9 Global Trends That Will Affect Transactional Marketing in 2024
The below, narrowed down to nine trends, is a summary of the global forces that will affect transactional marketing over the next seven years.
Accessibility:
The world population is exploding with more people than ever before living in cities. With this growth, there has been an increase in accessibility and saturation of goods and services – making it harder to stand out from competition. In response, brands are expected to focus on forging a connection with consumers based on shared values and topics of interest instead of competing primarily on price point.
Content:
Content is playing a bigger and bigger role in marketing campaigns. In the past, brands focused on creating stand-alone pieces of content. But, due to the rise of social and digital media, the trend is shifting towards leveraging multiple platforms to create an experience for consumers. While TV still remains an important medium for commercial content, consumers are moving to other platforms for their entertainment including video sharing sites and streaming services. This is also changing what people expect from commercials with humorous videos becoming more accepted as interruptions than traditional commercials showing a brand’s story-line.
Culture:
Culture will play a bigger role in shaping how customers respond to marketing. In response to the homogeneity of the global consumer, brands are expected to focus more energy on appealing to local cultures, for example using popular memes and trends. Due to the explosive growth of mobile devices, consumers are living in a global marketplace; this has changed how companies must react and respond.
Demographics:
The market for the baby boomers is shrinking, making way for a new generation of consumers. To cope with this shift in demographics, brands are expected to allocate more marketing resources towards adapting their strategy accordingly. This includes increasing their digital appeal as well as targeting Generation Y (individuals born between 1981 and 2001) in order to engage with younger customers. Generation Y is growing at a faster rate (at three times the rate of the population growth), making up 30% of the total U.S. population.
Economics:
As economic uncertainty continues to plague much of the world, companies are expected to keep their marketing spend as low as possible in order to not cut their customer base at a time when they need them most. However, this will continue to shift towards mobile marketing and social media which allows for greater flexibility on the part of the customer. Social media continues to become more influential with brands using it as a channel for product promotions and reviews (as well as damage control when necessary).
Evolution:
The e-commerce market is growing at an exponential rate, making it one of the most promising segments for advertisers. With more consumers buying online, brands will have to use new technologies and innovative ways of engaging with customers in order to succeed. This includes the usage of a “micro-moment” which is a real-time display that summarizes what is happening on social media, allowing customers to make their own purchase decisions. Additionally, companies will have to take advantage of wearable technology like Fitbit or smart watches that allow for easy adaptability and non-verbal communication between brands and consumers.
Experience:
The desire for personalized experiences is becoming more important to consumers. In order to compete with big companies, smaller businesses are focusing their efforts on building loyalty through targeting specific groups of individuals and creating an experience that stands out from the rest. This can be done through unique partnerships, strong product placement and customizing information based on the user’s own preferences.
Frequency:
Due to digital media, consumers are becoming increasingly connected 24/7. As a result, brands have less opportunities for exposure and must make their campaigns as efficient as possible in order to succeed. In response, advertisers will have to focus on building stronger relationships with customers so that they are more likely to return and act upon marketing messages in the future. The use of technology is also changing how consumers use their time, allowing them to gather information quickly from different sources and making it easier for them to make a decision.
Globalization:
The world is becoming more connected and less national, which will have an impact on marketing strategies. More people are using social media to connect with the brands they love. This allows for custom social media campaigns so that companies can reach out specifically to their target audiences. With globalization, brands are now able to better understand the needs of diverse cultures and tap into new markets, as well as target specific populations throughout the world.
Conclusion
The new era of marketing is here. The need for a global approach and heightened focus on content is shifting towards building strong relationships with individual consumers. Additionally, the changes in the media and technology landscape are making it easier for businesses to serve customers, which will allow them to connect with more people.
