5 Big Marketing Trends in 2013

Dec. 26, 2012 - PRLog -- 2012 has been quite an interesting year in marketing trends. The changes in the popularity of some of the widest-known social marketing platforms have made a drastic change in the idea of online marketing as a whole. People aren’t focusing as much on paying for advertising through traditional Google Ad Words, or any pay-per-click marketing avenues, in general. Instead, the masses have been focused on the major increases in sites like Pinterest, Facebook and YouTube. Regardless of your preference, be it social media or search engine placement, 2012 has left some clear markers and predictors of the 2013 year in marketing.

Let’s take a little glimpse into the future of marketing!

Customer Focus - In recent years, the up’s and down’s of the economy as a whole have greatly shifted the focus of businesses in general from increasing their reach to paying more attention to taking care of their current customers. That won’t be changing in 2013. Small businesses will need to focus on the actions and trends of their current customers in order to be prepared for what they need to do next. Staying ahead of the “curve” and focusing on customer satisfaction and retention are going to become increasingly more important. With that being said, many businesses, regardless of their size, will begin entertaining online programs that track the online behavior of their customers.

Telling Stories – Although your customer base might not want to hear every detail about your business, and how it got started, they definitely want to understand your company and your brand more clearly. They want to be able to find something that they can relate to before diving in. In 2012, companies of all sizes started to see that potential customers were searching for companies based on the images that were shared. We’re not just talking about Facebook uploads, but also Pinterest and Instagram. Basic text updates just aren’t cutting it for the consumer any more, they are looking for more than just words, but images telling the story and the progression of your company.

Setting Strategies – It’s so easy for anyone to jump on Facebook, whether it’s for business or personal use, Facebook has made it pretty simple to set up a page…and many of us have! In 2012, it is estimated that there are more than 11 billion business Facebook pages. Most businesses who are new to the Social Network Marketing world online just post random posts to their Facebook page as they come up. In 2013, many companies will begin creating specific marketing strategies surrounding their Social Media Pages. Many more will outsource their entire Social Media Networking to professionals who focus on Social Media Marketing strategies.

Happiness is Contagious – It might sound funny, but it has proven to be true, that businesses are helping to spread happiness in the extended down economy. Most businesses find ways to work positive stories and motivational quotes into their marketing to help boost their companies’ image and the moods of their customers. In times like the U.S. has been experience over the last year, I would say that we could use any extra bit of happiness possible. This won’t come to an end in 2013, companies will continue spreading the happiness!

App Crazy – I wasn’t at all surprised to find that over 80% of smart phone users are spending their time downloading and using apps. Companies of all sizes are finding ways that they can jump into the app action! This number won’t be decreasing any time soon! We highly recommend creating an app to help your customer’s work with you easier, or access your services from an app.

Amanda Lawson is the Founder/President of USA Virtual Assistants, and a huge proponent of Social Media Marketing. You can learn more about Amanda and the variety of services that her company can offer to help initiate the changes for any of these marketing trends at http://www.yourusava.com. Follow USA VA’s on Twitter (http://twitter.com/USA_VAs) and on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/USAVirtualAssistants).