2016 is here, and it’s a guarantee that you’ll see new and innovative strategies and ideas pop up in the digital marketing world. Here’s a list of marketing techniques that will play a big role in your 2016 digital marketing plan:

• Responsive Website: 2015 was a huge year for mobile! Google announced that mobile traffic finally overtook desktop traffic in 10 different countries! Google also released the “Mobilegeddon” algorithm update in an effort to phase out sites not optimized for mobile. Having a responsive website is something that’s going to make or break your online presence in the long run. If your website isn’t mobile responsive – you’re losing out on business/customers.
• Social Media Presence: With a number of alliances between Google and big social media players (i.e. Facebook and Twitter) it’s no wonder marketers are starting to head the social call. Your social media presence has both organic and paid benefits. For example, tweets are now returned in organic search results.

If you haven’t experienced the upgraded targeting ad features on Facebook, take the time to get familiar with it now. The retargeting and integrations within Facebook’s ads manager are powerful data driven features that have both marketing professionals and businesses excited!

Lastly, social media is one of the places that customers go to praise (or complain about) the businesses and brands that they use. Take advantage of this opportunity to be social on social media. Converse with your customers. Engage with them, because if you aren’t, you can be certain that other businesses are.

• Videos: Did you know that YouTube is the second largest search engine after Google? The number of searches on YouTube tops Bing, Yahoo, Ask.com, and AOL combined. YouTube is trumping actual search engines with search traffic! Forbes stated: “If you want to engage with millennials, video is a must-have marketing tactic.” Millennials prefer getting their entertainment and education on online platforms like YouTube, rather than traditional channels like television.
• Content: Fresh, new content is always going to be something that plays a large role in digital marketing strategies. Content helps build brand trust and loyalty, and helps define you as an expert in your field.
• App Development: As stated earlier, back in April, Google changed its algorithm to reward mobile friendly websites (Mobilegeddon). With that algorithm change, it also began using information from indexed apps as a factor in search rankings. Since April, something called app indexing, which drops app content into Google mobile search results, has taken off.

These aren’t the only trends that you will see in 2016. That’s the thing about digital marketing, it’s constantly changing and will continue to develop over time. As the old saying goes, “The early bird catches the worm.” Preparing for your 2016 marketing strategy now, rather than waiting until mid year is something that will greatly benefit your business.

Looking for a digital marketing expert to partner with? Contact Ferocious Media to speak with a Digital Media Consultant to talk strategy! We’ll help you identify the best digital marketing solution for your budget and goals.