5 Big Changes to Online Marketing in 2012

It would seem that the majority of businesses use only the Big 4 when it comes to Online Marketing- Google, Facebook, Twitter & Youtube. It is the mentality of why excel when you can putter along that most businesses put into their Online Marketing campaigns – you needn’t question it when you can get a decent ROI on the most basic SEM campaigns.

That’s ok. ROI is the bottom line but it isn’t where your online marketing aims stop. One should not limit their needs to the basis of money. Why not truly be innovative and offer some real creative projects? Like… x, y & z.

If you were to ask me what is happening past 2012 then look no further.

1. Creative & unique advertising campaigns are on the rise.

With the saturation of AdWords & Organic listings, it is going to become harder to break through any given market and attract customers. Think about it. If you aren’t niche there are maybe 1-4 words that drive 60% of your total traffic and only 10 spots + AdWords to be found on. Can you imagine starting up a lawfirm that specialises in mesothelioma in the US today? Good luck – you will be stuck for a good 2 years (and that’s with a highly focused & targeted campaign) before you start ranking highly.

This is where social media comes in. Think Old Spice – You couldn’t get away from that ad in 2011 even in Australia where the entirety of the product range is relegated to 1 item on the bottom shelf in Coles. Old spice was rejuvenated from a product your granddad would use to maybe i’ll wear it instead of Lynx. I firmly believe Social Media has a much bigger pay day & stability in business for new companies than SEO & AdWords – if done right. You can either go broad and viral or niche and recurring. Either way, you will get your name out there for the people looking for you – more to the point, it offers a unique look at your business with a human face attached. You just can’t be anonymous on the internet anymore, but you can give off a good first impression.

Just wait for the next big company to jump on Pinterest and do it right, the same way Old Spice did with YouTube.

2. Increasingly specific search.

Do you need a local real estate agent? Or a real estate agent in Hobart, Tasmania that specialises in subdivided property who can help you from planning it to constructing it and finally selling it at a fixed rate commission? Option A suits a broad need, Option B suits a specific need.

This ties into point 3. If your website isn’t specific enough page by page, you’ll miss out on converting customers who saw a competitors website that did. You cannot skip on the crucial piece of information that is on page content due to ignorance. You will get left behind without placign some serious thought into your website.

This is the nature of increasingly specific search – everybody wants your services, but few know about it without contacting you first off. You will see a real shift in the way businesses develop content on their website as long tail specific search starts generating more and more traffic.

3. More clicks on lower position listings or cross searching where information is scarce.

If you think having a website from the 80′s looks poor wait till you see the  REAL search trends in industries that are information poor. If your website is purely images and nothing else or doesn’t offer a single bar of in-depth information then your visitors are going to click back and down or cross search until they find a competitors websites or information sites that do.

Businesses are now, more than ever before, at the mercy of their customers. If you don’t realise what the customers needs before making your website, expect a very long and rough ride ahead as you put in trial and error guess work to start converting.

4. Social Media is becoming more and more powerful.

You cannot deny the time that people spend on social media websites. The daily average time a facebook user spends is nearly 2 hours which is significantly higher than what a user will spend on Google, and you can only tap into a few minutes of that 2 hours by playing the social media game.

In 2012, if you ignore social media any longer it will be to your detriment and no one elses. In fact, if you were to look at how strong social media mentions can be, I would value them a lot than a standard directory / blog comment link. There is talk of corellation between an increase in website rankings and social media. How can anyone deny the benefits?

5. Manage your reputation or your reputation will manage you.

You cannot sweep anything under the rug in 2012. If you are committed to selling snake oil then prepare to get the reputation that comes along with it. A clear example is this supplement by Onnit LLC called AlphaBrain. Basically it is endorsed by UFC commentator and comedian Joe Rogan who sponsors it on his podcast that is watched by hundreds of thousands of people and contains a sizeable forum who dissects each episode in length.

Naturally a lot of them listen to what Joe Rogan talks about and holds what he says in high esteem. Long story short, the supplement AlphaBrain contains a chemical called L-Dopa and the guy selling it is not the neuroscientist he claims to be and it is blowing up in his community big time. For Joe Rogan’s reputation this is extremely damaging and many peopel are talking out on the way he is banning people from his message board. Just wait until you see disgruntled community members start creating content that rankings for ‘Joe Rogan’ based around this debachle.

Those are my 5 observations. Comments? Hate mail? Leave them below.