What Will “Internet Marketing” Mean in the Year 2025?

I have been studying Internet marketing for over 20 years. I’ll never forget how excited I was when I realized I could make websites using a program called Microsoft Frontpage in 1997. Since then, I have been fascinated by the new opportunities and technologies that have developed for communication and promotion for small businesses, charities, special events, etc.

It’s incredible how fast the Internet is changing, and how much there is to keep up with. It can feel completely overwhelming at times. And there is so much opportunity. To get Internet exposure, we need to concern ourselves with websites, Facebook, videos on YouTube, email, and many other methods, avenues, and platforms.

So, where are we heading with all the stuff? What will “Internet marketing” mean in the year 2025? Here are some of my thoughts and projections:

1. The World Wide Web will still be highly relevant and important, and will probably not change radically. HOWEVER, it will not be used as much as it is today. Nowadays, we often search Google to find the information we are looking for, and then follow the search results to various websites. This won’t happen as often in the future because we will be more reliant on personal assistant software. Programs like Microsoft Cortana, Siri, and Google Now will become much more sophisticated and be able to deliver data results in an easier way than we are currently used to. In fact, I believe that the personal assistant programs will represent the biggest change in how the Internet affects our lives in the coming years.
2. Social platforms like Facebook will be as ubiquitous as ever, but they will become easier to use, and integrate more fluidly with our lifestyles. They will also incorporate video and virtual reality in an incredible way. We will start to feel much, much closer to each other— even when we’re on opposite ends of the globe.
3. AI is here, and will become more and more prominent. This article would not be complete without mentioning the incredible significance that artificial intelligence will be bringing to our technological future. With AI, we are going places that will seem right out of a science fiction movie. AI is already being used to great extent in the technologies we use every day. For example, whenever you search Google, the results are heavily influenced by AI technology (called “RankBrain”) that Google employs in order to understand the intention of your search so it can give you more relevant results.

“I skate to where the puck is going to be, not where it has been.” –Wayne Gretzky

If you are a marketer, promoter, or small business owner, you are accustomed to fast changes in the technologies involved to get exposure. But you can also rest assured that some things never change, and that certain strategies should always be employed. For example, it will always be important to create good content. Mankind will never stop seeking information and looking for content that provides or suggests solutions to their problems. They will be looking for articles to read, videos to watch, virtual reality programs to experience, broadcasts to listen to, etc. Also, branding will always be important. If you have a product or service that can be helpful, useful, or enjoyable to people, you will need to get the word out through whichever means are available.

So, if you want to be successful with Internet marketing in the future, be sure to prioritize these two things:

1. Create quality content on a regular basis (content that people will actually want to consume and share).
2. Make sure you incorporate a consistent branding message in all the ways that you communicate with people. Make it very clear what you do, and the value you have to offer prospective customers.