Now that 2020 is here, we thought it would be a great time to share with you eight of the top 2020 marketing trends we have identified internally:
- Privacy Will Reach Peak Importance
- Branding Will Become Non-Negotiable
- Brands Will Need To Focus On Quality Over Quantity
- Social Commerce Will Accelerate
- Cross-Functional Collaboration Will Become More Important Than Ever
- Brands Will Go All In On Rich Media Content
- Vertical Integration Will Become Part Of The Mainstream
- Collaborative Marketing Will Provide Incredible Opportunities
If you want to know how these 2020 marketing trends can help your marketing team get ahead in the new year (and decade), you will want to keep reading.
Let’s get started.
Trend #1: Privacy Will Reach Peak Importance
January 1st marks the official implementation of the California Consumer Privacy Act.
This is state-level legislation to let internet users:
- Know what personal data is being collected about them.
- Know whether their personal data is sold or disclosed and to whom.
- Say no to the sale of personal data.
- Access their personal data.
- Request a business to delete any personal information about a consumer collected from that consumer.
- Not be discriminated against for exercising their privacy rights.
This comes less than two years after the implementation of GDPR in the EU. And, it shows a concrete shift in how consumers feel about their privacy.
They are more aware of how their data is being used (or misused) and are increasingly sensitive to how it is collected and managed.
As such, a change in MarTech solutions regarding privacy will certainly be one of the most significant 2020 marketing trends.
More will offer privacy-related features to help brands optimize the performance of their campaigns, in full compliance with the law and fair practices.
Trend #2: Branding Will Become Non-Negotiable
Branding is the most powerful moat at your disposal.
Over the last decade, the barriers to enter the business world have been lowered.
It has never been easier or more accessible to start or launch a business.
Worse still:
It has never been easier for people to copy and replicate products.
There is an increase in the number of products and services on the market that are objectively similar.
The sheer volume of this will leave customers with more choice than ever before.
So, how will they make their decisions? Simple.
Customers will choose the brand that they:
- Like
- Trust
- Associate with
In 2020 you will need to set out your stall and say: “This is who we are. This is what we make. This is who we make it for.”
More than ever, building a strong brand is what will protect your company from competitors and secure your assets.
We can see evidence of this in the sports industry.
Despite a marked rise in e-commerce sports retailers and competing businesses, Nike and Adidas have seen their revenues increase year-on-year:
Credit: Statista
Whether their products are the best on the market is open to debate. But their brands have found a way to attract new customers and keep existing ones loyal.
If your business is like many others, you have likely spent the last few years building a reputation and audience based on your product’s:
- Quality
- Features
- Price
- Superiority
But, if you want to secure the future of your business beyond 2020, your safest bet will be to double-down on branding.
Trend #3: Brands Will Need To Focus On Quality Over Quantity
Social networks are working hard to cut down on:
- Automation
- Duplicate content
- Spam
Twitter has been especially forthcoming about their position to shut down marketing teams and developers who use multiple accounts and heavy automation to inflate their interactions.
Platforms are also putting a high price on quality content.
Facebook has recently amended its guidelines to focus more on “authentic content.” They have created three core publisher principles marketing teams must adhere to:
- Publisher Principle 1: People on Facebook Value Content That’s Meaningful and Informative
- Publisher Principle 2: People on Facebook Value Accurate, Authentic Content
- Publisher Principle 3: People on Facebook Value Standards for Safe, Respectful Behavior
It seems highly likely that an increase from brand & marketing team in their investment in high-quality content will appear as one of the top 2020 marketing trends.
This will allow them to stand out in algorithmic news feeds and — more importantly! — delight the end-users they reach.
Trend #4: Social Commerce Will Accelerate
Facebook has made a big splash in the world of e-commerce. Specifically, they appear to be the brand who will finally bring social commerce into the mainstream.
They have launched a range of e-commerce features across their platforms:
- Checkout on Instagram
- Catalog on WhatsApp
- Marketplace on Facebook
Users can take advantage of these features to buy products — either from other users or directly from their favorite brands — without leaving the app or website.
Other social media platforms have seen the opportunity in this. TikTok has announced it will enter the world of social commerce in 2020.
So be on the lookout for CDs from your favorite piano-playing dog very soon:
Social commerce features will likely create a:
- New dynamic for brands to connect with BOFU leads
- Rapid acceleration in brands selling in social marketplaces
This will be compounded by the increase in DNVBs (more on those in trend seven).
