Three trends in online advertising: what will be compelling in 2022

Recent years have shown that data protection for Internet users is becoming increasingly important. Newly emerging regulations and laws are intended to ensure that data generated on the Internet is handled confidentially and carefully. Explicit consent to the use of cookies on a website is now common practice for almost everyone, and Apple also took a big step toward tightening the data protection of its users with the iOS 14 software update. Here, every user must separately consent to the generation and storage of data via the so-called tracking opt-in when using an app. This consent or refusal also affects the aspect of whether the app is allowed to forward data to Facebook, which is then used for individual advertising purposes.

Social awareness of personal data protection is increasing and is having a direct impact on the opportunities for online advertising. Because of all these new regulations, the target groups for advertisers will be covered more and more broadly in the future. Data protection is making it more difficult to place targeted ads on Facebook, and re-targeting is also becoming much more difficult as a result.

Advertising must inspire

As a result of this aspect, the advertisements themselves will be enormously important in 2022. Because the target group is becoming increasingly broader and larger, it must be addressed ever more precisely and specifically. In the future, the ads must arouse interest right at the start, and the message must be communicated clearly so that users can be convinced by the ad.

One trend that will become increasingly apparent in the coming year is creative advertisements. If the focus in the conception and creation of advertisements is on creativity, diverse possibilities and opportunities arise for companies. By using stylistic devices such as a pattern interrupt, humor, or an appealing preview image, ads can manage to stand out. Online users are served countless ads every day, so only if the ad has something special to offer, it will be able to hold the user's attention.

The last few months and years have already shown that in the field of online advertising, technical aspects have become less and less important, while the ad itself and its design have become increasingly important. So now, in 2022, companies must also focus on their ads, integrate creative stylistic devices, and ensure that they can thus reach and hold the viewers' attention.

Trust through authentic content

Online advertising will also face new challenges in the coming year. In the future, it will become increasingly important and difficult to gain the trust of consumers. Too many products and providers of varying seriousness ensure that customers and prospective customers have less and less trust in the promises of online advertising and in the products and companies themselves.

To counteract this in advertising, advertisers should focus more on building and maintaining trust in the future. This trust building can be achieved by integrating quality content within the marketing strategy.

If companies can use shorter, entertaining videos on social media to bring their products closer to consumers while explaining and educating them, it will have a positive impact on prospect trust.

At the same time, the trend is also to rely more and more on user-generated content. Online users are increasingly running the risk of buying products online that turn out not to be good enough. However, trust in the products can be increased again if these skeptical prospects and potential customers are told and shown the experiences of others with these very products.

So one trend that will become much more important in 2022 is customer testimonials in online advertising - especially on social media. If prospective customers see that others have already bought the product and are satisfied with their buying experience, this will strengthen their trust in the advertising and ultimately in the company and the products.

Creativity and authenticity are the key

While 2022 will bring some challenges to online advertising, it will also bring new opportunities. The privacy of individual consumers is becoming more relevant, which also makes optimal targeting more difficult. Companies thus now have to focus on their ads per se and their creative aspects. At the same time, trust in online advertising is dwindling. To counteract this, it is important to place honest and authentic content in the coming year. Customer testimonials and user-generated content will help restore consumer trust. So if you want your online advertising to be convincing in 2022, you have to rely on creativity and authenticity.

* Daniel Hipke is CEO of CTR Accelerator and expert in creative advertising.