When we say that the digital marketing industry has advanced in the past decade, that is just putting it extremely mildly. Not only has it grown but it has changed the marketing field forever. From 2010 to 2020, from a few smartphones to endless smartphones, from websites to apps and everything in between, the evolution of digital marketing has been phenomenal.
To give you a clearer picture of how far we’ve come, given below are the top ten advancements in the last ten years of digital marketing:
Rapid Growth of Social Media
Ten years ago, if we analyze the history of digital marketing, even the idea that Twitter or Facebook could be used to market or advertise products would have been scoffed at. Social media is now one of the most powerful marketing tools out there.
No digital marketing strategy is complete without social media marketing since the sheer reach that it provides is unprecedented. Just imagine, in a world where there are 7.8 billion people, 2.8 approximately are using Facebook – the largest networking platform.
Platforms such as Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn and others, have helped in active audience engagement, and creating brand awareness. Further, paid advertising on these platforms has paved the way for much better sales and brand recognition.
Search Engines have Become More Effective
The fact that has remained the same even after a decade is that content matters, and a lot at that. What has changed though, is how it is viewed by Google and other search engines.
The inclusion of keywords in the content is not a new development but the focus has shifted, from using as many keywords as possible to using just the right number. Quality is being given priority since the content should resonate with the audience.
Using too many keywords seems very off-putting, so SEO analysts have to continuously work on the content to keep their rankings up without compromising the quality of their work.
The Explosion of Content
Can you imagine, ten years ago, there were no podcasts or memes or just plain weird ‘viral’ videos in general. Content marketing has developed a lot in these ten years and has grown into so much more than blogging.
Content creation has become an art with the evolution of digital marketing, as it varies for every platform and every channel of a digital marketing strategy. You have to constantly be on your toes and stay updated about the latest marketing trends as it all changes so fast.
Now because the number of users is only going up each month, so is the content consumption. This is why content marketing has also progressed rapidly. From content to content marketing, it has been quite a journey.
Everything Is Mobile-Friendly
As we mentioned earlier, smartphones have taken over the globe. Almost everyone these days has a smartphone, and this is not even an exaggeration. From rickshaw pullers to aged people and even toddlers (though they might not be entirely sure about what they’re doing), everybody is using them.
Keeping this in mind, digital marketing has expanded and introduced strategies to tap their potential. Since the inception of apps and mobile browsers, companies have started churning out content that is mobile-friendly.
We live in a fast-paced world and these days, everything can be accessed using smartphones. Therefore, content creators have consciously made the effort to push content that is fit for desktop screens as well as mobile screens.
Rise of Digital Influencers
The evolution of social media also led to the emergence of a new breed of content creators – influencers. These people have utilized the tools that social media provides to the maximum and leveraged it to establish a name for themselves.
These influencers all have an affinity to some niche, such as fashion or gaming or art, and all their content revolves around it. To put it simply, they are digital celebrities since many look up to them for advice and inspiration, just as they do to celebrities such as actors or sportspeople.
Taking the help of these influencers, many brands have widened their reach by collaborating with them and advertising their products.
Personalization Has Become a Priority
The key to not just getting customers but also ensuring that they stay loyal is personalization, and it has played a great role in the evolution of digital marketing. This is one key area that has been worked on continuously since it majorly contributes to creating a good experience for the customers.
Data analytics have played an instrumental role in making it effective since it helps in getting to know your target audience better.
Transparency is Vital for Online Marketing
People trust what they know and they know depends on what you disclose to them. Earning the trust of your potential customers is the first step towards converting them from potential to loyal customers.
A lot of issues were raised about the safety of the users data which they provide to all the different websites because of cyber fraud. Therefore, transparency has become a vital aspect of digital marketing over the years because people are not willing to place their trust easily in online businesses.
Increased Importance for Great User Experience
Each strategy that is made, every piece of content and designing is done keeping in mind the customers. User experience is the number one priority because everything depends on them, naturally.
Websites/mobile advertising came into its own more effectively from 2017 onwards when people realized how much having a good digital presence in the web space could do for their business. This is because, as mentioned earlier, people are using their phones continuously and it is how you can increase visibility.
Growing Usage of Push Notifications on Mobiles
According to certain reports, 90% of the time when people are using their phones, they are on one app or the other. Since they are easy to use and much more pleasing to the eye, mobile apps have seen a sharp rise in popularity over the past decade, the era of digital marketing evolution.
They have proven to be extremely helpful in expanding businesses, and widening their reach. Features such as push notifications and easy navigation have further contributed to rise in sales and customers.
Rising Usage of AI in All Aspects of Digital Marketing
With the introduction of self-driving cars and easy-to-use domestic solar paneling, advancements in technology in the past ten years have been revolutionary. AI has been a part of the digital space for a while now but it’s only been a few years since its usage has started expanding with the evolution of digital marketing.
From personalization to predictive marketing and dynamic pricing, AI has found applications in all aspects of digital marketing. Personalization is still developing in the digital marketing field and will help in targeting very specific, small groups or even individuals, based upon the technology.
Predictive marketing helps marketers to strategize based upon the situation at hand and what will be the best approach to tackle it. Meanwhile, dynamic pricing essentially means when the price of a commodity isn’t fixed but depends upon various factors such as demand, peak user times, availability, etc.
All these advancements in the past decade only seem like the tip of the iceberg as we look forward to what is in store for digital marketing in the years to come. The rate at which this industry is growing never fails to amaze and it’s only going to get bigger and better.
Increased use of AR/VR, Internet of Things (IoT), gamification, advanced automotion tools, newly developed AI applications and so much more is what digital marketing is expecting to incorporate in its ever expanding market. With the rapid evolution of digital marketing, the future is indeed very bright, and dominantly digital.
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