The Top 10 Marketing Trends for 2010
By Thomas Murrell MBA, CSP International Business Speaker
Marketing is changing. In particular, marketing communications is evolving
There are many interesting trends emerging.
Here are my insights into what the year will hold in terms of marketing trends.
1. The Death of Yellow Pages
The slow decline of hard copy Yellow Pages advertising will continue as more customers move to the web to find information.
2. Social Media is Hot
The move from media consumers to media producers will continue.
A hot topic will be defining a social media policy for large organisations.
Defining what can and can't be said on social media sites by employees and rules around the amount of time employees are allowed on social media whilst at work will be key challenges as this marketing channel gets more mainstream traction.
3. The Decline of 1300 and 1800 Telephone Numbers
We will see less use of landlines and more use of VOIP or telephone calls over the Internet.
Is that investment in those numbers worth it?
4. Specialised Niches
There's a saying "there's riches in niches".
The trend to go deep within niches rather than wide mass appeal will continue.
For example 80 per cent of niche websites account for 80 per cent of all online audiences.
5. The Rise and Rise of Loyalty Programs
There will be an explosion of loyalty programs - everything from large corporates to small retail outlines. Even my local ice-cream shop has a loyalty card now!
This is being driven by rising costs and the increase in customer acquisition costs compared to the lower cost of retaining existing customers.
In simple terms, it is more expensive to get new customers than serve existing ones.
So the goal is to make customers less price sensitive and more loyal.
6. More Sophisticated Customer Relationship Management
With the need to engage with existing customers, these programs will become more sophisticated.
7. Mobile Location Aware
This concept will take geographic segmentation to a new level.
8. Negative Pressure on Telemarketing
There will be more push back by consumers to telemarketing. Expect more people to register for the "Do Not Call" register.
9. Increased Interaction
Call it a pull strategy rather than a push strategy, but customer engagement and interaction is critical.
10. Blogging
Blogging will move from the fringes and become a mainstream marketing strategy.
Credit Note: My thanks to Justin Davies from Emergination for his input into this list.Labels: blogging, blogging for business, Customer Relationship Management, Loyalty Programs, marketing, marketing branding, marketing return on investment, marketing ROI, niche marketing, social media