26 January 2021 14:14:52 IST

With over 7 years of experience in content writing and marketing, Nandita has worked with brands across sectors including B2B and B2C to improve their discoverability online and increasing organic traffic and leads. She also works with brands  across India to craft their multilingual marketing plan.
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Trends that will shape digital marketing in 2021 and beyond

Mobile first

Brands need to perform a SEO audit regularly to ensure that their engaging effectively on social media

During the year of 2020, companies all over the world were put to test as they had to change their complete marketing strategy. Brick and mortar stores had to shift online. Many companies, while having great ideas, were not able to execute them due to their lack of experience in digital and internet marketing. However, it was also a blessing in disguise, as it showed the true potential of digital marketing and its role in the growth of a business. Here we have a list of digital marketing ideas and strategies for 2021 that all companies should carry on to the next following years to stand apart in the crowd.

Think mobile

The first in the list of digital marketing ideas for 2021 is to think from the perspective of mobile users. User screen time and mobile phone usage have increased in the pandemic. Brands should understand that people have adapted to the pandemic and are more comfortable with online purchases. Many brands have experienced a sudden demand due to the spike in digital spending, net banking and mobile wallets. Therefore, it is recommended to focus on making their mobile user experience seamless. Not many users would have the time to shop from desktops, and hence mobile shopping requires easier navigation and a stringent follow-up. The recent internet marketing trends show that people believe that the internet is now the new store front.

Being SEO friendly

Digital marketing ideas however great need to backed by discoverability. Do not cut down on your SEO budget even if you have financial constraints because of the recession period. Make sure you conduct an SEO audit and improve your user experience as internet marketing trends show that slower sites do not rank well. Make sure that your titles and descriptions are catchy to improve your rankings and click-through-rates.

Making use of social media

Digital marketing ideas do not work without investing in social media. Facebook, which is the most popular social media platform, has an advertising audience of up to 2.4 billion people. People spend close to an hour every day on Facebook and Instagram. Internet marketing trends show that brands that have a social media presence understand their audience better. Social media accounts help you build a more personalised connection with your audience. A strong social media presence is a great digital marketing idea to increase engagement, loyalty and brand awareness.

Vernacular is the way forward

Digital marketing ideas should be inclusive of all people from different geographies. This of course means marketing vernacularly but only for your target groups. Internet marketing trends show that the most useful technique for 2 tier and 3 tier cities is to practise multilingual marketing. This helps in expanding your business and helps people who are not technologically savvy to better understand your brand. Powerful vernacular marketing such as landing pages in regional languages can create a lasting impact on your audience as it also strikes an emotional chord.

Create video content

A great digital marketing idea would be to create share-worthy/informational videos. Studies show that more than 50 per cent of women watch a video before making a purchase decision. Videos and passing information visually help your audience retain information better. 60 per cent of internet users are visual learners. Video marketing is an SEO-gold mine and helps you develop a connection with your audience. So it is recommended to make use of YouTube, and upload videos on your social media business accounts to establish your brand digitally.

These are just a few of the digital marketing ideas and strategies brands should include. The best part about digital marketing is that you can track all of your work/spends and perform better after an analysis. It is ROI driven and is also cost-effective as it reaches a massive audience. So to conclude, internet marketing trends show that developing user experience for mobile, making sure your site is SEO-friendly, creating engaging vernacular and video content can help businesses lay a strong foundation online.