Media, Advertising, and Marketing: 2023 Industry Outlook and Opportunities

I started the Women+ marketing studio Tote + Pears over a decade ago, when mobile payments and influencer marketing were just starting to catch on. Every year since then, I’ve seen marketing trends, advertising trends, and media trends come and go. 

Where Is the Media, Advertising, and Marketing Industry Heading in 2023? 

As marketers and agency owners, we know the media, advertising, and marketing landscape is forever changing. In 2023, the industry is promising growth in digital campaigns and value-added services. Internet publishers are projected to continue to win big, especially those that embrace mobile technology. In TV, there are new revenue opportunities in interactive marketing (think in-commercial product ordering), despite the medium’s flat viewership. It’s a lot to consider, especially when we're already carrying heavy workloads. 

To help you meet this moment, I've gathered a list of innovations to consider and potential pitfalls to sidestep – from new technologies and pricing models to data privacy landmines – so your clients (and business) are poised for success in 2023 and beyond.

How Are Marketers Using Blockchain, NFTs, AR, and AI? 

Blockchain, non-fungible tokens (NFTs), augmented reality (AR), and artificial intelligence (AI) are much more than buzzwords. And you don’t have to be an expert to use them in your marketing strategy. As new “marketer-friendly” applications and tools are released daily, they give us more opportunities to leverage these technologies to foster stronger connections with customers. 

Due to its decentralized nature, blockchain opens up a world of opportunities for marketers to better understand and connect with customers. But how will blockchain affect marketing? By cutting out the middleman (companies that collect and crunch the numbers before they get to us), we can now access customer data in real-time – which can be useful when creating personalized and targeted experiences, such as ads on social media feeds based on browsing habits. Blockchain technology is also being used to prevent fraudulent reporting of ad engagement numbers by bad actors – an invaluable metric we, as marketers, can’t afford to get wrong. 

As for NFTs, marketers are partnering with digital artists to co-create branded NFT art that catches the eye of the most technologically savvy customers. Some brands have auctioned off NFT collections to celebrate a product launch or incorporated them into social media campaigns. NFTs are a popular asset in the digital marketplace, and commissioning them can help build internet buzz around people, products and brands. 

AR is reshaping the customer journey by allowing marketers to create new and innovative brand experiences. How can marketers use augmented reality? Unlike virtual reality (VR), which requires a headset to experience, AR features are accessible through smart devices and, therefore, are more accessible to customers. Now you can “try on” clothes in the comfort of your home or test out a paint color in your living room before buying it. AR tools like these empower customers to interact with products (and a brand) when and how they’d like.

With all this new customer data available, you can take advantage of how AI is used in marketing to analyze the data and generate actionable campaign insights. At Tote + Pears, AI tools feed our team’s strategies for content creation and methods for increasing branded experiences, such as personalized chat conversations on a client’s website based on data. These tools can’t replace our team’s ideas, but they do help start the creative process.

Another use of AI in marketing is to provide customers with personalized product recommendations based on their online interests and habits. AI can also produce copy for external campaigns (like social media posts) and internal communications (like emails), saving you time and money. 

What Are the Key Data Privacy Challenges? 

Data protection and privacy challenges are front of mind for consumers: A 2021 report from the global accounting organization KPMG noted that 86% of respondents (2,000 U.S. adults) cited data privacy as a growing concern. Notably, 68% of respondents said they were concerned about how much data businesses collect.

Consumers want more control over when and how their data is collected, so data privacy challenges is a topic that will continue trending through 2023. Governments are also expected to respond with new policies and limitations accordingly. 

To keep up with e-commerce growth, companies are giving online shoppers more payment options (like buy now, pay later services), using search data to provide tailored online shopping experiences, and adopting subscription pricing models for their marketplaces.

What is data privacy? Without proper protections, bad actors can steal consumer data and use it to invade customers’ privacy. And brands’ reputations suffer when data breaches occur. Without transparent data privacy policies, customers might be wary about what information is being collected, how it is being used and to whom it is being sold.

