At the start of each new year, I always have a look at some of the main topics within the world of marketing that I think are going to be important during the forthcoming year. Here are some of the things that have caught my attention.

 

Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Content

AI and the has to be the hottest number one topic in 2023.

For content writers like me what does the future hold? Is AI a threat? Will certain jobs become extinct. Is this the end of human creativity? These are just some of the questions being asked.

Since ChatGPT emerged at the end of 2022, AI seems to have become the dominate topic of conversation in marketing.

I’m quite excited about using more AI tools in 2023, I think it will help the writing and creative process rather than reduce it.

Some of the main benefits that have immediately caught my attention include:

• Ideal for researching topics and brainstorming ideas.
• Great for producing high volume content quickly which naturally leads to increases in productivity.
• Help in editing and proofreading articles.

I’m not worrying too much about AI, I feel confident that there will continue to be a need for humans to create content. AI isn’t yet good enough to replace us.

What’s clear is that AI can write content very well but ultimately it still relies on human input to create ideas and content.

What I’ll be doing and what all Content Marketeers should be doing is educating ourselves on the benefits of AI.

 

Short form video

I’ve been reading a lot about the importance of short form video in 2023. Video marketing is the second most popular content type on social media for increasing engagement.

Videos are great for conveying messages in a fun and interactive way and can help engage and drive people to your website and brand. You can share tips, insights and ‘how-to’ advice to your audience.

More audiences prefer bite-sized amounts of information and short videos can offer this perfectly. Platforms like YouTube and TikTok have always been about video but now the likes of Instagram and Facebook are focussing more on Video as well.

Short videos also tend to attract more likes, shares, and reactions and we’re seeing more influence on search results with more TikTok videos appearing in Google SERP.

My main passion has always been in writing but this year I certainly want to start looking at developing my video production skills.

 

Strategic SEO

It’s always important each year to re-evaluate and update your strategic SEO goals.

One thing that has caught my eye has been on user intent. Understanding the intent behind search terms is something we should always be aware of but it’s something that’s increasing in importance.

Google’s algorithms are becoming more sophisticated. It means creating content that satisfies user intent rather than just identifying relevant keywords.

It means creating more in-depth and insightful content that provides answers which have genuine detail, expertise and authority. Which leads us neatly to E-A-T.

If you’re not familiar with the term, E-A-T stands for Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness, and this has to be central to any strategic SEO and content campaign.

E-A-T is particularly important for queries Google refers to as YMYL (your money, your life) Think any topics relating to health or finance. What’s clear is that E-A-T greatly matters across all queries, regardless of what they are.

 

Visual search results are coming!

Google has been increasing its ability to understand images and let searchers use images as the search query.

Multisearch allows people to search with both images and text at the same time. If you go to your Google app on Android or iOS, tap the Lens camera icon you can either search one of your screenshots or take a photo of something around you.

Once you’ve taken the picture, Multisearch lets you ask a question about the object in front of you can refine your search by colour, brand or a visual attribute.

For example, you can take a photo of a coat you like and add a query to see if it’s available in another colour.

This is definitely something to look at for over the next few years and could prove a significant shift in the search landscape.

 

Content Return on Investment (ROI)

One of the ongoing challenges of content marketing is demonstrating ROI. How does the content we create impact the bottom line?

It’s important to demonstrate ROI and not just create content for the sake of it. But should ROI always directly correlate to sales revenue?

I know from my own experience that blogs, newsletters, guides, and videos are designed to inform, educate, and entertain audiences; increasing sales isn’t always the number one objective.

Marketing budgets naturally need to be scrutinised and this is especially true in more challenging economic times so demonstrating the value of your content is important.

Setting out your KPIs at the start of any marketing campaign is essential and having a written strategy setting out what your content campaign should achieve will help in demonstrating ROI. Content should always align with the overall business goals of your company/brand.

But one area to also consider is saving costs rather than always focussing on leads/conversions/and sales. How much revenue has been generated from organic traffic rather than paid? How much money is content marketing saving in reducing advertising and paid spend?

Just a few things to consider.