Predictions to Building a Craveable Brand in 2022

So much has changed when it comes to best practices in the world of social media and digital marketing. 

The last two years truly have shown the importance of taking a relationship marketing approach if we want to build thriving brands that drive repeat and referral business. 

That's why we had some of our favorite digital and social media marketing experts weigh in on what they think the future of marketing looks like in 2022 and what it takes to build a craveable brand. 

Here's what they had to say: 

Craig Severinsen

Follow him on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

What are your top 2-3 tips, predictions, and or advice for what brands/marketers should focus on in 2022? What social media channel/technique/tactic do you feel must be focused on in order to be #Craveable ie- keep their audience coming back for more?

The winning brands of tomorrow will be those that double down on having meaningful conversations with their audience. The more you can tap into the conversations that they are already having, and provide meaningful content to that conversation, the more attention you will be able to garner.

Here are three ways to take your content strategy to the next level and build relationships through your social media content:

1. Create Value - Value in content is more than just teaching or giving away your best stuff. Value is created when a person takes action, so to make your content truly valuable you have to motivate, empower and inspire people to take meaningful action.
2. Have Real Conversations - It's time to stop guessing what conversations your clients want to have, and actually engage in a real conversation. This means using your social media to ask questions, listen and respond to your audience. The good news is, this makes content creation a whole lot easier!
3. Be Different - You don't need to be on every single social media platform. Instead, focus on the platforms where your audience likes to hang out and participate in a way that makes you stand out. 

"By simply showing up and doing things differently, you will keep your business top of mind with your audience."  @craig_sev (click to tweet)

Mark Schaefer

Mark Schaefer is a strategy consultant, keynote speaker, college educator, and the bestselling author of nine books including "Cumulative Advantage"

Follow him on LinkedIn, Twitter, YouTube, and Instagram.

Find his website here.

What is your advice for what brands/marketers should focus on in 2022? What social media channel/technique do you feel must be focused on in order to be #Craveable?

I think we are in the era of unintended consequences. The pandemic has changed consumers in millions of small ways. It may take a decade to figure out this complex cocktail of new behaviors, wants, and needs.

"This is a time for us to be patient, to listen, and to be humble as the new reality emerges." @markwschaefer (click to tweet)

Candice Denise

Follow her on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.

Find her website here.

What are your top 2-3 tips or advice for what brands/marketers should focus on in 2022? 

Two things I think brands/marketers should focus on in 2022 is going to be more authentic content. This type of content resonates with your audience because it feels more relatable to them. 

"The other thing marketers should focus on is wellness; by doing that, they ultimately are going to be able to take better care of themselves and their businesses." @bycandicedenise (click to tweet) 

Loren Bartley

Follow her on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

What are your top 2-3 tips, predictions and or advice for what brands/marketers should focus on in 2022? What social media channel/technique/tactic do you feel must be focused on in order to be #Craveable?

It’s no longer important what you say about your business and the products and services you have to offer, it’s all about what other people have to say. Social proof is a psychological phenomenon where people follow the actions of others, whether that be a trusted friend, celebrity, stranger, certification, or the masses, in an attempt to reflect correct behavior for a given situation.

"The importance of social proof has been well known for years. Massive value can be gained from having loads of high-quality testimonials, ratings, reviews, recommendations, and referrals." @Impactiv8 (click to tweet)

But what has taken off in recent years and will continue to be an incredibly important part of your digital marketing strategy in 2022 is user-generated content. User-generated content is any content (i.e. text, videos, images, testimonials, reviews, etc) created about your brand by people external to your business. As well as having the potential to reach new eyeballs as the creators share their content with their audiences, with permission, it can also be repurposed and shared by brands on their own marketing channels.

"The reason why user-generated content is so effective is that it feels organic. It feels less like marketing and a lot more like an authentic endorsement from a friend." @Impactiv8 (click to tweet)

It builds trust in the brand, making people more likely to take action that helps you achieve your business goals.

If your audience trusts what other people have to say about your business more than what you have to say, then it’s worth spending more time fostering an environment that encourages your audience to become raving fans, compelling them to create positive content about your business on your behalf.

Mike Gingerich

Follow him on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, Pinterest, and YouTube.

Find his website here.

What are your top 2-3 tips, predictions, and or advice for what brands/marketers should focus on in 2022? 

