The remote-first marketing firm foresees four major marketing trends for 2022, which they dub the ‘Year of Conflict’.

Switch, an international marketing agency, has released its 2022 marketing trends report. In it, they take a snapshot of the current state of the world of communication and marketing.

The report, which can be accessed here, covers a set of market tendencies that will carry over from 2021, along with four major trends that are predicted to have a major impact on the industry during the new year.

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Richard Muscat Azzopardi, CEO at Switch, said: “we work on a trends report to share with our clients every year, but we thought it would be valuable to anyone who has an interest in marketing, so we’ve made it available for free on our site for all to learn from. Staying ahead of the curve is critical for every brand, and we want everyone to tell better stories. The world will be a better place that way.”

Brands that focus on human values will reap long term benefits, trends show

The overarching theme of the data-driven report is the continued focus on humanistic values. This is exemplified through the increasing need for brands to be in support of causes beyond company profit. Brands that care about a cause enough to link it to their fundamental principles will benefit from long-term improvements in brand perception and loyalty.

Another trend the report details is the change that the influencer market is going to experience in 2022, as more people look for genuine content that resonates with their personal ideologies, rather than more generic commercial fare.

Growth of first-party data is essential for marketers in 2022

The incoming data privacy revolution due to the imminent death of the third-party cookie is going to change the way marketers think about targeting. As large data-collecting platforms come under fire, brands will come under more pressure to provide consumers with better reasons to voluntarily provide their data for marketing purposes.

The report also lists trends from 2021 that will continue to pick up steam in 2022, such as the demand for brand accountability, remote-working, and virtual events.

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The document includes statistics supporting each of the trends, along with case studies that highlight their relevance. Data for the report was gathered from sources such as Statista, Forbes, Deloitte, and Microsoft, then analysed and interpreted by the Switch’s team of industry experts.
The report serves as a follow-up to last year’s equivalent publication. During the height of the pandemic, Switch also released a Book to serve as a Comprehensive Guide to Marketing in Uncertain Times.