Top Trust-building Content Marketing Trends In 2019

Marketers definitely have their work cut out for them in 2019.

As that elusive number one spot on Google continues to slip out of reach, content marketers may need another game plan to reach their customers.

Trying to be the brightest, shiniest needle in order to stand out in the haystack isn't working all that well. Maybe it's time to go back to the basics.

What about trust?

While institutional trust has been in a steady decline for the last decade, brands have a significant opportunity to earn back trust by showing consumers who they are and proving that they care about them as much as they say they do.

The good news? Building and maintaining consumer trust isn't as hard as the Mount Everest climb to Google's top ranking. At least not for trustworthy brands.

Several new marketing trends have been gaining momentum this past year, helping content marketers increase brand trust by delivering more personalized customer service and value. If you don't know about them yet, you should!

1. Personalized Content Experiences

What is it and why is it so popular? Have you ever received a piece of content and thought, “How did they know that I was looking for this?” This is what the ideal personalized content experience looks like. A few years ago, personalized content didn't quite "wow" consumers as marketers expected. It equated to simply slapping someone's name on an email subject line or piece of marketing and calling it good. Although some customers were excited to receive something that was addressed to them personally, they soon realized it was just a gimmick. Aside from their name, the content had nothing to do with them. So much for that "personal" added touch.

Now, top performing marketers have upped their game. By using marketing automation technologies like Streampage, Marketo, and Hubspot, they can personalize the entire customer experience, not just the content. They are able to deliver the right piece of content to the right person, through the right channel and the right device, at the perfect time. Each individual receives a unique experience that caters to their exact needs and preferences.

Key Stats:

• Email recipients are 75 percent more likely to click on emails from personalized campaigns than non-personalized campaigns (MailChimp, 2017).
• Demand Gen Report found a 20 percent increase in sales opportunities for lead-gen campaigns that have personalized content.
• According to Monetate research, 94 percent of marketers surveyed believe personalized marketing is critical for future success.
• Personalization can reduce acquisition costs by as much as 50 percent, lift revenues by 5 to 15 percent, and increase the efficiency of marketing spend by 10 to 30 percent (Mckinsey).

How are marketers using it? Marketers have had great success using personalized content marketing to improve the buyer's journey. Being able to pinpoint where each customer is in their journey, they are able to deliver content that is most meaningful to them at that moment. They create valuable touch points that are tailored to each person's needs and level of interest.

2. AI-Powered Marketing

What is it and why is it so popular? According to Capgemini, "Artificial Intelligence encompasses a range of technologies that learn over time as they are exposed to more data. AI includes speech recognition, natural language processing semantic technology, biometrics, machine learning and deep learning, swarm intelligence, and chatbots or voice bots."

AI-powered marketing has gotten a lot of buzz in the past year. It satisfies a huge hunger for marketers who are looking for more accurate and predictive consumer data. AI-powered marketing technology uses a subset of AI, machine learning, to gather new data and learn from it. It's then able to identify patterns and behaviors that provide valuable insights to marketers. The more information the technology gathers and analyzes, the smarter and more accurate its predictions become.

Key Stats:

• High-performing marketing teams are more than twice as likely to use AI in their campaigns than under-performers (Salesforce).
• The artificial intelligence platform market will be worth $9.88 billion by 2022 (PRNewswire).
• 72 percent of high-performing marketers are already using some form of AI (Salesforce).
• 3 in 4 organizations using AI increase sales of new products and services by more than 10 percent (Capgemini).

How are marketers using it? Early adopters have found success using AI-powered marketing automation platforms like Marketo, Streampage, and Hubspot to receive deeper and more accurate insights about their customers in order to improve customer experiences and increase campaign conversions.

3. Live Video

What is it and why is it so popular? Live video, which includes well-known digital platforms like Facebook Live and Periscope, has become the new "it girl" of video content. Consumers love it because they get to see a more authentic view of their favorite brands and be a part of the actions as it unfolds. Brands love it because they get to share unique experiences and interact with their audience in real time.

Key Stats

• 82 percent of respondents would rather tune into a brand’s live video than read their social media posts.
• People spend 3 times longer watching a live social video compared to one that has been prerecorded (Social Media Today).
• Live video is outpacing the growth of other types of online video, with a 113 percent increase in annual ad growth (Yahoo). 
• 82 percent of viewers prefer live video to social media posts, and 80 percent prefer live video to reading a blog (talk point).

How are marketers using it? Many brands have had huge success using live video to promote new products or provide updates at local or industry events. Others use streaming video to do live demonstrations of new products, conduct Q&A sessions with experts, or interact with their followers on social media.

What It Boils Down To

For marketers, it's getting and keeping the right attention, building trust and recognition, and increasing customer loyalty and advocacy. For consumers, it's finding answers to problems more quickly, more easily, in less time, and from a trusted source. The key to success is in paying attention to what your customers are doing and find opportunities to better serve them.