Change is a part of life, and also a part of how to stay relevant in business. And nothing changes as fast as the marketing world. While tried and true tactics may still be an important part of your toolkit, here are four new marketing strategies that you should implement in 2017.

Make it Personal

Emails should be personalized. Ads should be targeted. When your customer has an interaction with you, they should think, “GOSH, they really know me!” Customers are beginning to expect personalization on websites, apps, in emails, in text marketing. It’s important as a business owner to understand how to use technology to give customers a customized experience.

If you’re new to the personalization game, start with emails. Most email providers allow you to use “merge tags,” codes that serve as a placeholder for a piece of information about a customer (first name, last name, phone number, customer ID) that is populated once the email is sent.

Work With Influencers

Modern consumers listen to other consumers. They read the customer reviews. They ask friends and family for suggestions. They also respect the opinions of influencers, whether local or national. An influencer may be a local weather woman, a popular member of the community or a teenage blogger who is gaining followers.

One of the best ways to use influencers is to have them create content. This might be a guest post, a video that you can share with followers, live coverage of an event or a live take-over of your social media accounts.

Find Your Purpose

“Purpose-driven marketing” has been popping up as a buzzword already in 2017. What does it mean? It’s a way for store owners to bond with customers over their shared interests and needs. While shopping for a cause has been trending for a while now, purpose-driven marketing is expected to become even more popular this year.

How do you add purpose to your marketing? Ask customers which local charities they support. Get to know what drives them – career, family, hobbies, etc. and focus more of your content on those things. Focus more on how you can make your customers FEEL before you make them DO. Customers who feel that their interests and values align with theirs are far more likely to take action.

Video, Video, Video

We probably used the word “video” more in 2016 than any other word… but it deserves the hype! Video is an excellent tool for gaining organic engagement, for showing off your store’s personality and giving customers a behind-the-scenes look.

In 2017, you should have videos scheduled out just like you do with social posts. You should have a schedule for going live and incorporate pre-recorded video into your content as well. Experts say that by 2020, 79% of web traffic will come from video. That’s a LOT of valuable traffic.

If you’re looking for additional strategies and need ongoing social media education, support and accountability, consider joining Social Edge.

Have you started to incorporate video into your usual marketing plan? Let us know below!

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