Original Publication: Forbes
Date Published: February 1, 2019
Advertising usually takes up a large percentage of companies’ budgets each year. To stay relevant, businesses cannot solely rely on what they’ve done in the past; they must also utilize up-and-coming platforms and strategies or risk getting lost in the shuffle. This new year is sure to be no exception, with new advertising tools and platforms trending throughout the year.
With so many advertising options to choose from, it can be daunting to know where to best spend your time and budget. To help, six members of Forbes Agency Council discuss where advertising dollars should be spent in 2019, as well as how agencies can take the lead in capitalizing on their predictions.
1. Utilize Digital Testing Technology For Higher ROI
We believe that advertising dollars in the coming year are best spent in the digital and social spaces. Google’s machine learning technology allows experts to test more ad variations much faster than ever before. Faster testing leads to faster optimization of ads and, therefore, higher positive return on investment. Social ads also continue to present a huge opportunity with fantastic targeting capabilities. – Bernard May, National Positions
2. Understand And Adapt To Digital Outlets And Audiences
What we definitely know and understand is that digital and social outlets are not going anywhere anytime soon. At this point, these outlets are bridging the gap between all ages and will continue to dominate the game. Agencies need to understand these outlets and their audience more and adapt these techniques through social and digital media platforms in a more clear and creative way. – Cagan Sean Yuksel, GRAFX CO.
3. Take A Holistic Approach
Online and offline need to continue to work together, not apart from each other. Offline still has the largest reach but pushes people to online or brick-and-mortar locations. The key is carefully watching the data and sales to pull the appropriate levers and drive the best consumer engagement and action. – Jessica Hawthorne-Castro, HAWTHORNE LLC
4. Start Mapping The Customer Experience
The best investment this year is in tying all of your marketing efforts and measurements together to start mapping and measuring the customer experience (CX). Agencies can start by investing in journey mapping exercises and learning about CX measurement tools. – Greg Kihlström, Yes& Agency
5. Find And Target Your Relevant Audience
In 2019, I expect clients to continue to invest heavily in digital tactics, including targeted digital display with geotargeting, geofencing and lookalike audiences, as well paid and organic social media placements. Audio buying, including Pandora, i-Heart radio and Spotify, as well as over-the-top streaming video ads, will be hot as well, since they effectively deliver messages to relevant audiences. – Mary Ann O’Brien, OBI Creative
6. Choose The Media That’s Best For Your Brand
No one medium is the silver bullet for all ad campaigns. A specialist will always tell you their specialty. Ultimately it depends on the target, strategy, competition and cultural trends. For John Lewis, TV is wildly effective. Nerf and Dude Perfect were great social media partners. We made smart viral reccos for Blue Man experiential. Each brand’s DNA and media choice should always be different. – Sean Looney, Looney Advertising & Branding
