Blog

Category: News

2021 Marketing Trends: Lead Generation and Customer Experience

Halfway through the year, 2021 marketing trends show many businesses are investing heavily in growth strategies and lead generation. Content marketing is exploding, with a strong preference for video. Social media, email marketing, and SEO remain important priorities and both automation and account-based marketing (ABM) have grown significantly. Hubspot, with Litmus and Wistia, recently released their annual State of Marketing report which surveyed more than 1500 marketing professionals around the world. There is plenty of excellent insight from this report that businesses can use to inform their marketing strategies moving forward. Here are the key takeaways.

2021 Marketing Trends Show Priorities Are Lead Generation, Customer Experience, and Brand Awareness

Customer priorities are changing, which means that companies are adjusting their marketing priorities to match. Right now, the biggest priority among the marketers surveyed was generating more leads. However, the next-biggest priorities were increasing customer satisfaction and increasing brand awareness. In general, there is an increasing focus on the customer experience overall. Authenticity and connecting with potential customers on a personal level are more important than ever. However, driving sales is still an important goal for marketers as well. 

Social Media Marketing

One of the biggest takeaways from this report is that social media was the most popular marketing channel in 2020. Social media allows advertisers to develop conversational marketing campaigns that feel natural and authentic. Social media platforms also allow businesses to target their ads to specific demographics. 

Right now, eight in 10 companies are opting to invest in social media marketing in some form. With so many different platforms to choose from, it’s easier than ever for companies to develop a social media strategy that effectively reaches their customers. The most popular platforms to use are Facebook and Instagram, followed by LinkedIn and YouTube. 

AI and Chatbot Automation

Moving forward, we can expect to see automation play an even bigger role in marketing strategies. The top three uses for marketing automation are task management, content automation, and chatbots. By using task management and content automation technology, marketers are able to develop much more efficient workflows. 

Chatbots have become more popular as a form of website marketing over the past few years. This form of conversational marketing allows companies to address any concerns that customer have before they make a purchase. Chatbots also minimize the need for live sales teams. Chatbots can address common customer concerns, which leaves more time for customer service agents to handle more complex problems. 

There are many other ways that marketers could use AI technology moving forward. These include ad targeting and other forms of personalization, customer support, campaign management, conversion, content creation, driving revenue, and much more. 

Content Marketing

Companies are opting to invest in content marketing now more than ever. Video has become the most popular format for content marketing, followed by blogs and infographics. Long-form video use is up 140 percent from 2019, but short-form videos of less than 60 seconds remain the most popular. Another form of content marketing that is evolving is live streams and other virtual events. These types of marketing allow companies to connect with their employees more directly and provide greater value. 

Email Marketing

Email marketing was the third most popular marketing channel this year, after social media and website marketing. Email marketing has long been known for generating good ROI, but 71 percent of marketers surveyed reported seeing more engagement with their email marketing strategy this year than in previous years.

Marketers have adjusted their strategies, opting to send fewer emails but focus more on segmentation, personalization, and automation to reach their target audiences. The emails that have been the most effective are hyper-personalized, transparent, and authentic. In a world, where customers are consistently bombarded with digital information, this transparency can help to build trust and brand loyalty. 

SEO

Search engine optimization has evolved quite dramatically over the years. These days, marketers are focusing on ways that they can use SEO to improve the customer experience. Using strategic keywords remains the most popular SEO tactic to drive customers to websites. Other popular tactics include localization and mobile optimization. 

Localization focuses on creating pages specifically for a businesses’ geographic location to better reach its target audience. Mobile optimization has become increasingly important as well because the way customers are surfing the internet has shifted dramatically. More than half of web traffic worldwide happens on mobile devices, which means that websites need to be set up to draw in mobile traffic. 

Reporting and Attribution

Most people surveyed this year reported that they used attribution to better understand their target audiences. This information fueled marketing strategies overall, in keeping with the trend of focusing more on customer experiences. There are many tools available for reporting, but the most popular were CRM and built-in marketing software as well as Google Analytics and other third-party marketing tools. Over 40 percent of respondents still use spreadsheets for reporting as well. 

Attribution takes a deeper, more data-driven approach to understanding customer behaviors. This information helps marketers develop their long-term strategies and make more effective investment decisions going forward. Effective reporting and attribution tools also help to build confidence in the marketing strategies they are using. 

