The way we consume content is changing. While we’re still bound to click on ads to engage with content, those clicks are becoming less frequent. Thanks to the rise of digital marketing, businesses can target individuals based on their interests, hobbies, demographics, and location. As a result, more businesses are turning to online marketing to gain exposure and to encourage people to purchase their products. The following will explore the current trend in online marketing and how you can stay ahead of the curve.

1. Video Content Is On The Rise.

In the past, people generally turned to online marketing when they wanted to increase sales or attract new customers. However, in today’s digital world, video content is taking over.

Thanks to the rise of TikTok, YouTube, and other platforms where people can post and share short videos, the use of video content is on the rise.

According to HubSpot Blogs research, 74% of consumers have watched video content about products or services they use, and 79% have used video content to learn about products or services.

The video content craze isn’t limited to marketing on social media. In fact, nearly 90% of marketers said they will use video in their marketing efforts in 2019.

2. Customers Have To Learn To Love Commerce.

While the majority of consumers still prefer to learn about brands through non-commercial means (such as word of mouth or advertising), the modern shopper has to learn to love commerce. Thanks to the likes of Amazon Prime and other companies delivering free two-day shipping, people can research, compare, and purchase products with just one click. So, if you want to learn about a particular product, you can compare various prices and find the best deal. Even better, you can have your order delivered to your door in two days!

If you want to grow your business, you must embrace commerce. Otherwise, your competitors will eat your lunch (and possibly your customers, too). So, learn to love commerce, because it’s the way consumers want to learn about and purchase your products or services.

3. Consumers Prefer Short-Lived Experiences.

Thanks to smartphones, people can now have short-lived experiences that are better than ever before. Thanks to apps that allow people to discover content based on their interests, hobbies, and location, people can choose to engage with brands for brief moments. As a result, people prefer to learn about brands through those brief experiences rather than through lengthy articles, videos, or ads.

Branded social media channels like TikTok, where users can watch short-lived comedic or informative videos about various topics, are changing the way people learn about and engage with brands. In fact, 89% of consumers have uploaded videos to TikTok, and 79% of those people have done so to learn about brands or gain inspiration.

In an effort to encourage people to visit their stores, businesses can now offer consumers special deals and discounts through their websites or social media accounts. Additionally, having a Twitter account promotes your business more effectively than having a Facebook account, according to HubSpot Blogs research. But beyond just using social media, businesses can also provide customers with special offers and discounts through emails.

The takeaway here is that people prefer to learn about and purchase brands through short-lived interactions rather than through lengthy articles, videos, or ads. To keep up with the changing times, you should develop a digital marketing plan that incorporates these new trends.

There are four main takeaways from the research findings above. First, video content is on the rise. Second, people prefer to learn about and purchase brands through short-lived experiences. Third, customers have to learn to love commerce. Finally, consumers prefer to learn about and purchase brands through social media channels.

How Do You Engage With Consumers On Social Media?

While it’s always great to engage with your customers on social media, it’s not always easy. In the HubSpot Blogs research, only 28% of marketers said they did so without any trouble, while 12% had trouble engaging with all their customers on social media (but had no trouble interacting with prospects).

To engage with your customers on social media, you must have a strategy. If you want to engage with consumers on social media, you should have a general idea of what you’re doing and why you’re doing it. For instance, you could use social media to promote your new store opening, to celebrate an important milestone, or to just provide customers with helpful advice or information.

When using social media, it’s important to remember that people can’t choose your products or services just because you have a Facebook account or a Twitter account. For that matter, even if you have a popular blog, you must continuously educate your audience about your offerings.

To help you educate your audience, we’ve put together a list of 18 tactics that marketers can use to better engage with consumers on social media. Keep reading for more information.

1. Respond To Comments.

If you’re on social media, you’ve undoubtedly seen countless comments left by consumers about your brands, products, and services. As a business owner, you might feel that these consumer comments are a goldmine, easily accessible and worth mining for insight and to increase engagement.

While it’s always nice to see a business respond to a consumer comment, you mustn’t expect that all consumer feedback will lead to increased sales. In fact, research from HubSpot Blogs found that businesses which engage with their customers on social media have higher customer satisfaction than those which don’t.

When responding to comments, you don’t always have to agree with the consumer. In fact, according to HubSpot Blogs research, businesses which engage with their customers on social media have higher customer satisfaction than those which don’t. So, rather than merely replying with “Thanks!” or “Got it!” you could try to offer an insight or add value through your response. For example, you could say:

“Wow, that’s an interesting perspective! I didn’t realize that buying a vacuum cleaner would affect my wallet so much. Thanks for the tip!”

This kind of comment adds value and shows that you’re listening to the customer, while also maintaining a productive relationship.

2. Post Regularly.

According to HubSpot Blogs research, having a regular schedule when posting on social media can help you establish and maintain consistent interactions with your customers. So, even if you don’t always have fresh content to share, you can ensure that you have content to share at a moment’s notice.

To stay active on social media, you should set a schedule and stick to it. According to HubSpot Blogs research, people who post regularly on social media have higher brand recognition and trust than those who post less frequently. So, by posting regularly, you’re giving your audience something new to look forward to each week, encouraging them to come back for more.

3. Use Hashtags.

To help people find your content, you can add hashtags to your tweets and Instagram posts. As we mentioned above, having a Twitter account promotes your business more effectively than having a Facebook account does. However, while both Twitter and Facebook allow you to add hashtags, the latter allows you to add only a certain number of keywords per post.

On the other hand, with a TikTok account, you can add as many keywords as you’d like. So, if you want to target a particularly focused group of individuals on Twitter, you can’t do so on TikTok. But you can use the latter to gain worldwide recognition for your content.

To determine the effectiveness of your social media efforts, you should monitor your accounts for hashtags on a regular basis. You can also use tools like Google Trends to easily identify and track the popularity of any hashtags or keywords you choose.

4. Measure The Results Of Your Strategy.

To determine the effectiveness of your strategy, you must measure it. Fortunately for you, we’ve put together a list of 25 marketing metrics, as identified by HubSpot Blogs research, which you can use to measure the results of your social media strategy. Keep reading for more information.