PwC: 5 MegaTrends Affecting Your Business in 2019 (2 of 2)
PwC has identified 5 global Megatrends that shape our world. This article explores these Megatrends looking at the way they affect the global business environment.
As business owners and entrepreneurs it’s paramount to have a good grip on the present and also stand on the threshold of the future.
Let’s see how these Megatrends identified by PwC are shaping our business environment on a global scale and what you can do to make the best of them.
This article is delivered in two parts. Read the first part:
PwC: 5 MegaTrends Affecting Your Business in 2019 (1 of 2)
4. DEMOGRAPHIC AND SOCIAL CHANGE
By 2030 the world’s population is projected to rise by more than 1 billion. Equally significantly, people are living longer and having fewer children.
PwC
Challenges
By 2030 the world’s population is projected to rise by more than 1 billion, bringing the total to over 8 billion.
Emerging or developing countries will produce 97% of this population growth.
People are living longer and having fewer children.
People over 65 is the fastest growing segment of population – according to PwC there will be 390 million more of them in 2030 than in 2015.
Many advanced countries are seeing their population working age slow down its growth.
Inequality is a rapidly rising trend. To illustrate this, PwC gives the following example:
The world’s 8 richest people now own as much wealth as the poorest half of the world’s population.
The shift in demographic profile will bring disruption to the traditional life cycle of education, work and employment.
The ageing population has a direct influence on healthcare spending – it will increase. But an ageing population also means an untapped resource and businesses need to find ways to take advantage of this opportunity.
[bctt tweet=”People over 65 is the fastest growing segment of population” username=”brand_minds via @PwC_UK”]
Solutions
Here’s how businesses can take advantage of the demographic shift:
- Businesses must find ways to stimulate, incentivize and empower young people;
- They also need to harness the power of older workers and women.
There are various measures that businesses can adopt to encourage older workers to remain in the workforce:
- Create more flexibility around retirement;
- Create financial incentives;
- Adopt reforming pension rules;
- Outlaw age discrimination;
- Re-training;
- Reverse mentoring;
- Phased retirement;
- Training and apprenticeships that are normally addressed to younger recruits.
BMW is one of the companies which is leveraging the power of ageism: they have redesigned their factories for older workers.
Sweden is the best performing EU country in regard to older workers employment rates. According to PwC,
The G7’s GDP could increase by as much as $1.8 trillion in the long-term; if the G7 economies could achieve the same level of full-time equivalent employment rates among the over 55s as Sweden.
Women are a great resource for the workforce, but businesses are yet to leverage it at its full capacity.
- Women become mothers later in life and have fewer children;
- Women are a growing purchasing power: according to PwC 70% of household budgets in the G7 are controlled by women, globally 85% of consumer purchases are made by women which is equivalent to a worldwide spend of $20 trillion;
- Hiring women is highly beneficial to businesses worldwide. Reports have shown that companies with a higher percent of women in high management roles are constantly outperforming those with fewer women.
Peterson Institute for International Economics found that firms with more women in the C-Suite are 15% more profitable.
PwC
Women represent an invaluable pool of talent, skills and abilities and to attract and retain them, businesses need to take the following steps:
- Ensure that all employees are receiving fair pay and promotion;
- Support women’s career advancement to develop a pipeline of female leaders;
- Promote flexible working options.
Learn more about global recruiting trends: Global Recruiting Trends 2019 – LinkedIn Study
[bctt tweet=”Women are a great resource for the workforce, but businesses are yet to leverage it at its full capacity.” username=”brand_minds via @PwC_UK”]
5. TECHNOLOGICAL BREAKTHROUGHS
By 2020 there will be close to seven times the number of connected devices as people on the planet.
The digital revolution has no boundaries or borders. It is changing behaviour and expectations as much as the tools used to deliver new services and experiences.
PwC
Challenges
PwC has found that emerging economies are adopting technologies as fast – or in some cases faster – than developed markets.
Due to the digital revolution, the scale of the business is no longer an insurance regarding its competitive advantage, as we have shown in our Failure Series articles regarding Nokia and Kodak.
For many years, corporate technology was far more advanced that anything available to the consumer. But two key dates – 2007 and 2010 (the launches of the iPhone and the iPad respectively) – decisively shifted this imbalance in favour of the consumer.
