Report Content

Introduction

Trend 1 #HarnessAIPotential - Unleashing the Power of AI Tools

Trend 2 #MakeTheBestChoice - Adapting Your Marketing Strategy with the Right Social Media Platform

Trend 3 #RapidReelRise - Surging Popularity of Short-Form Video Content

Trend 4 #SocialStarPower - Influencer Marketing's Ongoing Relevance and Adaptability

Navigating the Digital Marketing Industry in 2024

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Introduction

Amidst the rapidly evolving consumer behaviour and as online opportunities proliferate, businesses must harness the power of digital marketing to forge deeper connections with their target audience and navigate the ever-shifting landscape.

Drawing on data extracted from the Truescope platform - spanning the period from 1 June to 31 October 2023 - this whitepaper delved into four key trends shaping the digital marketing landscape:

• Unleashing the Power of AI Tools
• Tapping the Right Social Media Platforms
• Surging Popularity of Short-Form Video Content
• Ongoing Relevance and Adaptability of Influencer Marketing

Each trend offers valuable insights, practical ideas, real-world examples and recommendations for marketers looking to stay ahead in today's dynamic landscape. Businesses could unlock new growth opportunities, engage their target audience effectively, and drive success in the digital era.

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TREND 1 #HarnessAIPotential - Unleashing the Power of AI Tools

Introduction‍

Data sourced from Truescope’s platform indicated the increasing importance of leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) for digital marketing to enable businesses to remain competitive in the digital landscape. Topics pertaining to AI and generative AI in digital marketing generated 3,863 articles.
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Top AI Tools in Digital Marketing‍

Of all the AI tools mentioned, OpenAI’s ChatGPT was prominently highlighted with mentions in 83.3% of the articles. Discussions largely revolved around how companies utilised ChatGPT, and how it improved operational reliability and visibility of their marketing campaigns.

In an article published by GritDaily, Jorge Uceda, a marketing specialist at Sortlist, noted that ChatGPT’s added extensions could boost its power to serve their needs. They used its capacity to extract insights from a big survey that was done and to compare it with the conclusions from other studies.

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Another article crawled by Truescope's platform featured an interview with Transform CDE Founder Veronica Hannon, who boasts an impressive B2B marketing and PR journey spanning over two decades. She shared an insight about how an international assessment organisation had harnessed the power of ChatGPT for their SEO blogs, thereby freeing up the content team to conduct higher-level insights discovery work.

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ChatGPT 

The word cloud on ChatGPT highlighted keywords such as Lively Worldwide, Global Creative Innovation Agency and Karasin PPC, revealing how these companies utilised ChatGPT. Lively Worldwide agency garnered attention this year as one of the first creative agencies to introduce a ChatGPT-powered website experience.
Meanwhile, Karasin PPC employed ChatGPT to efficiently discover citations and resources resulting in significant time savings of approximately 15 to 20 hours per week. However, Joe Karasin, founder of Karasin PPC, emphasised the importance of verifying information for accuracy.

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Google Bard

Google Bard and GPT-4 also generated buzz for their SEO capabilities. Google Bard helped digital marketers refine their SEO tactics by optimising on-page elements, analysing competition, and providing technical SEO advice.

There were 17 other AI tools with less than a percentage share in captured articles. These included Jasper AI, Instatext, Customer.io, Hootsuite, MailChimp, ZoomIQ, Bing AI, Dall-E, Synthesia, Notion AI, Microsoft 365 Co-pilot, Luminar, Taplio, Galileo AI, Aidaptive, Storyd, and Heyday.

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How can Digital Marketers leverage ChatGPT?

SiteTrail was prominently featured in articles about digital marketing. It was highlighted how the company leveraged on the power of AI with ChatGPT at the forefront of this initiative. SiteTrail Integrated ChatGPT into its strategic and day-to-day operations resulting to streamlined processes and significant cost savings.

