We are speaking positive things into existence for 2024! With that said, 2024 will be a great year for your business/brand! There are endless possibilities if you’re looking to spruce up your brand’s image. Don’t procrastinate- take control! To kickstart the New Year, we dip our toes into some of the marketing trends that are set to make waves in 2024.

The marketing and advertising landscape is constantly evolving and as technology evolves, marketing and advertising strategies are keeping up.  The key to success lies in continuously monitoring and adapting to this ever-changing landscape whilst simultaneously keeping the customer at the forefront of your strategies and initiatives.

• Artificial Intelligence – Yes, it is here to stay! AI should not be seen as a marketing gimmick; it should be integrated with operations to be fully maximized. Your brand should also develop guidelines for use and leaders should encourage teams to learn and utilize AI to enhance efficiency and allow employees to do more creative, value-added tasks, not threaten to replace human efforts.
• Video Marketing continues to dominate – Undoubtedly this is a powerful channel. According to Porch Group Media, marketers will increasingly utilize video to narrate captivating brand stories, showcase products, and forge deeper connections with their target audience. Meanwhile, live streaming is set to experience heightened prominence, enabling real-time interaction and authenticity, as brands host live events, product launches, and behind-the-scenes experiences to deliver immersive and compelling content.
•  Lean budgets will be maximized – According to Forbes, expanding sales with a limited marketing budget in 2024’s economic state will remain to be a challenge, especially for startups and small businesses. What does this mean? If you have a lean budget, said budget will need to be more efficient. To deal with this, consider multiple PR tactics such as: social media campaigns, networking events, speaking opportunities, or features in the press.
• Social listening is a must – I highlighted this a few times in 2023 and as we embrace 2024, social listening should be high on your to-do list. Social listening involves using tech to keep an eye on conversations consumers are having about your brand, products/services and content.

Social listening will help you to:

– Address any negative feedback promptly and take action to solve problems
– Learn more about what your audience thinks of your content, products and details such as packaging.
– Actively participate in conversations.
The above list is not exhaustive.

• Incorporate user-generated content – Just like in 2023, consumers in 2024 want to be a part of the story behind their favourite brand and the products they love or the services they use the most. According to Rock Content, user-generated content is said to be one of the most important content marketing trends to watch in 2024 e.g. you can use social proof by having customers create video testimonials about how their brand has improved or changed their lives!

• Expect a boom in social commerce – According to Yaguara, a platform aimed at aggregating and presenting market data for e-commerce businesses, as people spend most of their time on mobile devices and social media, they are more likely to make purchases from social media platforms. Therefore, with the increasing popularity of the social commerce market, it is set to cross trillion-dollar sales by the end of 2024.

Social commerce will become even more integrated with features like in-app purchases and shoppable posts, making it easier for consumers to purchase products directly from their social media feeds.

How should your brand respond?

Focus on creating a seamless social commerce experience for your customers by optimizing your social media profiles for compelling content that encourages purchases and using the latest social commerce features to make the buying process as easy as possible.

Candice Sealey is the Founder & Principal Consultant at Ignite! a Full-service Marketing & PR Consultancy that helps businesses/brands to stand out and communicate the right message to the right people at the right time through Strategy, Marketing, Media services and Design solutions. She is also a freelance content writer, advertising copywriter, voiceover talent, media personality. Follow us on FB & IG @igniteresults Phone:784-432-2223. Email: igniteresults@gmail.com