PwC
The digital revolution has ushered in a shift in power from corporate to consumer. Now it’s the consumers driving the specifications of corporate technology, not the other way around.
The digital way of life is personified by the Millennials, the generation who was not required to adapt to digital because they were born into it. For them, technology is a form of natural language. To include the Millennials into workforce, businesses must direct their activities to fit this aspect.
Together with digital comes another important trend: social media.
Organisations need to understand that social media is not simply another channel, but a fundamentally new and different way in which people organise and live their lives. And its scale, already vast, is growing constantly.
PwC have identified the following maturing technologies:
- AI;
- Augmented Reality;
- Virtual Reality;
- IoT;
- Blockchain;
- Drones;
- Robots;
- 3D printing.
They believe these technologies offer huge potential in many industries. Their word of warning to businesses looking to embrace them is as follows:
Don’t adopt these technologies for their own sake. Experiment and learn from these technologies with the clear purpose of finding how to use them to create value. If implemented correctly, businesses can benefit galore in way of producing financial wealth.
Connected homes, connected cars, virtual interfaces, smart locks etc. – everything is connected. While ubiquitous connectivity has numerous advantages, it is not risk free. The upside of all things connected is that it is a gateway to consumer behaviour data which was previously untapped.
Many of today’s largest and leading organisations and businesses were developed in an era of scarce, expensive and rigid technology. Delivering change for them is a complex proposition. On the contrary, businesses that are ‘born digital’ are much better prepared to deal with the constant flux of change that hits everyone.
[bctt tweet=”The upside of all things connected is that it is a gateway to consumer behaviour data which was previously untapped.” username=”brand_minds via @PwC_UK”]
Solutions
MIT Sloan School of Management has found that large organisations run a greater risk of disappearing due to digital disruption over the next 5 years. The solution is the emergence of four distinct types of business model:
- Omni-Channel;
- Supplier;
- Ecosystem Driver;
- Modular Producer.
Join the Conversation
Get in touch with us on Facebook and Twitter. We’d love to hear your views!
source: https://www.pwc.co.uk/issues/megatrends.html
Hootsuite: 5 Top Social Media Trends for 2019
2018 is coming to a close and marketers are already trying to get ready for the 2019 social media marketing.
We are firm believers of the proverb Early bird gets the worm, so this article presents the 5 Top Social Media Trends for 2019 Report by Hootsuite.
Hootsuite: 5 Top Social Media Trends for 2019
Following the survey of 3255 Hootsuite business customers, the social media management platform has identified the following Social Media Trends that will influence brands in 2019.
- Rebuilding trust;
- Storifying social;
- Closing the ads gap;
- Cracking the commerce code;
- Messaging eats the world.
These are the top 5 social media trends for 2019.
Let’s break them down and discover what steps marketers can take to support their brands on social media.
1. Rebuilding Trust
Brands get human as the circle of trust on social media tightens.
According to Edelman’s 2018 Trust Barometer, 60% of global consumers no longer trust social media platforms. After the Cambridge Analytica scandal, trust in Facebook dropped by 66%.
The impact of social media trust crisis has been seen in the following users’ behaviours:
Tighter Circles of Trust
People are increasingly conscious of who they are interacting with on social media and retreating to smaller circles of influence.
The Need to Rethink Influence
Due to increased scepticism, brands need to shift their mindset from seeking reach to partnering with the people, publications and the communities with real authority. Also brands are urged to create communities with smaller more valuable audience group by sharing insightful content and getting the people to talk to one another.
The Evolution of Engagement
Smart brands are focusing less on reach and more on creating transparent quality engagement. Hootsuite even found that the meaning of engagement itself has shift from clicks to behaviours that have a clearer impact on brand value and long term ROI.
Here are Hootsuite’s recommendations for brands looking to rebuild trust:
- Create a branded hashtag aligned with community values;
- Create Facebook groups to allow your customers’ have conversations in a safe environment;
- Partner with micro-influencers who have influence in niche communities, allowing them to connect with customers at a local level;
- Run monthly Facebook Live Q&A.
Learn more about Facebook groups: Why You Should Create a Facebook Group for Your Business
2. Storifying Social
Stories are growing 15x faster than feed-based sharing.
According to Techcrunch, Facebook Stories are set to overtake newsfeeds within the next year.
