Top 5 B2B Digital Marketing Trends to watch out for in 2018

The nature of digital marketing and the rapid advancements in technology mean that it is forever changing, often for the better.

In 2018 there are many exciting digital marketing trends to watch out for. Here are five that could make a real difference to your business.

Marketing trend 1: Automation
Tired of checking your calendar daily to ensure content is sent on time? Marketing automation has developed further than scheduling social media posts.

In 2018 we are seeing timely automated communications dedicated to nurturing your prospects rather than selling to them. You’re now able to deliver specific content at the exact time your prospect needs using data from your CRM!

Try adding some automation today with consumer journeys in MailChimp or Campaign Monitor.

Marketing trend 2: Content Personalisation
Studies show that content personalisation is under-adopted in B2B industries, with only 55% of B2B marketers using personalisation strategies. Content personalisation is quite easy to set up, beginning with how you capture data. The contact form on your website should collect Company, Industry, Office Location and more.

Then, you’re able to use this data to segment and personalise communications to your prospects. Continue to monitor behaviours of your leads and tweak communications per segment where appropriate for best results.

Marketing trend #3: Video
Although a favoured platform for marketing, both from a consumer and digital channel point of view, marketers report seeing nearly an increase of 50 per cent in revenue (source: WordStream). Video is set to explode even further as more video content will be created and shared contributing to more effective SEO and increased web traffic.

In particular, we will see professional live and 360-degree video being used more and more throughout social media platforms as a reliable technique to get that sought after organic reach.

Marketing trend #4: LinkedIn Marketing
Thought social media was only for B2C? Think again. LinkedIn is B2B business’s best friend. There are so many new features geared towards making LinkedIn the most efficient B2B lead generator.

Features such as InMail Analytics can help you gain more response from your targeted InMail communications, and improve your entire team’s performance. You’re able to make more data driven decisions and specifically target industries, companies and people that you want to gain as new prospects.

Marketing trend #5: Thought Leadership
Are you an expert in your area, or want your potential leads to think you are? Thought Leadership is using content marketing to show your expertise and educate potential clients about best practices for their industry.

We may think of Moz when talking about SEO, or Neil Patel when it comes to a variety of the best Digital Marketing practices. However your company can also use Thought Leadership when it comes to your industry and area. Create thoughtful blogs and videos showing off your expertise, ensuring to include your top ranking keywords.

In addition to those five trends, we’ll also see advancements in data, user reviews (and their marketing power) and voice searches throughout 2018 and we’ll keep you informed along the way.

Read what we predicted as digital marketing trends in 2017, and stay tuned to Optimum Marketing to keep your finger on the pulse