Get your marketing plans in gear for 2021
We’ve said farewell to what has been a turbulent year. 2021 and the possibility of a return to some kind of normality in everyday life and business is a welcome prospect. However, have the past 10 months had a long term effect on the way brands operate, particularly when it comes to their marketing plans?
People have been working from home and spending less time on their daily commute. Social media usage and podcast subscriptions have gone up. And people have been turning to online news sites more than buying hard copies of their favourite newspaper.
Most importantly, people have come to demand immediacy. If a website page takes longer than a few milliseconds to load or an email goes unanswered for a few hours customers form a negative opinion about your brand.
These are all trends that have been growing over the past decade but COVID-19 has accelerated them.
So what does this mean for brand communications and digital marketing plans in 2021?
Luckily technology is evolving quickly to help business marketing become more responsive. Here are some tactics we think you need to look out for and develop in the year ahead:
It should be no surprise that if you connect with customers in a personalised way they are more likely to make a purchase.
On a basic level, this means asking your customers how they want to receive communications from you. They may prefer a letter in the post rather than an email or a text in preference to a call.
When it comes to marketing you need to think carefully about the wording of your content and where you promote it. Social media platforms allow you to target your audience very specifically with advertising. And as more people are on social media than ever before now is the time to investigate Facebook ads as well as promotions on other platforms.
Having a chatbot on your website will help improve your customers’ experience by giving them quick responses to frequently asked questions. It will also help your bottom line by giving customers the information they need to move along the sales funnel.
From an operational point of view chatbots also reduce the burden on your team. In a digital world where people are online 24/7, chatbots help your business work around the clock without additional costs.
Keyword visibility on Instagram
If you use Instagram as part of your marketing strategy there are some important updates coming in 2021.
Instagram is about to improve its search function so people are not so reliant on hashtags to find the content they want to see. The keywords you use in post captions and even your profile name will become vital to making your posts more visible.
Make sure you write descriptive captions that explain your image and message. You have 2,200 characters to play with.
Search Engine Optimisation
If you don’t already know about search engine optimisation or SEO then it’s time to get your head around it. Why? It’s what helps your competitors rank higher than you in search results. Unless you start working on SEO that gap is only going to get larger.
Having a keyword strategy for your website and digital content is vital for being seen online in 2021 and beyond.
Even before 2020, podcasting was growing and the pandemic has accelerated that. The relative ease of setting up a podcast and their ability to connect with customers on a personal level makes them an excellent channel for cultivating brand advocates in 2021.
If one of your 2021 objectives is to improve your marketing plans Amplify PR can help. We are a Southampton-based PR and content marketing agency offering consultancy and services to businesses who are serious about building their reputation. Find out what our clients say about us.