Social media is pivoting from text-based platforms originally designed for desktops to truly mobile-only networks that allow people to capture in-the-moment experiences.
source: Hootsuite
The impact of Stories:
The rise of Lo-Fi
Hootsuite found that less polished more realistic stories actually perform better than heavily edited videos built with CTAs. It’s because they feel more intimate and spontaneous, more user-like.
1-1 Format vs Scale
Scaling the 1-1 format is still a challenge.
Uncharted ROI measurement
We will see new tools in the form of APIs that will help ROI measurement of Stories.
Here are Hootsuite’s recommendations:
- Create Story-specific content;
- Use the Stories Highlight feature;
- Add UTMs to your links to track success;
- Experiment with AR and custom GIFs in Stories.
3. Closing the Ads Gap
More competition on paid social forces marketers to up their game.
Hootsuite found a 32% increase in ads spend and marketers are producing more ads than ever before.
The challenge is more ads create rising costs and competition: 61% increase in Facebook CTR, 112% increase in Facebook CPM. Also Millennials and GenV-ers regularly skim over ads or use ad blocking tools.
You may be paying your way into someone’s feed but there is no guarantee that he or she is going to pay attention.
The impact of the ad gap:
Investing in creativity to rise above the noise
Only the most engaging ads will covert.
Personalization (without data or privacy backlash)
Create personalized ads but without feeling too intrusive or creepy when it comes to use of data (Spotify being a case in point).
Learn more: 3 Growth Hacks Spotify uses in Brand Strategy
Mastering new social advertising formats
Marketers can now use ads in Stories. It’s challenging to advertise in such a highly personal context, marketers need to find ways to create ads that don’t annoy users.
Hootsuite’s recommendations:
- Understand and target the right audience;
- Invest in high quality content;
- Repurpose concepts from top-performing organic content;
- Embrace new ad formats;
4. Cracking the Commerce Code
Improved social shopping technologies (finally) fuel sales.
Social shopping technologies are bridging the gap between social media and e-commerce especially among young buyers comfortable with online shopping.
A latest statistics found that 70% of China’s Gen Z’ers now buy directly from social.
Here are the most known shoppable technologies:
Instagram’s shoppable posts now allow users to make purchases without ever leaving the app.
Facebook Marketplace is used in 70 countries by more than 800 million people.
Pinterest buyable pins are used by 55% of customers to find and shop for products.
This year on February, Snapchat launched its merchandise store to drive brand loyalty and to explore potential for an in-app commerce platform for other brands (source: TechCrunch.com).
Here are 3 directions brands need to focus upon:
- Instagram shoppable posts;
- The new role of mobile video in shopping;
- The promise of live streaming.
Hootsuite’s recommendations to boost your sales:
- Set up shoppable Instagram posts;
- Share your products in action;
- Livestream your product demos;
- Experiment with AR to showcase your product in real-life scenarios.
Learn more: The 5 Instagram Trends That Will Define 2019 – Planable
5. Messaging Eats the World
Customers demand better 1-1 social experiences.
Top messaging apps now eclipse traditional social media users worldwide.
People are spending more time on messaging and less time sharing news on social.
Top messaging apps collectively count nearly 5 billion monthly active users.
source: Hootsuite
The shift from public from private spaces will have a profound impact on consumer expectations:
- 90% of customers would like to use messaging to communicate with businesses;
- 69% of respondents in USA said that directly messaging a brand helps them feel more confident about the brand.
The impact of messaging:
Consumers retreat to private spaces
Consumers don’t want more ads; smart brands will use messaging for high value conversations.
The need for unified inboxes
Because messaging volume increases, unified inboxes are a cross-channel platform attaching, routing and responding to all messaging inquiries.
The rise of AI and bots
AI and bots will take on the most repetitive activities so human workers can focus on complex high value exchanges.
Hootsuite’s recommendations for brands to leverage the power of messaging:
- Enable Facebook Messenger;
- Use messaging apps to streamline customer service queries;
- Set up bots for FAQ;
- Run campaigns that incorporate messaging apps.
Learn more: How to Use Chatbots to Increase Sales
Join the Conversation
Get in touch with us on Facebook and Twitter. We’d love to hear what you have to say.
