Marketing Is Changing FAST: THIS is The BIGGEST Opportunity of 2023

When it comes to the world of digital marketing, one thing will always be true. Trends will change and fads will fade. So how can you tell if a marketing trend is something you can't ignore or if it's on its way out the door? You know I love to keep it real so you can stay relevant. So in this video, I'm going to share with you my five marketing predictions for this year. Keep watching. Hey posse, what's up? It's Alex. Alex. Coming at you this week with my personal predictions to help you level up your digital marketing this year and beyond. But first, if you're new to the crew, welcome. My channel is here to help you understand the world of digital marketing, copywriting and freelancing so you can create a business you love, find the freedom you deserve and live life on your terms. And I've got hundreds of tutorials waiting for you to watch next. So be sure to hit subscribe below. And don't forget to ring that bell to be notified when my next video video goes live. Alright, so let's get to it. Here are my five marketing predictions for this year. We will start with number five on my list and end with the biggest one of them all. Can you guess what it is? Topping off my list at number five? Community building. So first things first, in order for any marketing strategy to really stick, and I mean really stick, you need to be focused on building a loyal community who shares your values. You should not be focused on simply going viral or only on growing your followers on Instagram or using any outdated nonsense to hack your growth. Why? Because while that type of growth might look shiny and impressive on the surface, it does not pay off in the long run. So yeah, you might see a spike in followers or subscribers, but what good is that if they aren't aligned with your message or fall squarely in your ideal customer audience? In fact, I've seen firsthand how going viral isn't all it's cracked up to be. I had a couple of reels go viral this past year and yes, while my following did skyrocket, it became harder and harder to connect with my true friends fans, you know, those of you who have been following me since the very beginning and are raving fans and will follow and engage with any content I put out there because thanks to the algorithm changes that have limited my reach and engagement, I am reaching less of the people who I actually want to be in front of. So I promise you, if you take the time, and yes, it does take time to build a real community by Rallying your audience around a shared set of beliefs and values. I promise your marketing efforts will feel so much easier and they will be more effective. Because when you have a community of loyal superfans who are dedicated to your brand, they will buy from you again and again and again. In fact, in my most recent launch, 80% of my revenue came from existing customers, which means I didn't need to pay a single cent to get those customers. So listen to me very carefully. It is way easier to turn a customer into a repeat customer than it is to turn a stranger into a first time buyer. Especially right now, because it's getting more and more expensive to buy people's attention online. So. So why not focus on converting the people whose attention you already have? Even if you're starting small, a small but engaged audience is far more powerful than a large and unaware one. So start focusing on community building right now. Over the last few years, I've built a community from zero to over 300,000. And yes, while it did take time and hard work, all of that work has definitely paid off. Because no matter what algorithm changes come along, no matter how expensive paid media becomes, as long as I continue to nurture my community, my business will continue to grow as I launch new programs and products and increase my customer lifetime value. And that brings me to prediction number four. Omnichannel marketing. All right, like it or not, linear marketing is over. The old school direct response mentality of buy die or unsubscribe is dead. And any marketer who continues to optimize for immediate sales will really struggle this year. And that is because customers are savvier than ever and are no longer falling for a forced approach to marketing that pressures them to buy immediately or else. So what I'm actually seeing now is a much longer sales cycle. With 53.65% of my customers purchasing after 60 days. Yes, they are taking more time to interact with my brand across multiple channels before committing to buying anything from me. And that is totally cool. In fact, the average customer interacts with my brand across 34 touch points before they make their first purchase from the copy posse. How crazy is that? So that is why you need to be diversifying your marketing efforts. And I hate to say it, but Instagram is no longer the beauty all end all. And I know it's really hard to hear for me too. I love Instagram. With reach drastically affected by recent algorithm changes, having a follower on Instagram doesn't really mean much these days. And the sad truth is, the majority of your followers probably don't even see your stuff anymore. Plus, with scam accounts and spam comments and impersonators out there behind every corner, Instagram is quickly becoming a place of frustration for a lot of creators and customers, myself included. So while I still love Instagram as a platform, and yes, of course I'm not saying I'm never going to use Instagram, I will continue to post there again and again, probably every single day this year. I am seriously considering ramping up my other channels through Omni channel marketing. And you should be too. So I'm talking about Messenger, SMS, LinkedIn, TikTok, YouTube, Pinterest, and of course the gold mine of marketing. The one you should never forget. The one you should be 100% always focusing on building your email list no matter what. You want to give your audience multiple ways to engage with you. Not only does that build more authority and trust, but it also gives