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The Future of Marketing Depends on These Trends

What’s the future of marketing in 2025? A cluttered marketplace and new technology present tremendous challenge and opportunity. Companies are attempting to top the competition by focusing on consumers. Their growing investment in customer-centric marketing will create vibrant career opportunities for marketers. But only those with a comprehensive skill set will stand out. Read on to explore the trends shaping the future of marketing and how marketers can prepare to thrive.

Trend #1: Personalization

The future of marketing relies on personalization. Consumers have more choices than ever before, and 80 percent are more likely to purchase from brands that customize their experience. That’s why companies are investing in efforts to communicate with customers as individuals. On average, chief marketing officers allocate 14 percent of their budget to personalization.

Today, personalization extends beyond email greetings and subject lines. Companies are focusing on understanding and responding to the unique needs of each customer. Data analytics are a vital component of this process. Target, for example, tracks the demographics and buying history of its online shoppers. The retailer uses the information to suggest products that customers likely need. Spotify collects listening data and creates personalized playlists based on users’ music preferences.

Consumers are demanding personalization from every brand they encounter. At the same time, they are becoming concerned about their privacy. Companies must balance trends in personalization with evolving best practices in data security and brand trust.

Trend #2: Marketing Technology

In the future of marketing, companies that invest in MarTech will be positioned to deliver the most effective personalization. MarTech enables marketers to better predict customer behavior through data analytics, algorithms, and artificial intelligence (AI). Implementing these tools is essential to every company’s marketing success. Certain sectors, however, will experience the most significant transformation from MarTech. They include food and beverage, financial services, media, entertainment, retail, travel, and insurance.

In the next three years, spending on marketing analytics will increase by almost 200 percent. Companies collect customer data through channels such as social ads, email campaigns, and paid search. Together, the data points help create more authentic engagement with customers. Search engines and social media will remain critical drivers of online brand visibility. Marketers need to understand and leverage their algorithms to display online content to consumers at the right time and place. The application of AI is also growing. Devices powered by AI, like smart speakers, are becoming an increasingly important channel for engaging customers. By 2022, an estimated 50 percent of American households will own one.

Trend #3: Innovation

With the rising adoption of MarTech and personalization, it’s clear that companies want to innovate. Chief marketing officers indicate that 16 percent of their budgets fund innovation. Nearly two-thirds expect an increase next year.2 Companies have the budget to innovate, but not necessarily the talent or resources. There’s a gap in how marketing leaders rate their current versus ideal states of innovation. On a scale of one to five, marketing leaders scored themselves an average of 2.2 but aim to achieve a rating of 4.3.2 The future of marketing depends on the ability of marketers to develop new capabilities. Over half of chief marketing officers said they would drive innovation by training current employees or hiring new talent, rather than employing external resources.

Trend #4: Opportunity

The future of marketing jobs is bright. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), marketing will continue to play a vital role in helping companies shine in a crowded marketplace. The result is ongoing career opportunities. BLS expects the overall employment of advertising, promotions, and marketing managers to rise 10 percent from 2016 to 2026, exceeding the average for all occupations. Job prospects are the greatest in the energy, health care, and service/consulting industries. In the future of marketing jobs, market research analysts will have the edge. Employment of the position is expected to grow by 23 percent, more than triple the national average.

Prepare for the Future of Marketing

In the February 2019 CMO Survey, chief marketing officers identified the skills they prioritize in hiring. They range from technical proficiency and financial knowledge to effective leadership. Modern marketing demands well-rounded professionals. Earning an online MBA in marketing will equip you with the broad skills required of today’s marketers.

At the University of Redlands, our online MBA in Marketing teaches students the fundamentals needed to succeed in our ever-changing, technology-based world. We prepare students for the future of marketing. Here’s how an online MBA from Redlands will equip you with the most desirable skills in the marketing industry:

1. Integrity

We are dedicated to developing students as competitive and responsible business leaders. In our ACBSP-accredited online MBA program, students examine the ethical and legal principles of business and understand their effects on managerial decision-making.

2. Creativity

Our interactive program teaches students to use strategic analysis and critical thinking to gain insights into different markets. Students demonstrate their understanding by designing a marketing plan and tackling the complexity of business decision-making in a capstone course.

3. Leadership Abilities

All of our online MBA students learn how to guide the performance of individuals and teams. They develop as strong leaders capable of managing group dynamics, decision-making, and change.

4. Data Science Background

We train students to use quantitative and data analysis tools to carry out the most important marketing tasks. Our graduates are prepared to determine the optimal marketing mix, perform effective analysis of customers and digital marketing campaigns, and integrate spatial thinking in decision-making.

5. Curiosity

Redlands welcomes intellectually curious students of diverse religious, ethnic, national, and socioeconomic backgrounds. Together in our virtual learning environment, students and faculty foster an atmosphere of community and interaction. They gain new insights and challenge each other’s perceptions.

6. Emotional Intelligence

As a private, independent liberal arts university, Redlands is committed to providing a personalized education that frees students to make enlightened choices. Our online MBA program goes beyond training to embrace a reflective understanding of our world. Students proceed from information to insight, and from knowledge to meaning.

7. Financial Acumen

The online MBA program helps students develop the ability to maximize customer value and achieve the highest financial return. Engaging coursework covers the principles of accounting and finance as well as managerial economics.

Explore Our Online MBA in Marketing

Are you curious about how earning an online MBA can shape your marketing career? Fill out the form on this page and a University of Redlands Online Enrollment Counselor will contact you soon.