New Digital Marketing Trends 2018 - What Works Worldwide And In China

New Digital Marketing Trends 2018 - What Works Worldwide And In China

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2018 has just started and many of you are planning, analyzing and adjusting your digital marketing strategy for the year.  Gone are the days when a company could generate traffic and conversions with just a few classic marketing channels. Nowadays, the audience is more demanding and unless you are on the same page as them, you will miss potentially massive opportunities to grow your business.

The digital marketing trends for 2018 are well defined by now. We are here to assist with the rise of these new marketing opportunities. Though they may present a challenge for many companies these new trends can be an unmatched opportunity to create marketing campaigns that are highly targeted at your specific audience.

Whether you are a business owner or a web agency, you need to consider 2018’s fascinating digital marketing trends and how to implement them in your business model.

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1. Content Marketing Is Still The Hero.

Even in 2018, the content you offer to your audience will be the core of your marketing strategy. However, with millions of online searches every day and limitless content available, you need to make sure that your message doesn’t get lost in the crowd. In 2018 you need to generate relevant content that resonates with your audience and offers solutions to its needs. The watchword to achieve this goal is “personalization”. It is now of paramount importance for your online business to collect data and analyze your visitor's behavior to offer customized content. You can do that, for instance, by keeping track of what pages your customers visit, what products they looked at, or how long between visits. Once you have this data in your hands, you can create timely content based on the particular behaviors and patterns you observe. You will enhance your users' online experience and create a stronger brand connection.

2. Interactive Content.

This point is obviously connected to the previous one. To enhance your content quality and relevance, starting in 2018 you need to focus on creating interactions with your audience. Not many things on the Internet are as sure as the fact that users get bored easily. Once a visitor lands on one of your pages they will scan through it for a few seconds and if nothing catches their attention they will promptly move on. Plus, reading is generally not a users favorite hobby and statistics confirm that visual aids are now the most effective means of communication. In 2018, adding video to your content, creating polls, quizzes or games will be an effective way to entertain your audience and promote your business.

 

3. User-Generated Content Rather Than Influencer Marketing.img

When you give voice to your audience, you will see many good results for your business. An undeniable trend for 2018 is that people are looking for genuineness. It has been proven that users trust reviews or comments from real users rather than from influencers. Companies have spent an untold sum of money to have niche influencers promoting their products or services. Even though this marketing approach can generate a massive amount of traffic, the ROI is not as good as when a real user posts a comment, a review or a video on the topic at hand. Therefore, an important digital marketing strategy for 2018 is to allow your users to create content for your business.

4. Mobile Marketing.

Probably this is the most self-explanatory point on this list. Mobile device usage continues to increase worldwide as smartphones are now the preferred way to access the Internet. That being the case, the user experience on mobile devices needs to be highly optimized.

5. Social Media Advertising.

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Moving into 2018, the social media platforms will continue to play a major role in digital marketing. Once used solely for entertainment, Social Media today is a powerful channel to create brand awareness. Most online businesses generate traffic through these platforms and many sales are closed on social media. If you want to grow your business in 2018, social media must be included in your digital marketing strategy. For many companies, this will mean increasing their budget in this area. With most companies competing to have visibility on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, WeChat and other platforms, only a well planned social media strategy will be useful to achieve your marketing goals.

6. Artificial Intelligence.

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AI is becoming pivotal to run a successful online business and it is one of the most important revolutions we have seen in digital marketing. A.I. technology like chatbots, machine learning, and big data collection are invaluable tools to gain insight into your consumers’ desires and provide them with a personalized user experience. For instance, a chatbot, an automated responder, can be used to assist your customer to choose a product/service or place an order. It is a great way to increase conversions and offer good customer service. At the same time, the data that A.I. technology can collect will give you invaluable information on your audience's behavior and needs which you can then use to plan your next marketing strategy.

7. Voice Search.

Siri, Alexa, and other voice assistant systems are becoming the favorite way to search the web for many users. This trend in 2018 cannot be overlooked in your digital marketing campaign. Your SEO strategy needs to implement the needs of voice search systems and make your content more discoverable through this popular tool.

2018 Digital Marketing Trends In China

Even though the 2018 digital marketing trends are valid worldwide, the fact that China is a massive market with unique needs cannot be overlooked. Therefore, if you are targeting the Chinese market you should consider implementing the following strategies alongside the international trends.

1. WeChat Is The Way.

WeChat continues to grow exponentially and there is a good reason to believe that soon it will become the most important social platform in the world, as it most surely is already in China. Therefore, if you want to grow your business in China you need to customize your digital campaign for WeChat. The platform is a lot more than just Social Media, it is a way of life for many Chinese. You can use WeChat to promote your products or services, you can use it to engage your audience with games or you can develop a WeChat mini program to create a better user experience for your customers. WeChat offers you countless opportunities to reach a bigger audience.

2. M-commerce Is The New Trend In China.

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As mobile usage is on the rise all around the globe, already in China over 96% of internet users access the net through a mobile device. Therefore, m-commerce in China is a powerful way to sell online. WeChat itself offers solutions to create mini e-commerce shops within the app. In 2018, investing in creating an m-commerce will prove to be the right choice for most online businesses.

3. News Feed Will Keep Growing In 2018.

News feeds have been used successfully for many years in the western world. China has never been interested in this tool but during 2017 we saw a change of direction. News feeds are now used by many online businesses to keep in contact with their audience, and with good results. As the Chinese market is getting more accustomed to news feeds, it is expected to see this trend continue growing in 2018. Investing in news feeds can improve a good digital marketing strategy to target your customers.

Plan Your Digital Marketing Strategy In 2018

Once again, 2018 will be an exciting year for online business owners and digital marketers.

The Internet environment keeps on transforming and it offers a new and more effective way to establish your presence online and grow your customer base.

QPSoftware is a leading web agency in Shanghai and we can support you in planning your digital marketing campaign. Our team of digital marketing professionals is always attentive to any new trend and can advise you on what channel will bring the best results for your business on an international level.

If instead, you are interested in targeting the Chinese market, we have the know-how to make your online presence in China solid and in line with local needs. We can even develop a WeChat solution to boost your business.

Contact us today and we will explain how we can help you in growing your business.

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