Digital Mastery 2023, Part 1: Shifting Preferences and Behaviour Online

In an era marked by rapid digital transformation and evolving consumer behaviours, staying on top of industry trends is key for sales, marketing, and leadership professionals. Knowing what trends have sprouted today will give businesses a head start on where tomorrow’s big growth opportunities will be found.

Today, I've condensed over 20 hours of research into three bite sized articles. So at the end, and if you found it insightful, please share with your network!

In particular, we will review key highlights from three different sales and marketing reports, along with notable industry analysis that will provide you with clues on tomorrow’s digital landscape best-practices.

HubSpot's "State of Marketing 2023" unveils the latest shifts in digital marketing, emphasizing the continued dominance of social media and the challenges faced by sales teams. Complementing this, Vidyard's "Video in Business Benchmark " and "The State of Sales and Virtual Selling " offer a deep dive into the transformative role of video in business communication, sales, and marketing. To close, I chose Vidyard's on the real estate sector, revealing how agents are pioneering video strategies to enhance engagement, foster genuine connections, and drive results. Together, these insights provide a comprehensive roadmap for professionals keen on harnessing the power of digital trends to elevate their strategies, outcomes, and profits.

If this all sounds good, then let’s jump right into it!

13 Trends That Stand Out From HubSpot State of Marketing Report 2023

HubSpot’s State of Marketing Report for 2023 survey includes 1,200+ B2B and B2C marketing professionals and the company has been a great resource over the past few years - one I often come back to for sharpening skills and updates.

34% of marketers selected “paid advertising” as the most overstated marketing tactic

1. Social Media Dominance Despite the emergence of new platforms, Facebook remains the most leveraged social media platform, with 64% of marketers utilizing it in 2022. Instagram (58%), YouTube (57%), and X/Twitter follow closely (43%), highlighting the continued importance of these platforms in marketing strategies. Interestingly, TikTok, a relatively newer platform, has quickly risen to prominence, used by 42% of marketers and LinkedIn (33%).

   
   

2. Return on Investment (ROI) When it comes to ROI, Facebook leads the pack at 22%. However, platforms like YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok are not far behind, each offering a 16% ROI. This underscores the growing importance of visual content, particularly short-form videos, in driving engagement and conversions. We’ll discuss this in much more detail in the next 3 sections.

   
   

3. Changing Benchmarks: HubSpot users observed several significant shifts were in 2022.

   Web traffic saw a decline of 6% compared to 2021. Email open rates dropped by 12%, indicating potential email fatigue among consumers. Growing use of AI in email marketing will no doubt increase this negative trend for many in 2023. However we’ll go over how smart marketers are increasing email open rates with video in the next section. On a positive note from the benchmark report, HubSpot’s users saw web conversions increased by 11%, and inbound leads grew by 6.66%, suggesting that while traffic might be decreasing, the quality of leads is improving.

   
   

4. Mobile Marketing Mobile marketing doesn’t just mean a mobile friendly website anymore, but mobile messaging with SMS, Messenger, WhatsApp and other platforms saw 40% of respondents emphasizing their effectiveness. It's clear that mobile-first strategies are no longer optional but essential.

   
   

5. The Power of Messaging Apps With 71% of consumers open to using messaging apps for customer assistance and 24% of marketers integrating them into their marketing plans, it's evident that direct communication channels are gaining traction.

   
   

6. Challenges in Sales Salespeople face increasing challenges, from getting responses from prospects (40%) to securing appointments (38%) and closing deals is getting harder (30%). Engaging multiple decision-makers has increased (28%) and capturing attention are also growing concerns, highlighting the need for more personalized and targeted marketing and sales strategies.

   
   

7. The Rise & Rise of Short-form Video Content Short-form video content ROI, such as TikTok, Reels, and YouTube shorts, has emerged as the top marketing trend, according to a whopping 33% of respondents. Of those already doing shoft-form content, 90% of these marketers are planning to increase or maintain their investment in this format, it's evident that short-form video is here to stay.

   
   

8. Content is Still King Video continues to reign supreme as the most popular and effective media format for the fourth consecutive year. However, other content forms like images, blogs, case studies, customer testimonials, and podcasts also play a crucial role in a holistic marketing strategy.

   
   

9. Budgeting and Investment The future looks optimistic, with 92% of marketers expecting their budgets to either remain consistent or increase in 2023.

   34% of marketers selected “paid advertising” as the most overstated marketing tactic and 28% have already began reducing their advertising budget to fund more content marketing.

   
   

10. Content Marketing Insights Content remains a pivotal tool for businesses, with findings such as: 16% of marketers say video content is the most important. 14% said infographics were, followed by 3% saying ebooks and whitepapers.

    52% of marketers support 2 to 4 roles and buyer personas with dedicated content.

    47% of buyers viewed between 3 to 5 pieces of content before engaging with a sales rep.

    89% of B2B marketers use content marketing strategies.

    96% of B2B buyers are now seeking out content with input from industry leaders.

    91% of top businesses are using content marketing to drive sales.

    33% of marketers now use interactive content. Examples include calculators, quizzes, ebooks, videos, and animated infographics.

    78% of CMOs view custom content as the future of marketing.

    86% of highly effective organizations have someone in charge of content strategy.

    56% of businesses worldwide intend to spend more on content creation.

    73% of organizations are now using inbound marketing as their primary approach.

    A significant 70% of marketers lacking a consistent content strategy, indicating a potential area for improvement.

    
    

11. SEO SEO remains a top priority for 61% of marketers, emphasizing its continued relevance.

    47% of marketers stated that they are planning to use SEO in their marketing efforts.

    
    

12. Social Media

    76% of marketers use social media for market research.

    74% of people say they use Facebook for professional purposes.

    48% of marketers are adding YouTube to their marketing plan.

    39% of marketers are adding Instagram to their marketing plan.

    46% of marketers are adding Facebook video to their marketing plan in 2023.

    Platforms like LinkedIn are growing in prominence in B2B marketing, with 45% of marketers identifying it as the best network for their needs.

    
    

13. The Role of AI in Marketing While the report touches upon various aspects of sales and marketing, the underlying theme is the growing influence of AI. From content creation to predictive analytics, AI's potential to revolutionize the industry is undeniable.

    
    

    Last week I shared 50 AI stats that highlight marketing’s transformation which is worth reading further, for those interested.

    
    

    So as businesses continue to integrate AI-driven tools and strategies, the future of marketing looks more personalized, efficient, interactive and data-driven.

    
    

    Earlier this month I documented 28 innovative AI marketing strategies and applications that make good on the promise that AI is already giving marketers more hours in the day.

Next, we’ll go into more detail about how video is changing sales and marketing across the board in 2023 and beyond.

Digital Mastery 2023, Part 2: New Benchmarks For Video In Business