What should marketers be thinking about in 2023?

Marketers might find themselves in a difficult position in 2023. There are so many exciting trends on the horizon for them to consider! It can be hard to know which to include in their marketing strategies. Following up on our marketing agency’s earlier blog running down the top 2023 trends, here are a few more we couldn’t resist adding to marketer’s lists.

Privacy will become even more topical

Customers are given even more control and greater choice over how they share their data. This includes information like their location, payment details or email address. Privacy will continue to be a hot topic in 2023. Businesses will need to ensure they are following GDPR, enforcing privacy mandates and reviewing when and how they provide this data. This is great for consumers, but businesses who use personal data to run campaigns will need to be armed with alternatives in case they lose access to crucial data sources.

We’ve already seen companies like Google and Apple focus on protecting user data. Apple’s 2021 IOS launch enabled iPhone and iPad users to select which apps tracked their third-party data. This helps to protect them from hyper-targeted ads and last year saw them roll out. A later IOS update gave Apple Mail users additional email privacy protection features. Google will be discontinuing third-party cookies on Chrome and encouraging advertisers to use its Privacy Sandbox instead.

Permanent social media posts may overtake ephemeral content

2023 will see brands use much more permanent social media content such as blogs and LinkedIn profiles that show up on a platform’s feed and can be viewed any time. This content will be mixed with ephemeral posts which create a buzz around events and brand shouts but then disappears from search once attention fades. Both have their place in content strategies to build brand presence and create peaks of activity that drive brand recognition and activate new interest.

Consumers will want to hear branded audio content

We’ve heard much more audio content during 2022. There have been new podcasts launching every week across a range of genres. This trend will continue into 2023. Audio chatroom app Clubhouse quickly gained millions of users in 2020 without publishing any visual content. In the last few years, we have seen platforms such as Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook launching audio features. Other brands are fast increasing their podcast content. Audio platforms will continue to play nicely into online marketing strategies as businesses use data to capitalise on engagement and brand awareness.

Content will continue to be king

We know from our previous trends blog that prospective buyers will view multiple pieces of content prior to engaging with a business. The need for businesses to continue to create content in all forms to keep their target market interested will remain in 2023. Budgets for content marketers and multimedia producers will continue to rise in 2023. As the most content required is digital, content growth needs to go hand-in-hand with businesses’ SEO strategy. As Google algorithms have evolved, SEO has become about much more than churning out basic posts that answer simple search queries. Now, brands are investing in SEO experts who can help them with everything from multimedia optimisation to search insights reporting.

Excellent service will become its own marketing strategy

With the traditional marketing funnel, customers were an afterthought once they were onboarded. 2023 will see the growth of the flywheel. This places the customer at the centre of a business’s strategy. Put a focus on ensuring that customers become advocates and promoters of your brand. If your business is providing excellent customer service, your customers are keen to shout about it. This becomes its own marketing strategy – Trustpilot, Fifo are built on this.

It’s clear that for 2023 channel proliferation will continue as customers choose when and how to interact with brands. As marketers it’s our job to stay ahead of these trends and ensure that the voice of customer is continually heard. That way, we can build marketing strategies that really work. If you’re interested in our predictions for marketing in 2023 and want to learn more, email us at hello@otbagency.co.uk.