PwC: 5 MegaTrends Affecting Your Business in 2019 (1 of 2)
PwC has identified 5 global Megatrends that shape our world. This article explores these Megatrends looking at the way they affect the global business environment.
As business owners and entrepreneurs it’s paramount to have a good grip on the present and also stand on the threshold of the future.
Let’s see how these Megatrends identified by PwC are shaping our business environment on a global scale and what you can do to make the best of them.
Megatrends: 5 global shifts affecting your business in 2019
- Rapid urbanisation;
- Climate change and resource scarcity;
- Shift in global economic power;
- Demographic and social change;
- Technological breakthroughs.
1. RAPID URBANISATION
Today, more than half the world’s population live in urban areas and almost all of the new growth will take place in lesser known medium-sized cities of developing countries.
PwC
Challenges
Increasing global urban population: 1.5 million people migrate to cities every week.
Cities generate most of the world’s GDP: 85% in 2015.
Cities stay at the heart of any economic development because they harness the power of economies of scale; they add value for people and companies thanks to their ability to attract talent, ideas, share knowledge and support businesses development.
Cities elevate the living standards of their citizens. China is an excellent case in point:
500 million Chinese people were lifted out of poverty in less than 30 years becoming China’s booming middle class thanks to their developing cities.
[bctt tweet=”Cities represent a major opportunity for business thus becoming breeding grounds for wealth-creation” username=”brand_minds via @PwC_UK”]
To achieve that, cities must do the following:
- Increase competition with other cities for talent, investment and firms;
- Enhance levels of participation in city governance;
- Improve connectivity;
- Stimulate small business enterprises;
- Deliver inclusive infrastructure;
- Support sharing economies and micro industries.
One of the major opportunities that comes for the business environment is the emergence of new business models for delivering public services.
The current model of urbanisation is unsustainable. A crucial policy implication for government and business is not just to make the mega city workable but to address the urbanisation challenge at its source by helping to combat the distressed migration of 200,000 people a day from the countryside to the city.
PwC
The direction in which cities develop and evolve is shaped by the joint actions of city governments, citizens and businesses.
Solutions
- Businesses must act towards taking greater responsibility for the following: service delivery, infrastructure investment, environment protection etc;
- Job creation.
source: PwC
For large international businesses, rapid urbanisation will mean the creation of new markets. In their effort to expand globally, these companies should adopt a careful approach on how to position themselves in order to tap into the newly discovered potential.
Businesses will also see a change in their behaviours too.
The private sector will be challenged to be more open, sustainable, collaborative, innovative and flexible in their approaches.
PwC
2. CLIMATE CHANGE AND RESOURCE SCARCITY
As the world becomes more populous, urbanised and prosperous, demand for energy, food and water will rise. But the Earth has a finite amount of natural resources to satisfy this demand.
PwC
The world’s current economic model is pushing beyond the limits of the planet’s ability to cope.
Challenges
In the last years, the scientific community’s predictions were proven to be right. Unfortunately they were accurate about the rate and effect of human impact on the climate.
The planet is no longer able to support current models of production and consumption.
The rising temperatures are predicted to lead to significant and potentially irreversible environmental changes. The pressure on natural resources is expected to increase dramatically.
The numbers show that a growing global population will also mean a 35% increase in food demand by 2030. Also demand for water will increase by 40% and for energy by 50%. In Africa, another consequence of climate change is reduced agricultural productivity by ⅓ over the next 60 years.
The link between trends in climate change and resource scarcity is a stark reality and needs to be addressed appropriately.
Solutions
The global economic development will be sustainable, or it won’t be at all.
Businesses that are largely dependent on natural resources – water, land, energy – or are polluting the environment have already begun their transformation journey into responsible, ethical, waste-reducing companies. In order to achieve this goal, businesses have embraced innovation.
Learn more: Dell and Nikki Reed – Gold Jewellery made from Electronic Waste
Unpredictable climate changes and environmental policies will bring organisational changes. Businesses must assume a leading role in alleviating environmental damage while working internally to adapt to changes by adopting organisational agility.
Learn more: 22 Benefits of the Agile Organisation
Businesses must reassess their purposes. In order to survive in this challenging environment, businesses must acknowledge the need to become more than a source of profit for their shareholders. Business leaders need to look further and beyond earning money; they need to understand and measure their company’s impacts on society and environment. Businesses need to develop an ecosystem that spans over a longer period of time for ROI.
