Marketing News Digest: March 2018

With winter (almost) in the rearview and thoughts turning to the next quarter, it's easy to wonder where Q1 went! At the start of every new month, we take time out to review the more important marketing headlines and industry analysis that you might have missed. Below you'll find our March digest to get you all caught up.

marketing news digest march 2018

Marketing News: March 2018

As we start to move into a new season, see if any of the following news items and advice could inform a spring clean of your marketing strategy:  

  • Video Marketing Goes Beyond Organic:  We've cautioned before that the video marketing trend was not to be missed. Now, it's maturing in a familiar way across social networks: pay-to-play. The days of significant organic reach for business pages on Facebook are long gone, but video content has provided a brief respite for the last year or two, as the big names try to encourage brands to post native video content on their platforms. Next comes the ad stage, however, where marketers plan to spend more on promoting their videos in 2018 and organic reach is throttled back accordingly. Don't say we didn't warn you!

 

  • Blockchain Raises More Questions Than It Answers: While blockchain technology has been hailed as the future of many sectors, from healthcare to supply chain management and beyond, some major names lined up against it in March. Or at least against the marketing of cryptocurrencies and initial coin offerings (ICOs) that are built on blockchain, which the likes of Google, Facebook, and now Mailchimp have blocked this year. 

 

  • Messenger Apps More Effective Than E-mail?: It might be controversial, but Adweek suggests that messenger apps are here to stay -- and could dethrone a  marketing king in the process. From spam to smartphone penetration, the article details the market forces that have brought instant messaging back to the forefront of online communication. Even if you don't agree with the conclusions of this piece, getting started with these apps is likely to prove a sound investment in your customer service strategy. 

 

  • Cannabis Marketing Attracts Attention: As the legal marijuana sector starts to ramp up around the country, new companies are navigating not only the regulatory requirements but the marketing challenges associated with a new industry. Lots of interesting articles are popping up about growing investment in legal weed and the appropriate promotional assets for cannabis marketing. Even if you're not in the industry, it provides an intriguing case study about the best ways to build a brand when you're starting from scratch. 

 

  • Vero Attempts to Make a Mark on Social: New social networks to challenge the big names are few and far between now that we've settled on our favorites, but that doesn't stop some from trying. As Facebook addressed the PR nightmare of data breaches and privacy scandals last month, upstart app Vero took the opportunity to gain some attention. With a user base in only the six-figure range, Vero isn't yet challenging Silicon Valley's most powerful. However, the app is well-backed by billionaires and looks like a slick addition to the increasingly popular ranks of visual content networks, which makes it of interest to marketers who have a passion for early-adopter status. 

 

  • Anticipating a Toll-Free Number Marketplace: We continued our analysis of the proposed FCC rule changes governing phone numbers and what a toll-free phone number marketplace might look like. The jury is still out on when - or even if - this will ever happen, but you can subscribe to our articles for a front-row seat to some potentially game-changing developments! Simply enter your email in the box on the top-right hand of this page to let us know you're interested.  

 

  • Content-Marketing is Certifiable!: In the best possible sense, of course, as the American Marketing Association launches a Content Marketing Certification curriculum and test to show who has the chops for this particular form of online marketing. The skillsets cover everything from strategy to execution and measurement, all of which marketing veterans will be familiar with. We see this being useful for both agencies with internship programs and small business marketing teams who want to invest in a valuable promotional tool without spending a fortune. 

 

  • Assess Your Brand Value: One of the common marketing tasks that comes to mind at the end of the first quarter is how to tweak existing campaigns and adjust your ad spend to get the most bang for your buck. That's a great start, but why not extend that spring cleaning effort to a full brand audit? Kissmetrics explains how to do so in this useful audit article, which you can combine with our five quick tips to enhance your brand. This is one of the best times of year to look at what's working, define what needs to change, and set some milestones for what you want to achieve over the middle half of the year. 

  That's our summary of marketing headlines, news, and views for another month. Just us every week for  ideas and examples that improve your marketing and build your brand. Sign up for updates on the top right of this page or follow us on Facebook and Linkedin for the latest marketing advice!

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