Enter The Dragon: Predictions for 2012
With January well underway, you will have seen a multitude of posts about predictions for 2012, but what haven’t you heard? It’s the Chinese Year of the Dragon, a year where in Eastern philosophy, information in this time should be revered and respected, so read on for our revered opinions!
Sure, it’s the year of social, we will see Google+ becoming a richer enhancement for search and the Mayans think that the world will end, but at I Spy HQ we think our predictions are a little left of the middle, and would love to hear yours.
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- Measurement. We predict 2012 will see a massive growth in social media measurement and the fixation with collecting fans and followers will transcend to action based metrics. Facebook are ahead of the game with this with insights showing how much users interact with brand content, and other sites will adopt this.
- Segmentation of customers becomes a priority. 2012 will be less about message blasting and preaching and more about targeted comms and relevant content. Google+ circles showcase this, and may be replicated similarly to other platforms.
- The Year of the Dragon will also be the year of video content. After all, we all prefer to watch something rather than read reams of text, so picking up an HD videocamera and getting creative will be the future.
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- Mobile recognition. We have started to see brands recognise the importance of mobile to their sites, and they will continue to develop mobile offerings and apps to better service their target markets.
- Mobile web will increase in popularity, and cross platform capabilities will become the norm.
- Mobile payments will become common place and we will never have to worry about leaving our wallet in the kitchen again; as long as you have your mobile you will have virtual cash.
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- Google+ will be used more commonly with SEOs as a way to generate more followed links.
- Greater use of integrated campaigns where we will see an amalgamation of TV ads, natural search, paid search and mobile.
- Voice search is also another area which is becoming increasingly more popular. Google voice search is increasing and even Siri on the iPhone iOS5 system is getting people used to asking questions by speaking. This will be a feature which is more common on mobile devices than desktops but it’s another way of searching that users will be ultilising.
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- Mobile. One of the biggest drivers of change throughout 2012 will be the way in which people will search. The influx of tablet devices brought to market to compete with the iPad has increased search volume. These devices give people better access to more information throughout their typical day.
- Device management. The challenge is that it becomes harder to track the same user across multiple devices and the ability to target users who are logged into their Google account on a mobile and then again when they are on a PC means that you can follow the attributed effect of a user more effectively.
- Display. The exchange space is set to grow in the UK with more publishers looking to be part of the space and more advertisers looking to leverage the greater efficiencies delivered. This should help to grow the amount of brand activity that is delivered to users via online and mobile devices.
