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Painting of Idea Light Bulb - Brand Development-Focal Point Marketing

Three Marketing Trends to Expect in 2023

Let’s face it: the last couple of years have been strange. Marketers, like every other industry, found themselves pivoting to accommodate a sudden pandemic and subsequent shutdowns, supply issues, and a new version of normalcy. As we look to 2023, we may not be able to predict every event, but we can look at some expected marketing trends that experts think will play a big role in the year to come.

Hybrid events are here to stay

 

Once it became clear that the pandemic wasn’t going away anytime soon, many businesses stopped canceling their large events and substituted digital options instead. Event organizers used video conferencing technology, social media platforms, and other creative solutions to give attendees a high-level experience that made up for the loss of being able to attend in person. At the time, these fixes seemed temporary. Now, however, it seems that more and more people are asking for digital options to remain available, even if the event is held with in-person attendees.

It seems that the hybrid event is quickly becoming a staple of the marketing community. Your team will need to shift away from planning for in-person events only and begin to consider options for adding digital resources for those who want to attend in person but are unable to do so. While this may mean extra work for your team, it’s also an opportunity to reach even more people. Thanks to tools like live video conferencing, you are not limited in the number of people you can educate about your business – in fact, you now have the entire world available to you.

Optimization for voice activation

 

You’re already familiar with the process of optimizing your content for search engines through keywords and high-quality content. Over the last few years, Google in particular has placed a higher ranking on those search results that demonstrate quality, engaging content. That trend is here to stay, but it has fed into another trend altogether: optimizing your content for voice activated searches.

Experts predict that, moving forward, Google is more likely to give a higher priority to those search results that are most easily understood and activated by the same commands people give Siri, Alexa, and any number of integrated voice search capabilities. Your business will want to take advantage of this trend as they look to optimize their visibility on search engines in the coming year. The information is out there – ask your team to do some research to see how just a few small changes could yield big results for your brand awareness.

Non-profits as part of your marketing plan

 

In a perfect world, every business would be able to give to a charity or organization in need. Sometimes, it isn’t in the budget; other time, you may not have realized just how many of those opportunities surround you at any given time. But non-profit organizations have gained a lot of public traction, and consumers are watching to see which businesses are taking action as a result. This means that you need to not only be engaged with the community around you – you need to do so in a planned, prepared way.

There are an endless number of non-profits to choose from, and asking your employees for any recommendations is a great way to start. Once you’ve chosen who to support, your marketing team needs a plan. Working with a non-profit is more than just a Facebook mention every week or so – you need to make real, attainable goals that will allow you to not only raise awareness but also offer relief and solutions to the struggles that the non-profit is trying to help people overcome. This may sound rather clinical, but sincerity is key – and people will know if you’re trying to fake your way through it. Pick an organization that means a lot to you and your team and work to help them achieve their goals.

2022 is right around the corner, so don’t let it take you by surprise. Stay on top of growing trends to ensure that your business remains at the forefront of the marketing industry, and take some time to learn just a little more about what you can expect in the year ahead.

See the Fork First

More than a few famous poets, authors and songwriters have waxed poetic about the point along the road where one has to decide which direction to take.

At FocalPoint, we think the key to making the best decision about the road less travelled, the road not taken, or the fork in the road is NOT the crucial part of your journey. We think that first you have to SEE the fork, and recognize it for what it is.

That’s a huge thing in marketing and communications strategy. Many, many organizations misstep by failing to see that there is a critical decision to be made at a particular juncture — and do not understand the importance of the fork in the road.

How does one develop the insight to take the right path? At FocalPoint we set out these reminders for ourselves:

  • Stay focused on shifting currents
  • Be open to change and stay nimble
  • Be accessible and approachable
  • Consult with others and listen
  • Understand the way it always was is not the way it is

Recognizing the significant, life-altering twists in your company’s path is difficult. It helps having a company by your side to help you anticipate change.

Together, we can decide which new direction to take to forge ahead.

 

 

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Budget-stretching creative marketing techniques for small businesses

How can I expand my business in a slow-growing economy, you ask?

We get that question a lot here at FocalPoint. Because despite news that employment numbers are up and the economy is percolating, we’re not feeling any kind of surge here in the Midwest.

So, what can you do to increase your marketing share?

The short answer is: get creative! But of course, any marketing solution we recommend begins with us doing a lot of listening to what you do, how you do it differently, and what you are trying to achieve.

That said, here are some interesting ideas we may consider for small and medium sized businesses on a budget:

  • Believe it or not, on-line advertising may be your best bet. Depending on your business niche, Facebook, Twitter and Linkedin may be good places to invest for little money.  We can help you figure out which type of on-line advertising creates the best pop for you by doing test ads. Test ads are run for a short time (for very little money) to see how well an ad will play out before we make a bigger buy. (Yes, we really can do that!)
  • You most assuredly cannot match larger competitors dollar-for-dollar but, you absolutely can use unusual or unexpected media approaches to woo business your way.
  • If your budget is tight, chances are you need to be more targeted with your advertising. Rather than a broad brush approach, we hunker down and do some real due diligence and discover how your potential customers actually make buying decisions. Only then do we select a medium that targets your customers in a way they want to be approached.

Here’s a glass half full way to think about marketing on a budget: Because your business is smaller, you have the ability to react quickly to current conditions and (together with us) create ads and promotions that use trends, changing circumstances, opportunities, and headlines to your advantage.

Let the creative sparks fly!