How 5G will Affect the Digital Marketing Industry

by Ralf, Guest Contributor

Enough 5G benefits to go around
The fifth-generation wireless network technology is here. Nearly two dozen wireless carriers worldwide have already launched or started preparing to launch their 5G services. Likewise, many smartphone manufacturers have already rolled out their 5G-compatible smartphones. And consumers all over the world anticipate the fast data speeds promised over the years by 5G predictions and tests. 

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The United States (US) Federal Communications Commission (FCC) states that 5G will be up to 1,000 times faster than existing 4G speeds, with 100 times reduced latency. At the same time, 5G will help process a significantly increased amount of data. It will allow for the use of higher-resolution ads that include 4K video, and further the digital marketers’ ability to personalize content in real-time.

What consumers say about 5G benefits
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Consumers’ views on 5G ranks higher definition video content as the second most anticipated benefit. | Image Source

With faster load time, reduced latency and higher resolutions, digital marketers and advertisers expect a new range of ad formats and marketing opportunities. 

Video marketing will be popular
Videos have already become an inseparable part of consumers’ lives and business promotions. People prefer watching videos, and digital marketers are benefiting from it. Globally, video traffic is expected to account for 82 percent of total web traffic by 2022. 

With 5G technology rolling out, video marketing is going to be even more important. By utilizing 5G networks, companies will be able to deliver an enhanced experience to their customers. Ads could feature videos featuring virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), high resolution, and 360. By creating more innovative, ultra-fast and engaging video experiences businesses will be in a better position to capture the larger digital audience.

Video marketing statistics

Internet users view video content several times more than other content. | Image Source

The IoT will introduce new marketing opportunities
The anticipated benefits of 5G mean the technology could boost and speed up innovation in other sectors. For example, 5G has the ability to connect everything from consumer devices to urban infrastructure in the IoT (Internet of Things) era. 

While the IoT is functional today with 4G technology, its functionality will be significantly improved on 5G networks. This, in turn, will increase the demand and supply of IoT-related technology, scaling the number of integrations between 5G and IoT. Industry analysts forecast 25 billion global IoT connections by 2025, a global revenue that will quadruple to $1.1 trillion. 

This predicted 5G and IoT progress presents another platform for marketers. The connected nature of the IoT suggests several communication avenues for delivering marketing messages directly to the consumer.   

Enabling more personalized content
According to a survey conducted by Infosys, 86 percent of consumers report that content personalization has a significant impact on their purchase decisions. Marketers are aware of this, and content personalization is one of the most important elements of marketing campaigns. Here, 5G will be highly valuable as well.

5G networks will connect almost all devices, leading to an unprecedented amount of data. At the same time, it’ll also provide better access to highly-reliable and high-quality data. It will help marketers analyze and understand the individual customer’s needs in real-time. 

5G’s Faster data retrieval and exchange will allow for more complex and highly-personalized digital marketing. In-depth, hyper-targeted, and location-based marketing and advertising will help create one-to-one personalized ads to engage customers at the right time and place. 

Augmented reality 
According to a survey, if consumers can view a product in Augmented Reality (AR), then there’s a 40 percent chance of a successful online sales conversion. In fact, the AR industry’s revenue may reach $120 billion by 2020 due to the advancing technological infrastructure globally.

Augmented Reality is slowly becoming a mobile staple, and apart from being restricted by budgets, speed and latency also play a role in AR adoption. According to Oath, a Verizon company, 85 percent of consumers believe AR will benefit from 5G technology. 
Because of its unmatched benefits and popularity among consumers, AR is becoming important in the digital marketing industry. The high system capacity and lower latency of 5G technology mean AR-related content will be even more impressive, which is a boon to digital marketers.

Conclusion
Companies have already begun establishing partnerships with network carriers providing 5G services to ensure they’re prepared for its emergence. As 5G is expected to fully roll out soon and become the norm, you can expect companies involved in digital marketing to base their entire business on it. Considering the importance of digital marketing to today’s businesses, this is the right time for the marketers to prepare for the next-generation network technology.    

Author bio:

Ralf is a blogger and digital marketing expert. He writes anything that is related to mobile marketing, phone review and the latest technology news and he's writings can be seen in several publications aimed at IT industry.  

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