your customer more control over how they interact with your brand. Rather than being forced down a funnel and pressured to buy on day one, they can control how and when they interact with you. And remember what we talked about in trend number five? Customers take longer to make their first purchase and that might continue to get longer over time. And that's because it takes longer time and repeated exposure in order to build that know like and trust factor. Which is why omnichannel marketing is a must for any business this year. And because I love stats, here are some stats to show you just how powerful this marketing strategy can be. Marketers using three or more channels in any one campaign earned a 287% higher purchase rate than those using single channel campaigns. Customer retention rates are 90% higher for omnichannel versus single channel marketing. And omnichannel shoppers have a 30% higher lifetime value than those who shop using only one channel channel. Yeah, those numbers are huge and should not be ignored. So what's the most powerful way that you can show up across all of these different platforms, you ask? Well, I'd like to introduce you to number three on my list, what I call three tier Video marketing. Yes, yes, yes. You already know that video marketing would make this list. In fact, it has been a trend on every single trends and prediction video that I have ever done. Ever. Video marketing has been on the rise for years. So really, this is nothing new. Video marketing is marketing. So if you're not already using video as part of your marketing strategy, then it is time to get with the program. But I want to take that a step further and clarify what type of video you actually should be focusing on because there are a lot and I'm sure you heard people out there say that short form video is the future and it is all you should be focusing on. But hold up because I actually don't agree. Don't get me wrong, I think short form video is great and I love using it in my content marketing strategy. But I don't believe that short form video alone is enough to drive long term sales and create a community of loyal and repeat customers. So that is why I actually recommend following a three tiered approach to video marketing. Tier number one Short form video to help you grow. So where short form video really shines is when it comes to growth and getting a lot of new eyeballs on your content. So as I mentioned earlier, in this video I've had a few short form reels go viral this year on Instagram. I had one in particular that had millions of views and gave me tens of thousands of new followers. Which is great. But followers do not always mean customers. And honestly, the vast majority of those followers will probably never become a customer and might even unfollow me at some point because they were never really aligned with my message in the first place. In fact, in all transparency, I've lost a shocking number of followers over the past month or so. And yes, a lot of that is likely due to the cleanup that Instagram is doing getting rid of bot accounts and fake followers. But I'm also likely losing a lot of fair weather fans who nonchalantly followed me after watching a viral video and then unfollowed me when they realized that I just wasn't their cup of tea. And that is awesome because I only want the right people in my audience. I want to find the right people and then get them to stick around. And that is why long form video is also so, so important. So yes, tier number two is long form video to help you nurture your audience. Long form video is invaluable because this is the type of content that actually nurtures the people in your audience and helps you build a real community that sticks with you and becomes your customers. So long form video is where you're actually able to deliver value. Because let's be honest, there's only so much value that can be delivered and may a 30 second video, but an 8 to 10 minute video like this one is a lot more valuable to your audience. And if you take anything from this video, let it be this. Now more than ever, customers demand value before they buy from you. Whether that value is coming through the form of education, entertainment or inspiration, it doesn't really matter. But customers want real value before they commit to going any further on the journey with you. So YouTube is taking off for this exact reason and that is why it still reigns supreme on my list of hot predictions for for this year. People are craving more than 30 second dancing videos and memes during a midnight scroll sesh. Don't get me wrong, I freaking love those. But if you don't believe me just how powerful long form video is, take a Look at these YouTube stats. YouTube is the number two website by traffic in the US. Yes, it is the second most visited website in America, only coming second to Google Online video consumption has increased by 121% in the last three years on YouTube. YouTube. YouTube's revenue increased by 21 times over the last 10 years from 1.3 billion to 28.84 billion. And YouTube is projected to have 2.85 billion users by 2025. So if you're looking to start producing long form videos like this one, YouTube is clearly the place to be and I highly recommend you do it along with your short form video content. But let's not forget the very last tier. Tier number three Live video. This helps you connect with your audience. So this is really where the magic happens, right? So if short form video content is how you grow and get more eyeballs on your content in a fast paced form, long form video is how you nurture that new audience and convert them into customers with value, then live video is really how you connect with those customers and retain them for the long run. Now, live video is special because it is unscripted. It gives your audience a real sense of who you are and allows them to connect with you on a much deeper level. And connection fosters long term loyalty. Now this doesn't necessarily mean that you have to go live once a week on Instagram or Facebook to