Marketing Trends to Latch on to in 2021
WRITTEN BY DEDE WRIGHT-DEMARIAN, SOCIAL MEDIA COORDINATOR
via Sean Lee
With the unpredictable events of 2020 under our belts, the marketing world is being transformed in many different aspects. The COVID-19 pandemic has changed consumer habits, creating a boom in eCommerce and the momentum of the Black Lives Matter movement has caused a shift in what it means to be a brand that truly seeks and supports the fight for inclusivity and equality.
In the early months of 2021, here are a few marketing trends you may want to put into practice.
User-Generated Content
UGC by no means is a new marketing trend or technique, but it has a greater effect now on enhancing the customer experience. The power of the Influencer is still great, but consumers are more skeptical about whether or not to trust their recommendations. However, UGC helps ease concerns because they are more able to relate to other consumers who aren’t getting an incentive to talk about a brand. UGC builds communities, generates more at-home content during a time of restrictions, and it allows brands to interact with consumers in a way that feels more personal.
Virtual Events
Out of necessity due to social distancing and stay-at-home orders, many events in 2020 went virtual. In 2021 a lot of them will stay virtual, but not because of continued pandemic precautions. Making events virtual means (to an extent) no costs for building space and time and no travel expenses for the company or outside speakers. Virtual events reach and help bring in a new audience and allow for more people to join the event. More people + lower costs = a great ROI.
Voice Search for eCommerce
It is becoming more common for homes to have smart speakers, such as Alexa. With more people at home and avoiding in-store shopping eCommerce is booming. Having a voice search option for your online store has the potential to increase your sales, as homes continue to add smart speakers in which they have voice commands.
Inclusivity and Goodwill Efforts
Brands need to be transparent with what they support and believe in. Consumers are looking for brands that match their views on identity, diversity, equality, and more. The social and political climate have created distinctions in what people won’t tolerate from brands. As mentioned before, the unprecedented momentum of the Black Lives Matter movement shifted marketing for many brands. Consumers began to hold brands more accountable, especially brands whose primary demographic was greatly affected. Transparency is key and brands must clearly show their goodwill efforts and where they stand on different spectrums of inclusivity.
2020 was so unpredictable and because of it, brands had to dig deeper on how to connect to consumers. These 4 trends that emerged in 2020 will at least still carry on for the first 6 months of 2021 as many of the outside influences have not changed. Even so, 2021 is still a fairly new year and only time can tell if these trends will stick through to the end.
