Starting to think about your 2021 marketing plans and wondering what to do to get the best possible results?
If 2020 has taught us anything, it's that it only takes a microscopic organism to throw the best-laid plans — and most well-educated guesses — for a loop.
But, hey, we're optimists. So we're going to bank on 2021 giving us a break from life-altering, globally disruptive events and make a few predictions based on what we've observed over the past year.
Here's how we think marketing will evolve in 2021, and how you should adapt your strategy to make the most of it.
Small is the new big
2020's silver lining — and it's a pretty thick one — is that it's made us come together as a community.
As lockdown restrictions forced all but essential brick-and-mortar stores to close, customers increasingly started shunning big names and seeking out independents, the businesses that were most at risk from the pandemic's fallout.
Now that we've tasted how good it feels to support our local businesses, this newfound consciousness is here to stay. In a recent survey of British consumers, 30% said they plan to spend more of their money in local businesses moving forward. So, if you have local ties, it's worth drawing attention to them.
What makes you the right choice for the locally-conscious consumer?
Perhaps it's ethically and sustainably sourced raw materials? A bespoke service? Individual attention, such as your personal account manager?
Put them front and centre in your marketing.
Be intentional about your content... especially if it's Covid-19-related
Another consequence of Covid-19 is that it has spawned terabytes worth of content on its impact and how businesses can adapt, particularly in the B2B space (and yes, guilty as charged. We've contributed too).
Most experts agree that many of these changes — such as an increase in remote working and a preference for online shopping and contactless payment methods — are here to stay. And this can only mean one thing. There are going to be reams upon reams of content about these topics being created well into 2021.
Radix Communications' creative director David McGuire thinks the lines in the sand between content that succeeds and content that falls flat are going to be quality and tone: "The big differentiation will be between content that's constructive and helpful, and content that just sows fear, uncertainty, and doubt."
The upshot is that it's never been more important to think carefully about every piece of content you put out.
Do you really need to blog about how Covid-19 will change your industry? Are you making a useful contribution? Or are you purely trying to rank for certain keywords or to not miss out on the bandwagon?
These are questions worth asking even when you're thinking about non-Covid-19 related content. As copywriter Felicity Wild puts it:
"...in order to succeed [at content marketing], you need to respect people’s attention.
"And that means elevating existing conversations with original ideas or starting brand new ones. Seeking to entertain, educate and inspire. And, above all, always providing value."
Make your content work harder
With the vast majority of in-person events cancelled, 2020 has been, without a doubt, the year of video, and particularly of the webinar.
ON24, for instance, saw the number of webinars being hosted on their platform jump by 330% in March 2020, compared to 2019. And attendance has also increased dramatically.
Despite the fact that vaccination programmes have started being rolled out, scientists think it'll be some time until we return to normal. So webinars will continue to be a popular alternative to physical events well into 2021.
But even once it's safe to meet in person — and we think people will be only too keen to seize the opportunity to leave their home offices and mingle — it's worth recording your events and making them available on-demand.
Video recordings are a golden opportunity to reach a whole new audience, because they target those who like listening or learning visually. It's also worth seeing whether you could repurpose the material in your recordings into blog posts, or perhaps even bite-sized snippets you can share on social media.
Doing this means you can achieve more with less: get more mileage out of the content you've already produced instead of having to constantly find new ways to feed the beast.
Get in your customers' inboxes
TikTok may have hogged the limelight on marketing internet, but 2020 was also the year email newsletters — a tried and tested content marketing OG — made a comeback.
Email marketing consistently delivers great results. McKinsey reckons it's significantly more effective than social media at bringing in new customers, for instance. But it's been dismissed in some quarters as too low-tech and, so, no longer trendy.
Well, studies have found it's coming back strong. According to HubSpot, email open rates have shot up, and 40% more people are subscribing.
If you don't have an email newsletter, now's the time to consider starting one (just remember your subscribers need to give you their permission to land in their inbox). And if you do have one, it may be time to get more strategic.
Here are four ideas to help you improve your email newsletter and make it more effective:
Don't make it all about the sale. While it's smart to send the occasional relevant, tailored, exclusive offer to your subscribers, you'll wear them out if you're continually trying to get them to part with their money. It's more helpful to think of your newsletter as an ongoing conversation — a way for people to get to know you, learn from you, and, hopefully come to trust you enough that they'll want to buy from you when they need what you offer
Keep it simple. While you shouldn't shy away from including the occasional image — or perhaps even a gif — for impact, too many images will make your emails feel cluttered and hard to load, especially on mobile. That's a surefire way to end in the trash folder, which is the opposite of what you want
Make it easy to unsubscribe. There's nothing more frustrating and damaging to your brand than a newsletter subscription that feels like you've checked into Hotel California
A/B test your subject lines to find out which have the best open rates, and improve and adapt accordingly
Are you ready for 2021?
If you're wondering where to invest your time and effort in the coming year, we hope our thoughts help give you a steer.
That said, whether you're planning for 2021 or any other year, there's one tip that trumps all: being yourself is underrated.
So, as tempting as it might be to jump on a bandwagon or follow a trend, don't be afraid to do what feels right for you. Ultimately, the less your marketing feels like work, the more likely you are to stick with it and reap the rewards.
What are your thoughts about marketing going into 2021? What are the top trends to look out for?
Sound off in the comments or tweet at us
