Happy New Year!
What a year it was in 2020. The coronavirus has been the reason that so many businesses have had to pivot, change, or even disappear. But one of the key factors making this transformation and survival possible has been digital technologies.
Despite the constant shift towards a more digital world, Covid-19 has certainly fast tracked some of these trends and the truth is… most of these are here to stay.
So, as we move into a bigger and brighter year – 2021, DigitUX has marked 3 key digital marketing trends that we think you should jump on top of this year.
1. Virtual Events
With the need for information to be shared in a socially distanced environment starting out of necessity, virtual events are now here to stay. Not only do virtual events offer great accessibility to a wider number of people, but they also help to increase ROI.
Of course, ‘real’ events won’t disappear altogether, but the take-up of virtual events is key to businesses of any size or industry looking to make their mark now and into the future.
2. Local SEO
Local SEO has been growing at a fast enough pace on its own, but once again, Covid-19 and the lockdown measures put in place to stop the spread have only increased the importance of a local community.
But there’s one small hitch. You must be actively engaged in a local SEO Strategy. First and foremost, this means creating, optimising and managing a Google My Business (GMB) listing.
Once Google knows about your business, it will make it far easier for customers to find you, engage with you and ‘share’ you.
3. Customer Reviews
There’s a lot of competition out there, and more and more customers are doing the research to make sure they are getting the best deal. Yes, this means they are looking very closely at what previous customers have had to say about you – and beware – some customers are not afraid to hold back.
As a business, it’s imperative to obtain as many positive reviews as possible, as often as you can in order to keep that consistent, relevant and fresh approach that Google and customers love.
In the case that you receive a bad review, don’t worry, it happens. Just make sure that your business responds accordingly to show that they take all reviews seriously.
Reviews have grown in importance over the last few years – making up 16% of local ranking factors in 2020, compared to 12% back in 2018 – BrightLocal
While there are many more trends to look out for in 2021, we think if you find a balance with these 3 insights, then you will start to move your business in the right direction for a stronger, higher impact digital marketing strategy with greater ROI.