answer community questions or teach content live. Although you absolutely can do that and I recommend it. In fact, I teach all of my programs live because something magical happens when I'm teaching live in front of my students. There's a flow, there's a cadence, there's a chemistry that you just can't replicate in a scripted video. But you could also do this just by posting daily on your Instagram stories and just sharing updates and documenting your journey. It's real, it's unscripted and it creates connection. Doesn't have to be long, it just has to be real. And speaking of connection, people and blogs, a.k.a. vlog style videos are actually the most popular category on YouTube, making up 32% of the videos posted on the site. So again, that just shows how much people love connecting with other people. They're craving connection, they're craving authenticity. Our customers want to engage with us on a deeper level, so give them the opportunity to do that through live video. All right, next up on my list, prediction number two. You knew it was coming. AI, yes, artificial intelligence. It is not coming. It is here and it is here to stay. But, but, but, but that doesn't mean we need to be afraid of it. It is a tool, not a takeover. We should be embracing this technology with open arms. So use AI to help you streamline your content creation, make your video editing quicker. There's awesome tools out there to add subtitles to your videos like that. Use it to help with your SEO. Use chatbots and AI funnels to help you capture more leads and give more value to your customers in a timely manner exactly when they ask for it. There are so many ways that you can use AI in your business. But listen to me very carefully. AI is not a shortcut to building a brand people trust. So yes, adding AI into your marketing strategy is a great way to save yourself some time when it comes to ideation. First, drafting, systematizing, operationalizing your content. But it absolutely cannot replace the insight, value, personality and high level wisdom that a human can bring to the table. So whatever you do, do not fire your designers, do not fire your copywriters, do not fire your proofreaders. Just help them work more efficiently and effectively with the help of these tools and you will get the best of both worlds. So I highly recommend you take this prediction in summation with all of the other predictions I'm sharing, because it is just one tool and trend that is taking over this year. All right, and that brings me to the number one prediction on my list that will help you really rise above this year and beyond. Number one, lead with value and values. So this relates back to so many things we've already talked about in this video. But hear me out. Customers are fed up with being treated transactionally. They do not want to feel like they're just a lead or customer in your business. Just a metric or a number that you have to to hit every single week. They want to be a part of your brand. They want to feel valued. They want to feel seen. They want to feel heard. They want to feel respected. They do not want you to shove a product or sale down their throat with every single interaction. And that is because the market is savvier than ever before and they just no longer tolerate hypey claims or clickbait or free content with no real value. Right? And that is exactly why the influencer as we know it, it's dead. Don't freak out, but it's true. The market is bored of vanilla content and perfect pictures that are all aesthetic but have no real substance behind them. Right? The same poses, the same palette, the same aesthetic feeds, the same felt cute might delete later hehe kind of captions. Right? I am so over it. And I know I'm not the only one. In fact, a little test. Scroll through your social media feed today and I guarantee you it looks a lot different than it used to to maybe five or 10 years ago. For one, there are a lot more videos. Like a lot more videos, there are a lot more memes and there are a lot more stories. And that's because people today crave something more than just pretty pictures and glossy highlight reels. They want captivating and inspiring stories, funny and relatable anecdotes, vulnerable shares, practical advice and values based views. I've said it before and I'll say it again. People want connection with the brands they interact with. They want to buy from brands and businesses who share the same values as they do and fight for what they believe in. So today the most iconic brand leaders are not influencers, they are messengers. So if you haven't already, let this be the year that you lead with value and values in your business. Do not be afraid to stand for something and call it out. Create content that actually helps real people solve real problems. Then watch as your business takes off because your marketing strategy is simply you showing up as you engaging with your customers and offering them real value. And there you have it. My five predictions for the future of digital marketing. Are you already doing these things in your business? Were there any that surprised you? I would love to hear from you. Go ahead, comment below and let me know and let me know if you have any video topics that you would like to see me do this year. I am wishing you and everybody else a very very happy New year. Thanks for sticking with me. I'll see you next time with a brand new video. Until then, I'm Alex. Ciao for now. Alright guys, if you enjoyed that video, make sure to check out the next one from me right here and you can click right here to get a free gift. In this video I'm going to show you how to make the most of your social media content utilizing powerful and proven CTAs that follow the rule of three R L s. And to make this as practical as possible for you, I'm also giving you a free free social captions and CTA's cheat sheet loaded with writing prompts, swipe copy, and CTA to help you grow and scale your social following. I will drop a link for that at the end of this video, so make sure you stick around.