What Industry Leaders Expect To See In 2020

In marketing, a new year means new opportunities to reach customers, adjust strategy and meet goals. We asked industry leaders to share what they expect to see in the year ahead. From trust and transparency to data and social, here’s what they said about trends to watch.

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Trust becomes paramount. “It is self-evident that consumers buy more from companies whose values they believe in and reputations they can trust – it follows that trust will be the most important brand measure in most sectors in 2020. Success starts with the understanding that consumers are going to be more suspicious than ever towards marketing and advertising. In this environment, brands will need to recognize why they sell what they sell now matters more than ever before as consumers are demanding transparency and authenticity before opening their wallets.” – Mike Barrett, President of Heat, a creative agency within Deloitte Digital

Brands embrace Stories. “While it’s not a new trend I expect more brands to utilize Instagram and Facebook Stories to both engage audiences with their brand, as well as showcase products. The trick is to have a compelling story in the first place. Development of brand story and executing on content and social strategy will continue to be at the forefront of marketers’ minds. This is one of the areas where it doesn’t matter the size of your brand or budget – anyone can do this effectively with the right plan and messaging.” – David Marine, CMO of Coldwell Banker Real Estate

Transparency follows innovation. “2020 will bring more innovation than ever with the ushering of 5G, the acceleration of AI and the rise of voice as a universal computing interface, but these are still just tools to connect with people and build the brand. In the midst of all this advancement, brands will need to focus more than ever on authenticity and transparency. It goes beyond having purpose. Brands will have to take inventory and assess where they stand in the marketplace and how consumers really feel about them and their products. Only by being honest about their vision and relationship with consumers can they meaningfully engage people, grow the brand and drive the business.” – Marvin Chow, VP, Global Marketing at Google

Magnifying the female gaze. “I grew up hyper-aware of the dominance of the male gaze through art and architecture history. The digital content movement’s shift toward the female gaze—that is, seeing the world through a feminine perspective—feels like a revolution that’s brewing. I’m excited to watch it take shape.” – Naz Arandi, Creative Director, Airbnb
First- and third-party data collide. “First- and third-party data are on a collision course. Privacy and compliance regulations could encourage third-party data aggregators to seek alliances. First-party data companies will benefit from the hundreds of extra data points that third-party data brings to research results. The consolidation of both data types could power companies to make even better and more nuanced business decisions.” – Frederic Charles-Petit, CEO and Founder of Toluna
Data drives decision-making. “Looking forward, we will continue to see artificial intelligence evolve into augmented intelligence – analytical technology that focuses on amplifying human innovation and capabilities, rather than to replace human labor. Access to information is now at an unprecedented scale. As a result, organizations are being exposed to critical risks on a minute-by-minute basis, and it is data, not instinct, that is driving decisions at the highest level.” – David Benigson, Founder and CEO of Signal AI

Regulations tackle privacy and personalization. “2020 will be the tipping point for marketers to meet data privacy requirements – such as GDPR and CCPA – while also meeting their customers’ demands for personalization. Marketers will find the equilibrium between these conflicting objectives, finally resolving the typical pendulum shifts. They will find ways to personalize in both anonymous and known customer situations. They’ll also need to prove to customers the benefit of opting in and sharing their data. Consumers will expect a value exchange, receiving something in return for giving away their information – like a personalized experience, added conveniences or special offers.” – John Nash, Chief Marketing and Strategy Officer at RedPoint Global
Paid social pays off. “As the first business funding mobile app for women entrepreneurs, we encourage our community to allocate 50-70% of their funding budget to paid social advertising. Gone are the days of small businesses getting tons of organic traffic from Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, and Google. You have to learn how to leverage these platforms through their paid advertising programs, and get the funding you need to target the data they collect to help you reach new customers.” – Arielle Loren, Founder & CEO, 100K Incubator