In the nimble and dynamic world of digital marketing, staying on the cutting edge isn’t just an advantage; it’s a necessity. Enter the game-changer for content creators and marketers alike: AI writing applications. These smart tools are swiftly altering the content landscape, empowering teams with the ability to churn out high-quality content at an impressive clip. Here’s a low-down on how these ingenious tools are reshaping the digital marketing realm.
1. Supercharging Productivity
Imagine a world where writer’s block is as archaic as dial-up internet. AI writing applications are helping to construct that reality. By suggesting ideas, drafting blog outlines, or even creating a full article draft, these tools ensure that the flow of content is as steady as a river leading into the digital marketing ocean. They enable you to create more content, more consistently – and isn’t that a feather in your strategic cap?
2. Amplifying Creativity and Strategy
AI hasn’t quite reached Picasso levels of creativity, but it’s certainly giving content creators a run for their money. By handling the routine tasks, AI writing tools allow you to shift gears from mundane to strategic thinking. While the AI provides the initial legwork on drafts, creators can focus on strategic narrative arcs, branding nuances, and immersive storytelling that resonates with audiences.
3. SEO Optimization at the Drop of a Hat
Like peanut butter is to jelly, SEO is to content creation – an inseparable duo. AI writing applications are instrumental in weaving those all-important keywords seamlessly into content. They analyze keyword density and suggest optimizations that would make even the most seasoned SEO specialist nod in approval. This integration ensures your content hits the sweet spots of search engine algorithms.
4. Data-Driven Content with a Human Touch
Data is the compass of digital marketing, guiding strategies and decisions. AI applications digest data and translate it into humanizing narratives. They craft content that not only brings in the numbers but also speaks to the heart. Imagine combining the perspicacity of a data analyst with the empathy of a storyteller – that’s the potential unlocked by AI in content creation.
5. Enhanced Consistency Across Channels
Brand inconsistency is the hobgoblin of little marketing minds. AI writing tools have stepped up to serve as the vigilant custodians of your brand voice. Across blogs, social media posts, emails, and more, these applications maintain a tonal and stylistic uniformity that solidifies your brand identity across the digital ecosystem.
AI writing applications are not just a passing fad; they are a seismic shift in the content creation landscape for digital marketing. They complement human creativity, infuse data-driven insights, streamline productivity, and maintain consistency – all while optimizing for SEO. Digital marketers, content creators, and SEO specialists, it’s time to ally with AI and witness a revolution in your content strategies.
Digital Marketing Trends are witness to this revolution, and integrating AI Writing into your content creation workflow is no longer just innovative—it’s smart business. Keep exploring, learning, and adapting, because in this digital age, those who lead are the ones who never stop evolving.
Rest assured, the application of AI in writing is set to pivot your digital narratives from commonplace to extraordinary, however as important as it is to stay aware of these revolutionary products it is also key to understanding the best way to integrate them into your business’ success. AI writing tools cannot be used as a replacement for the human element in your marketing. Each piece of content generated by AI needs to have a human touch, this essential review and revision process ensures not only that the content is presented to the world in your brand’s voice but will also help your company to avoid SEO pitfalls that are associated with simply copying and pasting AI content to your website. These and other AI tools are made to make your marketing development easier but success can quickly become tragedy if they are not utilized correctly. If you are unsure of how AI tools can compliment your marketing mix get in touch with us today and we will set up a meeting with our marketing experts to help you navigate this exciting realm of content creation and distribution.
Higher education institutions are constantly looking for new ways to engage with prospective students, but the growing number of channels available to reach them can make it seem like a daunting task. As higher education organizations are faced with the challenge of increasing enrollment rates on a limited marketing budget, they are also finding themselves with an overwhelming amount of data coming from an increasing amount of channels.
The problem is twofold: firstly, organizations need a way to aggregate all of this data in order to make informed decisions about where to allocate their resources. Secondly, they need a way to automate the process so that they can keep up with the ever-changing landscape and not miss any opportunities. By applying cross-channel strategies that automate marketing processes and integrate offline activities with online tactics, you can help your organization reach more students.
This article will explore what cross-channel marketing, integration, and automation are and why a digital marketing strategy incorporating them all is so important for higher education institutes.
What is Cross-Channel Marketing?
Cross-channel marketing is a form of multi-channel marketing, one of the major digital marketing trends projected for 2022. The processes are similar in that they both involve using multiple channels to interact with a targeted audience, but in the case of cross-channel marketing, the goal is to create a unified customer experience (CX).
