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Digital Trends to Watch in 2012

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Luckie & Company's Director of Digital Strategy Chris Zobel provides our annual look at digital trends for the new year, including advances in HTML5, cloud-based music and smartphone adoption.

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Page 1: Digital Trends to Watch in 2012
Page 2: Digital Trends to Watch in 2012

As consumers continue to use digital platforms for commerce, communication, socializing, entertainment and so on, they become more of a moving target when it comes to marketing. Additionally, they are also becoming more savvy and educated about how they want to be marketed to. Knowing this, 2012 will be the year of tailoring content to the consumer – give consumers what they want based on who they are. This is where the data is most important. By collecting kits and pieces of data, clients will be able to tailor messaging to the consumers. Based on consumers’ online behavior, we can determine their needs, interests and points of relevance in order to know them better. Once we have a clearer picture of our audience, we can allocate resources, content and media to the appropriate targets. It’s about creating awareness for those who are not yet aware, instead of blanketing the masses with the same message. We will need to follow the consumers, on their terms, through the purchase cycles, creating multiplatform touch-points along the way. The best news is that all of the marketing efforts and multi-touch initiatives will help lead to a higher return on media investment.

Data and Content Will Reign Supreme Data and Content Will Reign Supreme

As consumers continue to use digital platforms for commerce, communication, socializing and entertainment, they become more of a moving target when it comes to marketing. They are also becoming more educated and savvier about how they want to be marketed to.

Knowing this, 2012 will be the year of tailoring content to the consumer, giving them what they want based on who they are. This is where the data is most important. By collecting bits and pieces of data, clients will be able to tailor messaging to the consumers. Based on consumers’ online behavior, we can determine their needs, interests and points of relevance. Once we have a clearer picture of our audience, we can allocate resources, content and media to the appropriate targets. It’s about creating awareness for those who are not yet aware instead of blanketing the masses with the same message. We will need to follow the consumers, on their terms, through the purchase cycles, creating multiplatform touchpoints along the way.

The best news is that marketing efforts and multitouch initiatives will help lead to a higher return on media investment.

Page 3: Digital Trends to Watch in 2012

Image Source: inlog.org

2-D codes are not dead yet. We witnessed a lot more coverage of 2-D codes in 2011. Lowe’s placed Microsoft Tags on every item in its stores and reached out to manufacturers to give them the opportunity to build against the tags that were created. Home Depot will follow suit. Fashion has always been ahead of the curve, and the industry was the first to use tags more effectively. Marketing campaigns for other industries are now incorporating innovative content behind the codes instead of just static websites. I’m not going to beat this horse again in 2012, but you should definitely incorporate 2-D codes into your plans, when it makes sense, and drive users to relevant content.

2-D Codes

Page 4: Digital Trends to Watch in 2012

Image Source: digisquared.com

Cloud-based music streaming is going to be awesome in 2012 – as long as it’s free. Therein lies the challenge to business models. Some users are willing to pay the premium for unlimited, multidevice access to tunes – between $36 and $120, depending on the services. However, with Spotify and Pandora dishing out free music as long as you can stand the ads and you don’t pass the capped hours of listening, the paid model is a little less appealing. Additionally, most users have a la carte services that they still use, like iTunes, Amazon and Google. What’s the answer? We don’t know yet. 2012 will be the year to see how well models fare in the current music-listening economy.

Music in the Clouds

Page 5: Digital Trends to Watch in 2012

Image Source: wikipedia.org

Gamers, we know who you are. 65% of U.S. households have game consoles, and 49% of gamers are between the ages of 18 and 49. The average age of a gamer is 32 years old. From a demographic stance, gaming is a big target. Also, when you look at the number and types of games out there, clients are able to pick and choose how to integrate. Besides in-game advertising, there’s also marketing implementation within marketplaces on game consoles. Many clients still think that gaming is about shoving a cartridge into the console. They’re not aware of the social aspects of the gaming community and that online gaming trumps single-player experiences. It’s time to get in the game.

Get in the Game: Brands’ Use of Gaming

Page 6: Digital Trends to Watch in 2012

Source: Comscore Image Source: apple.com, blackberry.com

2011 was the year when smartphone penetration leapt over the 50% mark. With the future of Research In Motion in the balance, along with the ever growing discontent among shareholders and BlackBerry users, this may be a banner year for the smartphone. Smartphone app usage, solid hardware/software and seamless integration with users’ music and cameras have been a threat to RIM. The one saving grace for the BlackBerry, believe it or not, is the keyboard. Users seem to love its tactile nature.

Smartphone Adoption Ready To Soar

Page 7: Digital Trends to Watch in 2012

Image Source: neowin.net, gizmodo.com

Microsoft Xbox and Kinect have blazed a path for gesture recognition usage. Bodies are now being used instead of a gaming controller. We also have Siri from Apple, eliminating the need to type into a search field. Add to that the multitouch screens on tablets and mobile devices. The digital society is becoming less reliant on interfacing with technology by touch and is entering an era of touch-free navigation. Mobile companies like Samsung and Nokia have been submitting patents for gesture-based mobile navigation since 2008. It’s just been a waiting game for the technology to catch up. Well, it’s caught up. In 2012, we look forward to seeing which companies will break the touch barrier and implement gesture-based control over mobile devices.

Gesture Recognition Navigation

Page 8: Digital Trends to Watch in 2012

Image Source: googleblog.blogspot.com

Google Wallet has started the ball rolling with mobile payments using near field communication (NFC) technology. Google has more than 150,000 merchants, as well as New York City cabbies, who accept the technology, and we expect this to grow. With any technology sector, there is an expectation that others will follow. Whether it’s using NFC like Google Wallet or issuing a barcode, much like the very successful Starbucks app, there will be many players in this category.

Mobile NFC and the Mobile Wallet

Page 9: Digital Trends to Watch in 2012

Image Source: apple.com

With the launch of the Apple iPhone 4S came a little voice on the phone. We call her Siri. And Siri is making waves. After a new user runs out of witty and fun requests, many of which can be found on the website shitsirisays.com, there are practical uses for the personal assistant. Siri is an innovative way to cut to the chase when looking up directions, texting, scheduling, etc. One thing Siri does of note is eliminate the middle man – namely, search. Users merely speak into their phones and get results. No more typing. No more scrolling. And this has many observers curious about how to leverage search in mobile if voice-controlled devices are the future. Be on the lookout to see how Android’s version of Siri, called Skyvi, will affect the search giants in their attempts to keep their share of the pie. Additionally, keep an eye on newcomers who might throw their hats in the ring.

Voice-controlled Search

Page 10: Digital Trends to Watch in 2012

Image Source: apple.com

It was reported late in 2011 that the highly anticipated Flash Mobile Player is dead. This comes after months of speculation about how Apple iPads would go on without Flash. Now we have the answer. However, the real question is that if tablet sales are increasing, how will advertisers react? The majority of display advertising is produced with Flash, and this poses a challenge. Additionally, website development has historically relied on Flash as a creative platform for video and animation. The prediction: high rate of adoption of HTML5. And that’s not just for websites but for display advertising as well. Marketers will be looking for the best way to leverage this technology to ensure that their message is seen and has impact.

HTML5

Page 11: Digital Trends to Watch in 2012

Director of Digital Strategy Chris Zobel

With more than 15 years of experience in the digital space, Chris heads up our digital strategy and planning group. Chris is tasked with developing customized digital marketing strategies for clients, as well as identifying opportunities and providing digital solutions to help support the full integration of digital media in everything we do. From online ads to online gaming, he finds the right place for the right message.

For further insight, you can follow Chris on Twitter @chriszobel.

[email protected]