It's going to be important to "UPGRADE" your skills on some of the traditional platforms in order to be relevant on them in the year ahead!

For example, Instagram is going heavy into adding features for engagement in Stories. If you simply push Stories you are going to lose out, you will need to utilize the tools to engage with and connect to your audience!

Next, Google. It's not a social platform but it's becoming more social! Both your Google listing and your website need UPGRADES to be on target.

"Google rolled out more features and tools for your Google listing and those that use them will see themselves rise to the top of listing results in search and be found more easily on Google Maps." @mike_gingerich (click to tweet)

Check your listing (now right in Google Maps or in the search results!) and complete what Google tells you! As well, the Page Experience algorithm update caused many sites to fall in search ranking because the sites were not deemed "friendly" by Google!

Google added tools to Google Console to help you understand your Page Experience and you need to check your Core Web Vitals and make the changes recommended to ensure your site can rank high for key terms!

Lastly, I would recommend you keep an eye on TikTok, SnapChat, and even the Amazon App because they are rolling out innovations in social shopping and these will be adopted by other platforms later so you can learn about what is coming by spending some time looking at features and experiences within those apps!

It's time to UPGRADE!

Julia Jornsay-Silverberg

Julia Jornsay-Silverberg is a social media enthusiast who loves to excite, inspire and motivate people to cut through the digital clutter by being authentic and vulnerable online. She has a diverse background working for The Buffalo News, the Buffalo Niagara Partnership, and Telesco Creative Group. As the 2018 recipient of the “Emerging Alumni Award”, granted by the University at Buffalo School of Management Alumni Association, Julia has more than 10 years of experience working in digital marketing and is known for delivering powerful presentations that leave people feeling excited and empowered.

Follow her on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

Find her website here.

What are your top 2-3 tips or advice for what brands/marketers should focus on in 2022? 

I think that as brands, we need to start showcasing our teams more and letting our humanity shine through our content. I believe that in 2022, people will continue to want to see more personalized content and in order to do that, brands need to be willing to showcase their people!

"The brands that are going to take off will be the ones that understand the importance of customer service AND showcasing their humanity and values." @jbethjs (click to tweet) 

Jim Fuhs

Follow him on LinkedIn and Twitter.

What are your top 2-3 tips, predictions, and/or advice for what brands/marketers should focus on in 2022? What social media channel/tactic do you feel must be focused on?

One is live shopping is going to continue to grow. I've been on Amazon now for a little over a year going on a year and a half. As an influencer, it's been amazing the opportunities with not only live shopping where but brands are approaching me, and I think that's going to expand.

The second thing is what we call shoppable videos, doing short videos where you're demonstrating a product. Not only is this something that Amazon's doing, but I think that other brands, other companies will start to want that user-generated influencer-generated content.

How can you put together short, concise videos that catch people's attention? We're seeing it on platforms like TikTok and Instagram. So another thing to do as well as even on your YouTube channel, but I think that's another continued growth area.

And finally, video itself.

"There's still a lot of people not doing live video not doing recorded video. And so there are lots of opportunities to not only get better but to improve the technology keeps changing with the rollout of 5g and other things."@FuhsionMktg (click to tweet)

It's allowing us to go live in ways we never thought of before. So stay on top of it, keep ahead of it because it's constantly changing, and you don't want to get left behind. Have a great 2022! 

Chris Strub

Follow him on Twitter, and Instagram.

What are your top 2-3 tips, predictions and or advice for what brands/marketers should focus on in 2022? 

1. Stop chasing the bouncing ball! Every week there are new platforms, innovations, and procedural changes that, if you try and keep up with everything every moment of every day, you'll drive yourself absolutely crazy.

"Find a format, a style, and an audience that works for you, and stick with it." @chrisstrub (click to tweet)

2. Embrace the basics of good old 'normal' live social-media-savvy events.

After two horrible years, yes, people WILL in fact want to get back to seeing one another in person, and although it might seem like decades ago, there are simple premises that can make your event more craveable and shareable -- like a large cardboard Instagram frame, including your social media handles and/or a hashtag on collateral, and soliciting video testimonials from satisfied attendees (perhaps after a beverage or two).

Madalyn Sklar

Find her website here.

What are your top 2-3 predictions or advice for what brands/marketers should focus on in 2022?

It would be amazing to see more brands jumping on board with audio content. There are so many ways to create powerful audio, whether it’s a podcast or using a platform like Twitter Spaces or Clubhouse.

