I recently joined Jeff Lieber on the TurnKey Podcast, where he asked me this:

“I’ve seen you talk about Pinterest and Pinterest ads years before they became really popular. Facebook Messenger, you were way ahead of the curve there. So I wanted to talk to you a little bit about what trends do you see coming down the pipeline in the next couple years?”

I think this is a fascinating question — on the one hand because, like most marketers, I’m always on the lookout for new technology and new strategies to use in my brands…

But also because this obsession with trends can lead some marketers to misunderstand how to actually run a successful business.

So in this post, I give you my top 2 marketing trends and explain why they’re going to influence businesses going forward…

But first, I tell you what’s even more important than using the latest trends.

What’s More Important Than Marketing “Trends”

While marketing trends might help your business hit the occasional home run, it’s the fundamentals that win you the ball game.

New platforms and algorithms come and go, but the 3 fundamentals of running a successful business stay the same. They are:

1. Have an Amazing Product

Have an amazing product that does its job and that people are happy with. Also, make sure it adds value to the market place and isn’t the same as everyone else’s!

2. Offer Incredible Customer Support

Provide incredible customer support that responds quickly, hears people out, offers refunds and truly supports your customers. Be a good steward of the Internet and a good merchant, both because it’s the right thing to do and because it’s in your best interest.

3. Know Your Marketing

You don’t necessarily need to know the latest trends to execute successful marketing. You just need to be able to drive traffic to your offers, and to do that, all it takes is a few creative assets that tell a compelling story.

I recently partnered with Shopify on a free Facebook ads course for beginners (linked above). I also just published this in-depth case study breaking down my #1 Facebook ad formula of the last 5 years. Both of these resources will help you consistently acquire customers at a profit.

Product, support, and marketing — those are the only 3 things you need to run a profitable, sustainable business.

That being said, even after you checked these 3 boxes your job isn’t done. You need to continue optimizing to improve results, and knowing the latest marketing trends can absolutely help you do that.

The 2 Marketing Trends I Care About

Online commerce is constantly evolving — you could probably point out 15–20 sweet innovations at any given time!

But personally, there are only 2 trends that really excite me right now.

(Note: these mainly apply to what’s happening off Amazon. I won’t try to speak to Amazon trends right now, as I’m not steeped in that space like I once was.)

1. The SMS Revolution

Everybody is talking about SMS because it’s a communication channel between businesses and consumers that has been growing rapidly and I believe will continue to grow over the coming years.

In fact, I’m so on the SMS bandwagon that I’m building a new Shopify app in that space right now (more on that coming soon).

2. Top-of-funnel Purchase Decisions

The buying decision is starting to happen higher and higher up in the funnel.

It used to be that people would search for a query, click on a product page, and then use the information on that page to decide whether or not to buy.

But now, customers are making their purchase decisions further and further from the actual offer page. They’re deciding to buy based off of a video on Facebook, or a customer testimonial on YouTube, or by clicking a link in a blog post that mentions the product.

Don’t get me wrong — I’m still Mr. Optimization, and I will always champion the act of fine tuning your product pages. It’s just not as important as it once was.

Now, the story you’re telling at the top of the funnel will often dictate your success. If you don’t have awareness ads working (I break down my best awareness ads in this case study) then the rest of your funnel won’t matter.

Learn the Marketing Fundamentals to Boost Revenue

So remember: marketing trends are important and can absolutely help you add extra revenue here and there, but it’s the fundamentals that will dictate whether or not you have a profitable, sustainable business.

If you want to learn how to acquire costumers at a profit, read this case study article where I break down our most successful Facebook ad formula of the last 5 years:

My #1 Facebook Ad Formula: How I Generated $2.8 Million with 1 Cold Traffic Campaign

You should also check out our media buying mentorship:

Train My Traffic Person with Molly Pittman

Thanks for reading! See you next time.