The marketing industry is always shifting and changing, and the future landscape of the industry can be hard to forecast. As new technologies emerge and trends take over, marketers have to be ready to shift to respond to these up and coming trends and innovations. With 2024 approaching, marketers are beginning to plan for the next calendar year.
Anticipating marketing trends is a crucial part of a marketer’s approach to strategy, and in a time where each day gives way to new trends and technology, this has never been more challenging. With every challenge is an opportunity, though, and marketers need to understand how innovative strategies can be the tipping point for your brand’s success. Here are some of the trends we see on the horizon for 2024:
Continued Growth of AI Technology and Tools
We’re all familiar with AI now — it’s all anyone could talk about in 2023. With the launch of ChatGPT late last year and the integration of AI tools into search engines, graphic design platforms and social media management tools, AI is something marketers must be able to navigate and use effectively going into 2024. It’s showing no signs of slowing down.
As AI becomes more conversational with chatbots and virtual assistants, marketers must be ready to use the new technology with a few considerations. Ultimately, AI is a tool for marketers and not a marketer itself. People still have to be a buffer between the technology and consumers, and marketers are responsible for the ethical use of AI in the industry.
AI is a great tool for brainstorming, but marketers must be cautious of taking content from AI, especially text-based generation, as it may be something that has already been done. Anything a marketer uses from AI must be thoroughly vetted. At the end of the day, AI cannot replace the unique, human experiences that marketers have.
Video as a Storytelling Tool (and a Search Engine)
Video remains a dominant force in the world of content marketing. With the continued popularity of TikTok that only seems to be growing, video is a proven storytelling tool. Short form video reigns supreme with content circulating on TikTok, Facebook and Instagram, but long form content is also seeing success on YouTube. The common denominator? Video is about storytelling, not selling to consumers.
This has been popular for a few years now, but it doesn’t look like it's headed anywhere for 2024. In addition to video strategy in content marketing, marketers should keep an eye on the rise of livestreaming in the marketing space. As TikTok has invested into its livestreaming and shop capabilities, this opens the door for marketers to incorporate live video into their marketing strategy. And if your company isn’t on TikTok, there are other platforms like Twitch with similar features that target other, niche audiences.
Storytelling has always been a pillar of TikTok, but it recently has surpassed Google as the search engine of choice for younger consumers and Generation Z. This audience is looking for quick answers and some kind of visual, and TikTok has embraced this role and invested into its platform as a search engine. While still in the early stages of implementation on the brand/marketer side, this is something marketers need to be cognizant of when drafting SEO strategies for the new year.
B2B: Account-Based Marketing & Affiliates
Lead generation strategies are something all marketers are familiar with, but something on the horizon for 2024 is a shift away from lead generation and toward account-based marketing (ABM). ABM is about fostering relationships between a brand and a potential consumer, and once that relationship is firmly established, leading them down the funnel. ABM doesn’t stop at this conversion, though. Like any client relationship, it needs fostered as you’re working together and opens the door for more opportunities to work together. Ultimately, ABM will lead brands from working with multiple clients at smaller retainers to fewer clients at larger retainers.
Affiliate marketing has long been associated with B2C, but it has been on the rise in the B2B space. In 2023, affiliate marketing was a $13 billion industry, and it's only projected to grow for 2024. The key to affiliate marketing is a shared vision and purpose between two platforms. It’s a matter of qualifying who you're working with to make sure that it's something that's supportive of your business goals and not just something that feels like mindless sales that don't come back to your brand.
Demand for ESG and Sustainable Brands
More than ever, brands must be purpose-driven and show a commitment to ESG and sustainability. This is especially important to younger consumers, but marketers are seeing more target audiences who are caring about the stance on particular issues from their chosen brand. At the end of the day, consumers will only be loyal to brands who have the same commitments.
As consumers are looking toward more transparency, brands are beginning to disclose more information about their production and shipping processes, and brands are anticipating a shift from voluntary compliance to mandated compliance as policies change. For 2024, we’re expecting ESG and sustainability efforts to shift from niche to normal and become a mainstream concern at the forefront of all consumers’ minds.
Want the full report to share with your team? Download our 2024 Trends report and get ahead of the curve.
For even more insights, watch the full Integrate Online session with our expert panelists about where marketing is headed for 2024.
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Emma Magruder
Marketing and Events Graduate Service Assistant
Emma is a marketing and events graduate assistant in the Marketing Communications Online Programs through the Reed School of Media and Communications at West Virginia University. She is a graduate student at WVU and involved in PRSSA and AWSM. She could always talk about what she made in her kitchen for this week and her favorite sports! Bitten by the travel bug, she loves to travel whenever she has a few days to take an adventure.
Marcom Today
Marketing Communications Today is a collection of resources for marketing communications professionals filled with industry research, marketing trends, and career information about integrated marketing and data-driven communications. Learn industry insights through the Marketing Communications Today blog, podcast, as well as Integrate Online.
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