16 Latest Digital Marketing Trends To Stay Ahead Of The Curve

1. Smart Voice Assistants

The generation of smart voice assistants or smart speakers is one of the most noteworthy developments in the recent past. According to a study, the growth of no of smart voice assistants is expected to reach 8 million units across the world by 2023, and this growth is going to exist for a long time and is most likely to continue to grow only.  

Therefore, the growth of smart voice assistants is a prolific opportunity. In the coming period, it’ll soon become a major channel for digital marketers to place ads and promote products and services. 

Following are the 2 major ways in which businesses can leverage smart voice assistant marketing as well as advertising in 2023:

• ‘Trademark Skill’ or ‘Application’

Businesses can develop trademark skills like Alexa or Google Home application, which is suitable for your business and offer a valuable service to the customers. Another use of smart voice assistants is to connect with the audience by providing industry-related news to the audience and more. 

• News Bulletin

One of the most popular trends in Alexa is to brief news or flash briefing the morning news, weather, and other daily news. The users can select their choice of news sources, podcasts, and other ‘Features’ that they wish their smart voice assistant to play. 

2. The Growing Use of Voice Search

Another significant development affecting the 2023 digital marketing trends is the growing acceptance of voice search techniques. This latest technology is changing the course of website optimization in order to rank higher for the targeted keywords and phrases. 

According to voice search statistics, 50% of the American population uses voice search features on a daily basis. Around 71% of customers do searches by voice rather than typing. 

You can optimize your website for voice search using various ways, and the most important way is to use lon tail keywords rather than short-term keywords.

3. Chatbots in Digital Marketing

Another prominent recent trends in online marketing is making use of " Chatbots " to promote and advertise your products or services. Most brands have been utilizing chatbots for a while now, and digital marketing updates are compellingly making the most of this trend. 

• Chatbots on Social Media 

Did you know that Chatbots are uncovering several applications in online marketing, i.e., assisting brands in communicating with consumers in a better way and providing them with a world-class UX? For example - nowadays, Uber facilitates users to request a ride from their Facebook Messenger application. 

By incorporating digital marketing channels with the point of sale, chatbots aren’t only improving the consumer experience effortlessly and cutting down the purchase cycle.

• AI-based Chatbots 

AI-driven chatbots are able to deliver a customized experience to consumers and clients. For example - the chatbot of Bank of America can seamlessly handle any consumer query using prospective analysis. It can look for consumers’ requirements and lead them through complicated banking tasks. 

This chatbot helps customers make payments, check balances, or save money. This type of high-quality experience will continue a long way in helping businesses put themselves as “customer-oriented.”

4. An Era of Augmented Reality (AR)

Another highly assuring digital marketing trend to look out for is Augmented reality(AR), which has noticed blustering popularity in the past few years and is forecasted to outstrip virtual reality. It has made its mark in the digital marketing field, too, and is one of the most raging and top digital marketing trends 2023.

augmented reality is already been used by huge organizations such as IKEA. this kind of marketing, normally referred to as ‘experiential marketing’, benefits companies such as IKEA, providing consumers with those distinct experiences that differentiate them from purchasing and dropping out. 

5. Customizing Marketing Efforts

Your digital marketing campaign's achievement depends on how well you understand your audience. This future digital marketing trend focuses on tons of data marketers collect from customers or prospects. 

To define this data, advanced BI (Business Intelligence) tools have been increasingly used for creating proper buyer personas, drawing useful insights related to customer desires, customer behavior patterns, and much more.

Businesses can use these insights to develop customized communications and marketing campaigns. You must create distinct and personalized content to help you stand out from the competition, boost brand retention, and look back on your customers. 

For example- the “Share A Coke” campaign of Coca-Cola is an excellent example of this type of marketing trend where common first names were printed on Coke bottles, and this targeted marketing captured millennials in huge numbers and increased conversion rate and revenue. 

• Target particular audiences

Micro-targeting audiences and developing communications, especially for them, are the future trends in digital marketing that are gaining popularity. For instance, if your audience loves to watch movies, you can send movie vouchers or coupons to them as a gift. You can incorporate certain design elements of a specific movie in your email marketing campaign, blog posts, etc., to provide a more customized experience using content and boost conversions. 

• Recommend Product

Knowing more about your consumers’ purchasing habits is important. Based on their past purchase, you can promote your products or services. Ans it is the latest update in digital marketing, you should not overlook it. 

More and more no. of eCommerce businesses have gotten on with this strategy to provide more applicable product recommendations for their consumers and periodically send emails with suggested product catalos. 

Also, as per research by Digital Commerce, recommending products has proven to increase conversion rates by around 915%. Hence, sway your comprehensive list to suggest your products or services to your consumers, embrace these current trends in digital marketing, and stay on top of your digital marketing game.