[bctt tweet=”The global economic development will be sustainable, or it won’t be at all.” username=”brand_minds via @PwC_UK”]
Companies need to become aware that moving towards a business model that is sustainable and ethical is a powerful differentiator. As various reports show, 66% of global Millennials are willing to spend more on brands that are sustainable.
3. SHIFT IN GLOBAL ECONOMIC POWER
Challenges
Between 2014-2016 many emerging markets experienced a decline in economic performance when commodity prices dropped.
Here are a few examples:
- Brazil and Russia are now in recession;
- A former champion of economic growth, China is slowing down;
- On the other hand, India is growing thanks to the following: being a net importer of oil and other commodities and therefore a beneficiary of lower global prices, more business-friendly policies to stimulate economic development and growth.
PwC has projected that
India could overtake the USA as the world’s second largest economy by 2050 (based on GDP at purchasing power parities) and should be the third largest economy ahead of Japan by 2030.
source: PwC
Solutions
Businesses that are investing, or already invested, in emerging economies will need to make a careful assessment of whether and, if so, how they should manage in these more volatile market conditions, where prospects look less certain today than they did even a few years ago.
[bctt tweet=”Brazil and Russia are in recession, China is slowing down, India is growing. ” username=”brand_minds via @PwC_UK”]
Join us next week to read part 2 of PwC: MegaTrends Affecting your Business in 2019.
Join the Conversation
Get in touch with us on Facebook and Twitter. We’d love to hear your views!
source: https://www.pwc.co.uk/issues/megatrends.html
BRAND MINDS’ Guide to Successful Digital Marketing in 2019
Do you want your digital marketing to be successful in 2019?
Use BRAND MINDS‘ Guide to Successful Digital Marketing!
The world of marketing, especially digital marketing, is fast paced and ever changing. Blink and you might just miss the next big trend.
Implement the following 8 tips for digital marketing success in 2019:
1. Use Digital as a Key Component to TTL Campaigns
The important thing to remember with marketing today is that it’s no longer just about marketing digitally. Digital marketing has transitioned to marketing in a digital world, which creates more scope for campaigns.
I believe that digital marketing should be used as part of TTL marketing campaigns, so that your message gets attention from both ATL and BTL audiences. Online or offline, all areas should be explored when it comes to positioning your brand and aligning it with your audience. This will help you to maximise your reach and generate more leads and conversions.
It’s important to remember that by advertising across a variety of different platforms, you are expanding your audience. Some people believe that to be a good marketer, you should focus on one platform and do that right, but I believe that by advertising in as many places as possible, you gain increased visibility and generate stronger branding.
PR and Digital Marketing are also becoming ever more intertwined, with brands gaining exposure and building links across a variety of platforms. Co-marketing and influencer marketing are also great ways to increase reach and awareness.
[bctt tweet=”Use Digital as a Key Component to TTL Campaigns” username=”brand_minds”]
2. Personalisation
Clever personalisation is the key for effective marketing in 2019.
Gone are the days when a blanket email campaign would suffice. It is vital to segment your audience into relevant sub categories and to target the relevant cross sections with the most relevant offers and information.
Generating personal recommendations on your page is also a great way to get more sales. Link sell by showcasing popular items purchased by others after searching on the page that your user is on. If consumer behaviour is anything to go by, you should definitely see an increase in your conversions. This tailored user journey is also easy to navigate and enjoyable for your customer.
[bctt tweet=”Clever personalisation is the key for effective marketing in 2019″ username=”brand_minds”]
3. Chatbots
Chatbots and AI have become essential tools for online customer service. Save on time and money by implementing chatbot technology to answer FAQs quickly and effectively.
Over the next five years, the use of bot messengers will be ramping up and chatbots will perform 80% of all communication with customers. Chatbots can be connected to websites, apps and social media platforms to answer customer enquiries and to gather important user information that can be used to create better marketing strategies.
Learn more: How To Use Chatbots To Increase Sales
Grand View Research did a study in to the global chatbot market and discovered that the market had a 24% annual growth rate which amounted to $1.2 billion last year alone. 45% of end users also prefer using them as a primary mode of communication in customer service too apparently.
