Finally I believe balance will be a big trend for 2017 or for me anyway. In a world that seems to be led by our smartphones I want to add balance to my life. Spending all day online for my job, monitoring news stories and social media sites, it can feel like an informational overload. However when I leave work I am still glued to my technology reading more news stories or articles when I am at home and jumping on my social media. For 2017 I will be looking to digital detox as much as I can outside of work and getting my digital fix in work.<\/p>\n We\u2019ve seen new and much more creative types of content marketing hitting our screens in the past couple of years. Where it used to all be about the humble blog post and press release, we\u2019re now seeing infographics (and gifographics) everywhere, video, eBooks and interactive websites. Consumers on the internet, particularly the younger generation, are visual creatures, so it\u2019ll all be about getting your voice heard over the noise, and the way to do this is to be unique and offer multi-platform campaigns.<\/p>\n We\u2019ve never seen as much growth in the bloggersphere as we did in 2016, and not just in terms of the volume of blogs \u2013 bloggers are gaining more influence and more recognition as a source of information as we head in 2017. We\u2019re likely to see more bloggers taking it full time this year, so keep an eye out for income reports from even small bloggers showing how to turn your blog into a business.<\/p>\n In terms of social media, I\u2019m predicting (and hoping!) that we\u2019re finally going to see Google+ die \u2013 interaction and engagement on the platform has slowed, it\u2019s been rumoured for years that it\u2019s on the way out, so let\u2019s let it die a dignified death before it\u2019s too late! With the power and reach of the internet becoming ever more prevalent and the traditional methods of advertising slowly diminishing, digital marketing will see a big increase in 2017. As we have already seen over the past few years, the future of marketing is online and has many benefits. More social traffic and increased conversion rates, as well as better rankings in the search engines can be gained from a great digital marketing campaign.<\/p>\n In fact, many companies now spend more money on their digital marketing campaigns than they do on their traditional advertising as consumers continue to move online.<\/p>\n It\u2019s plain to see that videos, infographics, memes and gifs dominate social media networks, and this year will see brands diversify with shareable content for their own marketing campaigns.<\/p>\n Visual forms of content are already the most engaging and shared forms of media on the internet and those brands that can provide a useful or witty visual message to their customers are bound to receive more interaction and increase engagement.<\/p>\n 2017 will see the growth of mobile specific marketing as brands try new ways of engaging with consumers. Over the past few years brands have been optimising the content they send out so that it is easily digestible on mobile devices and nowadays wearable tech too.<\/p>\n This is not a new advertising method by any means, but the tactics and strategy behind it has been evolving drastically over the past couple of years as brands learn more about consumers\u2019 mobile browsing habits. Expect mobile marketing to continue to grow throughout 2017 as brands look for new ways to gain new customers and retain old ones.<\/p>\n As always, relevant, well timed and convenient content is king even if the methods of delivery change.<\/p>\n As a generation we are getting more demanding, we are less inclined to look for something and expect our search efforts to return the exact answer to our query in a timely fashion. We are less willing to search for stuff and we have become more fickle. I know for myself if I access a website and it spends too long loading or I can\u2019t find what I want within a few clicks I will go somewhere else. This provides a challenge to all of us, websites need to be clean, quick and easy to navigate. Content marketing has to be carefully thought out, highly targeted and delivered at the right time, to the right people, in the right way. There is an awful lot of \u201cnoise\u201d online and with more and more people turning to online activities to try and make a quick buck the challenge for 2017 will be making sure you stand out and deliver.<\/p>\n Following on from my \u201cwhen do we want it? Now\u201d point, I think 2017 will be the year where the budget you have to throw at your advertising may outweigh how good your content is when returning KPI\u2019s. Which is something I am pained to say.<\/p>\n Search results and social media feeds are becoming dominated with paid ads and sponsored content and as these sites race to monetise, organic reach will continue to suffer.\u00a0 This will make it harder for the little guys to be seen, which I feel loses the quality that made social media marketing so special in the first place. I loved how in the beginning there was a level playing field and the only thing that held up back was your imagination. As reach and returned search results continue to be affected by how much money is spent on the platform I can\u2019t help but think this will have a negative result on any organic efforts.<\/p>\n Following on from Hannah\u2019s comment about a \u201cdigital detox\u201d and the changes we have seen in 2016 allowing paid content to dominating search results and news feeds, I have to wonder if this is the year people move away from killing time online. I predict practical uses of the internet will continue to grow but I feel the amount of time we spend on line, and the way we use these sites will be notably different when we look back 12 months from now.<\/p>\n 2017\u2019s main trends will see a simplification in graphics, coupled with bold colours and single line weights to create stripped back logos. Hand drawn lettering and a vintage themes will also be heavily featured with many companies looking backwards into their past identities and new companies seeking to give their brands a look of authenticity and an air of trustworthiness.<\/p>\n Modern retro logos use nostalgia to hark back to better times and remind the customer of the rich history of a company. Designers raid the archives of brands to find their most recognisable logo. It\u2019s then freshened up in a simple flat style and combined with bold colours.<\/p>\n With the viral success of the animated gif it\u2019s only been a matter of time before designers started to add motion to logos. The result is far more engaging to the viewer than a static object and these logos certainly stand out from the crowd. Revealing the logo on-screen piece by piece helps to break down the visual elements into bit size chunks.<\/p>\n Simplifying a logo by removing unwanted and unnecessary visual elements to take it back to its bare visual bones. The new logo is presented in a flat design style. This enhances the impact of the logo and aids in customer recognition.<\/p>\n Hand drawn calligraphic writing can instantly evoke a nostalgic feel. Designers use this look to give a sense of history and authenticity to a brand, no matter how new. Hand drawing letters ensures they are bespoke to a particular design but it can be hard to successfully use this technique for all logos.<\/p>\n![\"influencer-marketing\"](\"\/our-ideas\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/01\/Influencer-marketing.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\nBalance<\/h3>\n
Sian<\/h2>\n
Content marketing expansion<\/h3>\n
![\"content-marketing-expansion\"](\"\/our-ideas\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/01\/Content-marketing-expansion.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\nBlogs as businesses<\/h3>\n
Google+\u2019s final death<\/h3>\n
\nFacebook has been pushed to the wayside by the younger generations and with new algorithms updates constantly prioritising those paying to be seen, it\u2019s possible even more people will turn their backs on it.
\nTwitter and Instagram will be sticking around though, so don\u2019t say your goodbyes just yet!<\/p>\nStewart<\/h2>\n
Digital marketing set to surpass traditional advertising<\/h3>\n
Videos, infographics and shareable content will continue to grow<\/h3>\n
Mobile marketing is set to boom<\/h3>\n
Laura<\/h2>\n
A need for Speed<\/h3>\n
Pay to be seen<\/h3>\n
![\"payment\"](\"\/our-ideas\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/01\/Payment.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\nIs this the year we turn off?<\/h3>\n
Paul<\/h2>\n
Modern Retro \/ Retro Inspired<\/h3>\n
![\"modern-retro\"](\"\/our-ideas\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/01\/modern-retro.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\nKinetic Logos<\/h3>\n
![\"3-animated\"](\"\/our-ideas\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/01\/3-animated.gif\")
<\/a><\/p>\nForm Simplification<\/h3>\n
![\"form-simplification\"](\"\/our-ideas\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/01\/form-simplification.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\nHand Drawn<\/h3>\n
![\"hand-drawn\"](\"\/our-ideas\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/01\/hand-drawn.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"line-art\"](\"\/our-ideas\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/01\/line-art-1024x282.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"