Account-Based Marketing

Account-based marketing is another area that has grown significantly in the last year. 70 percent of marketers surveyed reported using ABM, which represents a 15 percent increase from the previous year. ABM is a marketing strategy that is primarily used among B2B businesses to reach target accounts within certain markets. Some of the most popular ABM strategies include extensive account research as well as custom content creation to target these accounts. 

Final Thoughts

Marketing strategies change and grow at a rapid pace. The challenges of 2020 brought on new and unique approaches to marketing that we hadn’t seen in the past. One of the biggest changes is an increased focus on customer experiences. Building a genuine connection with customers has become more important than ever, particularly in a world where many customers are oversaturated with digital content. It will be fascinating to see how these marketing trends continue to evolve moving forward in 2021 and beyond. 

If you’re looking for B2B inbound marketing services from an expert firm, consider contacting us for a free consultation.

Bynder Group Claims a Spot as Top B2B Web Design and Marketing in Los Angeles

At Bynder Group, we help our client’s reach a new level of progress and success using data-driven strategies focused on growth. Our experts provide our select clients with valuable insight and guidance for B2B digital marketing and custom web design. We combine our creative vision with powerful technology and inbound marketing methodology for solutions that don’t just look good, they produce results.

As we help our clients reach their goals, we also continue to grow as a company. Just recently, our team has reached another milestone! We were named as a top web design and marketing company by Clutch for both Los Angeles and California! Our listing as a top Web Design company in Los Angeles also extends to Visual Objects, a portfolio website owned by Clutch.

For almost two decades now, our company has been providing services that build and grow brands and accelerate businesses. Being named as a leading company in our industry and in our state is something that we are very proud of! Our own brand is built on three guiding principles that we attribute this success to:

  1. Remain fully dedicated to our clients’ needs
  2. Practice our profession with a passion for excellence in everything we do
  3. Provide our clients with an experience that is expert, friendly, and adaptive to their needs.

Our continued success since 2002 has been due to the fact that our clients recognize this value and reflect it in supporting us with repeat business, positive reviews, and much appreciated referrals.

We also extend appreciation to Clutch for this award. We are grateful for choosing us to be one of your leading companies on your platform. In case you don’t know who Clutch is, they are well respected within the B2B space for connecting small, mid-market, and enterprise businesses with service providers that fit their needs.

Lastly, we would like to thank our clients for their continued support throughout the years. This award wouldn’t be possible without your support.

We are a Hubspot Gold Solutions Partner Agency

We are proud to announced that we have achieved Gold level status within Hubspot’s Certified Partner Tier program. In order to reach this milestone, we have demonstrated our ability to deliver effective results for our clients and that we apply the highest standards to our delivery of Hubspot solutions. 

Our partnership with Hubspot and application of inbound methodology complements our strategic design and web development services to provide a 360° approach to servicing our select clients. 

What makes us a unique marketing and design agency, is our blended approach and deep expertise in brand strategy, brand design, web design and digital marketing. By bridging the gap between these services, we effectively build greater efficiency and higher effectiveness in the work we do for our clients. 

With nearly 25 years building skills in web design and digital marketing, and in business as an agency since 2002, we embody a depth of experience rarely found in this industry.    

As a Gold level Hubspot Solutions Provider, Bynder Group now has access to unique resources and tools that are reserved for tiered partners and provide higher value to our clients. The HubSpot Tier program acknowledges Agency Partners who have introduced inbound messages to clients and flawlessly executed inbound marketing services to the highest standards. Agencies are tiered based on a combination of metrics, monthly recurring revenue acquired and managed, retention, software engagement and actual inbound marketing success. Agencies who are awarded Gold status receive additional benefits to Hubspot’s events and early access to new products.

Benefits of Hubspot

We believe that Hubspot is the best platform for growth for our clients. Hubspot maintains a marketing leader position by consistently providing best-in-class software with unparalleled customer service. As a solutions partner agency, we also have access to extensive resources that empower us to delight our own clients.