All of this signals that social commerce will be one of the hottest 2020 marketing trends.
Trend #5: Cross-Functional Collaboration Will Become More Important Than Ever
Digital and social media marketing have cemented themselves as legitimate channels.
They are no longer treated as “try it and see” plights by the marketing team. Instead, they are leading channels that require serious time and attention.
As such:
The dynamics of strategizing and deploying campaigns, and ensuring a brand-safe approach, have shifted to include members of teams across your organization.
It is not uncommon to create workflows between employees in:
- Marketing
- Finance
- HR
- Legal
- Sales
- Product
Cross-functional collaboration typically results in more innovation, reduced risk, and better content for your target audience.
No matter what type of content you create, your marketing team can (and will) benefit in 2020 from working with the bright minds throughout your organization.
Trend #6: Brands Will Go All-In On Rich Media Content
Rich media content is anything beyond written content, featuring “active” elements that increase engagement or participation from your audience.
We have seen a steady rise in marketing teams investing in these types of content, like:
- Podcasts
- Videos
- Geofilters
- Stories
- AR experiences
As far back as 2015, marketing teams saw the potential in rich media content but found there were too many barriers to creation and distribution.
However:
The technology to create this rich media content has become cheaper and more intuitive, making it possible for marketing teams of all sizes and skill levels to use.
For example, you could launch a podcast for free using:
- Your smartphone
- Audacity
- SoundCloud
We predict that rich media content is going to be a valuable marketing trend in 2020 and beyond. As such, now is the time to start using it if you are not already.
Trend #7: Vertical Integration Will Become Part Of The Mainstream
DNVBs — Digital Native Vertical Brands — will keep seeing large amounts of success this year.
Vertical integrations and the new business models that go with it are transforming the way brands and marketing teams operate in the retail space.
For example:
Many digital-first brands, who a few years ago could have been described as digital “purists,” are now opening physical stores:
- Allbirds now has a store in Soho
- Everlane has stores in LA, SF, NYC, and Brooklyn
- Buck Mason has stores across LA, SF & NYC
Well-established brands that did not get their start online are also adopting the DNVB approach.
Nike is a prime example.
Like many digital-first brands, they have taken control of their content distribution, and have invested in rich media content (such as podcasts) through their range of apps:
- Nike Run Club
- Nike Training Club
Nike has also started to offer subscription models.
Parents who subscribe to Nike Adventure Club can get kids’ sneakers delivered four to twelve times a year for a monthly fee.
The vertical integration strategy appears to be a new source of untapped growth potential for many brands.
Trend #8: Collaborative Marketing Will Provide Incredible Opportunities
This final trend is a culmination of everything you have just read — and one of the 2020 marketing trends about which we are the most excited at Loomly.
We can clearly see more technological, financial, and procedural barriers are being broken down. All of which make collaborative marketing much easier.
Brands currently have the best ever opportunity to:
- Work with other brands
- Offer exclusive, time-limited products
- Create one-of-a-kind experiences
And, if you want to reach a new audience, create a deeper emotional connection, and supercharge your marketing in 2020, it is a great strategy.
We encourage you to read more on this topic in our Definitive Guide to Collaborative Marketing.
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2020 Marketing Trends In A Nutshell
2020 is going to be a great year for marketing teams and brands.
Let’s quickly recap the 2020 marketing trends we predict we will see:
- Privacy will become more important: in reaction to the California Consumer Privacy Act and users increasing awareness of how data is collected, used and managed
- Branding will become non-negotiable: branding is the best defense in a business world where the competition is high and the choice is overwhelming
- Brands will need to focus on quality: with social networks fighting against automation and duplicate content, marketing teams need to maintain investment in high-quality content
- Social commerce will accelerate: with Facebook’s big splash into e-commerce, selling and buying products through social media should accelerate significantly.
- Cross-functional collaboration is paramount: the more people from your organization who can collaborate on content, the better the quality will be
- Brands will go all-in on rich media: content like podcasts, AR experiences, video, stories, and geofilters, will play an increasingly larger role in your marketing strategy
- Vertical integration will become part of the mainstream: brands will need to go both digital and vertical in their approaches in 2020
- Collaborative marketing will provide incredible opportunities: as a result of the above, collaboration between brands is will keep rising