Cross-channel strategies involve the passing of information between each channel, enabling prospective students to easily “cross” from one to the next and ensuring they are receiving a consistent message no matter where they are. For example, a future student may start their research on your website but switch to viewing your Facebook page for more information, then switch to Snapchat to see what current students are doing in real-time at your events.
What is Integration and Automation?
Channel integration is the process of bringing all of these channels together so marketers can track and analyze customer behavior across all platforms, providing a complete view of each customer’s journey through their sales funnel. This strategy allows educational institutes of all types and sizes to see which channels are most effective in driving traffic to their site and converting that traffic into enrollments.
In addition, it is important that all the utilized channels are integrated into one system. This allows marketers to automate the process from start to finish and ensures there’s no lapse in data collection. Automation is the key to success in any cross-channel marketing strategy. It makes it possible to manage campaigns and messaging across all channels simultaneously while still allowing for human intervention when needed.
Marketing Automation Platforms
Cross-channel marketing strategies can involve a lot of planning and collaboration. One way to speed up the process is by creating a marketing automation platform that can reduce the time spent on manual processes while ensuring every message sent to students through different channels remains consistent with one another. This ensures your university’s brand stays strong and recognizable no matter how the student is contacted.
Marketing automation platforms like HubSpot offer features such as an integrated CRM, custom workflows and email templates, social media publishing tools, contact databases with lead scoring based on user behavior and interactions across different channels.
What Can Automation Accomplish?
Automation platforms can be set up to handle virtually any type of digital marketing strategy — from content distribution through Facebook ads and Google Adwords campaigns, all the way to more complex aspects of direct mail, email marketing, and offline data collection.
Higher education institutions can apply automation to the following and much more:
engage with and increase followers (i.e., Facebook, Instagram)
generate, nurture, and close leads
track and report target market behavior
retarget and re-engage prospective students
optimize their strategies
By combining all the features of a top-of-the-line automation platform with cross-channel integration strategies, higher education institutions are able to:
obtain valuable analytic data
better track their students’ journey through each stage of the sales funnel
deliver a personalized, yet consistent brand message
improve budget spending
improve efficiency and productivity of their digital marketing campaigns
provide better customer support
Why is Cross-Channel Integration & Automation Important for Higher Education Marketing?
When all channels are integrated, it becomes much easier to personalize the customer journey. Personalization is essential for driving engagement and conversion rates, making it vital that educational institutions have a system in place that allows them to do this effectively. Automation makes it possible to save time and money by scheduling and delivering personally-tailored messages and common automated responses at scale across all channels, all while delivering your cohesive brand image.
Educational institutions that combine cross-channel marketing, integration, and automation strategies in their digital strategy will find it easier to: reach more prospective students, measure the return on investment (ROI) of all campaigns, target students across any platform, and track and analyze every step of the CX from awareness to conversion.
As marketing channels continue to evolve, it becomes increasingly important for higher education marketers to be able to track and analyze the behavior of their future pupils across all platforms. Without this information, they will not know how or when their target markets are interacting with different mediums, nor will they have the data to support their digital marketing decisions.
The Takeaway
Cross-channel marketing is one of the most important strategies for driving engagement and conversion rates, making it essential that educational institutions have a system in place that allows them to do this effectively.
Automating an integrated cross-channel digital marketing strategy allows for targeted messaging that is personalized to each student’s needs. Prospective students receiving consistent marketing messages across a multitude of channels from your university will associate this with a positive experience and become more likely to enroll.
It’s important to remember that not all students are the same, and this requires different campaigns for each type of student you’re trying to attract. For example, there might be a difference in how you approach an international student as opposed to a domestic one. This is where automation can really simplify things – by providing the ability to target different groups of students separately while still delivering a unified message.
About Lisa | Spherical Strategies Content Creator & Copywriter
Lisa works with Spherical Strategies as a content creator and copywriter. She brings a deep understanding of human motivation to her mastery of writing by utilizing her education in market psychology. She has worked over the past several years as a private contractor, providing industry-specific content and editing for companies of all sizes.
Outside of her work as a content creator, Lisa is passionate about caring for her young son and is only slightly obsessed with gardening.
As always, the digital arena is expanding and evolving, changing so quickly sometimes it may feel challenging to keep up. You also never know when an unexpected global pandemic is going to throw a wrench in your marketing plans for the year. Considering that the wrench was abruptly thrown in 2020 with seemingly lasting effects, there are a few new trends on the rise – some directly stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic – that we are confident will continue to gain momentum through 2022.
