Since May 2016, Adobe has analyzed more than 14.3 billion visits to e-commerce websites, in addition to 14.5 million social media searches for voice assistants. With technologies like machine learning, cloud software, IoT and artificial intelligence becoming the norm in marketing applications, companies are evaluating ways to beat the competition. The demand for savvy marketing techniques is getting louder, and these 3 marketing technology trends are what businesses have to watch for in 2018. 

Leveraging Big Data

In 2015, the White House hired the nation's first US Chief Data Scientist, a move that demonstrated the impact of Big Data on American innovation and consumer purchasing patterns. 

Taking the help of data scientists will help accurately determine what content will best attract and engage customers. The vast ocean of quantitative measures and marketing equations can seem formidable and confusing, but data scientists use their business acumen to identify patterns among the data. Using such patterns, businesses can create targeted content to influence potential buyers.   

Personalized Content

61 percent of customers trust a company that creates customized and individualized content according to their needs. Businesses have to transition from the 'one-size-fits-all' philosophy, and develop intelligent personalization strategies. Creating smart and dynamic content tailored to consumer personalities will spark direct conversations with customers. This keeps consumers interested and more likely to choose your brand for future investments. 

Example: Stitch Fix uses quizzes at the beginning of its on-boarding process to deliver a 1:1 personalization parameter. Using this strategy, the company achieved more than $250 million in revenue.

Employing Native Ads

Native ads are in high demand as opposed to traditional advertising, and are predicted to drive more than 74 percent of ad revenue by 2021.

Native ads are advertisements that blend easily into the browser background without disturbing the user. Most users find traditional advertisement banners and pop-ups irritating and disruptive. Native ads on the other hand allow businesses to market their services and products in a non-disruptive manner. When the right information is presented when a user really needs it, users pay more attention to the advertisement as opposed to being irked by it. As a result, native ads drive brand lift and consumer engagement as opposed to traditional marketing.

The digital market is rapidly evolving, and technology continues to bring new innovations to the table. Businesses have to evaluate new trends, as opposed to being dependent on what worked in the past. Now is the time to start planning your company's digital marketing success for 2018.

For more information on smart innovations and digital solutions, please contact our team today.