The world of digital marketing continues to change in 2012 - that’s for sure - since speed, location, and the way people communicate is in general differing in some way year after year.

Today, social networks and real-time communications are part of our daily lives and mobile devices allow us to be online anytime and anywhere and this development will continue to increase this year.

Marketers have to prepare to meet the challenges of change that also fortunately hold unprecedented new opportunities. Just look back at 2011, the year showed the dynamics the market holds, such as the fact that anti-spam filters are becoming behavior-based or that segmentation and targeting became more significant, not to mention that mobile marketing and geo-targeting have finally become reality and email campaigns are now set up to fit on the smaller screen, all signs are pointing to an exciting year ahead for advertisers.

Video integration is again relevant

It’s nothing new, but video integration will regain more importance in 2012 simply due to the fact that solutions to deliver and present videos have become smarter. New technologies support the display of appropriate content directly via an email program or stream video via certification programs of certain internet service providers (ISP) when it wasn't possible before. A pleasant development, since video streams are highly suitable for brand awareness and simple to use since it can be forwarded via an email that brings the effects of a viral spot particularly well into play. It is nevertheless recommended that inclusions of videos should be well-selected otherwise any positive effect could quickly disappear. In addition, the video should be short according to the consumer's attention which is usually quite limited. Don’t forget to integrate the possibility of forwarding and registering for the newsletter when making use of viral videos and remember that under no circumstances should advertising blocks be installed. In addition, providing different versions for different internet bandwidths is an advantage and don’t miss to check on how the videos are displayed on mobile devices.

Customer Experience Management (CEM)

Marketing communications should be geared to the benefit of consumers, who today have more opportunities than ever, as they can buy anywhere at any time. They can even interact easily with specific information resources before making or confirming their final purchase decision. Usually, they have specific preferences regarding the way they wish to receive such information, which makes it increasingly important to address customers through their most comfortable channel, ISPs will therefore play a more crucial role in the future.

Social Marketing on the Rise

In addition to Facebook and Twitter, Google also started its Google+ social network for businesses in November 2011, which widens the possibilities of targeted communication with the consumer. These networks are well suited for service or for integrated shops, but they are still scarce. Of course, the daily growing numbers of users in social networks make it interesting for marketers as it could become an important channel, but time will tell.

LifeCycle Email Marketing and Real-Time Messaging (RTM) will expand further

The concepts of LifeCycle Email marketing and RTM are already an indispensable tool for advertisers, the more pleasing it is to see that marketers start to implement them more often into their daily business routine. All in all the world of online marketing is evolving rapidly and it is becoming more and more crucial to send the right message at the right time via the right channel.

Whether social media, data quality, or email marketing, all signs are pointing to growing dialogues in sales and marketing. If you are looking to mix it up, continue reading Asian e-Marketing and stay informed on the hottest digital trends you may want to consider adding to your online plan this year.

By Daniela La Marca