Through predictive analytics and customer behaviour modelling, ChatGPT helped identify potential leads more effectively than manual processes, allowing them to scale up lead generation while improving customer engagement. This culminated in an impressive 80% reduction in digital marketing costs for SiteTrail's clients, enabling them to achieve better ROI and allocate resources more efficiently.

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Trend 2 #MakeTheBestChoice - Adapting Your Marketing Strategy with the Right Social Media Platform

Social media remained at the forefront of online reports about digital marketing strategies. A total of 1,960 articles were crawled on Truescope platform, with content centred on harnessing social media platforms as part of one’s marketing strategy.

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Facebook

Garnered the highest percentage share of 30.5% on threads about digital marketing

Influencer Marketing Hub’s article featured social media marketing services utilising Facebook in their marketing strategies to form business and personal connections for building communities online.

MarketingTech’s article stated that OnlyAccounts.io data disclosed that 90% of marketers use Facebook for social media advertising with 53% planning to increase usage in future. Instagram and LinkedIn were the second and third most used platforms for social media advertising with an 80% and 65% share respectively.

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Instagram

With a 28.1% percentage share, Instagram was underscored as primarily being used for influencer and partner collaborations, sharing of user-generated content, ideal for product-based businesses given its photo-sharing focus, and targeting millennials or younger audiences.

An article crawled by Truescope's platform highlighted insights from Instagram CEO Adam Mosseri's explanation of Instagram’s ranking, sharing how businesses should tailor their marketing strategies accordingly.

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LinkeIn

LinkedIn had a 15.5% share, with digital marketers highlighting it as the most effective platform in the B2B space, particularly for hosting webinars and events, and conducting other networking activities. Additionally, 80% of B2B marketers used LinkedIn in the past year according to as stated in Insider Intelligence's article.

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Podcasts: The Bold New World of Advertising

Podcasts are a rapidly growing medium with immense potential for digital marketing strategies as platforms like Spotify rise in popularity. For instance, the Exploding Topics article noted that there were over 464.7 million podcast listeners worldwide. Additionally, U.S. Podcast Advertising Revenue Study projected that the industry would generate $4 billion between 2022-2025, proving it to be a profitable market for businesses and media outlets.

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Demographics (as of January 2023)

Marketers can effectively tailor their strategies by leveraging diverse demographics across different social media platforms.

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On Facebook, with 29.9% of all users in the 25-34 age group, marketers may tailor their content and products emphasising authenticity, storytelling, and visual elements.

Instagram, with its predominant age groups being 18-24 and 25-34, is ideal for engaging a younger, visually-oriented audience, optimal for lifestyle and fashion brands.

LinkedIn’s user demographics showed 60% are aged 25-34, providing a platform for marketers targeting a career-oriented demographic making it suitable for B2B marketing or professional services.

Given YouTube’s demographic composition and its nature as a visual platform with a broad reach, marketers must create a diverse range of content incorporating visually appealing and interactive elements that cater to the interests of users across different age groups.

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Maximising the impact of Gymshark’s fitness movement

Gymshark’s fitness movement thrived on Instagram platform, where it effectively used workout videos and inspirational imagery of real people achieving real results. The brand followed Instagram's CEO Adam Mosseri‘s approach of posting content that resonates with the target audience since this platform is teeming with fitness enthusiasts and lifestyle audiences.

Collaborating with influencers who embody a fit and healthy lifestyle further demonstrated how collaboration with like-minded creators can significantly expand a brand's reach. In addition to Instagram, Gymshark also uses YouTube, TikTok and X.

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Trend 3  #RapidReelRise - Surging Popularity of Short-Form Video Content

Introduction

Short-form video marketing's surge in popularity is linked to social media platforms with video-sharing capabilities. These platforms offer businesses and marketers an efficient and visually appealing way to connect with their target audience.

Leveraging Truescope's platform, we collected a comprehensive dataset of over 10,300 articles to evaluate the popularity and effectiveness of prominent social media platform for short-form video marketing.

