- Digital marketing freelance jobs are being reshaped by the growth of AI platforms, video marketing, and social media influencer advertising.
- In 2020, more than 240 million Americans watched online videos, highlighting the effectiveness of video marketing.
- A more personalized customer approach can lead to an increase in immediate purchases.
- The influencer advertising market exceeded $16 billion in 2022, thanks to its prevalence in virtually all industries.
Digital marketing is an indispensable asset for companies looking to improve and expand their business in the lucrative digital ecosystem. An increasingly larger number of businesses implement even basic online marketing plans, while others go to great lengths to keep up with the competition and utilize more elaborate strategies to reach potential customers.
This growing online marketing sector would not have seen such broad and accelerated growth without the individuals who work freelance digital marketing jobs on behalf of businesses. It is also worth noting that the market experienced a serious rise following the Covid-19 outbreak, which, in a way, normalized remote work for millions of people globally.
So, what is freelance digital marketing? This guide will cover that plus several freelance digital marketing trends that are expected to take full swing in 2023.
Trend 1: Increased Use of AI and Machine Learning in Digital Marketing
AI has been quietly inserting itself into our daily lives over the past decade. Hundreds of millions of people around the world who have internet access interact with AI technologies in ways that have become commonplace and ordinary. We see and interact with AI whenever we use a chatbot, Siri, or Amazon’s Alexa, or even when we conduct basic Google searches and online purchases.
For years, online businesses, marketers, and companies with wide- and small-scale operations alike have relied on business process automation software to reach optimal performance and improve different business processes.
Nowadays, most of the benefits of this emerging technology are related to freelance digital marketing. Many online marketing freelancers are also starting to use process automation tools in their work for or with online businesses.
Emergence of ChatGPT
Every year a budding new technology makes a splash in the ever-evolving world of technology, and the ripple effect ChatGPT created after its initial launch in 2022 is guaranteed to reach far and wide in the digital landscape, particularly in the marketing sector.
ChatGPT is an AI-powered language processing software, signaling its prospective worth for freelancers and businesses in creating premium marketing content for online businesses. Although launched just a few months ago, ChatGPT’s impact on the digital marketing freelance industry is considerable. The statistics indicate the technology’s quick-fire expansion in the online domain.
The technology launched in November 2022, and by December, it already had 1 million users. By the end of January, ChatGPT’s user base had grown to over 50 million and sprinted to over 100 million by February.
These figures alone indicate that ChatGPT is well on its way to becoming an invaluable process automation tool for online merchants, as well as for any ambitious digital marketing freelancer.
Some AI Digital Marketing Statistics
Whether we like it or not, machine learning and AI are already embedded in our daily routines. It’s safe to say AI is here to stay, so we might as well accept it as a working tool. Some stats indicate the importance of process automation tools for businesses.
One example is the consulting firm Deloitte, which uses process automation tools to streamline business operations. Research by the company found that 73% of participants (businesses that use AI) found AI and business automation software ‘very’ or ‘critically’ beneficial to their operation, while 64% said the use of AI allows them to keep up and have the edge over competitors.
Benefits of AI in Digital Marketing
The advent of AI has brought unprecedented advantages to the online marketing sector for every digital freelancer. Business process automation tools can be a relatively inexpensive way for marketers to automate parts of their operations and easily harness valuable user data.
With business automation software, companies can automate repetitive processes and collect, process, and analyze large swathes of data to learn customers’ purchasing and search habits, as well as specific user preferences.
AI and business automation software is used in various digital marketing segments, including website development, customer support (chatbots), targeted ad campaigns, data analytics, etc. Using automated technologies has also proven to be an effective way of improving user experience and productivity in a manner that is both time- and cost-effective.
Anyone who aspires to be a successful freelance digital marketer can also benefit greatly from using AI-generation software due to a growing demand for such content and the universal convenience and practicality of using such software.
Trend 2: Growth of Video Marketing
Video marketing has already expanded exponentially over the past couple of years, and the trend promises to see further growth in years to come. There are several major factors that have contributed to video marketing becoming a highly efficient way for brand promotion, product placement, and marketing.
Videos have been used for marketing purposes for decades, but the concept of video marketing drastically changed over the past decade with the advent of new video platforms and carefully crafted video promotion marketing strategies. Coca-Cola, LG, Budweiser, and Dove are just a few prominent corporations that have expertly used videos to reach audiences and promote products and ideas.
One statistic that indicates the power of video marketing is the number of people (in the US) who watch videos regularly. In 2020, more than 240 million Americans watched online videos – a jump of 3.2% compared to 2019.
Webinars
Webinar is a combo of web and seminar, so it’s easy to understand its concept. Thousands of digital marketers are employing webinars as part of their video marketing strategies to engage visitors and attract more leads.
Webinars are usually conducted in real-time, but smart businesses save webinar videos for future visitors. That way, businesses can benefit by implementing a paid subscription system or requiring users to register with their platform to gain access to that content.
One study from 2023 found that more than 91% of online customers or buyers showed interest in seeing more videos from brands. Also, 91% of businesses participating in the research said video marketing has helped them boost traffic.
