6 Outdated Marketing Trends That Should be Tossed Away for Good


marketing trends you should avoid

When it comes to marketing, you don’t have to be good at EVERYTHING to succeed, but you should know what to prioritize. Here are some pointers to help you get ahead for the second half of 2016 and into 2017.

Outdated Marketing Trends and Their Improved Counterparts


OUT:
Pop Up Ads.  There is a reason Ad Blockers were invented, and it’s to live a life free of being rudely interrupted with a screen takeover. More and more marketers and businesses have gotten the memo and are ditching this route. It’s invasive and annoying and I’m sure you’re nodding your head in agreement while reading this. It’s a practice that shows you’re out of touch!

IN:
Seamless advertising. Forbes says “Watch for companies to continue to create advertisements that seamlessly blend with—rather than interrupt—the browsing experience, as well as to use those customer-centric insights to drive content and social engagement.”

 

OUT:
Relying on content creation as the only portion of your marketing strategy.

IN:
Native Advertising, or paid promotion of content. Content Marketing Institute says that one of the biggest trends in 2017 will focus on “successful enterprises creating differentiated content and putting some advertising and promotion muscle behind it.

 

OUT:
Content without a strategy. Come on, people. We’ve been talking about this for a while.  Do you know the age ranges, genders, buying habits of your ideal customer? What is their ultimate focus?

IN: Buyer personas, editorial calendars, competitive analysis. Creating content based on a broader strategy will be essential to sustaining awareness and engagement over time. Ad-hoc content marketing will die in 2016… Or the companies that subscribe to that strategy will pay a price if they don’t evolve.

 

OUT: Static content. Entrepreneur.com says that blog posts, white papers, infographics, videos, and reports can be great content for people and search engines–but attention needs to shift towards more engaging content.

IN: They recommend and predict an influx of interactive assessments, calculators, training, and games to keep people clicking, pressing, swiping, and sharing information with you that you can use in your sales processes.

 

OUT: Self-absorbed blog posts. No one cares what you’re reading or thinking about or watching!
IN: Educational posts. “Your blog is a teaching tool. You need to out-help every competitor in solving your buyers’ problems,” says Jay Acunzo, Director of Platform & Community at NextView Ventures.
“Don’t write about yourself. Just keep things simple, and create content that solves the same problem that your product solves.”

 

OUT: Self-absorbed media posts. While we’re on the subject, stop flooding people’s feeds with posts about how great your company is. You’ll get tuned out, hidden, and/or unfollowed. About 20% to 30% of your posts should be self-focused to start.

IN: Engaging stories, relevant data, questions, contests, and informative third-party content should make up the bulk of your social media content.

If you’re looking for even more timely marketing advice, our Free 2020 Social Media Guide gives you a comprehensive look at how to use social media to meet your professional goals!

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