The world of technology is moving at a fast pace and you need to be prepared to pivot at the right time to get hold of the most suited technology for your business, The year 2020 is going to be no different and evolving technologies are bound shape-up and shake-up the business landscape like never before. In a world where technology is fast becoming an essential need for business to function seamlessly, here are some of the top trends that are going to dominate the headlines this year.
Artificial Intelligence (AI): This is a technology that has the potential to become all-pervasive in the coming times. Already it touches our lives in various forms in terms of Google search and Netflix recommendations, which are offshoots of AI technology. Today, companies are focused on extracting data from varied sources and analyse emerging patterns. AI is playing a crucial role in understanding consumer behaviour for informed marketing and sales decisions. This apart the economic impact of AI will be a substantial 14% addition to the global GDP by 2030.
Programmatic Advertising: In simple words, it is the process of buying and selling advertising online and it has changed the way advertising is done traditionally. This trend is going to remain strong in the coming future since the ROI is quite visible and measurable along with better outreach. More companies are going to adopt this model as their advertising medium of choice.
Chatbots: Customer service is one of those elements in business that can prove detrimental to a business if not taken care properly. However, employing full-time customer service and even outsourcing the exercise tends to be expensive for small and medium-sized companies. This has made chatbots a seemingly “hot” technology proposition for companies with the minimal human resources at its disposal. According to estimates, the sector is growing at a 30% rate on a year-to-year basis.
Conversational Marketing: The stress here is on receiving feedback and listening to the opinion of the customers and incorporating them into your marketing strategy. It is about regular engagement, increased loyalty and inevitable revenue increase. With multiple channels and devices available, this process has assumed considerable importance. Companies today are talking about developing their conversational strategy to stand out as a brand and even encourage more customers to engage with the brand. This marketing practice is set to evolve more as our accessibility to the brand is on the rise.
Personalization: The amount of data collected by companies today pales in comparison with companies from the past. The huge quantum of data is being studied closely by companies to target the customers at the right time on a specific occasion. This has meant personalization has become a great deal for companies that transact their business online. Even brick and mortar companies are enhancing their digital presence in the cyberspace to join the bandwagon. We are only going to see more upsurge on this front in future.
Video Marketing: Improving technologies have meant accessing videos have become easier and has made Youtube global brand and one of the most visited sites, People consume more videos than ever before and there is definitely more inclination. This makes video-marketing the desired choice to build a brand by increasing awareness, and engaging customers consistently. Today’s companies create how-to’s, video testimonials, live-stream events and content that entertains to push their brands. This has meant we shall see more companies producing videos and doing marketing intelligently.
Influencer Marketing: The multitude of channels today we have for entertainment has meant that there are more people chasing fame. And some of them have found success to become influencers on their channels. Today there are a range of influencers starting from movie-stars, cricketers, youtube stars and the list continues. Companies already knew on how to leverage fame for brand communications, with the advent of new stars - it has meant a niche audience and focussed targeting. This trend is likely to continue as smaller companies are engaging micro-influencers to channelise their brand on social media within their budgetary constraints. We are still seeing an emerging phenomenon and there is a lot more to follow.
Social Messaging Apps: Considering its popularity among its users. It is not hard to understand companies utilising Social Messaging to directly communicate with their prospects and customers. The process starts by attracting new leads with content. This list is nurtured through regular engaging content and answering their concerns and finally making them paying customers. This trend is here to stay as this simple & easy one-on-one conversation helps reaps rich dividends when done right.
Visual Search: The exercise is about matching an image with the same multiple options available on the website. The technology utilizes neural networks which use machine learning technology. The underlying idea is to teach machines to match patterns and shapes with similar-looking objects. The technology has great scope when it comes to search and online shopping. Already online shopping companies are using the technology to allow customers to make exact choices according to colour and design. The trend is still developing and might become a permanent fixture among online users.
Voice Search: The technology is really convenient and with the advent of smart speakers it has become more common across homes. It removes the hassle of typing and is faster. With continued improvement in voice recognition technology, it would become fairly common for users to depend more on voice search. Companies are increasingly adopting a voice-centric approach because they can provide valuable insights about users leading to more personalized messaging and increased customer satisfaction. Seen as an emergent technology it has the scope to become favoured means of communication to improve customer retention and loyalty.
Social Media Stories: The stories are ephemeral and only lasts for 24 hrs. This is a great way to engage with users and share their in-the-moment experiences to the rest of the world. All you need is a creative bent of mind and a smartphone. Even production values don’t matter as this gives the story an intimate and realistic feel. Started by Snapchat, the story-medium has been adopted by all major social channels presently. Companies are leveraging the power of this medium to better engage with the customers. Some of the known benefits include cost-effective engagement, increased brand awareness and growing traffic to the website. We are certain that we would see more innovative and fanciful content from users in times to come.
Long-form Content: Page rank has become the benchmark on which brands base their performance online. And Google has repeatedly emphasized its liking for the long-form copy. More content equals more effectiveness to influence search engines. Besides, if you are serious about content marketing and want to turn your prospects into paying customers. It becomes all the more important that long-form copy engages more with users. Today’s customers believe in research before making a purchase decision and exhaustive content helps in remedying nagging worries of the customers about a product or service. We would see more on this as we progress through the year as Google does bring in updates in favour of good engaging content from time to time.
-------Sujit Susheelan