Due to its fast-paced growth, it’s impossible to say for sure what digital marketing will look like in the new year; however, based on professional insights and data-driven analytics, here’s a review of the digital marketing trends we think can be expected in 2022.
The Rise of AI
AI is already a primarily utilized leveraging tool for digital marketers regarding automatic reporting and predictive analytics, and it doesn’t show any signs of slowing. AI simplifies marketing processes for all kinds of companies by predicting the behaviors and needs of their target audiences, while its application allows marketers to focus their efforts on other aspects of their strategies.
In addition to providing accurate predictive information pertaining to targeted consumers, AI also allows marketers to quickly adjust their strategies in response to any sudden digital marketing trend changes. Putting them back on course for an optimal return on investment (ROI).
Current statistics show that 76% of businesses utilizing AI to automate their marketing efforts see ROI within a single year. After such a huge shift towards digital, where the channels and platforms are growing and changing all the time, it makes sense to allow the machines to do the number-crunching and analyzing.
Progressing into 2022, we expect to see more usage of conversational AI in the forms of voice searches, virtual assistants, and smart speakers, as well as robotic process automation (RPA) in tools like chatbots. These features create a real-time response for consumers while they make inquiries from the privacy of their own homes, cars, and offices rather than in person.
Voice Search/Virtual Assistants/Smart Speakers
Leaning into AI will surely benefit digital marketers aiming to succeed in 2022 as consumers are doing the same. Approximately 1 in 4 U.S. households has some sort of smart speaker being used regularly for informational searches as well as direct purchases.
AI is the technology behind the quickly-growing use of voice search, and currently, 27% of the global online population is using it. This percentage amounts to 18% of the total spend, or $40 billion, and is only expected to rise. Studies show that 61% of consumers already using voice search in the way of virtual assistants say they plan to take advantage of it even more in the future.
Considering the ease at which information is being retrieved today, it’s understandable that for a brand to stand out from the rest, its message needs to be clear and precise, its product needs to be easily accessible, and the entire customer journey needs to be cohesive.
Integrated and Personalized Customer Experience (CX)
The last two years have seen hundreds of brick-and-mortar stores close their doors indefinitely, pushing businesses of all kinds into the online world of consumerism. With any hope to survive, countless brands have had to adjust their methods and overall understanding of what marketing requires today, and that is an integrated digital CX.
New digital marketing strategies for 2022 will aim to provide personal experiences that are customized based on user data. The ability to track consumer behavior across devices allows companies to see what consumers are looking for and how they want to communicate.
Fortunately for stores, consumers report they still prefer a physical location instead of the alternative, but many people have made full transitions to online shopping. Seeking the same services online that they traditionally may have sought out in-person, consumers still expect a consistent experience no matter where they encounter a brand. They want to see the same high-quality products and customer service online that they did when they walked into the actual store.
The demand for seamless integration of customer relationship management (CRM) and content management systems (CMS) is rocking the marketing world. Businesses are required to exude a brand message that consistently represents their company, all while creating a personalized CX for the individual through multiple channels. This growing need for strategic brand cohesion offline, online, and across more channels than ever is why multi-channel marketing strategies, online events, and social commerce will also be prominent digital marketing trends in 2022.
Multi-Channel Marketing Strategies
New social media platforms are popping up all over the internet, and many of them already have deep market penetration. We will discuss this in more detail in the social commerce section below, but to start, people are expanding their options of where they shop, making multi-channel marketing strategies crucial for 2022.
As social media platforms and digital purchasing choices increase, marketers are also finding themselves needing to expand their marketing efforts over more channels to reach their markets no matter where they are online. 2022 will see more emphasis on multi-channel marketing strategies because the online options are always growing and because consumers are taking their shopping experience into their own hands.
Preferring the socially distant options these days, more people are doing all the decision-making research themselves: filtering through companies, brands, and/or products online until they find the one they trust to fulfill their needs. This desire to have complete control over the experiential aspect of online shopping is why multi-channel marketing strategies that include social media will be a necessary component of digital marketing in 2022.
Digital Commerce
According to a study done by eMarketer, over 80% of retail growth from 2015 to 2020 was attributed to online sales, with a significant portion of the market being captured by social commerce. That was before the COVID-19 pandemic forced the world into isolation, only accelerating the five-year trend and making digital commerce an increasingly crucial part of not only marketing but for businesses as a whole.