[bctt tweet=”Save on time and money by implementing chatbot technology to answer FAQs quickly and effectively” username=”brand_minds”]
4. Voice Search
Voice interfaces are becoming an ever more common feature in modern homes and people are using voice searches and features to search quickly and to share information via soundbytes.
According to Google nearly one third of the 3.5 billion searches performed on Google every day are voice searches. Personal assistant devices are used for the majority of these searches.
Like any form of SEO, voice search gives precedence to high ranking sites. Being an authority in your industry, responsive search functions and active social channels will help to boost your ranking. According to studies content with high levels of social engagement performs well on voice search, with content with over 1199 shares on Facebook and 44 on Twitter featuring more predominantly in search.
Other factors to consider are the use of https instead of http and remember to pay attention to your snippets. You’re increasing your chance of being discovered in voice search if your snippet becomes a featured one.
Take care to tailor your description of what your page is about for good ranking. Backlinko state that 40.7% of voice searches come from featured snippets which is staggeringly high. Be sure to use this to your advantage.
[bctt tweet=”Optimise your website for voice search” username=”brand_minds”]
5. Social Stories
With popular culture reigning supreme, Stories have quickly become the marketing choice for savvy marketers.
Since the launch of Snapchat back in 2011, social media users everywhere have been getting to grips with advanced technologies such as filters, augmented reality, boomerangs and superzoom to allow them to get creative and to generate captivating and engaging stories for their followers.
Learn more: 3 E-Commerce Brands Using Instagram Stories Effectively
Instagram Stores and Facebook Live became pivotal tools for story-telling in 2018 and will continue to do so in 2019.
According to Instagram, one in every five organic stories prompts at least one customer message. This is probably because these ads appear native in their format and are less interruptive than other social media ads. Either way the potential is huge.
[bctt tweet=”Be smart in 2019 and use Stories to your advantage.” username=”brand_minds”]
6. Video
Video will continue to grow in 2019.
Live video is being used more and more to showcase and raise awareness for important brand moments. Videos have 135% times more organic reach than your typical Facebook post with 1200% more engagement than image and text posts (Forbes).
Learn more: How To Increase Conversions With Video Marketing
The stats below show the importance of video for brand:
- 70% of consumers say that they have shared a brand’s video (via Wyzowl);
- 72% of businesses say video has improved their conversion rate (via Wyzowl);
- 65% of executives visit the marketer’s website and 39% call a vendor after viewing a video (via Forbes);
- 52% of consumers say that watching product videos makes them more confident in online purchase decisions (via Invodo).
The important thing to remember is that several companies have created 360 videos in the past year – especially for showcasing things like weddings and interiors. This trend will continue to grow in 2019.
The full capacity of 360 video has yet to be uncovered. This is just the tip of the iceberg and what’s to come will be even more exciting.
[bctt tweet=”Use 360 videos to showcase your products” username=”brand_minds”]
7. Micro Moments
Google’s research teams have uncovered a new type of consumer behaviour called the micro moment. These moments seemingly occur when people reflexively turn to a device to either learn something, do something, get to know something or buy something.
Google have coined these moments the:
- I-want-to-know
- I-want-to-do
- I-want-to-go
- I-want-to-buy
Users experience these moments 150 times a day according to Think with Google. The trick with this is to target consumers with exactly what they want at that right moment to increase conversion rates.
[bctt tweet=”Leverage the Micro-moments to increase conversion rates” username=”brand_minds”]
8. AR/VR
Both augmented reality – which layers virtual components on a real life backdrop, and virtual reality – which creates an entirely virtual world that can be accessed via a headset, will become a bigger part of experiential marketing in 2019.
These tools aid in the decision making process for products that need to be visualised before purchase. The AR/VR experience is incredibly beneficial for interior design, weddings, clothing and beauty products to name but a few.
Learn more: 3 Snapchat Campaigns Powered by Augmented Reality
Clothing giants Gucci and Zara have both used AR in their marketing campaigns over the past year. Gucci launched the ‘Gucci Hallucination’ in 52 of its stores, while Zara introduced AR screens that showcase their lookbook in 120 stores. These screens have sensors that interact with mobile devices to facilitate easy shopping in one simple click, bringing a truly futuristic element to their marketing and marking a significant increase in conversions.
