New marketing trends come along all the time, replaced by new and better tactics that yield improved results. To stay relevant, businesses need to be aware of the latest trends, understand why they work and when to replace old marketing tactics that are no longer relevant.
Here are some marketing trends, once widely used, that should take a back seat to a fresher approach. We’ll tell you how to replace these tired trends with better-performing marketing strategies.
Outdated: Pop-Up Ads
Is there anything more annoying than pop-up ads? Most consumers hate them! Others have become so used to pop-up ads that they just ignore and dismiss them immediately. Neither is good for your business. Some browsers even block pop-up ads.
While pop-up ads once had the advantage of grabbing attention, that’s the past. Now pop-up ads won’t necessarily help you make a good impression.
Replace with: Content Marketing
When you plan and execute a content marketing strategy, you make more meaningful relationships with potential customers. By building trust slowly and providing useful information, you become a trusted resource.
- Add whitepapers or other information to your website that users can request. They’ll be more likely to engage with you and offer their contact information knowing they get something valuable in return.
- Lead generation forms work well on your website, in blog posts, on landing pages and more.
- Using inline content offers to connect with potential customers who have already shown interest and invested time reading results in more organic engagement.
Outdated: Vanity Metrics
What are vanity metrics? Vanity metrics are those that feel good, but don’t mean much. Likes, shares and followers don’t always translate into business. Likes on your social posts aren’t helpful if there are no customer conversions. Vanity metrics are not informing your business decisions.
Replace with: KPIs
To better measure consumer engagement and customer conversion, try tracking KPIs, or key performance indicators. These metrics are custom, depending on your products or services, and formulated around what is meaningful to your company.
KPIs are data driven, so they’re more effective than vanity metrics. With KPIs, you can focus on quality over quantity and make better decisions about where to spend your marketing dollars.
Outdated: Keyword Stuffing
With the way search engine algorithms have evolved, you won’t see a benefit from keyword stuffing. Today, search engines prefer high-quality, relevant content and reward it with a higher search engine ranking.
Replace with: Engaging, Informative Content
- Make your content speak to humans! Avoid awkward keyword-stuffed paragraphs.
- Break your content into easily digestible smaller paragraphs, with sub-heads.
- Engage readers with new and original content that speaks to their needs and pain points and explains how your product or service solves them.
- Build pillar pages related to topics that you can then branch out from with supporting content.
Make your content the go-to place for answers, entertainment or expertise. Search engines will reward you for providing a better user experience.
Outdated: Using Only Traditional Marketing Methods
If you are relying on tv, print and radio only, you’re really missing the mark. These traditional methods are still used and should be, but you need to focus more attention on digital marketing.
Replace with: More Digital Marketing Methods
Website content and development, social media posts and targeted digital advertising should make up a large portion of your marketing budget.
- Your website is often the first contact customers have with your brand, so it needs to answer their questions and offer solutions.
- Social posts are an effective way to interact in a more casual way with your audiences, and they allow you to offer quick updates and real-time information.
- Digital advertising is a more targeted way to reach specific audiences with messages crafted just for them.
And don’t forget video! Video is more popular than any other content on social. It’s engaging; and younger audiences expect it. They use videos to create connections. You can use video to connect with potential customers.
- Incorporate video on your website and social platforms. It can mean more engagement and allow you to communicate more complex subjects. After all, seeing is believing!
- Video can be a full-blown shoot with production, or it can be iPhone footage for a “quick and real” experience. Both need to be in the mix.
Stay Up to Date with Your Marketing
Don’t depend on old-fashioned, outdated marketing techniques. If you want a marketing partner by your side who understands how to use the most effective tactics to communicate your brand and boost your business in 2024, talk to TKG. We’ll schedule a sync up meeting to get to know you, so we can make our best recommendations. Let’s talk!
