Marketing trends to watch in 2023
Editor’s note: Pete Denman is marketing and client services manager at Observation Baltimore. This is an edited version of an article that originally appeared under the title, “Marketing trends to look for in 2023.”
Marketing trends are constantly changing. With the emergence of technology such as VR and AI, and with algorithms in flux, it can be difficult to predict what’s next in the marketing world. Here are some marketing trends to look for in 2023.
1. Customer retention takes priority over acquisition
For years marketers have viewed their process as a funnel, using marketing as a means to close the sale and repeat, making the customer an afterthought post-sale. Current studies consistently demonstrate that existing customers are 50% more likely to try new products from a known brand and spend 31% more compared to new customers.
Marketers are now seeing their process as a fly-wheel – prioritizing the relationship with customers well after they’ve made their purchase. Not only does this build trust that will lead to more interaction, but marketers are able to assess Net Promotor Scores of their consumers, allowing marketers to target those consumers that are likely to recommend the product to others.
2. Influencer marketing remains a key link to consumers
Influencer marketing has experienced massive growth in the past few years. The industry has grown from $1.7 billion in 2016 to a $16.4 billion industry in 2022, and it only seems to be picking up more steam. With 61% of consumers reporting that they trust influencer recommendations compared to the 31% that trusts branded social media content, it proves to be one, if not the most, effective method to reach your desired consumer base.
You may not have to worry about breaking the bank when finding an influencer to partner with when marketing your product. Micro-influencers (accounts with 5,000-20,000 followers) account for almost half of all influencers, with nano-influencers (accounts with 1,000-5,000 followers) showing the highest regular engagement rates.
3. Social media provides customer service
The only thing that changes more than the atmosphere surrounding social media is the public’s perception of its usage. Towards the end of 2020, up to 45% of users said they wanted to delete their Facebook account (with most of social media users), with Twitter falling in third place at 32% of the users considering deleting their accounts. While this may point towards a decrease in users of social media, current projections show the number of users on social media is slated to grow to up to 6.7 billion individuals by 2027.
Marketers in 2023 understand that while some platforms may be best for advertising, others (such as Twitter and Facebook) need to be utilized differently. With consumers regularly going to companies’ social media accounts for customer service assistance, a quarter of marketers say they currently use the company account to remedy customer service issues.
4. SEO becomes ingrained in business strategy
It’s no secret that search engine optimization (SEO) has been heavily leveraged by marketers to improve organic traffic to their websites. While SEO is not the most effective method, 88% of marketers who have an SEO strategy plan to increase or maintain their investment. With Google Analytics constantly changing algorithms, many firms are bringing SEO specialists to their marketing team to stay abreast of the industry’s best practices.
5. CMOs bolster customer relationships
Empathy has become a critical element to marketing strategy, and it seems that C-level executives are following suit. Customer acquisition is getting progressively more costly. With the retail space suffering due to current consumer buying preferences, CMOs are beginning to look at themselves differently, focusing their sights on optimizing customer experience and fostering relationships with their current customers.