11 Internet Marketing Trends to Ignore for 2008

January 8, 2008 by ian

Sure, I could try to predict what'll work in 2008. But I'll point to things like great marketing copy, audience measurement and analytics, your eyes will roll back in your head and my subscriber count will fall even further.

It's much more fun to point out what'll flop in 2008. Here are the Internet Marketing 'trends', pushed by the pundits, we can comfortably ignore in 2008:

1. Facebook. Big bad Facebook ended 2007 by giving out private data, started 2008 with a thud and have never established that they're a decent sales platform. While they show promise as a branding center, they won't grab the revenue that Google Adwords has - they don't have much appeal for small businesses, which are the cornerstone of Adwords' success. Plus, users will start abandoning them in annoyance.
2. Google Knol. Google's Wikipedia competitor will be as gigantic a success as Orkut. Nuff said.
3. Search Wikia. Wikipedia, not to be left out, has decided to go head to head with Google with their own search engine. So far it's a real winner. Don't hold your breath on this one.
4. Vertical Search. It stank up the joint last year. Why would it improve this year? Yet many continue to say it's the Next Big Thing. I choose to stand aside and let the lemmings plunge without me.
   
5. Mobile Media Marketing. I'm a fan of this, and I'd love to see it succeed. Unfortunately, the average North American uses their cell phone while careening down the freeway at 80 mph and simultaneously reading a novel. Don't count on much attention share in the world's biggest markets. It will grow, because venture capitalists will continue to pour money into it. But it won't affect your internet marketing strategy.
6. Social Networks. These are powerful - we invest a ton of effort in social media for our clients, because it influences other channels. But they won't overshadow paid and unpaid search in 2008. The average consumer thinks a social network is four people hanging out at the water cooler. Wait for 2009 for this to really take off.
7. Web 3.0. I will personally rip out the aorta of anyone who uses this phrase in front of me.
   
8. The Seth Godin Action Figure. OK, this will sell like hotcakes. But I wanted to get a link from Seth Godin so I mentioned it here.
   
9. E-books. Amazon Kindle will wow the pundits. The average consumer will continue to buy paperbacks in airport bookstores.
10. Blogs as money earners. The A-list will continue to rake in the bucks. The rest of us will toil in silence, muttering angrily as the internet public passes us by.
    
11. Podcasts. Audio podcasts will continue to languish as a great idea that .00001% of the population cares about. I will still try to get you to hire me to do a podcast, though, to reach that .00001%.

Remember, ignore with authority, and have a great 2008!

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