What you’ll read: The trends worth adapting as 2021 comes to a close.
2021 passed in a flash of lockdowns and re-openings. It feels like we just finished cleaning the barbecue for a summer of grilling, and suddenly the holidays are on the horizon, with 2022 following close behind. For marketers, now is the time to prepare for 2022 campaigns, well in advance of Q1. But with the long ripples of COVID-19 still disrupting all sectors of society, marketing is as much in flux as any other industry. With that in mind, here are six trends that are worth keeping on your radar.
Out of the box, not in person
People don’t want to return to the office. That might be your office, that might be your client’s office. People don’t want to travel and meet en masse. That might be huge conventions. That might be corporate retreats. If you’re used to networking in-person and building client connections over drinks after a day of presentations, don’t expect other people to be as enthusiastic about getting together as you are. COVID will have a long tail affecting how people gather, which means it’s time for some ingenuity in finding new clients and reinforcing relationships with old ones — no more trading business cards in a packed convention hall. The upside of this is that people and groups who wouldn’t be able to make large in-person events are far more likely to attend a digital version, which gives you the opportunity to diversify your contacts.
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Merchandising, merchandising, merchandising
For the last few years, major brands have been in semi-ironic merchandising collaborations, often with results that sell out in seconds amongst Gen Z and Millennial customers. Most notably in fashion (like Cheetos x Bad Bunny and Forever 21, or Taco Bell with luxury swimwear line L*Space, or the Popeye’s uniform) but also reaching into other ideas like a Wendy’s role-playing game, or a myriad of scented candles (Qdoba, Dunkin’, KFC, McDonalds). It’s debatable if any of these products are what you would call objectively good, but they move incredibly quickly, and take what would, in another era, be considered freebie corporate swag and put it in the hands of customers who build brand loyalty. The trick is that they need to be made and marketed with a level of archness, because people can smell sincerity, and it’s not what they’re looking for in these products.
AI-driven ad tech
As advertisers shift their focus to use new data sources, much of the ad placement pipeline will also shift into AI powered systems. Combined with machine learning, ad exchanges will be less handled by human source selection and placements, and instead AI systems will be able to establish new rules for maximum effectiveness in both ad sales and ad clicks.
The ripples of the great resignation
2021 has seen a huge number of employees resign from their jobs, and the effects of this are going to resonate through every industry. It means that within your own organization, your budgeting and time allocations are going to have to shift for the substantial investments of onboarding and training new hires. Externally, new faces across the table mean it might be time to reinforce some previously well-established client relationships. Be prepared to re-pitch your services to clients who you’ve had on the books for a while, as it might be a new person that’s in charge of their advertising campaigns. So have the results of your last quarter or half-year ready to go — you never know when you might need to show how good your services are again.
Continuing pipeline problems
The entire supply chain across the world is in a state of chaos. Every step from the factory to the store shelves has been disrupted, and it probably won’t settle down soon. For marketers, even those that focus on digital services, be prepared for unexpected delays and price increases — and budget time and funds accordingly. It might be something as simple as it being impossible to track down a new laptop for work, but it also means that many retail and production companies face shifting bottom lines and decreasing ad budgets.
D2C saturation and skepticism
The phrase “the Warby Parker of…” is destined for trouble. Consumers are starting to push back against the huge volume of product sellers claiming to “cut out the middleman” and sell directly to the consumer. Stories like the collapse of Great Jones have revealed how little these companies often have to do with the manufacturing and distribution of the products they champion. This, combined with the widespread issues of the entire product pipeline, means we’ll probably see consumers shifting their attention to products that are on store shelves and readily available. For marketers who have previously relied on the social media angle of direct sales, it’s time to look for other avenues — probably focusing on how good the product looks, and its longevity. As pipeline problems raise prices, consumers will need extra convincing that these products are worth the investment.
If nothing else, 2020 and 2021 proved that the future is increasingly hard to predict. Even the most educated of guesses can end up landing wide of the mark. For marketers, “being prepared,” means keeping agile, watching for trends, and making sure to be on top of the industry as it changes.