10 Digital Marketing Trends for 2022

Digital marketing is a highly advantageous tool for any business to use. These campaigns can be quickly adjusted, they are relatively inexpensive when compared to the financial benefits they produce, and they are more easily measured with digital analytical tools. One of the elements about the digital marketing industry that makes it both exciting and challenging is that it is constantly evolving. There is no singular guaranteed method of consistently engaging your customers. It’s important to keep track of trends so you know what consumers desire from year to year. 

Read on to learn more about ten trends that digital marketers should be aware of in 2022.

1. Increased Focus on Podcasts

Since 2020, the amount of podcast listeners has increased by 25%; over 15 billion hours of podcasts were listened to in 2021. This is a market that should be taken seriously. Advertising on a podcast requires some market research since you want to make sure that the listeners of a specific podcast will also be interested in your brand. Another option is to start a podcast of your own to share more information about what your business has to offer. 

2. Metaverse Marketing

Simply put, the metaverse is a digital space made up of virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR). Marketing in these areas will be a crucial part of marketing in 2022 and beyond. Usage of these technologies has been steadily increasing for the last few years, and advertising in these spaces is key to engaging a younger audience. 

3. Video Ads

When creating any sort of advertisement, making sure it’s visually appealing is always a primary goal. Video advertisements have the advantage of standing out in a sea of static text and images. They are also more stimulating, meaning people are more likely to watch until the end to find out what happens without becoming bored or continuing to scroll.

4. Authentic Human Connections

As a collective society, humans have been through a lot of traumatizing experiences in the past few years. This has led consumers to care a lot more about what a brand stands for almost as much as the product or service it provides. When creating a new advertising campaign, companies should be mindful to include information about their stance on topics like diversity and sustainability.

5. Influencer Partnerships

The power of the influencer is not going away in 2022, so you can expect brands to continue to develop partnerships with these people. However, these collaborations must appear organic and make sense to the viewer. For example, an influencer who is expecting a baby would be a sensible partnership for a baby clothing brand. These partnerships are often demonstrated via live streaming on platforms such as TikTok or Twitch, which is another important aspect of digital marketing to pay attention to. 

6. “Conversational Commerce”

The term “conversational commerce” was popularized in 2015 by Chris Messina, the CEO of Uber. He used it referring to “the intersection of messaging apps and shopping,” and this is another trend companies should prepare for in the coming months and years. This type of marketing allows consumers to directly communicate with the businesses they frequent. This more personalized experience of getting assistance directly from representatives is much preferred to reviewing a generalized FAQ page. 

7. Interactive Content

These days, it’s important for consumers to feel engaged when making a purchase or deciding to become a member somewhere. Static images or dull-looking boxes of text are no match for successful interactive advertising. These can be things like quizzes or polls that will grab attention and have the bonus of gathering additional information on your customer base. 

8. Social Media Stories

Stories on various social media platforms are something to pay attention to in 2022. Because stories only last for a day, they encourage consumers to monitor a brand’s page more closely. The impermanent nature of stories allows for a business to produce more genuine content that consumers will be excited to engage with. Stories are often more informal, making those who see them feel a deeper connection with the brand.

9. Increased Prevalence of AI

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a commonly used tool in digital marketing, and its usage is only going to increase as technology improves. Taking advantage of AI to review consumer data will help businesses learn more about how customers are searching for new products. This process will both improve the customer experience and ensure that companies are intelligently spending their advertising dollars. 

10. Immersive Technology

As consumers grow more familiar with new technologies like VR, AR, Google Lens, and voice-activated searches, more money will be spent creating equally immersive advertising experiences. Some already exist! You’ve probably seen augmented reality applications where you can see what furniture might look like in your current home. 

Learn Digital Marketing With Career Centers

If a career in digital marketing sounds exciting to you, boosting your skills is a great first step! Check out the digital marketing classes with Noble Desktop, a partner program of Career Centers. These classes can either be taken at its campus in New York City or live online from anywhere in the world. If you’d like to start by focusing on a specific social media platform, there are multiple shorter courses to choose from. Classes like Blogs & Twitter, LinkedIn, and YouTube & TikTok are all only six hours long and designed with beginners in mind. For those who want to learn more about all of today’s popular social media platforms, all of these courses are combined into Noble Desktop’s Social Media Marketing Certificate. 

There are also a couple of more intensive bootcamp programs available. Noble Desktop offers an SEO Bootcamp and a Google Analytics Bootcamp, which are each two days long. Finally, there is a Digital Marketing Certificate available. This program covers all of the necessary skills to become a well-rounded digital marketing professional. It guides students through the creation of a digital marketing campaign and teaches them how to analyze data as well.