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#1 Instagram Reels

Instagram Reels emerged as the leading platform for short-form video marketing. Its dominance could be attributed to its visually captivating format, extensive user engagement, and seamless integration with the wider Instagram user base.

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#2 Facebook Reels

Facebook Reels, which was launched in February 2022, had the second-highest impressions. Despite the feature being relatively new, it has enjoyed much success, likely benefitting from the substantial user base on Facebook which stands at approximately three billion monthly active users as of the third quarter of 2023, according to Statista.

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#3 TikTok

TikTok ranked third in impressions. Despite TikTok's high engagement rates among users, the choice to use TikTok for short-form video marketing is dependent on factors such as brand culture and aesthetic fit. TikTok's emphasis on trends, challenges and humour may not be suitable for all brands.

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#4 YouTube Shorts

YouTube Shorts' global monthly active usage is seeing two billion in 2022 and 2023 according to Statista, which points to its growth potential for short-form video marketing. Nonetheless, the differences in content styles and monetisation will weigh on marketers' minds when deciding which platform to tap.

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Emerging Powerhouse: YouTube Shorts in the Short-Form Video Marketing Platform for 2024

Despite ranking fourth in terms of impressions, YouTube’s Shorts emerged as one of the top key phrases for short-form video marketing according to the data gathered from the Truescope platform.

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An article from Statista stated that YouTube Shorts is rapidly gaining momentum, with 43% of respondents reporting client advertising on the platform according to a survey conducted by Insider Intelligence.

Another article by Campaign Asia noted that YouTube's resurgence ended three-quarters of decline, boosting Alphabet's Q2 revenue and profit beyond forecasts. The video streaming segment saw a 4% Y-o-Y increase in Q2 advertising revenue to $7.7 billion and a notable 15% jump from Q1.

Additionally, as reported by The Business Times Singapore, X (formerly Twitter) experienced a recent decline due to Elon Musk's changes. Advertisers and major brands redirected their funds to platforms like YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and Snapchat, missing X's prime advertising period.

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NewJeans’ Promotion Success with YouTube Shorts

Truescope’s data also showed hashtag #imsupershy among the top-ranked hashtags, accumulating over 21 million potential impressions. The movement associated with this hashtag was spearheaded by the South Korean girl group 'NewJeans,' who released their EP on July 21, 2023.

New Jeans partnered with YouTube Shorts for the exclusive premiere of their song 'Super Shy.' They also introduced a dance trend, urging their fans to share choreography covers on YouTube Shorts using the #imsupershy hashtag. This initiative swiftly sparked significant engagements from fans who were looking forward to their music.

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Marketing Potential: YouTube Shorts for Marketers

YouTube Shorts is anticipated to lead short-form video marketing in 2024. It is riding on growing user interest and engagement, prompting widespread adoption by marketers who acknowledge its potential. This mirrors the ongoing trend in the industry of reallocating advertising budgets from other platforms.

Its large user base, financial success and backed case studies have further cemented its standing in the short-form video marketing landscape. Digital marketers are advised to closely monitor and integrate this platform into their marketing strategies.

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Trend 4 #SocialStarPower

Influencer Marketing's Ongoing Relevance and Adaptability

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Introduction

Influencer marketing, affiliate marketing, and user-generated content (UGC) are vital components of modern digital marketing. But what really differentiates the three?

• Influencer marketing relies on partnerships with influential individuals to reach a specific audience.
• Affiliate marketing is a performance-based approach where partners promote products and earn commissions for conversions.
• UGC involves user-created content that showcases real experiences and opinions.

These strategies can work together effectively to enhance a brand's marketing efforts, with influencers promoting products and encouraging UGC, while affiliate marketing extends a brand's reach through partnerships with publishers.

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Truescope platform's word cloud feature identified key phrases that dominated content related to influencer marketing, affiliate marketing and UGC. Noteworthy phrases include: 'influencer marketing', influencer marketing technology,' 'top social influencers,' and 'influencer marketing platform.'