Online Events
In light of the recent pandemic, the same heightened demand for effective marketing strategies also persists when it comes to online events. Since so many consumers have settled in behind a screen, digital event management is becoming a necessity for companies hosting live virtual or in-person events. The market for webinars and online conferences is changing, with people expecting more of and from these events; they will need to be held differently.
In 2022, digital event management will shift from a luxury for a select few into an absolute necessity for any business that wants to remain competitive and relevant. Event management software, virtual event applications, live streaming options, and live-video capabilities have already started to become mandatory offerings for businesses successfully navigating this accelerated move towards digital commerce.
Social Commerce
As mentioned previously, social commerce will be a prominent digital marketing trend in 2022. Social media users are using their platforms to communicate with each other, but more importantly, for product research, business-related communication, and their purchasing needs.
A study done by Social Media Examiner revealed that 94% of marketers were utilizing social media to market their products and/or services – an increase from the 82% that responded in 2016. 68% of marketers surveyed also revealed that they “achieved modest or significant success with social commerce.”
This shift in how consumers utilize social media and influencer marketing for product research purposes is a key part of why more businesses will be turning to social commerce strategies this year. As new platforms continue to come onto the market, consumers will continue to incorporate them and their influencers into their regular search and online shopping routines. The following are three platforms that marketers should keep in mind for 2022.
Pinterest
Pinterest is becoming increasingly popular amongst users who enjoy sharing images of the products they like through “boards” curated by time, topic, or theme. Statistics show that Pinterest is the third most popular social media platform, and 33% of online adults use Pinterest. Many businesses have already experienced success using this visual platform to increase brand awareness and sell the products they offer.
In addition, Pinterest allows for users to “repin” items they like, helping spread the word about a trusted company, essentially providing free marketing for that company. According to Marketo: “By encouraging customers and prospects to share your content with their own networks (not just on Pinterest), you’ll be able to extend the reach of your social media campaign and maximize its positive effects.”
Instagram
Instagram is another social media platform that consumers increasingly use to share products with their friends and followers. Instagram currently has 800 million monthly users, giving businesses a large audience to market their products or services toward.
In 2022, Instagram will continue being a vehicle for social discovery as the use of hashtags will be even more important. Since users are already captivated by imagery, marketers can utilize this feature to create opportunities for engagement with consumers who may not otherwise see their postings. Instagram also offers opportunities through paid advertisements – an effective way to gain more followers and potential customers due to its targeted nature.
Snapchat
While Instagram may offer marketers a larger audience, Snapchat provides them with insights into the behaviors of their specific target market. Marketers can learn where their consumers are located, what kinds of stories they share, and how often they use the app. Due to Snapchat’s heavy focus on visuals (including images and videos) and its live-streaming capabilities, it is a platform that many companies in 2022 will find value in utilizing.
In addition to these features, Snapchat users continue to spend more time on the app than on any other social media platform. It is also one of the preferred social networks for millennials and those ages 18-34. The user data that Snapchat offers helps marketers create relevant content and design their future strategies around what consumers engage with and like most.
Influencer Marketing
In 2022, consumers will look for authenticity and proof that a product or service works before making a purchase decision – and not just social proof from celebrities. The traditional definition of influencer marketing is evolving as big names in sports and entertainment don’t carry as much weight as they used to.
As the reliance on influencer marketing continues to change, so will the way in which marketers will need to choose influencers. Businesses should be mindful that consumers are seeking real testimonies from influencers who would actually use a product or service regularly and not just once for the sake of sponsorship.
Marketers should look into how much engagement each influencer gets with their target audience and then consider creating an online community of advocates or influencers that are cohesive with their brand message. Not only does this simplify communication between consumer advocates and your brand, but it also allows you to offer incentives and rewards for sharing content with the goal of building a movement.
With so many platforms offering analytics, it’s now easy to find out what content reaches the largest audience and which influencers are actively engaging their followers. Influencer marketing strategies will evolve as marketers prove the value of their products to consumers through evidence rather than just using a celebrity endorsement.
The demand for content that has been produced with user engagement in mind will continue to rise as businesses seek more ways to connect with their customers online. A storytelling strategy will be especially effective with social media influencers utilizing videos and images to show how a product works in real life.
