The Technology and Trends Shaping Digital Marketing in 2022

TAP CXM

11 Jul 2022

Every year, the tools and techniques digital marketers use to deliver meaningful customer experiences evolve.

Voice search and AI seemed like pipedreams just a few years ago. Companies were happy buying third-party data. TikTok barely registered on the radar.

As the rate of technological innovation increases, there are so many developments that it’s often hard to tell fads from emerging trends.

Marketing changes fast.

But there is a relatively straightforward test to determine which tactics and platforms are worth your time:

Do what’s best for the customer.

So as we look at the trends shaping digital marketing in 2022 (and beyond), we’re zooming out to the strategic level.

Rather than weighing in on NFTs, TikTok or the Metaverse, we’re concerned with the high-level developments that inform digital transformation at the organisational level.

These six digital marketing movements are changing customer experience for good.

1. Omnichannel customer experience

Customers no longer delineate between platforms the same way marketers do.

And as the lines between digital and physical customer journeys continue to blur, consumers expect a unified experience across every touchpoint.

Therefore, data analytics tools that enable omnichannel customer experiences are increasingly valuable.

The data-driven insight that these platforms provide enables brands to:

Gather first-party data
Deliver personalised experiences across every touchpoint
Know customers one-to-one
Access a single customer view

They also facilitate an agile approach to multivariate testing, which is crucial to delivering personalised experiences at scale.

2. Multivariate testing

Reaching your audience is step 1.

Step 2 is delivering content that resonates with them as an individual.

Most marketers are familiar with multivariate testing (also called A/B testing) in the context of changing designs, colours, page layouts, etc.

But multivariate tests aren’t necessarily limited to design elements.

For example, you might experiment with:

Cross-platform user journey flows
Message frequency
Content type
CTA placement
Campaign messaging

By gathering data from multivariate tests, digital marketers can continually refine messaging, ultimately with the goal of personalisation at scale.

3. Personalisation at scale

Personalisation is increasingly central to great customer experiences.

Customers respond better to brands that deliver tailored content, whether that’s real-time recommendations on a website, personalised offer emails or loyalty programs.

And personalisation is getting predictive.

Using tools like Apteco FastStats, marketers can better understand their audience and build user journeys that predict – or respond to – buying behaviour.

Of course, balance is key.

Consumers want a personalised omnichannel experience without feeling like a brand is spying on them.

4. Privacy and transparency

Google’s announcement that they are curtailing third-party cookies is old news in 2022.

In its place, there is a vibrant conversation about the future of data privacy.

To support your organisation’s digital transformation strategy, the marketing team should be looking for a data analytics tool that:

Enables zero and first-party data collection
Collates data from diverse sources
Gives customers a choice to opt-out

The increasing emphasis on privacy, transparency and trust is not the end for targeted marketing.

Instead, it’s an opportunity to connect with customers in a more meaningful way.

5. Brand storytelling

In tandem with the shift towards data transparency, authenticity is a driving force in omnichannel customer experiences.

Telling an honest, relatable brand story is more valuable than touting the advantages of your company over the competition.

In other words, focus on benefits over features.

Communicate honestly with your customers. Go beyond the cultural zeitgeist and strive for genuine connections.

Let them know how and why the brand is living up to its promises – for example, by letting testimonials do the talking for you.

As a bonus, if you use data analytics tools like Adobe Target to combine personalisation with brand storytelling, the dual benefits of increased customer loyalty and higher conversions will grow your bottom line.

6. AI

Underpinning almost all these digital transformation and marketing trends is the rise of artificial intelligence (AI).

Specifically, applications of AI, including machine learning and natural language processing, are emerging innovations in data analytics tools and omnichannel customer experiences.