6. Communicating on Private Messaging Apps

Now is the time for businesses to start gripping their focus towards adequately deploying private messaging applications. The most popular mobile messaging apps in recent times are WhatsApp, Viber, WeChat, etc. 

Most businesses have started to embrace the benefits of private and private messaging apps, and WhatsApp is the 3rd most popular messaging app of 2023, with 2.7 billion active users in only one month. Approximately 5% of web users across the world are using this platform. 

Another helpful feature of WhatsApp is setting up WhatsApp Business accounts and using Facebook ads to allow WhatsApp users to call or send messages to their consumer service team with only one click. 

7. Drive Collaborative Content Marketing

To encourage audience engagement better, the majority of digital marketing professionals are adopting engaging online marketing content. 

More and more marketing professionals are turning to interactive marketing content to engage the audience better. Based on data from Gitnux, around 81% believe interactive content is more attention-grabbing as compared to static content. And this is another 2023 digital marketing trends to embrace.  

Following interactive content such as quizzes or polls could invite the audience to connect with your business. For example, engagographics, which is able to turn flat or boring infographics more exciting. 

Following are some of the advantages of interactive content -

• Assists in customizing user experience,
• Additional feedback and social sharing by users
• More user engagement which results in increased brand awareness.

8. Focus more on Visual Content

Using visual content, you can add emotion, say more in a short time and make powerful and unforgettable communication. By looking at the reputation of visual content, Cisco reported that around 82% of the world’s internet traffic would come either from video streaming or video 

Proving the popularity of video content, Cisco reports that 82% of global internet traffic will come from either video streaming or downloading videos.

9. Metaverse

It is usually known as a virtual world inside a world, and Meta i.e. Facebook, is the owner of the latest digital marketing industry trends, which is an unexplored digital world where VR or AR interact with each other to develop an interactive medium for everybody. 

Social trades are now conceivable since a network of VR or AR realities where an infinite void exists all over. Therefore, present-day digital marketers have identified techniques to fill out that space and develop a pristine type of digital marketing video.

10. NFTs

Saleworthy tokens are online assets that could be sold. Every NFT i.e., Non-fungible Token, is labeled with a distinct token that finds it like an original and just yours. Besides this technology, Non-fungible tokens are also becoming popular in marketing. 

These tokens are distributed in the form of a lottery as a part of their digital marketing strategy. 

11. Cryptocurrency

One of the hottest trends in the Instagram economic world is” Cryptocurrency.” even though nobody expected its ultimate success, it hit the market. It gradually won the competition sweep under the rug.  

Putting money in cryptocurrencies has become extremely popular amidst millennials, who perceive them as hot and happening. Different cryptocurrency exchange platforms benefit from the next generation’s desire for free cryptocurrency to increase its awareness and give investors a taste of this new investment option. 

Similar to GooglePay, users can make use of cryptocurrencies to purchase groceries and other daily needs. 

12. Social Commerce

With reference to social commerce, China has already settled a billion-dollar business from it; on the contrary, others are just getting on with it. Businesses use top social media platforms for marketing their products live, and the user can straight away buy the desired product. 

Businesses might pull the Shop feature of Instagram to include Shop Now button to live videos. Social commerce is the most prominent digital marketing trend for 2023, which has reduced the time the customer takes to view the ad to buy something. 

13. Voice Search

As per a study, around 41% of American adults and 55% of American teens use voice search on a daily basis. Voice search is ready to earn traction in the forthcoming years, as verified by today's teenagers' extensive use of tools and technologies. 

This feature was received by each of us along with our mobile phones in 2014 and is still it is rising in popularity. Furthermore, smart voice assistants or smart speakers are also gaining more popularity, and Alexa and Google Home smart voice assistants or smart speakers have been procured by around 20% of households. 

As more and more people adopt smart voice assistants or speakers, it's the best sign that this online marketing trend is here to stay! Lastly, it has been forecasted that by 2023, the highest no of voice searches regarding shopping will account for 51% of total users, and it’ll be done for researching different products. 

That’s why making your website suitable for voice search is very important for the future due to the large no of growth drivers. 

14. Programmatic Advertising

Programmatic ad selling gets acclimatized to procure digital ads. In contrast, automated purchasing is a procedure that makes use of algorithms and machines to purchase ads instead of human intervention. 

Ads can more accurately target their prospective customers with the help of AI-oriented programmatic ads. 

Eventually, both increased conversion rates and inexpensive customer acquisition costs are the advantages of automation. Advertisers can be sold and purchased based on a case-by-case basis with the help of real-time bidding and programmatic advertising buying technology that allows more accurate and instantaneous targeting. 

