Our Quote of the Day:
"Follow the trend lines, not the headlines." — William J. Clinton
Understanding The Relevance of Trends
Whether or not marketing trends are essential is debatable. Should marketers follow or lead? As the argument against being cognizant of trends goes, some believe that today's trends are yesterday's strategies and will never be consistent, as trends are a moving target. Further, there is also the premise that trendsetters never follow trends; instead, they create their own.
That said, there is one constant truth: to be and remain competitive, a brand needs to be keenly aware of what its competitors are doing. Therefore, a precursor look at forecasted marketing trends is nothing more than an observation of what top-line marketers are forecasting against the successes they have been able to achieve. Besides, trendsetters tend to be aware of unexploited areas and may decide to pursue a different path because they are cognizant of trending norms and projections.
HubSpot's Survey Sample
"We surveyed 1,067 global marketers from across B2B and B2C companies from small to large employee sizes. The sample included professionals at varying experience levels from seven countries: the US, Australia, Canada, Germany, UK, France, and Japan."
Top 5 Key Findings
- Influencer marketing is the top marketing trend. That finding should not surprise us as we have seen influencer marketing rise over the past five years. Influencer marketing is dominating digital and traditional marketing landscapes. Actor Ving Rhames is the spokesperson/influencer for Arby's. Basketball star Steph Curry is the spokesperson/influencer for Subway and CarMaxCarMax. Tennis great Serena Williams is the spokesperson/influencer for Subway and Xfinity. And, of course, Flo has been the spokesperson/influencer for Progressive for more than a decade. Influencer marketing will continue to grow in 2022 for digital and traditional.
- Social media is the number one marketing channel that marketers are leveraging. Social media marketing has also been on the rise for over five years. It is especially successful for B2C marketing efforts, particularly with heightened Instagram and TikTok usage. Applebees's successful TikTok generated campaign featuring the song "Fancy Like" written by country artist Walker Hayes comes to mind. While Instagram and Facebook top social media marketing preferences, LinkedIn continues to attract B2B brands.
- Instagram the star of social media usage, is just ahead of YouTube and Facebook. Although TikTok is making inroads and will likely continue its surge into the most-used channel space in 2022.
- First Time top trends marketers plan to leverage in 2022 are short-form video, social responsibility, and inbound marketing.
- Budgets from brands may see increases for marketing in 2022.
Trends Marketers are Planning to Use in 2022
Marketers are forecasting that the following trends will be implemented for the first time in 2022. It should come as no surprise that short-form video, social responsibility, and inbound marketing lead forecast trends that marketers will invest in for 2022. Here are the new trends that marketers expect to leverage in 2022:
The Six New Trends
- 29% - Short-Form Videos
- 27% - Social Responsibility
- 23% - Inbound marketing
- 23% - Native Advertising
- 22% - Live Streaming Video
- 21% - Influencer Marketing
Keep in mind that the above forecasts percentages represent new trends for first-time use. This is also the first time that Influencer Marketing qualifies as a new trend that will be deployed by more for the first time.
Marketing Channels for Businesses
Businesses are investing in the leading channels, including social media, website/blog, and email marketing. Keep in mind that direct mail marketing significantly increases response rates and ROI when used to direct targeted individuals to a website or social media destination.
With a median ROI of 29%, direct mail follows just behind email and social media marketing, trailing this group by one percentage point in terms of ROI.
6 Trends Being Leveraged Today
If you're wondering how the top 7 currently used trends are ranked, the following list answers that question. Note that in 2022, 51% of marketers who leverage social media plan to increase their investment in social media marketing, and 37% will continue investing the same amount. Also noteworthy, the use of blogs will continue growing in 2022, with 29% of content marketers planning to leverage blogs for the first time and 10% planning to invest more in blogs than any other format.
- 44% - Social Media
- 36% - Website/Blog
- 35% - Email Marketing
- 32% - Content Marketing
- 26% - SEO Marketing
- 25% - Virtual Events
While the current trends will continue throughout 2022, their respective percentage usage rankings may change due to the continuing development of digital transformation, the changing economy, and the pandemic state.
Leading Content Marketing Formats
1. Video: Videos lead across the board as the most popular and effective format with the highest ROI, and 30% of content marketers plan to invest in video more than any other format in 2022.
2. Blogs: Blogs are popular, effective, and have the 3rd highest ROI of any format. The use of blogs will continue growing in 2022, with 29% of content marketers planning to leverage blogs for the first time and 10% planning to invest more in blogs than any other format.
3. Infographics: The adoption of infographics will continue growing as 45% of content marketers currently leverage them, and 38% plan to leverage them for the first time in 2022. Additionally, 56% of content marketers who leverage infographics say it is the most effective content format they use.
4. Podcasts and Audio Content: Only one in three content marketers use podcasts or other audio content. While 51% plan to invest more in 2022, 43% plan to continue investing the same amount despite low ROI reports. 53% of content marketers who leverage podcasts and other audio content say it is the most effective format they use.
5. Audio Chat Rooms: Just 14% of social media marketers leverage audio chat rooms like Clubhouse and Twitter Spaces, but 68% of those who do say it's the most effective social media strategy they use, despite low ROI. Additionally, 49% of those who already use audio chat rooms plan to increase their investment in 2022, while 47% plan to maintain their current investment next year.
The Net-Net
This data features Hubspot, Neil Patel, and the American Marketing Association. It is only a drop in the 2020 marketing trends forecasts bucket for your strategic scrutiny. Given the rapid pace of change, marketers must review budgetary limitations, experience with the tools, timing, and when and where to market. Keep in mind that creating buyer personas will also play a significant role in designing the proper communications for selected targets and their respective demographics. Your brand can still become a trendsetter, but it's in your best interest to avoid being blindsided by a competitive brand that is also inclined to set a unique trend. Trends are just markers along a path that change over time. We implore you to contemplate these trends as you enjoy the holiday season. Thanks for reading "2022 Marketing Industry Trends Projections!"
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