Storytelling
93% of communication is visual, and 65% of people are visual learners, making it not surprising that ads with images produce 180% more engagement. Shoppers also like to see unscripted reviews and find value in firsthand accounts from real people and not just advertisements. In a study by Salesforce, researchers found that customers who view user-generated content are 85% more likely to purchase a brand’s product or service.
These are some of the reasons why this year marketers should encourage consumers to share their experiences as they happen. Rather than just advertising a product using its statistics, businesses should be focusing on telling a story about their brand and products. The goal of storytelling in marketing is to create real, visual conversations that will establish trust between businesses and their potential customers.
Consumers want to know about the products, services, and even a company’s corporate social responsibility before making a purchasing decision. In addition, they want to be able to form a connection with the influencers who are endorsing these companies. Storytelling will become a staple strategy for marketers as it helps them establish their brand’s DNA and strengthen the emotional connection between their customers and brands.
Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)
CSR is now expected by 61% of consumers, as they now desire to buy from companies with purpose. Consumers want to know what causes a business is passionate about and how it gives back to the community. This will be important as businesses work to establish trust with their audiences and differentiate themselves from competitors.
Marketers need to consider their overall brand image and what they are currently showing their customers. It’s not just about making a profit but also demonstrating how they use their resources wisely. Businesses should have a purpose that goes beyond making money and focuses on embracing an ethical code of sustainability and equality.
Consumer trust is becoming harder to earn as expectations for transparency rise while businesses try to keep their trade secrets closely guarded. Companies must be willing to discuss how they are using consumers’ data and clearly explain the rationale behind their strategies. Incorporating CSR into their business models in 2022 will help marketers build trust with their customers, give their brand more meaning, and increase the attractiveness and transparency of their company.
Search Engines
Search engines will continue to be where consumers go to seek advice, get product information, and complete purchasing decisions. For a brand to stand out among the competition on search engines platforms like Google, marketers will need to get creative with their advertising. Businesses need to make sure their ads are not only engaging and helpful for consumers but technically sound as well, so the right information can be quickly and accurately retrieved by search engine bots.
Featured Snippets
With the arrival of featured snippets, consumers don’t even have to click on a link anymore to retrieve information about their search. Featured snippets provide direct answers to a search before any website links are listed. Searchers see featured snippets as useful pieces of content rather than advertisements because Google hyper-personalizes the experience by applying user information to decide which ads, companies, and sites are most relevant.
Consumers see these featured snippets as advertisements only when the content is trying to get them to click through. Therefore, marketers who can create helpful guides or present information in a non-salesy way will be at a great advantage in 2022.
Hashtags and Keywords
The idea of using hashtags to connect consumers is not new, but it has the potential to be even more effective in 2022. Hashtags and keywords are commonly used throughout search engines because they help consumers find what they are looking for faster and more easily. Google has already begun utilizing machine learning that allows it to automatically connect hashtags so users can discover related content without having to search for it themselves.
Marketers should consider how their target audience uses hashtags on social media platforms and for what purpose. For example, are they used as a form of commentary or criticism? Are they being used ironically or out of sarcasm? This type of information about an audience is important for business owners to know before deciding which hashtags or keywords they should focus their content on.
First-party Data over Third-party Cookies
2022 will see the beginning of a change in data tracking as Google announced it would be moving away from the use of third-party cookie tracking and towards first-party data collection. As a result, marketers will need to rely more heavily on more direct forms of communication with customers through content, email, or newsletters for example.
Spherical Strategies’ Approach to Digital Marketing in 2022
The digital marketing trends of 2022 are human-centered and all about relevance. Relevance in content, ads, and social media posts. Relevance in how brands communicate with consumers. And finally, relevance when marketers decide on the platforms and strategies to focus their efforts and budgets. If you want your business to stay relevant in 2022, it’s time to start implementing these trends into your digital marketing strategy today.
If you’re looking for more ideas on how to use digital marketing and advertising for your business in 2022, be sure to check out our website! Not only do we have information about new digital trends, but we also offer free consultations to see how Spherical Strategies can help you achieve your digital marketing goals in 2022!
About Lisa | Spherical Strategies Content Creator & Copywriter
Lisa works with Spherical Strategies as a content creator and copywriter. She brings a deep understanding of human motivation to her mastery of writing by utilizing her education in market psychology. She has worked over the past several years as a private contractor, providing industry-specific content and editing for companies of all sizes.
Outside of her work as a content creator, Lisa is passionate about caring for her young son and is only slightly obsessed with gardening.
