands themselves? With over 5 billion social media users projected by 2024, this represents a vast untapped resource of consumer insights. Brands that fail to monitor these online conversations are missing out on a goldmine of feedback, sentiment, and invaluable data. Social listening tools empower marketers to gather real-time insights, optimize campaigns, benchmark against competitors, and stay ahead of emerging trends. By harnessing the power of social data, you can create truly customer-centric strategies that resonate with your audience.

Conclusion

As the digital landscape continues to evolve, adaptability and customer-centricity will be the cornerstones of success. Whether you're embracing AI, delivering personalized experiences, crafting creative campaigns, or leveraging social listening, the key is to prioritize your audience's perspective. By understanding their needs, preferences, and pain points, you can navigate the challenges of 2024 with finesse and emerge as a trailblazer in your industry.

Please ping me on LinkedIn or write to me at [email protected] to share your feedback or have a candid chat on the topic. At Attryb, we help brands to offer personalized shopping journey to their website visitors (customers + anonymous visitors) with the objective to improving ROAS, CR, AOV and CLTV. Please reach out if you would like to know how.

PS: I have used research by Gartner Brandwatch Semrush to produce the article. Part of the article has been generated using AI Anthropic