9-Plus Must-Read Insights Featuring 2016’s Top Digital Trends: E-commerce Link Digest

Well, the 2016 World Tour started off in grand style, Big Thinkers, with a quick trip down to the Holy City, Charleston, SC visiting with my fine friends at the Charming Inns of Charleston. It was a great week full of engaging conversations with amazing people. Hope you had a fantastic week, too. As you prep for next week, don’t miss these 9-plus must-read insights featuring 2016’s top digital trends. Enjoy:

1. Yahoo leads off with a look at 5 of the greatest digital marketing pitfalls. Good list, well worth reading.
2. Another strong list comes from Top Rank Blog, with their round-up of 5 digital marketing tactics to help your brand stand out in 2016.
3. Marketing Charts presents a survey about marketing to young city solos. Seems like we’re seeing the return of Yuppies and DINKs, but very useful information all the same.
4. There were a ton of great links about the growth of mobile video, including eMarketers explanation for why internet users abandon digital videos and ReelSEO’s recap from YouTube’s CES Keynote, including four reasons why digital video will win the decade. USA Today also dug into the the YouTube keynote and highlights that digital video will surpass TV by 2020. Altogether, these underscore that one of 2016’s top trends is to make room for mobile video.
5. eMarketer returns with this study that shows for many shoppers, mobile is essential when researching and purchasing products. Um… yeah they do. Like, a lot.
6. The MIT Technology review has a strong piece on reinventing marketing in the digital era that’s worth your time this weekend.
7. Altogether, the growth of mobile, video, demographic shifts, and social play a role in describing “The State of E-commerce 2016,” which is the subject of this past week’s episode of Thinks Out Loud, our weekly e-commerce and digital strategy podcast.
8. On the social scene, Mobile Marketer dives into the news about Twitter wants to allow longer tweets and suggests longer Tweets would significantly recast Twitter. Slate takes a firmer stand against the trend, stating that Twitter isn’t raising the 140-character limit. It’s building a wall.
9. Of course, as you review all the news from the past week, make sure to check these 20 key concepts for the year ahead: the top posts of 2015 and see how they fit into the larger trends shaping digital in 2016.

If you’re interested in learning more about making the social, mobile web work for your customers, be sure to check out these “9 Tremendous Posts About 2016’s Top Digital Trends: E-commerce Link Digest”, this collection of “8 Digital Strategy Posts to Start Your Week Right,” this set of “10 Must-Read Posts About Mobile Commerce and Content Marketing” a fun collection of posts featuring “Google, Mobile, E-commerce. What More Could You Want?” and all the rest of the entries from our E-commerce Link Digest series.

And if you want learn even more about how your customers’ changing behavior shapes e-commerce and marketing, be sure and register to receive a special report I’ve produced in conjunction with hotel marketing firm Vizergy, “Digital Hotel Marketing in a Multiscreen World.” While it’s targeted specifically at hotel and resort marketers, the lessons apply to just about any business. You can get your free copy of the report here.

You can also check out these slides and video from my recent webinar, “Digital Marketing Directions: Three Key Trends Driving Your Marketing Next Year”: