2016 has been quite a year. It’s been full of surprises in different aspects of life. And with the coming of the New Year, it’s important to know how to make sure our content marketing practices work well and coincide with the new trends that will be taking place. If you’re excited for the new year, you’ll be more delighted at the new trends taking place.

Trend #1: Purchasing Influencers

Back in 2016, influencer marketing played a vital role in how content marketers would grow their business. It was known as one of the most effective ways to market to the right people as there was no room for trial and error. In 2017, however, content marketers have seen a big difference in how websites would target a new audience. Instead of influencer marketing, these companies partner with content creators and distributors by purchasing them completely.

Trend #2: Using Content Marketing as a Defense Mechanism

In a world that is now so easy to negate things about one person or brand, the grieving party should always be ready to defend itself against strikes by its opponents. And through the years, this action will only continue to grow more and more. In order to fight against this, companies need to be able to have their own large, loyal audiences. At the same time, they need to have a PR business or content marketing professional who can help them deal with negative publicity whenever needed.

Trend #3: Being Vocal About Social Platforms

Social media platforms will continue to change their algorithm as they see fit. If you are making use of these networks to grow your brand, you have to be ready for the changes they are about to introduce and be adaptable to them. In 2017, there are speculations that social media platforms will be increasing their advertising efforts instead of focusing on organic publishing. To help you deal with these changes, you can have your own platform and take advantage of paid promotion to grow your audience. Even if you use that platform for sharing, you don’t need to rely on it too much.

Trend #4: Email Relevance

In the past years, many believed that email has died and that it was no longer a reliable way to reach followers. But because there is a need to move away from social media, email is the next best thing to get in touch with your audience. In 2017, brands will be focusing on launching relevant and targeted newsletters. Through this practice, they’ll be able to grow their audience more. And in turn, their followers can see them as a source for relevant customer experiences.

As a marketer, you can get the most from your strategy if you start implementing these new trends. Take time to learn more about them so you can get started on changing your strategy to meet the new ones.