You just need to find the medium that’s right for you and your audience. It provides an amazing way to build connections and share value. And the best part is that, if being on video makes you nervous, you don’t have to be seen to show up in this way.

Audio content is just your voice, so speak up and share your thoughts and opinions with your listeners.

"Another thing that’s always important for brands to focus on is engagement and actually building relationships. There’s nothing more off-putting than a brand who doesn’t bother responding to their community via social media." @madalynsklar (click to tweet)

Take the time to reply to messages you receive so those who support you know you’re listening and paying attention to what they have to say.

What platform do you think marketers should focus on in 2022?

I may be biased, as it’s my favorite platform, but I think Twitter is the social media channel brands and marketers should be focused on.

Twitter has a lot to offer when it comes to creating content that resonates with your target audience. You can share written posts, videos, and even audio tweets. Not to mention, there’s so much that can be done with Twitter Spaces to increase brand reach and establish yourself as an authority in your field. You don’t want to miss out on that!

Dorien Morin-van Dam

Follow her on Twitter and LinkedIn.

What are your top 2-3 tips, predictions, and/or advice for what brands/marketers should focus on in 2022?

2022 will not be about a tool, a platform, or a certain type of preferred content. Instead, 2022 will be all about the people: both customers and employees/team members! Creating a company culture that fosters Agility i.e. teamwork and putting clients first above individual accomplishments, is what will elevate a brand to the next level of awesome.

"An agile mindset in a company starts at the top and trickles down to not just marketing, but also sales, operations, and even HR. An agile mindset allows the team to think and focus on what is right, instead of who is right." @moreinmedia (click to tweet)

Creating content with a team in this type of environment saves effort, time, money and is a perfect recipe for retention: both customers and employees/team members.

Judi Fox

Follow her on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Clubhouse.

What are your top 2-3 tips, predictions, and or advice for what marketers should focus on in 2022?

"The top 2 predictions for 2022 are that LinkedIn will be seen even more as a place for content and they will launch audio-only rooms and a feature similar to reels / TikTok." @judi_fox (click to tweet)

When LinkedIn canceled the stories feature in August 2021, they announced that they are working on a short video feature and in October 2021 they purchased a video app called JumpRope that is similar to TikTok.

The 2nd prediction and advice I have for 2022 is that we will have more hybrid events that are both in-person and online, and the ones that leverage being craveable will be able to continue the conversation after the conference and create ways to connect with speakers both in-person and online.

Bri Seeley

Follow her on Instagram and Twitter.

What are your top 2-3 tips, predictions, or advice for what brands should focus on in 2022? 

Tip #1: Engage, engage, engage!!! Your audience wants to connect with you. Have conversations, respond to comments and remember there's a human on the other end of the interaction.

Tip #2: You do you! Infuse your personality and your uniqueness into everything you do.

"Your audience doesn't want to follow a bunch of people with carbon copy content. You are your superpower - use who you are to your benefit and let your authenticity shine through." @briseeley (click to tweet)

Tip #3: Focus on the social channel where your audience hangs out. Don't worry about what the overall trends say - focus only on where your consumer is spending their time. You wouldn't try to talk to someone in Italy by calling Brazil. The same is true for your social media. You won't get any traction hanging out on Pinterest if your audience is on Youtube.

Know your customer, know where they spend their time, know what content they're looking for, know how to answer their deepest questions/problems, and show up consistently for them!

Tim Sohn

Follow him on LinkedIn.

What are your top 2-3 tips, predictions for what brands/marketers should focus on in 2022? 

In 2022, brands and marketers should:

1) Stop worrying so much about the fancy tech and invest more in developing livestream shows, virtual and hybrid events that make an impact, that building relationships and community.

"The focus should be on finding out what your viewers want and bring in guests that can speak on those topics. Also, bring some of your viewers on live with you - this is how you will make the most impact on people's lives - on screen - together." @sohnsocialmedia (click to tweet)

2) When livestream shows are over, reach out to every single person who Comments in the direct messages saying thank you and starting a conversation. It's all about RELATIONSHIPS. Think about it - how many people who show up for you in the Comments do you really, really know? Invite some of them to get on a Zoom or phone call with you to get to know them better. Who knows what will happen? A friendship, a business collaboration, there are so many opportunities.

