Trends are indicative of what is popular and selling well. If you want to transform your business, regardless of size or industry, you need to be aware of these trends and then implement them as effectively as you can. Creative marketing encompasses both the creative and the marketing world, and often to great effect. Exciting and attractive marketing is powerful and effective, and strong visuals play a significant role in how well a product is recognized and consumed. Creative marketing is the genius behind getting a product noticed and sold, so using it well only stands to benefit you. Clever and sophisticated creative marketing could give way to the exponential business enhancement and increased revenue you’ve been dreaming of. Below we explore the various marketing avenues available in today’s modern world.

VR Advertising 

Virtual reality has made it into the mainstream after being something only seen in science fiction films. Now, it is becoming increasingly popular and accessible. This style of advertising is appealing across the board and not only because it intrigues the most inquisitive of individuals seeking a view into something otherworldly. The digital age is well and truly upon us, and using digital advances to create powerful visuals is, of course, going to help you transform your business. Virtual reality is truly taking off, and harnessing its power correctly could transform your business into an up-and-coming company recognized for using trendy technological advances.

Toms Shoes use VR

Example: TOMS is one brand who used virtual reality extremely well within their campaign. They took users to a remote village in Peru, and each user experienced immersive storytelling, which was both incredibly emotional and moving. This VR advertising experience managed to convey to the audience the impact TOMS charitable donation policy has for children around the world. The founder of TOMS, Blake Mycoskie, has, in fact, said that virtual reality would be, going forward, a key part of their communications strategy.

Be Ready For Growth

If you want your business to grow and get noticed, then you need to begin implementing new designs. If you’re able to use trends such as VR advertising to the best of its capabilities, then expect growth and increased success and conversion. Before you get here, however, you will need to ensure your business is prepared for this expansion. Think about getting technology in place to account for this boost. Consider employing the assistance of a good HR management, a strong customer relationship management (CRM) suite, and creating an effective email service you can rely on.

Activision

Example: Activision, the leading publisher in the video game market in America, uses the clever CRM marketing platform Marketing Cloud to monitor social media conversations which are relevant to their own products. By doing so, the brand can interact and engage with consumers at a fraction of the expense. It is estimated that using social media as your customer service method saves on average 25% from the expenses you’d use for customer service operators. For a business beginning to their mark, this is valuable resources available to put into other marketing strategies.

Visual Merchandising

Visual marketing involves strategy, and the ability to make informed decisions about what an audience wants to see and feel. Visual content needs to be polished, slick and sleek. Visual merchandising is a powerful tool to harness to communicate your brand or business, using attractive signals to draw in potential customers. Visual merchandising displays its content simply and boldly and maintains the attention of the viewer. It’s a method of trying to get people to buy through means of seeing how a product can make their life easier and more enjoyable. Persuasion is by no means an easy feat, however creative marketing’s job is to persuade an audience that the product they see advertised is beneficial to them and will serve them in some advantageous way.

Kate Spade Valentines

Example: Kate Spade’s beautiful blooming flowers theme for their Valentine’s Day merchandising theme made a statement within their store for all the right reasons. Flowers have a calming, relaxing effect, which undoubtedly retailers want to emulate in their stores to promote happy shopping. In addition to the sense of calm, the fresh, inviting scent will welcome customers to the store and add a touch of luxury to make every single visitor feel special and want to spend time inside the shop. Happily, this can work to retain loyal customers.

Personalise Everything

 Marketers and brand managers alike will be well aware of the use of personalization within marketing campaigns. Perhaps the emails to your customers already feature their names in the subject line. However, this trend ensures that every single customer feels valued and listened to, each time they receive notification from your company. Personalization is now referring to the experience each customer (and potential customer) has when they land on your website. If done right, it’s the ideal tool for building upsell opportunities and boosting revenue with the handy use of data compiled through analytics.

Coca-Cola personalisation

Example: One of the most famous examples of personalisation being used within a marketing campaign is undoubtedly Coca-Cola’s 2012 ‘Share A Coke’ campaign. Launched in Australia, this clever strategy involved the ever-popular drinks featuring consumer names on the logo, ranging from Rebecca and Ben to Elvis and Mandeep. It sparked a social media frenzy where customers eagerly tried to find their names on bottles and the campaign itself encouraged people to share the drink with their friends. Coca-Cola’s campaign taught marketers that personalised campaigns work extremely well when they are engaging and fun.

Mobile-Friendly Content

For any brand to attract as many viewers as possible, content should be accessible across different platforms from different devices. Many people use their mobile or small tablet device to roam the web, so content needs to be mobile friendly otherwise many users are simply not being reached. Vital revenue is being missed if a site cannot be successfully accessed. It’s glaringly obvious when a site isn’t compatible with mobile phones, as it’s cumbersome to use and half of the content is scrawled awkwardly across the screen. This is merely an inconvenience, and at worst, the content is downright impossible to decipher.

Lancôme

Example: Luxury cosmetics company, Lancôme, is one such example of a brand using mobile ads to their advantage. When they launched their new product, Advanced Genifque, they also launched a mobile ad campaign which targeted their key consumers – women. Users who clicked on the ad would then be directed to an animated, interactive video which showed them what the product was about and how they use it. A case study determined the success of this campaign was due to the time slots when the apps displayed the ad, the mobile devices used to access the ads and the apps chosen to host it.

As the world evolves and adapts to ever-changing technology, so must the marketing world. The increase in mobile technology means consumers are expecting more from their favorite brands, and they want to be simply wowed by everything a company brings to the table. Therefore, to truly make your mark and get noticed in 2018, take note of the above suggestions and how globally renown brands get themselves noticed, for all the right reasons.