Digital Marketing Technologies to Focus On

Digital marketing is at the forefront of change. With the various technological innovations coming out, being a digital marketer means being up-to-date on what the best options are out there. It can be quite confusing though. There are dozens of upcoming trends and technologies out there. It can be difficult to separate the wheat from the chaff. Here are three of the top technologies that digital marketers need to focus on if they want to be at the top of their game in the marketing field.

Automation

First of all, there is marketing automation. This is not actually something new. Marketers have been robo-calling since the early 90s when the technology first emerged. However, automation nowadays is miles ahead of that technology.

The big question that is often asked is why companies should try to automate their marketing efforts when it seems so impersonal. The answer is that automation doesn’t need to be the “face” that people see when it comes to marketing campaigns. A lot of marketing work is actually boring work. Underneath the glossy ads, there is a lot of analysis and data gathering. For example, in the past, marketers had to hand out surveys by hand and check them manually, too. The data gathered from these efforts ultimately results in great marketing campaigns; however, it is a big slog to go through. This is where automation comes in.

Automation removes all of the inefficiency in a marketing system. It reduces the work that used to be done by dozens of people to a quarter of the staff. Increased efficiency means a fast-moving and profitable campaign in the long-run. Take a look at the current software platforms to see what is being offered out there.

Big Data

With the Internet, there is a lot of information about the market going around. This can be very useful for businesses targeting particular demographics. Knowledge is power and being able to know what your customers want and to tailor your products and services to them. This is why Big Data is so important.

Big Data refers to being able to store a lot more data about your potential market. It is not just the amount of information, but also the quality of it. To understand how important this is, think of it as a game of poker. Normally, you’d only know about your cards. This gives you a chance of winning. However, if you have more information from the other players, then it improves your chance of winning. This can range from knowing about the odds to being familiar with other people’s poker strategies. This is what Big Data does for marketers, if you think about it in terms of customer information.

However, it is not just about storing all of these pieces of information. Big Data is also about collecting and analyzing them. Excellent analytic technologies can help you predict potential market trends so that you can use them to your advantage.

Social Media

Another major digital marketing technology nowadays is social media marketing. No one was able to predict its rise, but ever since Facebook and Twitter hit the scene, they have been tearing up the marketing landscape. Social media allows marketers to reach people in an engaging manner. For example, people listen to their friends when they give advice or recommendations. Facebook and other social media networks allow like-minded people to share their interests. This is a goldmine for marketers who want a way to accurately target their products.

However, there have been changes in the social media landscape. Facebook and Twitter have hit a plateau in western markets, while other channels like SnapChat and Instagram are still growing. Knowing which social media networks to invest your marketing efforts in should be primary goal for marketers this coming year.