4 Digital Marketing Trends To Watch In 2021

Those who rise to the top will be those who stay ahead of the curve, and watching for trends like these can help you do so. GETTY

No corner of the marketing world changes faster than digital marketing. As new technology arrives and old technology is grandfathered out, it can be difficult to keep up with all of the new different trends in the industry.

Digital marketing has proved itself to be unparalleled in its resilience over the past year: two-thirds of brands have seen a drop in revenue since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, and yet over a quarter of marketers are spending 90% or more of their budget on digital marketing according to a survey conducted by the Digital Marketing Institute.

In a field that crowded, you’re going to need to stay on the bleeding edge if you don’t want to fall behind. Here are some of the top trends in digital marketing you need to know about going into 2021:

1. Adjacent Search

No one doubts the importance of SEO in digital marketing, but are brands really tackling the issue appropriately? For most companies, SEO means getting a certain webpage or two to appear as high as possible for specific search terms. While this may sound fine in theory, it ignores some of the nuances of how customers actually search online. 

According to the search specialists at marketing agency Hennessey Digital, between 70 and 80% of consumers research a company online before doing business with them — and a big chunk of that research starts with search. You can’t just rank your site for a narrow column of keywords; you need to consider as many searches as possible adjacent to your primary business. Zoom in too far and you’ll risk losing customers who are searching terms similar but not identical to your own. Companies are increasingly tapping experts to round out their search profile, and that trend only looks to accelerate in 2021. 

Read more: www.forbes.com