15. Automated and Customized Email Marketing

Automated and customized email marketing, as the name implies, consists of sending emails to your customers on a regular basis based on preconceived triggers or schedules. 

So far as distribution channels go, email marketing has since time immortal become the most trustworthy marketing medium. Promotional emails are the best tool to connect with your consumers regarding your company’s achievements or forthcoming sales. 

But having said that majority of the customers have stopped responding to promotional emails because of the overdoes of bulk email messages. Therefore customized emails are the best way to regain your consumers’ attention and develop a highly engaging customer base. 

Personalized emails are an excellent way to reclaim your customers' attention and build a more engaged consumer base.

16. AI in Marketing

AI, i.e., artificial intelligence, has been creating quite a fuss in recent years, with so many anticipating that it’ll shortly rule all the facets of humankind. With the help of AI-driven Chatbots, around 60% of web users can get answers to their questions on any no of applications or websites simultaneously. 

Did you know that there’s a lot of AI in the things we consume on social media platforms, and they’re being created to keep us engaged for long periods of time? Therefore, digital marketers have a golden opportunity to utilize this modern-age technology, which is forecasted to be worth $190 billion by 2025.

1. Leverage Big On Social Media Shoppable Posts

The number of social commerce buyers in the US rose to 107.6 million in 2023! 

So, which digital marketing updates are trending high among social commerce buyers in 2023?

It’s shoppable Posts! 

Whether Instagram with story marketing or YouTube with short video marketing with shoppable posts, you can commercialize your products through organic content. 

But, Shoppable posts aren't just convenient for consumers. 

They are also of great advantage to businesses: 

• Digital Marketing services can enthral and engage audiences through story-based & video-based environments by linking their products and services to a story & video.
• Using Shoppable-post digital marketing updates strategy, your business can reduce the steps involved in a conversion.
• With Shoppable Posts, a Digital marketing agency will allow businesses to collect more data, thus helping develop a personalized journey for the buyer.

Understand what is virtual reality vs augmented reality by clicking here.

Include an Augmented Reality Feature, so your buyer can have a 3d trial of the product.

2. Utilize User-Generated Content Strategy(UGC)

88% of users rely on the advice of other people rather than a brand.

So essentially User-Generated Content today can be said to be modern word of mouth.

UGC comes in many forms: Pictures, videos, reviews, testimonials, or even podcasts & from anyone, including your customers, employees, or even brand loyalists, thus bringing a humanistic side to your brand.

But this strategy in Digital Marketing Sales has a much bigger impact as

• Digital marketing services can use UGC to take your brand authenticity to the next level as your consumers are likely to view content 2.2x times higher if it's authentic.
• This unique digital marketing strategy offers clients an opportunity to contribute to the growth of a brand instead of being a spectator.
• UGC is more Cost-effective than any kind of influencer marketing in increasing sales
• A good digital marketing agency can increase conversions and influence purchasing decisions, especially at the end of the buyer’s journey using UGC.

3. Use Automation To Enhance Your Marketing Campaigns

According to marketing workflow automation trends 2023, 

“Marketers who use marketing automation solutions saw an increase of 77% in conversion rate. Around 51% of businesses are now making use of marketing automation.”

Can digital marketing updates help boost your sales to the next level in 2023? Yes, if you choose to use Automation effectively.

On average, 51% of companies currently use marketing automation. And more than half of B2B companies plan to adopt this technology in the near future. ( Source: Quay)

Automation gives your team more time to work on business-related queries by taking time-consuming activities out of their hands. 

Hence, with automation in digital marketing, you can work on things like

• Posting & Advertising on social media, 
• Nurturing leads through Drip email campaigns,
• Developing Personalized Content using demographic and firmographic data, 
• With lead allocation, you can display ads and content depending on where your prospects come from.

You can take the help of leading Digital Marketing services that can implement Google Analytics 4 (GA4) to create standout attribution models & adapt your automation strategy accordingly.

4. Implement the Right SEO Strategies To Optimize Your Site

Did you know 24.4% of Local SEO results Convert?

With features like Google My Business listing, your ad appears at the top of the search results beside two other ads in a feature called local SEO 3-pack when people search for a business in specific areas. 

And, With so many prospects converting from local SEO, you wouldn't want to miss out on these top digital marketing trends in 2023.

As the Right SEO strategy in Digital Marketing Can result in 

• Assisting your company to appear in local search results using local keywords and drive more people to your site.
• On-page & Off-page optimization will help in targeting the right user base.
• Image compression, structured data, and CSS file optimization SEO techniques can increase the loading speed of your website.

5. Use Online PR To Boost Sales & Leads

90% of marketers believe that public relations and digital marketing will work even closer together in the near future.

Online public relations is the practice of obtaining online coverage through digital posts, blogs, and other content-driven websites. 

