1. The MQL’s Irrelevance
A marketing qualified lead (MQL) is a lead who has been deemed more likely to become a customer compared to other leads.
Gartner predicted in 2017 the MQL will become irrelevant as a result of marketing teams aligning with sales and service to bring in new leads while maintaining strong relationships with current customers.
“Next year, siloed marketing goals like MQLs will be irrelevant — instead, marketers will focus their efforts on aligning with overarching company goals to drive value across the board.” – Latane Conant, CMO of 6sense
2. Google Crackdowns in Some Industries
In 2019 61% of marketers said improving SEO and growing organic presence was their top marketing priority, in 2020 this percentage will grow.
In 2020 marketers may see a shift towards more organic approaches in their SEO optimization methods.
“Those that make this pivot quickly and strongly stand to gain a substantial market share in the long run.” – Russ Jones, Principal Search Scientist at Moz
3. Growth of Experimental Marketing
A study by Harris Group found that 72% of millennials now prefer to spend money on experiences over products. In a 2018 global survey, 93% of respondents said their organizations place priority on hosting events, in 2020 this will continue to grow.
Consumers add value to experience and ease of use, it will become increasingly important for businesses to focus on providing their consumers with high quality experiences which will include live events.
Gen Z and Millennial consumers are prioritizing experiences over products. “Innovative marketers can take advantage of these trends by shifting marketing focus to live events, which can create direct connections between customers and brands,” says Ben Carlson, co-President and co-Founder of Fizziology, a social insights firm.
4. New and Evolving Email Strategies
Email is a dominant and powerful digital marketing strategy, it is constantly evolving and finding new ways to reinvent itself (Anthony Chiulli).
“I anticipate we have not crested the peak of acquisition activity in the email ecosystem just yet, and will see a steady dose of those seeking further competitive advantages in an aggressive email industry market in 2020.” – (Anthony Chiulli).
5. Artificial Intelligence And Text Recommendations
According to the International Data Corporation (IDC) Worldwide Artificial Intelligence Systems Spending Guide, spending on AI systems will reach $97.9 billion in 2023, which is more than two and a half times the $37.5 billion that was spent in 2019.
“AI will be able to recommend more on the segments and groups from a business database on who reacts better or worse to certain messages, helping them to stop outreach to disinterested parties,” says Mattt Reid, CMO of EZ Texting, a leader in SMS marketing software for business.
It is important to not leave all the contact to AI and use it as a leverage to human contact in order to create the best communication model.
6. Google’s Discover Tool Will Continue to Improve
Google’s discover tool will continue to improve and serve personalized content to users in 2020. Discover’s algorithm predicts what users will find interesting based on their search and web history and interactions with Google products.
“Google launched Discover in 2017 and has been improving the tool ever since” – Christina Perricone, a Manager of Pillar and Acquisition Content at HubSpot.
Read full article at: https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/what-marketers-are-focusing-on-this-year
