Marketing trends for small business in 2022

While many small businesses spent a good portion of last year in recovery mode and weathered a tough year, the web world shows little sign of slowing down. As small businesses and owners take a look at new projects this year, they know they need to stay current to retain and attract new customers, clients and patients. From our recent research with world renowned companies,

Here are the top 10 trends for this year.

1. Real Images - From the lesson learned during the pandemic, real stories with real images are preferred over stock photos and images. So get out your best smartphone or hire a photographer for some real shots.

2. Vibrant Colours - After a challenging year, optimism and brighter days are driving brighter colours than the past softer pastels. This would be a good time to refresh your website and social media pages.

3. Multimedia - While many other media platforms have been pushing for rich media, websites and social media are expected to have video and podcasts as part of the user experience. Time to get out your mobile phone or video camera or an expert.

4. Smart SEO - SEO and quality content need to be in your website today. A balance of keywords, well written content and page speed need to be in balance for good discoverability. Have your marketing expert address these changes for you.

5. Mobile First - Over 55% of web viewers are looking through their mobiles these days. So, making your website mobile friendly or responsive must be a good experience for your viewers. Branded apps make loyal customers and clients.

6. Voice Search - With the ever increasing use of voice activated devices, it is important to include common phrases and questions in your website. If you don't have one, get out and learn what phases work for your business or hire an expert copywriter.

7. Mixed World - The new term is “phygital”. From the pandemic we got used to a mix of the physical world meetings and the digital world of meeting online with Zoom. This is the new reality we must accept.

8. Customized Content - We were exposed to the real world with the pandemic, so this needs to be emphasized even more with real content that is customized to your business and not stock wording. Expert copy writing is key.

9. Purpose Driven - With the growing generation looking for ethical and sustainable practices and products, the trend is to be driven by purpose not just by your services and products. Look for ways to be a contributor.

10. Nostalgic - as much as this is not my personal thing, we must “give the people what they want”. Today classic and old school are trending. If you want to attract them, you must “sweeten the pot” with nostalgic images and concepts.

I trust this insight which shows the latest trends for small business has been an eye opener. Should you have any comments, please feel free to respond to this blog or contact us directly to see how these trends can be applied to your digital marketing.