2025’s Top Predictions from Industry-Leading Marketers
No matter where you look, there is one common theme for all marketing professionals in 2025: deliver content that resonates. Whether that’s short-form videos, emails, blogs, or social content, make sure your content makes connections that help you build trust and relationships with your audience.
1 ) Social Media SEO
“Nearly 90% of marketers say that social search optimization is a very important part of their overall strategy. So it’s up to you to think, ‘Is there any way you can make your content more searchable and easier to find on social media?’”
From hashtags to profile optimization to keywords, there are half a dozen ways or more that you can help social media users find your content. The key is pairing your social media strategy with search optimization to see a maximum return on your social media investments.
According to Google, 40% of Gen Zers prefer searching on social media platforms like TikTok and Instagram over the Google giant themselves. So, as you evaluate your social strategy for 2025, consider how you can increase the searchability of your posts, videos, and company profile to match the intent of your target audience.
2 ) The Rise of Social Commerce
“Until recently, buying directly from social platforms during a live stream was difficult. But now, with easy "click-to-buy" options rolling out globally over the next 12 months, social commerce will become the new norm.”
-Neil Patel, NP Digital
Social media functionality continues to expand as app updates allow for better shopping experiences and more connectivity with engaged audiences. While over 80% of Gen Z and Millennials use social media for product discovery and research, almost half of both generations are making their purchases directly through social media.
During a live stream, you will be able to have seamless integrations with “buy now” technology. This could mean powerful product launches and more effective influencer campaigns.
3 ) Audience-First Content
"All the marketing you’ll ever do, content marketing, email marketing, paid media, I don’t care if you’re buying billboards. You’re trying to reach the right people in the right places with the right message."
-Rand Fiskin, Cofounder of SparkToro
Great marketing still needs to connect with your audience where they are. Traditionally, SEO and keyword research are at the forefront of major content decisions, but that may not be the best strategy. Rand says, “Content marketing needs to be bigger than SEO.”
What should you do instead? According to Rand, once you nail down the right people, right places, and right message formula, you’ll naturally start creating great content that meets your audience exactly where they are.
4 ) Leverage Video for Local Advertising
“Wasting money on things that don’t matter that used to matter is the number one poison pill to small businesses. Get skilled at organic social to local media applications. It will change your business!”
You don’t have to spend thousands on ads to make an impact. Smarter branding, like getting your face in front of the camera, can make your business more relatable and recognizable around your target area. Then, with a much smaller ad spend, you can drive home your best videos with a little algorithmic boost (money talks, after all). Using videos on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, YouTube, and more can build up brand awareness and connect you to your local audience—where you need it the most.
5 ) Embrace Curiosity and Experimentation (But With Caution)
“The first question I ask is whether this new trend, tech, or channel aligns with our brand’s core identity and goals. Does it complement our brand values, and importantly - does it enhance customer experience and give additional value or is this just a jump on the bandwagon?”
-Vanessa Yeo Barger, GM of Marketing, Lenskart
With so many trends and channels out there, it can be difficult for marketing teams to determine where the real value lies for them. Vanessa says a combination of intuition, data, and a deep understanding of the brand and customer is key to tapping into the right strategy. While constant experimentation is critical to discovering the right marketing pathways, make those decisions based on more than personal preferences or bright, shiny new tech.
6 ) Human Written Content in an AI World
“As a result of the AI evolution, there is an exponential increase in the amount of AI-written, low-value content. And, in response to that, Google is prioritizing first-person, credible, personality-driven content.”
-Aja Frost, HubSpot's Senior Director of SEO Global Growth
AI-written content is not a cure-all for your marketing needs. While it can be used as a tool, your content should be human-made, full of the personality and color that makes your brand unique. You have the opportunity to stand out in a sea of mediocre words by delivering true thought leadership content. Lean on internal experts, business partners, and user-generated content to create content that people love to read.
7 ) Storytelling Through Experiences
“Don’t bury your strategy. If it includes values like sustainability, locality, or craftsmanship, bring them to life in your product experience through storytelling, design, and features.”
-5&Vine Marketing Agency
Storytelling might be one of the most fun parts of effective marketing (you are talking to writers, after all). The effects are contagious and often emotional. It can transport your audience from their problem to their solution. It can ignite a passion for personal or professional change. It can give consumers a reason to reconnect with your brand over and over again. Breathe new life into your marketing by incorporating elements of storytelling into your imagery, packaging, email newsletters, and more.
8 ) Create “It’s Me” Content
“You want somebody to watch a video, listen to a podcast, or read something that you’ve written and see themselves immediately reflected in it.”
-Ann Handley, Chief Content Officer at MarketingProfs
Ann’s equation of utility x inspiration x empathy is a fantastic lens through which to examine the quality and purpose of the content you create. By creating “it’s me” moments, target customers can quickly relate to your product or service and make a valuable connection that you understand whatever obstacle they face. As a marketing team, position yourself in the shoes of your audience to view your campaigns from their perspective.
9 ) Give Your Emails a Makeover
“Email marketing is no longer what it used to be when it was first launched. Several changes have taken place to make marketing emails customized, interactive, and user-friendly.”
-Mihajlo Ivanovic, Flow Ninja
Email marketing continues to be a major player in how brands connect and maintain customer relationships. According to Salesforce, with the help of AI, emails are getting more conversions with improved segmentation, optimized send times, and personalizations, which just makes opening your inbox a little bit sweeter.
While minimalistic email design is on the rise, the pros at Flow Ninja also love seeing the game-ification of emails with interactive elements. It’s up to your email marketing team to determine how best to include engaging email content, but also streamline your design so it is mobile-friendly and drives the right customers to the right actions.
10 ) Finding the Right Relationship With AI
“We're in a new wave of the artificial intelligence revolution — catalyzed by the generative AI gold rush — and marketers are leading the charge by embracing rapid advancements in the technology to better connect with customers and prospects. But AI isn't just marketers' biggest priority. It's also their biggest challenge.”
-Ariel Kelman, President & Chief Marketing Officer, Salesforce
The opportunities for successfully implementing AI into your marketing team are, frankly, vast and overwhelming. Salesforce reports that 75% of marketers have already implemented or plan to implement AI. With new AI solutions flooding the market regularly, marketers have to determine how AI fits into their marketing strategy.
Salesforce gives us the top five use cases for AI:
Automating customer interactions
Generating content
Analyzing performance
Automating data integration
Driving best offers in real time
To identify AI opportunities, evaluate your existing team's skills and where there might be gaps or opportunities to upskill or train team members to manage AI systems.
Get Ahead of Your Content Goals in 2025
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