1. Productivity Goes Down, But Not As Fast As We Think.

Productivity is on everybody’s minds this year, and for good reason. With the new year already begun, we’re looking forward to seeing how much we’ll get done and how efficiently we’ll operate. With more and more people working remotely, travel will become a thing of the past. However, this doesn’t mean that work-related travel will disappear completely. We’ll still have meetings and interviews to conduct, paperwork to process, and customers to satisfy. The difference is that we’ll be doing all of this from the comfort of our homes. With that in mind, let’s take a quick look at how remote working affects productivity.

Productivity Goes Down

According to LinkedIn, remote working has increased by 31% in the last year, and over 200 million people now work remotely at least some of the time. While that may not seem like a lot, when you consider that only 7% of the population now works remotely, it’s clear that a lot of people are changing how they work. When people aren’t in the office, they’re often doing something else – perhaps working on a project, playing with their kids, or even sleeping! So, if you want to be more productive this year, consider working remotely at least some of the time. It might just make the biggest difference in your productivity.

2. Consumers Are Embracing Little Changes For Big Gains.

The last couple of years have seen the rise of the “brave consumer,” and this trend looks set to continue in 2021. According to a report from Global Market Insights, customers are more aware than ever before of the value they get from brands, and they’re not afraid to speak out when they feel something is wrong. This customer empowerment trend is called “Voice of the Customer,” and it gives marketing departments a direct line to the people they’re trying to reach. While this might not seem like a big deal, being able to have direct contact with your audience is invaluable.

Consumers Are Embracing Little Changes For Big Gains

The ‘brave consumer’ speaks volumes about the future of marketing and advertising. This trend favors entrepreneurs who are looking to disrupt industries and who aren’t afraid to be the best or the cheapest. This customer is always looking for an edge, whether it is in terms of price, quality, or service, and marketers must be willing to provide it if they want to continue doing business.

3. Influencer Marketing Is On The Rise – And It’s Changing The Game.

While we’re used to seeing celebrity spokespeople on TV, we’re now seeing a rise of influencers in all kinds of platforms, from blogs to podcasts to TikTok. Influencers are people who have a sizable audience and who work with brands to promote their products. Influencers are typically well-known in their industry, and they often work remotely, too, making them perfect for marketers. In fact, Gen Z and millennials consider influencers to be much more relatable than traditional brand spokespeople. According to HubSpot Blogs research, 79% of millennials would value advice from an influencer over that of a celebrity brand advocate.

The influencer marketing game is changing. Influencers are often located far away from the places we’re used to seeing brands, and this new “influence near you” trend makes it easier for consumers to discover the products they love before they even realize they want them. This new breed of influencer is called a “native influencer” because they’re not only influential within their niche, but they’re also influential within their community. While there are no exact figures available, we know that the native influencer game is big, and marketers must be ready to play it if they want to stay relevant.

Influencer Marketing Is On The Rise – And It’s Changing The Game

As noted, 79% of millennials would value advice from an influencer over that of a brand spokesperson. While this might not seem like a lot compared to the 87% of Gen Z respondents who feel the same way, it’s a significant enough number to indicate a change in the way people are approaching brand advice. If we think about it, millennials have been surrounded by influencers their whole lives; they’ve watched them grow into superstitions, habits, and preferences, and now they’re expected to follow suit and aspire to be like their favorite influencers. This generation grew up in the shadow of social media and digital influencers, many of whom have more followers than mainstream media celebrities.

According to GAP Analysis, 76% of people in the U.S. followed at least one of the 52 major influencers’ fashion and lifestyle trends in 2019, and that number is expected to rise to 88% by next year. This trend will continue, especially as the influencers’ followings expand to other platforms (like TikTok and Instagram), because people want to follow the ‘grammers’ – as they’re often called – everywhere.

4. Traditional TV Advertising Is On Its Way Out, And Mobile Advertising Is Booming.

While TV advertising used to be the be-all-end-all of online marketing, the game has changed. Mobile advertising now represents over 50% of online advertising budgets, and that number is predicted to rise to 70% by 2027. What is more, 81% of marketers plan on increasing their mobile marketing budgets in the next year.

Traditional TV advertising has declined as a share of online advertising in recent years, and that trend is only expected to continue in 2021. The number of adults who use the platform has also dropped from 78.4 million in 2015 to 73.8 million in 2019, and those figures are expected to continue downward in 2021. While it’s still possible to reach a significant audience on TV, online marketers should expect to see less and less of it. The same goes for mobile. As people spend less time in front of their TVs and more time on their phones, TV advertising will become an afterthought, and marketers will only put their money into mobile advertising instead.

Traditional TV Advertising Is On Its Way Out, And Mobile Advertising Is Booming

To be fair, not all of this can be attributed to the pandemic. The cost of TV production has increased, and many TV networks have cut their overall ad budgets in half. Additionally, social media has made it possible for people to share their favorite shows and movies with their friends, attracting potential new audiences who may not have been interested in a show or movie initially. Plus, many people have realized the benefits of SEO and how much it can help their businesses, so they’ve shifted their marketing budget to this area.

5. Email Remains The Most Popular Way To Market Online.

According to HubSpot Blogs research, email marketing is still the most popular type of online marketing, followed by social media. Email marketing is ideal for reaching a broader audience than just your social media followers (which will still be popular but won’t reach as many people). In HubSpot Blogs’ research, 43% of consumers have stated that they would prefer to receive email marketing messages, while 38% prefer to receive social media messages and only 17% prefer to receive text messages.

Email Remains The Most Popular Way To Market Online

The fact that email marketing is such a popular choice may come as a bit of a surprise, because consumer expectations around digital marketing have shifted. People used to just want to know the basics – “Does this product work well? Is this a scam?” – but now they want to be able to choose what they get in their email inboxes.

However, marketers must still provide value in order to keep their subscribers. According to HubSpot Blogs research, consumers expect a marketer to provide value (29%) more so than they expect to receive it (20%). When creating marketing emails, marketers must find a way to make the contents valuable to their audience and provide them with something they didn’t know they needed. The contents of these emails will also need to be concise, but they also need to ensure that the email isn’t overly simplistic. Because consumers have more control over the types of emails they receive, marketers can use this opportunity to provide more value and meet the needs of their audience. Additionally, email Marketing is an excellent way to provide regularly scheduled content to prospects and existing customers, nurturing relationships and gaining trust.