2011 Predictions

Each year brings new trends and technologies to the digital industry and 2011 is no different.

Here are some of the Escape’s predictions for what looks like another very exciting year in the digital arena:

New tools, social media and innovative technologies will expand the range of skills and knowledge required to manage digital channels.  We’ll see digital agencies and independent consultants diversifying and specialising in anything from PPC to Facebook pages or tweet optimisation. Strong Display, Search Engine Marketing and analytical skills are not enough anymore and digital marketers need to step up their game and learn new skills or outsource.

More businesses now 'get it’, whereas not long ago social media was similar to the dark art of Search Engine Optimisaiton (SEO).  Ironically, as a result of the information sharing available through social media channels, social media marketing does look more tangible.  Expect both marketers and agencies to continue to mature in 2011.

Large publishers, mass quality content creators have been feeding Google and other sites with free content for years. In 2011 we’ll see more good quality content sitting behind paywalls. Here are some of the newspapers already charging for online content: New York Times, The Times and Financial Times.

Due to re-targeting & real-time buying display now seems to be a very attractive option for advertisers. These clever buying and targeting techniques can drastically improve performance and offer a good alternative to Paid Search and traditional fixed buys.

Traditionally websites were the only place where sales or conversions occurred. In 2011 we’ll see more businesses migrating their landing pages, lead capture forms and even e-commerce checkouts to Facebook, Twitter or other tools.  This of course poses a challenge from a data capture and analysis point of view.  But the ease and cost-effectiveness of creating pages outside of the website cannot be ignored.

There is no more online and offline; all marketing activities involve many channels and expect this to blur the distinction between traditional and offline marketers. What you do online has a strong impact on the telephone calls and store footfalls. The sooner you realise the complex links between your marketing activities, the quicker you can start developing a joined up marketing approach.

Nimble small businesses already do it very well, but location-based marketing is difficult to achieve if you're running a global campaign. We’ll see more medium and large organisations taking advantage of location-based marketing.