Bucking the Trend
It’s hard not to fall for a good trend. All the cool kids are doing it, so why shouldn’t you?
Marketers (even B2B marketers!) aren’t any less susceptible. The Internet is riddled with articles touting “the top 11 most exciting marketing trends for 2019 and beyond,” “the 3 trends every marketer should know” and “the 5 marketing trends not to miss!” With titles like those, it’s hard not to experience a little FOMO. But the thing about trends is this: they come and go, leaving us searching for the next new hot thing.
Before you shape your entire marketing plan around somebody’s top 5 list, think about why these tactics may be trending. Take, for example these five:
#1: Personalization
Customers want to be treated as individuals. They want their customer experience with your company to reflect that you know who they are and what they want. The trend here is finding new and more technological ways to segment and target audiences in order to personalize the customer experience…but good marketing has always been driven to understand who the buyer is and what motivates them.
#2: Account-based Marketing (ABM)
This type of marketing shifts the marketing focus from an industry, product or channel to select target accounts. Successful ABM forces the sales and marketing teams to align their efforts…a feat which marketing has been trying to accomplish for far longer than the handful of years ABM has been a trend.
#3: Influencer Marketing
Social media has thrown industry influencers into the spotlight, giving them wider reach and louder voices…but look past that and what you’ll see is really good public relations work, which never goes out of style.
#4: Content Marketing
This trend has evolved over the years, shifting focus from quantity of content to quality and variety of content. But the one constant in the approach is the delivery of valuable, relevant and consistent content…which is what marketing should strive to do anyway.
#5: Chatbots
As artificial intelligence and marketing automation evolve, chatbots are becoming a popular way to communicate with customers. These virtual assistants can streamline the sales process and improve customer service by responding to customer inquiries, collecting information and even setting appointments. In other words, they help you engage with your customers…like any of your marketing efforts should.
Always in Fashion
At the core of every hot marketing trend sits a tried and true marketing tenet. And these, more than the sexy buzzwords, should be the focus of your marketing toolbox. They’ll never go out of style.
