Good news: According to ZenithOptimedia, major media U.S. ad spending will grow 3.5% next year.
It’s a modest increase, but it’s heading in the right direction, and you can bet that it’s going to be managed to the penny, with analytics tools and other kinds of technology working together to stretch marketing budgets everywhere.
With this in mind, digital marketing will be on the upswing big time in 2012. Here’s what to watch for.
Mobile goes mainstream. The title of a new eMarketer report pegs it: “Mobile Advertising and Marketing: Moving to the Mainstream.” Thanks to rising smart phone and tablet usage, next year mobile marketing will move from text messaging to a broader experience. The eMarketer report predicts that mobile advertising will soon become a valuable part of the media plan. The firm is projecting that U.S. mobile ad spending will grow 47 percent in 2012, to $1.8 billion.
Also, mobile payment opportunities are growing thanks to NFC (near field communication) technology that enables contactless transactions at the register. Already e-commerce giants like Amazon and eBay are reporting billions of dollars in sales via mobile. Jupiter Research estimates that mobile transaction volume will grow to $670 billion by 2015. Location-based services tied to mobile payments brings a whole new level of marketing (and analytics).
And finally, video on mobile and tablets will become even more accessible–content on demand, at your fingertips. In fact, the rise of mobile and tablets is having a profound impact on media consumption habits in general. For example, at Mashable.com, the average iPad app user spends six times as much time with the content as the site’s average web user.
It’s safe to say that if you haven’t invested in mobile yet, it’s time to get in the game.
Social goes mobile. As mobile moves into the mainstream, social media will continue it’s trend of becoming more mobile. Makes sense, right? Watch for much more social networking to be done on mobile devices where people can share content in real time. Location-based services will get more coverage. More and more people will be checking for recommendations about nearby restaurants, bars, hotels, etc. Social gaming via mobile devices will continue to grow. And online news will become more social, with more and more people getting their news from apps like iPad’s Flipboard or Washington Post Social Reader.
Mobile will be one of the hottest tickets in town in 2012. But watch for these trends, as well:
Inbound skyrockets. Blogging, thought leadership and viral assets will drive web traffic, which will increase lead generation. Aggregator services will play a key role in separating the good from the great content providers.
Multichannel increases. Consumers are rarely off the grid anymore. About 37 million adults have five or more internet-connected devices, according to Forrester Research. Customer behavior is happening on smart phones, kiosks, social media, search and call centers. Delivering a consistent experience for the customer wherever they are is going to be the challenge as this trend increases.
Gamification grows. Gamification refers to engaging people by applying game mechanics to non-game situations. One example is the Nike+ campaign, which gamified the process of personal training. People visit the site, enter details of their running times and the routes they take, and compete with other folk doing the same around the world. This trend will grow as brands find fun new ways to engage consumers who are becoming accustomed to more interactive forms of marketing.
Key Take-Away: Does your organization have a clearly defined digital marketing strategy? If not, you need to create one, or you may lose out on a significant revenue stream.
