Professor of Marketing
Five burning questions on digital marketing
Digital marketers now have more tools at their fingertips than ever before. They’re able to harness the power of the internet to drive success in their organisations. But every day, new technological developments change the digital marketing landscape. And this leaves questions in all our minds. What role can AI play in digital marketing? What impact has social media had? And what does the future hold?
Vlerick’s Professor Andreas Munzel is an expert in digital marketing and social interactions. He’s a master of analytics, data-driven marketing and customer centricity. And in this post, he answers the five burning questions we’ve all got about digital marketing. Get ready to be inspired…
Question 1 – What impact has the rise of social media had on search optimisation?
Search engines are now more powerful than ever. They’re able to consider social signals – such as likes, comments and shares – when ranking web pages. Which means web pages with higher social signals are considered high-quality and relevant – and are given a higher ranking. The growing popularity of social media also means that users are beginning to use these platforms as search engines.
So it’s essential for brands to adapt – and to create engaging, platform-specific content. This is because adopting visual content and influencer and user-generated content (UGC) can be key to discoverability and building audience trust.
Question 2 - What are the challenges of merging the metaverse and AI?
Merging the metaverse and AI could transform digital marketing. But there are three main areas of challenge for achieving this: technical, ethical and legal.
Technical: While the technology needed to merge the two has come a long way, advanced AI skills like natural language processing and computer vision are still under development.
Ethical: Issues concerning privacy, data security and AI bias have yet to be resolved. And it’s also important to consider the legality of merging the two, where issues of intellectual property, user governance and regulatory enforcement come into play.
These challenges call for collaborative efforts to incorporate AI into the metaverse in a responsible, sustainable and compliant way.
Question 3 – Meta’s Threads platform is taking on X – what will the impact be?
Threads, Meta’s text-based platform, launched in July 2023 as a competitor to X (formerly Twitter). While X’s ad revenues halved in 2023, the meteoric rise of Threads gives it the potential to revolutionise digital marketing. It offers powerful marketing tools and platform synergies – and analysts predict it will mirror Twitter’s 2021 $5bn ad revenues.
Question 4 - How are third-party cookies changing the advertising landscape?
With Google ending third-party cookies for Chrome users in 2024, brands are being forced to rethink their advertising strategies. Now they must balance user privacy with targeted ads – and find new methods of understanding consumer preferences. Alternative strategies include contextual advertising, using first-party data – and strengthening direct customer relationships.
Question 5 - Why is digital marketing so important?
Many businesses are undergoing digital transformations – and facing the challenges these transformations bring. Which is why skilled digital marketers who can keep up with the ever-evolving landscape are more in demand than ever.
These challenges include finding ways to continue to drive growth and improve customer experience. And they mean an increased focus on issues such as ad fraud, ad blockers, privacy concerns, misinformation – and a demand for accountability.
To tackle the challenges, businesses must embrace new technologies – such as augmented reality and Generative AI. And as social media platforms introduce new features – like Meta’s Threads – marketers need to find effective ways to incorporate them into strategy.
Eager to know more?
Discover our four-day Digital Marketing programme – and learn how technology can empower your organisation to create future-proof digital marketing strategies.