There’s no doubt consumer habits have changed in recent months. (After all, haven’t most of our habits changed?)

Consumers are stocking up on grocery items and outdoor retail items. Businesses across the food and outdoor industries are offering adapted and, in many cases, brand new offerings, from make-at-home meal kits to DIY wine tastings.

Innovations like these, of course, spill over into businesses’ marketing departments, creating new and exciting opportunities in marketing.

The American Marketing Association has dug into what those marketing opportunities and strategies look like in a recent article.

Here’s an overview of the top 5 emerging marketing opportunities outlined by AMA, along with our take on the marketing opportunities available to you in your business.

 

1. Customers prioritize trust

According to AMA, “marketers identify trusted relationships as customers’ highest priority over the next 12 months” — even over low price.

Since the question of trust vs. price was first asked in 2009, customers’ focus on trusting relationship has increased 47%. “79.1% of marketers believe that customers are monitoring their social activism, outreach and investments during the pandemic.”

The opportunity: Continue to build trust with your customers and focus on cultivating brand attachment to drive future sales.

 

2. Online and digital

“Online sales have grown to the highest level in The CMO Survey history,” now constituting “19.3% of sales—a 43% increase over just three months ago.”

As consumers become even more open to digital offerings due to staying at home and connecting online, marketers expect the shift to online shopping and digital experiences to be a permanent one.

The opportunity: Adjust your offerings for the long-haul. Build upon your innovations to create long-term, post-pandemic offerings for your customers. Shift resources to focus more on creating digital opportunities for your brand and audience.

 

3. Social media

Marketers are focused first-and-foremost on building brand value and retaining current customers. And social media has been an important tool for working towards both of these objectives.

Businesses are spending more money on social media, and they’re seeing that strategy pay off.

“For the first time in CMO Survey history, the rated contributions of social media to company performance rose—up 24% since February. This is an important finding because social media contributions have previously remained flat and at average levels since 2016, despite rising investments.”

The opportunity: Continue to expand successful social habits and building connections with existing and potential customers in the social media space.

 

4. Marketers do more with lower headcount

“Some 62.3% of marketers report that marketing has become more important during COVID-19, reflecting the focus on using digital tools and interfaces to connect with customers… However, 9% of marketing jobs have been lost, leaving marketing departments to do more with fewer people.”

This trend is expected to continue, meaning that marketing departments and organizations will be forced to go lean, and stay effective.

The opportunity: Limited resources often inspire creativity and resourcefulness. Invest in developing a rock-solid strategy so you can maintain momentum in your marketing.

 

5. Marketers learn to pivot

“When asked, ‘To what degree was marketing prepared to face the pandemic and its economic impact?’… marketing leaders admit that preparation was not a strength.” Now, marketers rank the ability to pivot as “the highest-ranked skill that they will look for in future talent hires, followed by creativity and innovation skills and navigating ambiguity.”

While these soft skills are not always easy to learn, or teach, the world of marketing seems to recognize they’re worth pursuing anyway.

The opportunity: Treat the pandemic as an opportunity to develop the kinds of soft skills needed in today’s era. When looking to hire consultants or collaborate with marketers, recognize this skill as an important one!

Do you need someone to brainstorm your pivot with? Feel overwhelmed?

Our clients often call to bounce strategy ideas off of us and leave the call with a clear idea of what steps to do next and how we can help.

All challenges bring with them opportunities for growth, even if that growth is a little uncomfortable at first.

The best place to start is with a marketing strategy you feel confident in. Schedule a call and talk with our team to get started with yours!