With the internet becoming a hub of endless opportunities, companies must look beyond printing possibilities and engage with their target audience online.

This is where a Responsive Digital Marketing Service Can Boost Your Sales by

• Establishing relations with journalists and bloggers online to generate bigger online media coverage.
• Organizing corporate profiling & arranging online reviews and interviews.
• Ensure that press releases are optimized with appropriate backlinks to your website. 
• Influence marketing and blogger outreach for social media accounts and influential blogs.

6. Generate Better Leads & ROI Using Paid Advertising

68% of advertisers said that paid advertisement is "very important" or "extremely important" for their overall marketing strategy.

So, If you are tired of feeling in the dark about the effectiveness of your campaigns? 

It's time you invest in paid advertising. 

Paid advertisements allow you to reach the most interested prospects, which helps boost your sales. Examples of paid advertising include pay-per-click, online partnerships, web takeovers, etc. 

But here’s Why Paid Advertisement can digitally empower your business:

• Precise & granular targeting is available using paid advertising.
• Retargeted ads will display highly relevant ads to engage your potential customers continually.
• A responsive Digital Marketing Agency will incorporate long-tail & short-tail keywords into your PPC campaign, reaching your target audience.
• With Google responsive ads, Twitter Ads campaigns & other social media ads, a digital marketing company can make you rank better on the search result pages.

7. Use Inbound Marketing For Better Brand Outreach

In 2023, this Digital marketing sales strategy is pacing up!

According to Oracle, Inbound Marketing generates 3x more leads per dollar than other traditional marketing techniques. 

Inbound marketing is a digital marketing methodology that attracts, engages, and enchants customers at every step of the buyer's journey. 

To make it more clear, here are a few classic examples of inbound versus traditional marketing:

• Video marketing vs. commercial ads
• Blogging vs. pop-up ads
• Email contact lists vs. email spam

Here are the top reasons why Inbound Marketing is Must for your business:

• Inbound marketing is a cost-effective strategy compared to traditional marketing.
• A good Digital marketing company can also attract customers using MOFU (Middle-of-the-Funnel) and BOFU (Bottom-of-the-Funnel) strategies.
• Using inbound marketing, you can create “Power Posts,” leading to higher engagement.

2023 will see significant progress in Digital Marketing. Hence, with the right strategy & coordination with a genuine Digital Marketing Agency, your visitor could become a loyal buyer of your brand. 

Let's get you a head start by telling you the top reasons why your business isn't generating qualified leads!

1. Not Nurturing The Leads You’ve Already Generated

More than 79% of the leads generated never convert into sales (Source: MarketingSherpa) 

Although some leads may be completely illegitimate, or of poor quality, the most common reason for the high drop-off rate is lack of lead nurturing.

Lead Nurturing is a long process to improve your relationship with your leads throughout their purchase journey, providing them with value and information at every stage of the process.

But, many businesses lose out on the benefit that leads nurturing can generate; that is, according to PointClear, lead nurturing supports business in generating 50% more qualified sales opportunities at 33% lower costs. Approximately 80% of new leads don’t result in sales. Nurtured leads make 47% bigger purchases compared to non-nurtured leads. 

Essentially, they can't implement digital marketing techniques that can optimize future lead nurturing campaigns and improve ROI.

2. Leads Funnel is Not Well-Optimized

The image below shows your standard buyer journey: it starts with awareness & ends with decision-making where the buyer is “ready to buy/ not.”

Are we getting your target audience's attention? Is your brand able to pique their interest? And finally, can your brand help them make a purchasing decision? 

A well-strategized digital marketing plan will enable you to target the audience by taking demographics, psychographics, online behavior, purchase history, repeat purchases, and loyalty of a consumer into account.

3. Prioritizing Lead volume over Lead quality

Online marketing trends have changed! Nearly 70% of entrepreneurs choose to generate quality prospects rather than quantity (Source: Ascend2).

The quality of the lead, regardless of business objectives, is the lead's intent or how likely it is to engage with your company and become a customer. 

So when you prioritize lead volume over lead quality, you miss focusing on the right target audience. Further, this results in losing your share of the business to your competitors, and ultimately losing on higher lifetime value and a better ROI.

4. Not measuring the ROI of your prospects

One of the greatest advantages of digital marketing is that results can be measured in real-time, providing marketers with the opportunity to adapt quickly.

Consider this example: If you spend $7,000 and generate 1,000 prospects, but these leads only give a 1% ROI. Do you think it's worth investing so much in such leads! And this is where most companies fail when marketing budget and ROI are not well-measured. Measuring the profitability metrics will help you plan better and keep the budget in control thereby ensuring maximum efficiency. 

Check out the next section which speaks at length about digital marketing and sales trends of 2022 to increase your business online presence & Boost Revenue!