[bctt tweet=”Use AR/VR to shorten your customers’ decision making process” username=”brand_minds”]
Key Takeaways
- Marketing today is no longer just about marketing digitally;
- Use digital marketing as part of your TTL marketing campaigns;
- Clever personalisation is key for effective marketing in 2019;
- Save on time and money by implementing chatbot technology to answer FAQs quickly and effectively;
- Optimise your website for voice search;
- Pay attention to your snippets: 40.7% of voice searches come from featured snippets;
- Use Social Stories to your advantage;
- Use 360 videos to showcase your products;
- Leverage the Micro-moments;
- Use AR/VR to shorten your customers’ decision making process.
Join the Conversation
Now that you’ve read our BRAND MINDS’ Guide to Digital Marketing in 2019, we’d love to hear what you have to say. What will you be implementing in your marketing plan for the coming year?
Get in touch with us on Facebook and Twitter. We’d love to hear your views!
Save the Date: 4 Blockchain Events for Entrepreneurs in 2019
When talking about the future of business, Blockchain is on every entrepreneur’s mind.
You may know Blockchain is valuable, but understanding how Blockchain works and how your business can benefit from it, can be a challenge.
Business events focused on Blockchain are opportunities for entrepreneurs to receive valuable information, to connect and network with professionals and be inspired to take their business to the next level.
Here are 4 Blockchain events that entrepreneurs can attend in 2019:
BLOCKCHAIN EXPO
- Date: April 25-26, 2019
- Location: London, UK
- Info: https://blockchain-expo.com/global/
image source: blockchain-expo.com
Blockchain Expo is a blockchain focused conference and exhibition event dedicated to blockchain experts, enthusiasts and entrepreneurs.
The conference is dedicated to delivering top-level keynotes, interactive panel discussions, solution-based case studies and free workshops.
The conference aims at exploring the industries that are set to be disrupted the most by this new technology: manufacturing, retail, financial services, legal, healthcare, insurance, energy, music, government and real estate.
The speaker lineup features executives from major companies like Coca-Cola, IBM, Allianz, Deutsche Bank, Kodak etc.
FUTURE BLOCKCHAIN SUMMIT
- Date: April 3-4, 2019
- Location: Dubai, United Arab Emirates
- Info: https://www.futureblockchainsummit.com/
image source: twitter.com/futblocksum
Future Blockchain Summit is the gateway to the world’s most advanced blockchain government and a meeting ground for industry leaders and tech start-ups.
During two days more than 1500 people will hear from over 60 speakers specialising in all areas of the blockchain ecosystem. Throughout the two days blockchain enthusiasts can connect with the blockchain leaders of the Dubai government and cutting edge global and startup tech leaders.
The summit’s topics range from smart cities, energy and finance to real estate, healthcare and education.
The event is rich in content and very dynamic for attendees: panel discussions, case studies presentations, networking opportunities, exhibitions and showcases.
THE BLOCKCHAIN EVENT
- Date: January 31-February 1, 2019
- Location: Fort Lauderdale, USA
- Info: https://www.theblockchainevent.com/east/
image source: theblockchainevent.com
The Blockchain Event is dedicated to all entrepreneurs, developers and investors interested to learn everything about blockchain business models.
This event’s attendees will learn how ICOs and cryptocurrencies can be leveraged to gain customers, add value to company offerings and differentiate products and services.
Industry experts and founders of cutting-edge global startups will discuss CBOE attention, potential regulation, security concerns and what the future holds for blockchain.
CRYPTO EXPO ASIA
- Date: April 27, 2019
- Location: Manila, Philippines
- Info: https://philippines.cryptoexpo.asia/
image source: philippines.cryptoexpo.asia
The Crypto Expo Asia is not just about building network between crypto companies and gurus from all over the world but more so about getting to know what crypto world is actually about. Many up-to-date and vital questions of the crypto-world will be covered in the speaker hall and workshop rooms.
Here are a few topics that will be discussed: Blockchain business, Blockchain digital identification, ICO and White Paper projects, Crypto-exchange, cryptocurrency and crypto-trading, cryptocurrency futures, mining as actual business etc
This event is dedicated to brokers and investment companies, private investors, insurance, financial and HR organizations, traders, media, software developers, payment systems, law firms.