One study conducted by the Influencer Marketing Hub mentioned that the industry is expected to have a  steady growth and will become a $21.1 billion industry, marking a substantial 29% increase from the previous year's $16.4 billion. This showcases the tremendous growth trajectory and potential of influencer marketing.

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Brand Preference: TikTok Leads at 56%

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TikTok continues to gain ground in the digital marketing landscape. Despite the relative lack of mainstream media content about this platform during the monitoring period, market research companies cited TikTok as the most popular influencer marketing platform according to Influencer Marketing Hub State of Influencer Marketing Benchmark Report.

It was selected by 56% of brands, surpassing Instagram which stood at 51%. Facebook and YouTube was selected by 42% and 38% of brands, respectively.

Sources: TikTok and IMH (Influencer Marketing Hub)

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The State of Influencer Marketing Benchmark Report also noted that influencers with over 1 million followers experience the highest engagement rates on TikTok, averaging 10.53% in engagements, and 15.04% for accounts with 1,000 to 5,000 followers.

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How Pizza Hut's Deal Lover's Menu is Taking a Slice of the TikTok 'Girl Math' Trend

Utlising influencer marketing as one of their strategies, American multinational restaurant chain Pizza Hut adopted TikTok's 'girl math' trend with the Deal Lover's Menu. Pizza Hut partnered with TikTok influencer Anna Sitar who had 12 million followers, and asserted the $7 menu items align with the affordable girl math concept. Inspired by the idea that "anything under $5 feels like it's pretty much free," Pizza Hut positioned their items as smart and budget-friendly choices.

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Pizza Hut's marketing achieved 18 million positive engagements on various online platforms. Content creators also joined the trend with the hashtag #GirlMath, giving shoutouts to Pizza Hut.

Pizza Hut's Chief Marketing Officer Lindsay Morgan was quoted in a Cision PR Newswire article that Girl Math has been taking over social feeds with a comical twist on what they find to be a 'good deal'. She said that this is fitting for Pizza Hut’s new$7 Deal Lover's Menu and felt like it was the right time to get in on the joke for the menu launch.

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Building Visibility: The Influencer Advantage for Brands

Pizza Hut's partnership with Anna Sitar showcased the impact of influencer collaborations in boosting brand messages. Digital marketers could glean insights from this strategy, tapping into current social media trends for effective brand promotion.

Collaborating with niche influencers that aligns with the brand's image and values amplifies brand reach and cultivates genuine connections with the target audience. Brands can leverage the influencers' credibility to enhance brand visibility and boost engagement within the target market

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Conclusion

In 2024, businesses should use AI tools, choose effective social media platforms, adopt short-form video marketing, and prioritise influencer marketing for success in the evolving industry.

AI tools such as ChatGPT and Bard have tremendous potential to streamline digital marketing activities by offering trend predictions, personalising content, enhancing customer experience and boosting operational efficiencies.

Marketers should strategically evaluate and select social media platforms based on their brand's values, target audience, and content style to ensure brand alignment and optimal engagement.

Consistent with the shift towards video-based content, social media platforms have developed their own short-form video offerings. Instagram may be a popular destination for short-form video content, however, other YouTube Shorts' dramatic rise and potential should not be ignored.

Influencer marketing, affiliate marketing, and user-generated content remain essential components of the digital marketing landscape. To maxmise impact, marketers should carefully select influencers who align with the brand's values, target audience, and overall identity.

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Navigating the Digital Marketing Industry in 2024

Drawing on insights from Truescope's global media sources, this whitepaper has identified trends shaping the digital marketing landscape. Harnessing the power of AI tools, strategically selecting social media platforms, capitalising on the rise of short-form video marketing, and leveraging the impact of influencer marketing are key trends marketers should embrace. By embracing these trends, marketers can unlock new growth opportunities, effectively engage their target audience, and attain success in the digital era.