2013 was a big year for us here at Screen Pilot and for the Digital Marketing industry. In fact back in December 2012 we shared some predictions with you.Lets see what came of them.1. A focus on visual contentThis has occurred in a number of ways. Firstly infographics as a tool has taken off this year. We’ve also seen more and more use of platforms like VFM Leonardo as a way to distribute visual content around the web.2. Make sharing your businesses photos easyShare buttons for various social media sites has been prolific around the web in 2013. Notably the rise of the Pin button for Pinterest.3. Businesses will continue to build their presence on social media and blog platforms.Blogs grew in importance in 2013, especially with search engines. Google are far more likely to display your blog article as a result for a query if it is timely now than they were in the past.4. Mobile marketing strategies will be keyAs expected smartphone ownership surged in 2013. 56% of consumers in May 2013 owned a smartphone compared to just 35% in May 2011.5. Ensure your content is optimized for a variety of platformsAnother slight variation on the mobile strategy but again important. Now over 75% of mobile users respond to mobile optimized sites when making purchases.6. A focus on ‘context’ rather than ‘content’Not to toot our own horn but our team of SEO nerds saw the Hummingbird coming! The Google Hummingbird update that occurred in mid 2013 was huge for the industry. It helps Google understand “both the context and the content of a query”.Our crystal ball was obviously in good working order last December! Lets blow off the dust and see what we can come up with for 2014…1. The ever-changing landscape of the Google SERP.Look out for betas and limited tests from 2013 to start getting rolled out globally by Google. The image extension test from AdWords is a particular favorite of ours.2. Continual clampdown of outdated and spammy link tactics.It seems that even guest blogging is under the microscope these days. Expect this to continue to increase in 2014.3. Increase in use and importance of mark-up language like Schema.orgWe’ve seen more examples of Schema being implemented within search results this year. Ticketmaster.com is a great example of Schema in action.
4. The disappearance of data from analytics platformsThe <Not Provided> problem is about to hit 100% across all Google searches. Good digital agencies will know how to get around issues like this but expect to see more examples of data that was previously available to marketers being taken away.As always if you continue to follow best practices and stay ahead of the curve then 2014 should be another excellent year. We hope you all have a great one.
2013 was a big year for us here at Screen Pilot and for the Digital Marketing industry. In fact back in December 2012 we shared some predictions with you.Lets see what came of them.1. A focus on visual contentThis has occurred in a number of ways. Firstly infographics as a tool has taken off this year. We’ve also seen more and more use of platforms like VFM Leonardo as a way to distribute visual content around the web.2. Make sharing your businesses photos easyShare buttons for various social media sites has been prolific around the web in 2013. Notably the rise of the Pin button for Pinterest.3. Businesses will continue to build their presence on social media and blog platforms.Blogs grew in importance in 2013, especially with search engines. Google are far more likely to display your blog article as a result for a query if it is timely now than they were in the past.4. Mobile marketing strategies will be keyAs expected smartphone ownership surged in 2013. 56% of consumers in May 2013 owned a smartphone compared to just 35% in May 2011.5. Ensure your content is optimized for a variety of platformsAnother slight variation on the mobile strategy but again important. Now over 75% of mobile users respond to mobile optimized sites when making purchases.6. A focus on ‘context’ rather than ‘content’Not to toot our own horn but our team of SEO nerds saw the Hummingbird coming! The Google Hummingbird update that occurred in mid 2013 was huge for the industry. It helps Google understand “both the context and the content of a query”.Our crystal ball was obviously in good working order last December! Lets blow off the dust and see what we can come up with for 2014…1. The ever-changing landscape of the Google SERP.Look out for betas and limited tests from 2013 to start getting rolled out globally by Google. The image extension test from AdWords is a particular favorite of ours.2. Continual clampdown of outdated and spammy link tactics.It seems that even guest blogging is under the microscope these days. Expect this to continue to increase in 2014.3. Increase in use and importance of mark-up language like Schema.orgWe’ve seen more examples of Schema being implemented within search results this year. Ticketmaster.com is a great example of Schema in action.
4. The disappearance of data from analytics platformsThe <Not Provided> problem is about to hit 100% across all Google searches. Good digital agencies will know how to get around issues like this but expect to see more examples of data that was previously available to marketers being taken away.As always if you continue to follow best practices and stay ahead of the curve then 2014 should be another excellent year. We hope you all have a great one.