TikTok and Social Media Videos
Thanks to its 2-billion user base, YouTube has long been the dominant video-sharing platform. However, it seems like there’s competition on the horizon. TikTok’s milder video creation regulations and lack of crippling restrictions have allowed the platform to reach over 750 million users in 2022 – a number projected to reach around 1 billion by 2025.
With such an enormous user base, it’s no wonder TikTok can be tailored and adjusted for freelance digital marketing purposes.
But TikTok is just one of several major platforms proven effective for video marketing. Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter – a few of the biggest social media brands – have yielded positive results for thousands of businesses that run video marketing campaigns.
Benefits of Video Digital Marketing
While written content, done properly, can be as effective as video content, videos have a way of grabbing and holding the attention of consumers in a uniquely effective way.
Videos, particularly TikToks and reels, will, in most cases, be the preferred source of information for consumers albeit the limited information they offer. In the case of longer videos and webinar content (30 to 60 minutes), user engagement is reduced.
However, the upside of longer video marketing content is that those who do watch 30- 60-minute online seminars and videos are more likely to turn into valued users and even paying customers.
Trend 3: Increased Emphasis on Customer Experience
Customer experience is expected to have a vital role in the digital marketing sector in 2023. Google, Youtube, and other major search engines and marketing platforms had already invested much resources and effort that obligated brands to follow strict customer support guidelines.
However, the focus on robust CX and customer support will be even more pronounced this year. Online marketers are using innovative ways to keep visitors engaged and provide relevant information and service to the relevant audience.
Automation vs Human Customer Support
Automation will play a major part for companies that want to ramp up customer support and user experience. For instance, AI-powered chatbots can offer instant, to-the-point assistance to users without causing delays. Pop-up messages, automated offers based on customer habits, and direct and indirect communication with users are all segments that can contribute to a positive or negative CX.
But the value of live support from an actual human can also greatly improve the user experience (UX). From this year on, websites, companies, and advertisers are expected to invest as much in automating support to enhance UX as in providing live assistance from professional support agents.
Benefits of Investing in Customer Experience
The benefits top-quality CX can have on a given brand are manifold. For starters, consumers who enjoy their experience are more likely to return or even make a purchase.
Not only that, research shows that 86% of customers who are satisfied with their overall experience are likely to pay more for goods or services. Additionally, 81% of businesses or online organizations name customer experience as a major element of their enterprise.
A survey conducted by Global Newswire shows that 49% of consumers made on-the-spot purchases as a result of the more personalized approach by the merchant. Dedicated CX can also:
- Generate more leads and convert those leads to paying customers
- Improve customer retention
- Expand an organization’s clientele.
Major Companies with Optimal CX
There are hundreds of major corporations and businesses that are paradigms of premium-quality user experience. Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon Inc., is one of the best-known entrepreneurs who have spoken publicly about the importance of customer experience.
Netflix owes much of its quick rise to its CX and UX. In 2011, the streaming platform had just over 20 million subscribers – a number that has risen to nearly 700 million in 2023. The personalized UX the platform provides is vital to its rapid growth.
Trend 4: Rise of Social Media Influencer Marketing
Influencer marketing is one of the more novel ways to reach an audience, but its effect is unquestionable. In fact, influencers have become an instrumental part of the marketing strategies of many startups, as well as established brands that are looking for creative new ways to reach a specific audience.
Influencers can help brands they are partnered with extend their reach to potential buyers and individuals who may actually find that product or service useful.
Influencer marketing is often done via targeted videos and live streams, so, in a way, organizations can benefit from two major digital marketing trends. Just to give you an idea, the influencer advertising market in 2022 exceeded $16 billion.
You can also see the power of influencer marketing by looking at some of the major corporations from various industries that work with influencers, such as automobile manufacturer Subaru and Adidas, one of the world’s biggest producers of sportswear.
Trend 5: Shift Towards Niche Marketing
As the digital and content market expands across all business sectors, advertisers are expected to shift focus to niche marketing. Niche marketing is a form of freelance digital marketing where businesses target a specific client base.
This marketing trend can improve a business’ ROI (return on investment) and improve customer engagement as a result of the highly specific ads and the prospective customers they target.
Customers in niche markets are characterized by their unique interests and purchasing preferences. Marketers need to conduct in-depth research to understand specific consumer behaviors and purchasing habits. As a result, businesses don’t have to worry too much about competition due to the highly specific nature of niche consumer demand and needs.
A study published in 2021 found that businesses that focus on niche marketing are more likely to perform better in their targeted niche market and enjoy better margins due to the distinctiveness of their services.
Conclusion
Freelance digital marketing will change in big ways in 2023 and the years to come. But many of those changes had already started to take place and are now expected to become an instrumental part of an industry characterized by constant progress and development.
For starters, if you’re into freelance digital marketing, you should pay attention to major trends like business automation software AI and other types of process automation tools that are expected to shape the world of digital and freelance marketing in years to come.
Major online marketers, or those with high ambitions, apart from business process automation tools, need to also factor in the importance of quality CX, video marketing, and even influencer marketing if they want to keep up.
