Funny Digital Marketing Predictions for 2019
You know how every November or December you read predictions about social media, SEO, content writing, digital marketing and more for the upcoming year? We’ve done some of those ourselves. And we’re happy to say that the trends and forecasts we write about typically come true.
But there’s one problem with writing too much on this topic. You end up saying the same thing over and over again.
Image via Pinterest/SEO.com
Plus, let’s face it: it’s always good not to take yourself too seriously. I strongly believe that one should be able to laugh at anything and especially at oneself. We all know that each industry comes with tired tropes and marketing makes no exception.
So let’s take a critical and self-ironic look at what digital marketers love to talk about most.
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Social Media Departments Will Double in Size
Due to the rise in popularity of ephemeral content, every company will need at least two extra employees
Facebook stories and Instagram stories are all the rage now. But there’s only one problem with them: they bloody disappear.
Some social media experts have tried to build brands based only on stories. However, their brands’ profiles ended up looking like haunted houses. The kind that aren’t even pretty on Halloween.
So they gave up.
Here’s the bigger joke: the C-level execs understood that social media now takes more time and effort, so they decided to allocate even more funds to their marketing departments that were already drowning in cash. Now every company can afford to hire several new copywriters, videographers and graphic designers.
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SEO Experts Will Stop Complaining about Google Algorithm Changes
Either Google stops updating their algorithm or we start understanding that this is the way it’s supposed to be
Here’s a rare gem: a bit of honesty in a “trends and forecasts” post. I’m not sure which of the two will happen (sorry to disappoint you, but marketers aren’t clairvoyants), but something’s gotta give, right?
I’m willing to bet that Google won’t stop updating their algorithm, so maybe it’s time for all of us in the SEO game to get on board the “trend”.
It’s been a long time since I said that authority content is the key to both high rankings and great sales. And guess what?
Websites that do produce quality content never felt a sting when Google updated their algorithm yet again. The “why” is actually very simple.
Google wants GREAT content for its users (just like you should, by the way). When someone creates that kind of content, they get rewarded.
Image via Pinterest/DirectAgents
Get popular with your readers and you’ll be popular in SERPs, too. It may sound like a Catch-22, but as long as you start researching with your reader in mind instead of Google bots, you’ll get there.
Joke aside, at Idunn we get 99% of our customers through content. They love what they read on our website and blog and they want us to create the same kind of content that ranks and sells for them.
To me, it’s the best kind of advertising.
Speaking of which, if you want to work with SEO copywriting experts who don’t complain about every Google algorithm update, but know exactly what to do to help you rank, we’re just a click away.
I, personally, look forward to the moment when SEO experts will stop dreading algorithm changes and understand that they are 100% normal. This will be the day when there will be less clutter on the internet.
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No One Will Care about Vanity Metrics
If a spike in your website’s traffic means a spike in your EKG, 2019 is your year to change.
Listen, if I’m being completely honest, I, too, like traffic spikes. And, yes, even social media followers spikes.
I’m vain.
I know that more traffic and more followers mean that our stuff is good. So good that people want to read more of.
But you know what I like even more?
Paying customers.
Now that’s something I’d like to see even more often!
Traffic and high follower counts don’t pay the bills. Sure, they’re nice to have. But not mandatory. And they should never be turned into actual goals.
Image via Marketoonist
This is why I always encourage our readers and customers to never buy Instagram followers. Or email lists.
Make 2019 the year that you’ll be speaking about content that sells and about social media customers who are actual clients. This will help with both your marketing strategy and your stakeholder buy-in.
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Influencer Marketing Will no Longer Rely on Fake Influencers
(Also: it’s not OK to call yourself ‘thought leader’ or ‘influencer’ before anyone else)
You may think that influencer marketing is a novel concept. It’s really not. What changed is where the influencers “live”.
Actors and singers have been shooting TV commercials since the dawn of TV advertising.
Now, however, there are people whose only job is to be an influencer.
Image via Marketoonist
A marketing agency proved how easy it is to become an Instagram influencer without even…existing. If you don’t have the time to click on the link, here’s the brief story: they bought stock photos for two Instagram profiles, then followers and likes through services that were “readily available”. Before long, they started getting offers.
The irony is almost cruel. The biggest challenge in this industry is finding the influencers who can actually influence someone. Anyone, really.
The fake likes and followers aren’t likely to buy anything from the brands that are eager to work with any influencer.
So, if you’re planning on hiring any influencer in 2019, do your homework. Make sure they are real and that they can provide real value.
At least when Marilyn Monroe was cast in commercials you knew she existed, right?
Wrapping Things Up
Joke aside, 2019 will have its own challenges for marketers and business owners. Just like 2018 and 2017 did.
Every year, new technologies appear. Some of the old ones evolve (see Google), while others are rendered obsolete.
But until some can make immersive reality a mass marketing solution, it will be hard to speak of any ground-breaking changes that shake the industry completely. So let’s easy up on the click-baity, sensationalist titles, shall we?
