If you’re in technology or media, you’re probably worn out after attending CES 2017 in Las Vegas.

Over 175,000 people attended CES in 2016. It’s simply the most important global gathering for those who thrive on the business of consumer technology. More media attended CES 2016 than the 2016 Olympic Games!

As technology and digital media continue to dominate the marketing landscape – forcing marketers and engineers to work together to reach their audience through the constantly evolving array of digital devices and media – it’s a good idea to stay abreast of the overall trends. They will most likely affect your brand, or your job, in the years to come.

Top 10 Strategic Predictions for 2017 and Beyond

Of Gartner’s top 10 strategic predictions, the most interesting for marketers are:

• The growth of artificial intelligence
• Voice first browsing
• The power of the digital giants

Artificial Intelligence to Create Immersive Shopping Experiences

Venture capital firms and technology giants are pouring money into artificial intelligence. Pokémon Go might be an annoyance to non-Millennial adults, but the take-away from its popularity is that immersive technologies increase consumer engagement and enable users to fully “experience” an offering before making the purchase decision.

Gartner estimates that 1 in 5 brands will use augmented reality for shopping within the next 12 months, and that 100 million consumers will shop using augmented reality by 2020.

Voice First Browsing

Amazon’s Alexa-powered Echo is leading the voice first browsing charge. Gartner estimates that by 2020, 30% of web browsing sessions will be completed without a screen. Amazon channeled the efforts of 1,500 engineers over the course of five years to create the Echo, so expect this to become mainstream.

Amazon’s Alexa was everywhere at CES 2017.

Alexa’s reach will extend far beyond Amazon e-commerce; Alexa may end up powering an endless range of electronic devices. It’s easier for other companies to embed Alexa rather than building their own voice-powered assistant solutions.

Ford unveiled Alexa in the car with the Ford SYNC^® 3 AppLink,^™ which allows users to engage voice-controlled navigation, play music, request news, listen to audio books and … voila – add products to Amazon shopping lists. It can also control smart home devices, such as lighting and security systems.

Keeping Your Brand Accessible in the Evolving Technology Ecosystem

If your brand isn’t easily accessible via most digital devices and channels today, you’re behind the curve. 68% of the US population will be smartphone users in 2017, up from 39% just five years ago.

The evolution of digital networks and the proliferation of mobile devices is allowing the digital tech giants to continue to dominate the business landscape. Expect companies like Google, Apple, Facebook, Amazon, Baidu and Alibaba to continue expanding their reach and serving as a gateway to your brand.

These companies already have direct and indirect knowledge of what we do on a daily and weekly basis. Expect that to increase as more physical industries become digital. They will attempt to balance the burden of protecting user data with using that data to continue expanding their user base and revenue. Remember, Facebook users are the product, and marketers tap into that product to promote their brands to their audiences.

Brandon Zeuner, a managing partner at Venture51, sees a continued rush of data being brought into the enterprise from the tech giants. “Companies spent the 1990s and the first half of the 2000s installing complex data systems. Now they’ve spent the last five years ripping them out. Workers will jump from Google to Amazon to Salesforce to Workday while checking Instagram on their phone. These systems are now allowed to be used in the enterprise and have become a part of people’s daily routine.”

Three Takeaways for the Marketing Professional

While these trends are beyond the radar screen of the typical marketer at a small to midsize business in January 2017, they can provide the impetus to make improvements today so you’re better prepared for the future.

Think baby steps. Here are some tips to get you moving forward:

1. Digital communication. Take a detailed look at how you use digital means to connect with your audience and customers. Consumer products lead change across all markets, and people will be using these futuristic devices soon. How connected are you with your audience currently? Is your brand easily found via the devices and digital channels that your market is using? Can you effectively communicate with customers in real time? Is digital communication strengthening your customer connection or weakening it? Is your percentage of revenue resulting from digital marketing increasing or decreasing?
2. Data collection and analysis. Review how you collect and analyze marketing and customer data. “Big data” has been hot in the enterprise world for the last five years. Everybody’s talking about analytics, and it’s changing how industries and organizations acquire customers, employees and invest in the future. Review your CRM (and marketing automation, if you have it). What features should you be using that you aren’t? Have you begun automating repetitive marketing tasks? How well are you tracking customer activities? Your own activities? You can’t manage what you don’t measure, so measure as many important things as you can. It’ll require a learning curve, so treat it as an investment. But the more you can truly understand (as opposed to guessing), the better you will become.
3. Content creation. The market doesn’t want to see ads touting the greatness of your product or service. They want to hear others talking about it, see it in action, and understand what it can do for them – their endgame. Invest in authentic content. Tell stories. Have your customers tell their stories. Share ideas. Use video. Ensure that a portion of your marketing and sales budget goes into creating content, distributing content and having your people engage with others. Become an expert at sharing, and shift your sales teams’ approach from trying to persuade your market into trying to support your market.