3 MARKETING POINTS TO KEEP IN THE AGE WHEN SMARTPHONES RULE THE LAND BY JAN BARBOSA

• Mobile Is The Absolute King, So Mobile Marketing Is A Must:

Mobile will undeniably solidify its rule as the main platform for digital marketing. Your video, homepage, blog and business strategy must by now be ready to be a hundred percent mobile optimized.

Just think that there are close to 1.15 billion daily mobile users and the number is increasing by no less than 15% a year!

In regards to sales and marketing efforts, just imagine the fact that almost half of mobile searches eventually lead to an online or brick and mortar store visit, more than a good reason to concentrate on the task of prepping your mobile presence as soon as possible.

It’s not by chance that Wendy Clark, President of Coca-Cola From 2014 to 2016 said: “If your plans don’t include mobile, your plans are not finished”.

• Let Video Marketing Tell Your Story:

Live Video Streaming became a trend during 2017, and looking at your Snapchat, Instagram or Facebook page is enough confirmation of the vast explosion of the medium. Already tons of video content fill every nook and cranny of the online experience. For 2018 I expect Video Marketing to become much more polished with better quality and content.

The reach of online video is amazing, if we talk about YouTube numbers alone, the platform got over a billion users in 2016, its users consuming up to 100 million hours of daily video watch time, and let’s not forget that YouTube is the second largest search engine (following Google), and its usage surpasses Bing, Yahoo & Ask Combined.

For 2018, the video experience will continue to shift from simple ads into storytelling. Clearly a winning strategy for digital marketing and personal branding.

• Augmented Reality Is Here To Stay, Augmented Reality Marketing To Follow:

Augmented Reality, almost missed the mark as a very important trend in 2017, the technology was brought back into the spotlight by early September Apple news that IPhone 6S to IPhone X would become fully compatible with AR. This sparked other manufacturers to jump in with coming integrated augmented tools and support for a variety of genres as games, fashion, education, and retail with more are on the way.

The compromise to develop augmented reality by trendsetters like Apple is so strong, that it acquired the startup Vvrana, which is working on a headset that could do both virtual reality and augmented reality. Some experts believe that these kinds of devices could even make a future dent in the smartphone market.

Referring to apps, one of the firsts to take advantage of augmented reality was Snapchat which won millennial over with its AR filters, followed by Facebook and Instagram. Now even when Snapchat dominance is being challenged, it still managed some 300 million daily active users by February 2018, no small feat.

Facebook is also mimicking its rival Snapchat to perfection and taking it a step further as it integrates the technology into its own Facebook Messenger App.

Also, fashion & beauty products brands like L’Oreal and Shisedio are using augmented reality to help users find out how cosmetics will look in their faces before they buy. (click photo for more information by dailymail.co.uk)

As augmented reality keeps its way into mainstream use, there is no doubt that video juggernauts like Snapchat, Facebook Video, and Instagram will embrace augmented reality too, making the niche a fast-paced, competitive and always evolving one, giving those who exploit augmented reality technology in their marketing efforts a clear advantage over those who don’t.