The future of marketing

Artificial intelligence (AI) for marketing

AI, the beating heart of tomorrow, touches every marketing department. Self-learning systems analyse, connect, and create anything imaginable. This presents opportunities as well as threats. How do we prepare for this technological revolution that demands new skills and a proactive approach to ethics and safety?

Brands in the digital age

Brands can’t always control how they are perceived by their customers, but they can influence perception by offering engaging and immersive experiences, investing in creativity, using advanced tech, and by becoming ‘people-brands’. What today’s customers care about is being able to personally relate to a brand and things that directly impact their lives – like social issues and current events.

Marketing automation

Artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning technologies can give customers exactly what they want by offering only the most relevant information. Chatbots, for instance, will be crucial to personalised customer journeys, as they enable 24/7, immediate responses and inquiry management from multiple channels, ranging from phone calls to social media and live chat.

Voice search & smart speakers

The ever increasing use of voice search has made it crucial for companies to rethink their digital marketing strategies. The tech has evolved from basic enquiries to personality-driven AI that uses machine learning to better understand your voice and needs over time. Already in our phones, watches, and cars, voice searching and shopping will keep gaining ground in the future.

Image recognition and visual search

Visual search takes the user experience to a whole new level by allowing you to snap a photo of something you like and find out where you can buy it. For instance, Pinterest makes this possible with its Lens feature, while Google Lens uses real-time augmented reality to recognise landmarks and art objects and provides info like commercial en historical facts.

VR, AR and holograms

Customers best respond to interactive, immersive, and memorable experiences. More and more fashion brands use VR & AR apps to enable customers to virtually try on an outfit. Companies that want to target the consumer of the future will need to take this a few steps further and offer an even more immersive experience by employing hologram technology.

Hyper-targeted advertising

There’s overwhelmingly consistent evidence that personalised, hyper-targeted marketing is more effective than the standardised, one-size-fits-all approach. Neuromarketing uses insights from neuroscience, social psychology, and behavioural economics to analyse and improve marketing strategies and customer connections. When combined with geo-fencing and beacon tech, it allows marketers to send hyper-targeted content to customers based on their location.

Omnichannel marketing

Consumers are connected via multiple devices, engaging with brands across physical and online channels and technologies – think shoppable posts on social media sites like Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube – but also chatbots, apps, VR & AR, and influencer marketing. Omnichannel marketing uses all these channels to reach one goal – to get the consumer to buy a product or service.

The future of social

On average, we check our social media and messaging apps seven times more frequently than we check our email. Actively engaging customers on multiple social media channels and building an identity on these platforms is therefore becoming increasingly vital. Social media listening offers valuable feedback and real-time, actionable data that will help you take your business to the next level.

The future of videomarketing

Video marketing is set to become one of the most important future marketing trends. Customers prefer to learn about new products and services through video content, as it makes them more confident in their purchasing decisions. Interactive videos take engagement to yet another level, featuring links customers can interact with to see more information about the product they are viewing.

The future of mobile marketing

Mobile is an integral part of multichannel marketing strategies, in which each part reinforces the other. To reach consumers, mobile marketing uses channels like SMS, email, push notifications, QR codes, and more. AI-powered mobile marketing strategies are fast, measurable, relevant, and effective as the tech can determine which messages to send to which customers at which time.

Authentic engagement

While in-depth customer insights and high-tech analytics are important, all the data in the world is no substitute for authentic engagement. A customer’s value transcends his activities and the trail of data he leaves behind. Companies that build a genuine relationship, prioritise engagement, and create a stronger emotional connection with their customers will see huge benefits.

Ethics

In many ways, people are no longer separate from technology. It is, therefore, important to keep an eye on the moral side of technological developments, consider the implications for the world of tomorrow, and ensure we take important ethical considerations into account. We need to determine our boundaries and voice our opinions about how people and machines should work together.

New skills & roles

Many digital tasks performed by marketers will be done by artificial intelligence or cobots. While AI tools will handle tasks like personalised content creation, ad targetting, predictive analytics, and dynamic pricing, marketing professionals will focus on human skills and traits that AI will have a hard time replicating, like creativity, emotional intelligence, collaboration, empathy, critical thinking, and forging human connections.

The future of leaderschip

The organisation of the future requires a new type of leader. The manager of the future questions the status quo and is willing to leave the old 20th-century management style behind. The leader of the future inspires talent, provides space and opportunity, and offers an environment where the old and new organisation can achieve optimal performance.

The company of the future

The company of the future is hyper connected. It closely monitors new developments and collaborates with start-ups, scientists, and universities. It uses smart algorithms to analyse the world and employs a flexible workforce capable of rapidly developing new products and services. The company of the future requires accessible, inspiring leaders who are not afraid to veer off the beaten track.