The AdNews end of year Perspectives, looking back at 2023 and forward to next year.
In 2023, we witnessed several trends in the marketing landscape. First and foremost, community growth and innovation took centre stage, businesses and music artists increasingly realised the power of building and nurturing 1:1 communities around their brands.
This was seen with the likes of FC Barcelona, Fred Again and Louis Vuitton joining Discord to connect with their communities. These communities became not just customers but brand advocates, providing invaluable insights and long term brand loyalty.
The second notable highlight was the profound impact of TikTok on the market in several verticals. TikTok's platform led to a market transition toward video content and a seemingly overnight rise of User-Generated Content creators and affiliate marketers. Video content accounted for a staggering 82% of all internet traffic in 2023, a trend we expect to see amplified in 2024.
TikTok democratised content creation, ushering in a new generation of creators who are often more niche and have a genuine rapport with their followers. This authenticity makes their content extremely relatable which bled through to brands content. As a result, brands have been increasingly collaborating with UGC creators. This strategy has allowed them to create more authentic content while reaching a new audience, all without the significant price tag often associated with macro-influencers.
2024 Predictions
As we look ahead to 2024, there are several exciting trends and transformations are on the horizon.
First, we anticipate the rise of the LinkedIn Influencer. LinkedIn has evolved from a professional networking site to a platform where professionals are becoming influencers in their own right. Personal branding and thought leadership on LinkedIn are set to gain even more prominence in the coming year.
We predict brands investing further into community growth and engagement, resulting in an increase in monetisation tactics developed through organic community channels. Businesses will increasingly seek an ROI on these communities and tap into potential revenue through unique, valuable and exclusive experiences to members.
Data and analytics will continue to play a pivotal role in marketing as brands leverage insights to make more informed decisions, personalise customer experiences, and optimise their campaigns. We predict to see the rise of Reddit being an organic contender to more mainstream platforms for brands, as they make their organic analytics on content more sophisticated.
Additionally, one I have personally had my eye on for the last twelve months is TikTok stealing market share from Amazon. We are only just starting to see the effects of TikTok Shop come into play however I expect to see it as a formidable contender in the ecommerce distribution space in 2024.
Isabella Gonsalves is General Manager at We Are Reale Agency
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