Brand Activation Trends in 2022
With every passing year, new business trends emerge that completely change the future path of marketing strategies and campaigns. As marketers, it’s our job to adapt to whatever is thrown our way, and in recent years, that meant embracing the digital marketing revolution as we overcome the challenges of COVID-19. As you look onward to the coming year, your marketing strategy needs to constantly adapt to rising trends to remain relevant to your consumers and elevate brand activation. There’s a lot to be excited about this year, and new developments within the digital world will further transform the way we connect with consumers. To help break down what’s in store for your company, we’ve noted 5 key digital brand activation trends to stay on top of in 2022.
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Influencer Marketing
Influencer Marketing is when you have a celebrity, influencer, or content creator interact with your brand message to increase awareness. Through connecting with your company in front of their large audiences, it furthers your brand’s reach, and converts these audience members into potential customers. Influencer marketing has already proven itself to be an extremely successful means of brand activation, and according to InfluencerMarketing Hub, the industry is predicted to reach $84.89 billion by 2028. Influencer marketing is a direct pipeline for growing your audience, getting noticed by groups that would otherwise not know about your company, and inherently increases revenue.
The global pandemic initiated a huge shift to online and virtual operations, and to stay on top of what’s happening online, brands are seeking partnerships with influencers to keep them in the know. These virtual celebrities have amassed huge followings across multiple social media platforms, so they constantly know what’s hot and what’s not; utilizing their services can help you connect with these trends and help you stay in touch with your target audiences.
In 2022, TikTok will remain the dominant outlet for influencers to connect with brands; the platform saw 3 billion total downloads, making it the most downloaded app last year. Since TikTok exploded in popularity in 2020, it has remained a fan favorite throughout the COVID-19 pandemic as much of the world turned to the platform for entertainment and news. The whole purpose of the app is to create short, engaging videos, so a TikTok marketing campaign involves the creation and sharing of these clips to promote your brand. According to GWI, people ages 16 to 24 make up 41% of the total user-base, so it is essential to make sure that the influencer you choose, and their audience, align with your brand and marketing goals. There’s no point in marketing to a group that has no interest, use, or relation to your product.
Alpha Tango 2022 Outlook: We predict that more ongoing, long-term projects and collaborations between brands and influencers will arise in 2022. These partnerships are much more impactful than one-off sponsored posts because they demonstrate loyalty, authentic endorsement, and heightened relevance to the consumer. Devoted fans want to be a part of a project that their favorite influencers standby but find it hard to support a promotion that feels ingenuine. So, a long-term project and will help sell the legitimacy of the partnership. After all, it takes time to build a connection, so even influencers with extremely high following counts and engagement rates find it hard to see results with a sponsored post here and there. Ongoing collaborations are the way to go if you’re looking to introduce influencer marketing as a brand activation tactic.
The Metaverse
The Metaverse, simply put, is a network of immersive virtual worlds revolving around social connection. Within these online shared spaces, users can hang out in virtual reality using avatars, participate in online community events, and even buy things with virtual currencies. An example of this would be Roblox; a space where and users can interact with one another via minigames, design, buy, build, and create whatever they please. According to theTradeDesk, NASCAR has signed a contract with the platform in order to get seen by young gamers. Within the game, there will be NASCAR avatar apparel to be bought and worn by users, and a minigame featuring NASCAR branded cars. Interactive, engaging experiences have become the norm for brand activation tactics, and forward-thinking companies see this as the perfect opportunity to market to younger generations. According to Forbes, the metaverse’s core demographic is that of 13- to 35-year-olds. Brands have discovered the value in Millennial and Gen Z as a target market, and there’s no better place to capture this audience than where they are already are naturally.
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Alpha Tango 2022 Outlook: There is no doubt that we will be hearing a lot more about the metaverse in 2022, as many other brands have come to recognize the unlimited potential of marketing within these realms. Previously unattainable opportunities can now become a reality due to the virtual nature of these communities. From billboards within videogames, to sponsored avatar outfits and virtual-reality shopping experiences, brands can now market in unimaginable new ways, and in 2022, expect to see a lot of experimentation within, as there truly is no limit to brand activation within the metaverse.
Interactive Content Experiences
Interactive content is content that allows for active engagement from consumers; it’s great for brand activation, as it draws a meaningful connection between the consumer and the brand. The buyer becomes an integral part of the dynamic and will keep coming back when they feel that their preferences, opinions, and enjoyment matters. Examples of interactive content would be polls, quizzes, interactive landing pages, and minigames within sites. According to Ceros, 81% of marketers surveyed agree that interactive content is more effective at grabbing attention than static content, and 66% of marketers surveyed agree that overall brand engagement rose since implementing interactive content. It’s very simple; we’ve learned that consumers will spend more time interacting with experiences that peak their interests and entertain them. With higher engagement rates there are higher chances of making a sale.
Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, we witnessed this shift from more traditional content towards interactive content as consumers needed to constantly be engaged during isolation periods. Brands needed to create highly appealing, attention-grabbing content to stand out from the rest during this phase, and thus, the rise of interactive content was born. This interactivity and highly engaging content has now become the norm and is expected of brands if they want to remain relevant to their consumers. This kind of content also allows marketers to gain valuable insight into their target audiences. These polls and quizzes may come across as light-hearted fun for the consumer, but these answers are highly valuable data.
Alpha Tango 2022 Outlook: So, in 2022, brands should focus on bettering the content experience for their consumers. Implementing interactive content into your marketing strategies will allow you to become important to your audience, and if users have a positive, memorable experience interacting with your brand, this is the first step to building customer loyalty and improving overall brand image. We are constantly discovering new ways to incorporate interactive content within marketing strategies, so expect to see a lot of experimentation in 2022. Overall, interactive content is essential for brand activation as it engages customers, keeps them on your site or page, and increases your conversion rate.
AI-based Conversational Marketing
Artificial intelligence can be thought of as computer systems performing tasks that traditionally would require human intelligence, such as speech recognition, language translation and decision-making. We see AI in chatbot technology, in which customers can talk back and forth with a computer to get customer service-based questions answered. We also utilize AI when it comes to predicting the behavior of consumers, such as targeted ads based on search history to personalize the buyer’s shopping experience. Bramework states that 61% of marketers surveyed say artificial intelligence is the most important aspect of their data strategy, and 80% say AI boosts the productivity of their brand.
Alpha Tango 2022 Outlook: The effect that AI has already had on marketing is unquestionable, and in 2022, it is still going to remain a prevalent technology for brand activation. Companies are continually looking for more ways to successfully incorporate AI into their marketing processes, and as a result, the way that brands conduct digital marketing is changing dramatically. Looking onward, AI can be used to predict future media trends so that brands can get a head start on creating effective content, significantly increasing the accuracy of your marketing efforts. In essence, it will greatly help you understand who to target, and what they’re wanting to buy. For example, in email marketing, AI technology can help generate personalized emails to consumers before or following a purchase. Based on buying or search patterns, these emails will remind consumers of the items they were interested in and will recommend other products based on these patterns. Not only does this foster a much more successful email conversion rate for your brand, but these personalized marketing emails make sales, and a more positive shopping experience for shoppers. AI can also help you get closer to your consumers through customer service. Suppose a customer has a problem with a product or service, and they can contact customer service using AI-powered voice assistants or chatbots. More and more transactions are being made online because of the pandemic and utilizing chatbot technology for customer service or general assistance is a huge help, and boosts brand activation. We expect to see more experimentation with AI and its capabilities in 2022.
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Video Content and Advertising
The popularity in video content and video advertising surged in 2021, and we predict this popularity to keep on rising in the new year. According to Forbes, video content will account for about 82% of overall internet traffic, meaning video marketing should remain a key aspect of campaigns and why brands must strive for a strong online presence. Video content has become increasingly popular over the last two years, as we’ve become an audience that seeks instant gratification; with much of our lives transitioning to online because of COVID-19, content needs to intrigue consumers within mere seconds. Video content is the perfect solution, as it captures the attention of key audience members very quickly and successfully. In 2021, according to Marketing Insider, 86% of businesses indicated that they were using video as a marketing tool, and 93% of them claim it to be a critical part of their strategy. In addition to being a successful means of capturing the attention of your audience, video production has become increasingly easy for anybody to do. Creating video content no longer must mean a huge camera crew with expensive price tags but can simply be a video shot on your phone to reach your audience.
Alpha Tango 2022 Outlook: In 2022, short-form content will remain the dominant means of video production thanks to TikTok. Viewers are increasingly short on time, and need to have their attention caught quickly, which is why getting to the point in a short-form video is an excellent means of promotion. We will also see a rise in interactive videos, which adds an element of fun and engagement for viewers. Videos with an element of interactivity become more memorable and seemingly customized to the consumer, which can result in higher lead generation and boosted brand activation.
Discuss Brand Activation Trends with Alpha Tango Media Today
We’ve offered you 5 trends we know will boost your brand activation in 2022- and there’s bound to be countless more. It all may seem new and unfamiliar but staying on top of these trends and innovations will help you effectively reach your target audiences and better your brand activation. Be prepared to adapt to an uncertain market throughout 2022, but most of all, enjoy the ride, as this year is destined to be the most exciting year in marketing yet.
Incorporating any of these trends into your 2022 plans? Book time with the Alpha Tango Media team today for a free consultative review of your 2022 plan!