The digital marketing landscape is always changing. But with all the advancements in AI and machine learning among other major tools, 2024 has seen more changes than most years. This means that the outlook for digital marketing in 2025 is very interesting.
As a small business owner, we know that you have enough on your plate to make keeping up with the 2025 digital marketing trends your main priority. That’s why we’re here.
We’ve put together a quick cheat sheet of digital marketing trends we think will be worth noting in 2025 for small business owners just like you. Keep reading to see what the upcoming year has in store!
You might have guessed that AI was going to dominate the top spot on our list, but we’re also going to cover a few things you probably haven’t thought about like voice search, hyper-personalized customer experiences and zero-click marketing. This list contains our top eight trends that you should be thinking about in 2025.
As promised, let’s talk about AI first. 2024 has seen some huge advancements in machine learning and generative AI models. We’ve seen more people than ever utilizing them both in their professional and personal lives and we don’t see this trend slowing down any time soon.
How can you leverage AI as a small business owner? Try using it for tasks like data analysis, content creation, building itineraries and even customer interactions. AI comes in handy to automate routine tasks so that you can focus on strategic creativity instead.
To help prepare, we recommend you (and your team if you have one) get familiar with popular tools like ChatGPT and Jasper.
Have you ever turned to your iPhone’s voice assistant Siri to send a text or asked your Amazon Alexa a question you didn’t feel like Googling? Well, you aren’t alone. Surveys show that 62% of Americans use voice assistants and 36% are smart speaker owners. As voice search continues to gain popularity into 2025, you’ll need to optimize your content to keep up.
Because voice searchers tend to ask questions more conversationally than a traditional internet search, we recommend optimizing for long-tail keywords and more natural language. For example, whereas someone might type a search for “best roofers in Columbus,” a voice search would probably sound something more like, “What are the best roofing companies near me.”
Video content (especially short-form video content) has been earning the most engagement on social media platforms throughout 2024 and we don’t expect it to slow down in 2025. Studies show that 94% of users watched videos to learn about products or services. Consumer preferences continue shifting toward bite-sized, engaging content (thanks TikTok), so make sure that’s where you focus most of your social creation.
Use short videos to deliver information about your business or brand quickly and creatively and use live streams for real-time engagement. In addition, add content to TikTok and YouTube shorts to boost your reach.
All that talk about AI, voice search and video leads us to our next trend—creating content that is both quality and authoritative. Using AI to handle your content creation may be all the rage, but Google has made it clear in their latest algorithm update that they’re still prioritizing helpful, reliable and people-first content when it comes to ranking. So, while you can still use AI tools to aid in your content creation, you should also make sure your authority and expertise shine through.
Consumers have been expecting a certain level of personalization across digital channels and as we get into 2025, we’ll see advancements beyond basic personalization.
Create a tailored experience for your target audience by leveraging customer insights that look at customer behavior and preferences. Look at the buyer’s journey and consider every stage of it when developing your campaigns. AI tools can help you out with creating hyper-personalized content and recommendations at every stage from interest to decision-making.
As more and more customers turn to social media as their #1 online tool, shoppable content is only going to get more popular. In 2023, one in four U.S. consumers bought a product from shoppable search results, and another 17% of them did the same from social media. Platforms like Instagram, Facebook and TikTok have all integrated in-app shopping features that allow consumers to purchase products directly from their social media feed. Gone are the days of seeing a product on social media, and then clicking over to a different browser to purchase.
Optimize your social platforms by creating shoppable posts on Facebook and Instagram. When you streamline your buying process by creating a seamless browsing-to-purchase experience, conversion rates are likely to improve. Make sure you’re also focused on creating interactive and appealing content that your followers want to share.
Influencer marketing on social media has been on the rise for the last few years and with the advancements of in-app shopping on social media, 2025 is no exception. A recent survey showed that 69% of respondents are likely to trust a friend, family member or influencer recommendation over information coming directly from a brand. Not only does influencer marketing help your business build credibility in this way, but it also helps connect you with new and larger audiences.
Influencer marketing doesn’t have to be pricey either. You don’t need to partner with a huge celebrity like Lionel Messi or Arianna Grande to build brand awareness. Micro-influencers can be just as powerful—if not more powerful—than big stars and are far cheaper. Find micro-influencers on Facebook and Instagram that align with your niche for the most success.
Zero-click content is a term that we’ve seen pop up more and more toward the end of 2024. While this term might be new, the concept behind it isn’t. Hootsuite describes zero-click content as, “content that provides valuable information to users without having to leave a platform.” In essence, zero-click content aims to give your customers all the info they need without having to open another tab or click away from your content.
Google has been optimizing for this through its last few updates with the addition of SERP features. These are things like featured snippets, knowledge panels, video carousels, etc. Anything that will keep you on Google instead of clicking on a link.
So how can a small business owner like you adopt zero-click content? We suggest trying it out on social media platforms first. Here are a few examples:
And remember you can repurpose content (like blog posts) you already have for all of these!
As 2025 kicks off and you begin creating your digital marketing strategy, keep these top trends in mind. To thrive in this ever-evolving digital marketing landscape, businesses need to remain light on their toes and open to change. Embrace emerging technologies and use them to your advantage to grow your business and remain competitive in the market.
However, we realize all this change can be overwhelming sometimes. That’s what RevLocal is here for. Let us keep up with trends and handle your digital marketing so you can focus on other important parts of your business. Simply reach out to us today for a free, no-obligation consultation with one of our digital marketing experts!
Mideya Kinney, Junior Content Writer
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