Five digital marketing trends that can help businesses in 2022

If there is one thing that’s constant about digital marketing, it is that it never stops evolving.

Digital marketing helped us stay connected to our customers during the Covid-19 pandemic. For entrepreneurs, digital marketing channels such as social media advertising offers them the opportunity to reach customers spending a fraction of the budget they would’ve otherwise exhausted on traditional marketing channels.

With the challenges and restrictions that the Omicron variant brings, business leaders should look into how digital marketing can help them stay within budgets, while staying connected to their audience. Here are five digital marketing trends business leaders should embrace this year.

Metaverse is where businesses should be

Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg is among the those who are betting on the metaverse. In a letter he explained why Facebook, now named Meta, is embracing metaverse. “In this future, you will be able to teleport instantly as a hologram to be at the office without a commute, at a concert with friends, or in your parents’ living room to catch up. This will open up more opportunity no matter where you live. You’ll be able to spend more time on what matters to you, cut down time in traffic and reduce your carbon footprint,” he wrote.

Businesses and marketers should start considering what their role will be in this new universe. Things to consider could be how to integrate virtual reality and physical experiences, so that your customers are provided with more than one way to experience your brand.

Word of mouth is key

It is not about spreading your message far and wide, but that you have the right people talking about your brand. Influencer marketing is still huge and it is a trend that is here to stay. Make sure you take on board the influencer who can really influence your customers' decisions. The number of followers is not always a good indicator of an influencer’s effectiveness in swaying decisions. Consider users’ engagement and ask the influencer to present case studies before you make your decision.

Ensure your marketing team is in the know

Digital marketing trends evolve constantly. Ensure that your marketing team is in the know and aware of the latest marketing trends and how they could incorporate them into your digital marketing strategy.

Video is an effective marketing tool

Video has been a strategic way to reach customers on social media for years now, and it is here to stay. Platforms such as TikTok and Instagram present novel ways brands can communicate with their customers. From my experience, I always advise people to “show don’t tell”. Customers, especially on social media, do not always read the captions. Say what you need to in a video. Video editing trends also continue to evolve, so ensure your video team follows the latest trends to stand out in a sea of content. Also keep in mind that engagement is key. You want your clients to comment, like, and/or share your message, and not just view it.

At the end it is all about the story you tell

Spending a chunk of your budget and utilising all the right marketing channels will not necessarily guarantee you success. It is all about the story you are telling your customers. From my experience, I know that if a brand’s story and mission revolves around their customers and if its product/service will help them thrive, achieve their goals, or make them and their communities better people and places, then they are successful. Remember that it is about your customer, not you, and your goal as a business is to help make their lives easier.

Manar Al Hinai is an award-winning Emirati writer and communications consultant based in Abu Dhabi. Twitter: @manar_alhinai

Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.

Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.

“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.

“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.

Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.

From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.

Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.

BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.

Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.

Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.

“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.

“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.

“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”

The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”