Therefore, it is beneficial for marketers to have strict policies around data protection and privacy challenges. This can mean telling customers what data is collected and how it will be used – and, if possible, allowing them to opt out of data tracking altogether. Ensuring any data that is collected is safe from hackers and malware is also key. By respecting customers’ data privacy concerns, you can safeguard their trust.

How Are Companies Embracing Subscription Pricing Models?

Subscription pricing has been around for centuries but has become more mainstream in the internet age with the emergence of digital streaming services and e-commerce platforms, according to a 2022 report by Deloitte. And it’s expected to continue in 2023 as inflation and economic instability concerns grow. 

What is a subscription pricing model? Subscription pricing models are pricing strategies that allow customers to pay for a product or service regularly over time (instead of making a one-time purchase). 

So what advantages does a subscription pricing model offer a business? One upside for customers is that a subscription may come with attractive prices and perks attached. For example, buy a year-long subscription for your favorite mail-order coffee, and get one month of beans free. Instead of a one-time $700 software purchase, pay $25/month and get regular software updates and access to phone support.

A subscription pricing model also offers a number of advantages for companies that embrace it, like customer loyalty and consistent revenue. 

That’s because subscriptions are usually automatic, helping to bring in revenue consistently on a monthly, quarterly, or yearly basis, without the need for additional advertising or marketing efforts. Subscriptions also tend to come in price tiers, with higher tiers unlocking more features, which allows a business to appeal to customers willing to pay for a more exclusive experience, without pricing out potential customers looking for a budget-friendly option. This is a more personalized approach that appeals to customers. An additional benefit is that these pricing tiers are easily adjustable as a business’s customer base grows or when the economy hits a rough period. 

What Drives the Growth of Podcasting?

Podcasting is expected to be a $4 billion industry by 2024, according to a 2021 report on the state of podcast advertising revenue by the Interactive Advertising Bureau and PwC. The report also noted that ad revenue in podcasting was growing faster than total internet ad revenue. 

As media companies create more podcasts to tell stories and listeners subscribe to them in droves, you essentially have your pick of millions of programs across hundreds of genres targeting a diverse range of demographics to place dynamic ads. 

And it’s not just about advertisement placement: marketers and agencies are seeing this growth of the podcast industry and jumping on opportunities to create their own podcasts. 

A few years ago, I began hosting The Tote + Pears Podcast to explore the layers that influence women's decision-making because women consumers are overlooked (and often misunderstood) and are also hard to recruit and retain in the workplace. Through it, I have introduced topics like intersectionality, women’s influence, and nonbinary identity to listeners, many of whom are marketing and HR leaders. Highlighting how these differences impact employees has reinforced our outlook as an agency and brought awareness to our work. In fact, every client has referenced the podcast during meetings with Tote + Pears. 

What Drives the Growth of E-Commerce?

Growth of the e-commerce industry surged during the pandemic, when people were stuck in their homes and increased the number of things they ordered online. According to "Global Ecommerce Forecast," a 2022 report from Insider Intelligence and eMarketer that analyzed e-commerce data to estimate trends, retail e-commerce sales are expected to increase to $6 trillion in 2023 and surpass $7 trillion by 2025.

To keep up with e-commerce growth, companies are giving online shoppers more payment options (like buy now, pay later services), using search data to provide tailored online shopping experiences, and adopting subscription pricing models for their marketplaces. 

At Tote + Pears, we advise clients to make online shopping transactions as smooth as possible, because shoppers (especially women) gravitate toward brands that make their lives easier. For example, we may suggest incorporating AI-driven chatbots to help improve or simplify the checkout experience and improve customer service. It’s a simple way to leave a positive impression on your most influential customers.

2023 won’t be without its challenges, and the economic outlook remains uncertain. But keeping these trends in mind as you plan your media, advertising, and marketing strategies through the year will help position you, your clients, and your business for success.