Chad Illa-Petersen

Following a hardcore snipe hunt, botched pizzeria robbery, two years in a bear suit, and several moments atop a 6-foot unicycle, Chad Illa-Petersen (aka The Story Catcher) discovered the compelling power of stories. Today, Chad helps you find and craft the stories you didn't even know you had to create deeper connections and open a portal of belonging.

Follow him on Twitter.

What are your top 2-3 tips or advice for what marketers should focus on in 2022? What social media channel/technique/tactic do you feel must be focused on in order to be #Craveable?

I believe we are headed to a return to meaningful content. The time wasted in frivolous, yet entertaining TikTok style videos will see a shift towards more content centered around humanity.

"The new "metaverse" will result in a shift towards more "real" engagement and creators and influencers will be most successful as they become more accessible." @_storycatcher (click to tweet)

I believe we will see an army of micro-influencers who have an audience they truly know, become more powerful in the marketing world.

Yvonne Heimann

Follow her on Twitter, YouTube, and Instagram.

Find his website here.

What are your top 2-3 tips, predictions for what brands/marketers should focus on in 2022? 

"Personal connection is more important than ever, connect with your audience and care about what impacts them and pull marketing over push!" @askyvi (click to tweet)

Jessika Phillips

Jessika Phillips is on a mission to make relationships the forefront of business marketing. She’s known for her outspoken dedication to Relationship Marketing. She lives by her statement that “Relationships will always be more powerful than marketing,” and she believes in being a magnet vs a Bullhorn to truly connect with your tribe.

As a social media strategist, Jessika founded NOW Marketing Group in 2010. The company works with more than 100 clients across the United States and beyond, choosing to serve – not sell. NOW is also a Forbes recognized Agency Partner and a certified inbound partner with Hubspot.

Follow her on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

What social media channel/technique/tactic do you feel must be focused on in order to be #Craveable in 2022?

I'm so excited to talk about the changes coming to online marketing in 2022, especially because we are entering into a phenomenal change of the web as a whole. I'm talking about web 3.0, AKA the metaverse. The metaverse. To understand the metaverse in web 3.0, you first have to understand how the web has shifted.

The first installation of the web was all about data and access to information on demand. That's when our websites looked a lot more like brochures at the time, right? And then, unfortunately, some of them still look like that, but we've evolved since then to web 2.0, which is more about a social type of community, connecting with our customers, our team members, and our communities on-demand aka real people communicating in realtime with no limits to demographics. It was a beautiful thing, connecting online. That was web 2.0, and we all know how much that shifted and leveled the playing field for small brands to truly compete, with a brains over budget approach to their online marketing.

"Now it's about to get better because we're entering web 3.0, which is the metaverse. It's about co-creating with our communities as brands and allowing them to be in the driver's seat, so to speak, to experience our brands on a whole other level." @jessikaphillips (click to tweet)

This is what we're shifting into, access on-demand, accessibility, and relatability with our brands and truly having convenience at their fingertips. This is going to influence marketing as a whole as it relates to online. 

We as brands now need to show up in an authentic way and it truly does start from the inside out. It means truly knowing who we are as brands, having that brand personality, getting to the core of what we believe and how we want to show up.

It also means bringing on team members that truly do align with those beliefs and actually care. They want to be there. They want to provide that great experience because when our clients have a great experience, they'll shift to our biggest advocates. Our team members, when they're there for the right reasons, will be our biggest evangelists for our brand.

We will connect with other communities, other partners, people that believe what we believe, and they will become our collaborators. Then, we will create momentum in our business to truly have this flywheel effect to create sustainable long-term repeat and referral growth in our business.

"It feels good to do good business and really just show up to out-care the competition." @jessikaphillips (click to tweet)

This is what it's going to look like in 2022 as it relates to what your brand should pay attention to both this year and hopefully every year, because care, it never goes out of style, right? You can't out care too much.

If you'd like to learn more about how you can activate a relationship marketing mindset in your business, please visit learnrelationshipmarketing.com.

There you'll find free guides, some videos, and some training that you can opt into to truly embrace a relationship marketing mindset and connect with your clients to build this repeat referral organic growth that has momentum. 

We'd love to hear from you.

What are your top predictions in marketing in 2022? What are you going to take advantage of? What are you going to stop doing?

We would love to hear your feedback. Until then, enjoy the rest of your year and we look forward to connecting with you in 2022!