Some of the features that we feel add incredible value  include:

Marketing Software

HubSpot’s native marketing functionality includes:

  • COS Publishing
  • Landing Pages
  • Blogging
  • Social Publishing
  • Calls-to-Actions
  • Forms
  • Marketing Automation
  • Email Marketing
  • Reporting and Analytics
  • And more!

Sales Software

HubSpot’s native sales functionality includes:

  • CRM and Contact Management
  • Email Sequences
  • Inbox Profiles
  • Email and Call Tracking
  • Email Scheduling
  • Meetings Tools
  • Document Tools
  • Pipeline Management
  • And more!

Service Software

Empower your customers to become your biggest promoters using HubSpot’s service features, including:

  • Empowering your customers to be your biggest promoters
  • Live chat
  • Automated chat bots
  • Help desk features
  • Conversation dashboard
  • Ticket tracking
  • FAQ
  • And more!

With 44,500 HubSpot customers in over 90 countries and growing, HubSpot values its clients and continues to innovate and evolve with the market. Customers have access to a vast amount of training courses known as HubSpot Academy. Let us know if you have questions about Hubspot or would like help determining what features would be the best fit for your business and goals.

4.5 Star Client Review Don’t Come Easy

In the age of big data, utilizing a data driven strategy is the most effective way of modern day growth. At Bynder Group, we utilize powerful technology and high performing web strategies to help our clients build their brand and accelerate their business. With a team skilled in web design, digital strategy, and content marketing, we are prepared to become your next marketing partner.

We are proud to announce that Bynder Group has received our first client review on our Clutch profile. Clutch, a B2B review site, rates and ranks the leading firms in a wide variety of locations and industries. Clutch offers an individual rating for each company on their profile. Our profile boasts a 4.5 star rating!

 

Our happy client is McGrath/Power Public Relations and Communications Firm. The Bynder Group team was able to revamp their website, resulting in a complete new look and presentation of their brand. We used our expertise in front and backend development, lead generation, and content consulting to create a more effective site that better positions them in the market.

We were praised for our clean project management, creativity and communication throughout the life of the project.

“Most impressive to us was both dealing directly with Rob/receiving senior-level input and the overall strength of his ideas and creativity. He is a direct and clear communicator who was patient with us when need be and not afraid to tell us to “get moving” when we fell behind” -CEO of McGrath/Power Public Relations and Communications.

At Bynder Group, we are thankful for our clients taking the time to submit a review. Each new review will enhance our credibility on Clutch.

Bynder Group Listed as a Top Los Angeles Digital Agency

Hubspot has recognized Bynder Group as a Top Los Angeles Digital Agency. We earned this award in addition to our standing as a Hubspot Silver Certified Agency Partner. Adapting inbound practices enables us to provide unique marketing services. It also provides us access to an effective data-driven methodology. This approach enhances our ability to generate more leads, higher sales, better brand recognition, and improved website performance for our clients. Landing a spot as a top Los Angeles digital agency signifies significant growth and achievement for us.

It’s an honor to be recognized for our hard work towards growing our clients’ brands and businesses. Hubspot is a visionary company that provides best-in-class software. The strength of their products and the scale of the business provides a strategic partnership that allows us to offer a complete package of web design and digital marketing. It also provides a powerful set of tools for sales enablement, helping to connect our clients’ sales efforts with their marketing investment for a more productive process.

A website is a marketing tool that requires strategy and goals to be most effective. Your marketing website should have a measurable impact on your business. Because of this, we believe that website design and digital marketing are inextricably linked. Good marketing needs good design. Good design empowers better marketing. Partnering with Hubspot was a no-brainer for us to complement our web design expertise and provide more specialized services.

If you’re looking for a B2B marketing firm with the right combination of right-brain creative and left-brain sensibility, consider contacting us for a free consultation.

Web Strategy and Design for IoT Curriculum University Program Startup

LoRaWAN Academy, sponsored by Semtech, recently launched a new program providing established university engineering programs with the coursework, hardware, software, and all the tools to effectively teach real-world IoT applications to their students and provide university departments with access to a dynamic professional network.

Our client was faced with building a new brand and website from scratch—and quickly. Bynder Group’s strategy and design team quickly clarified the concept, defined the user experience, integrated a digital marketing strategy using Hubspot marketing automation software, and designed and managed the launch of the new LoRaWAN Academy website.

See the LoRaWAN Academy case study »