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1–19 Intellect Limited 2020

Journal of Digital Media & Policy

Volume
© 00 Number
2020 Intellect 00
Ltd Article. English language. https://doi.org/10.1386/jdmp_00027_1
© 2020 Intellect
Received Ltd Article.
3 December English language.
2019; Accepted https://doi.org/10.1386/jdmp_00027_1
8 July 2020
Received 12 March 2019; Accepted 8 July 2020

BRIGHTON NYAGADZA
Marondera University of Agricultural Sciences & Technology

Search engine marketing

and social media marketing
predictive trends

ABSTRACT KEYWORDS
The research purpose of this article was to analyse the search engine marketing social media marketing
and social media marketing predictive trends that are occurring both regionally search engine
in Africa and on a global scale. The motivation for the study was to offer prag- marketing
matic advice to business practitioners in crafting digital marketing strategies by blogging
leveraging search engine marketing and social media marketing trends. In terms optimization
of research methodology, a systematic literature survey method and an inductive accelerated mobile
research approach were applied. Social media concepts were critically analysed pages
and evaluated to determine their link to the current research focus area. The main voice search
literature findings showed that the main trends include the use of Accelerated social messaging
Mobile Pages, micro-vlogging, voice search, blogging and social messaging. In the
continuous dynamic digital landscape, marketers need to embrace the art of doing
business by adopting new search engine marketing and social media marketing
techniques. With this in mind, it is important for corporations to utilize social
media for the development of marketing strategies. The viral power of social media
makes it more attractive to businesses promoting their products to target markets.
The article also provides an intuitive apprehension of the predictive trends in digi-
tal marketing, which are vital for developing an agile stance to outwit rivals in
blue oceans.

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Brighton Nyagadza

INTRODUCTION
With social media marketing and search engine marketing (SEM), it is very
easy to capture the attention of customers at any given point, as they tend
to focus on socializing on their personal accounts. The 2018 Chief Marketing
Officer survey shows that most companies are spending almost 13.8 per cent
of their budgetary amounts on social media (Ashley and Tuten 2015; Moorman
2018; Voorveld 2019). In North America, more than 77 per cent of people are
online frequently; in Australasia and Oceania, it is 61 per cent; and in Europe
it is even higher at 77 per cent, although some Scandinavian states have 80 to
95 penetration and the United Kingdom has more than 82 per cent (Ryan
2014).
In Africa at large, however, there is a need for a paradigm shift towards
a digital marketing trajectory. One major impediment to the success of such
a move is the lack of capitalization of platforms in the digital space. The aim
of this article is to address issues raised by the predictive trends in SEM and
social media marketing. The focus is not limited to the Zimbabwean or the
African scenario, but extends beyond these borders since technology has
established social connections globally. The next section dwells on unpack-
ing the global view in tandem with an examination of social media usage and
internet connectivity.

GLOBAL BACKGROUND
The African continent has been regarded as less developed than South
America, North America, Europe, Asia and the Caribbean in terms of infor-
mation and communication (ICT) technologies, infrastructure penetration and
connection (African Development Bank 2013). Adaptability of Africa’s technol-
ogy trends has also been viewed as somewhat slower, with a resultant nega-
tive effect on social media uptake for both marketing and business purposes.
This was unearthed by the research conducted by the World Economic Forum
(WEF), World Bank (WB) and African Development Bank, collaboratively.
The cradle of the development of social media marketing for business
development in Africa is directly related to the mobile growth and increas-
ing awareness of online communication, as well as the replacement of obso-
lete landlines (African Development Bank 2013; COMCEC 2015). Globally,
improvements in internet connectivity have increased social media usage.
Technological dynamics have led to the development of electronic learning
and flexible working from home. According to the Asia Pacific Tele-community,
social media marketing and SEM development are still major challenges for
many countries in Asia (COMCEC 2015). A majority of English-speaking
countries, including Arab countries, have better social media marketing usage
rate compared with other states. Afghanistan, Pakistan, Kazakhstan, Turkey,
Albania, Turkmenistan, Bangladesh, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar,
Kuwait, Iraq, Comoros and Mauritania are just some Arab nations that have
experienced a major boost in social media usage through internet connectivity.
Platforms used include Facebook (which is the most popular, YouTube, Twitter,
Instagram, Pinterest and Twoo, among others.
On the African continent, Nigeria leads the pack in internet usage and
social media access as result of its large population. This is supported by
the views of Boateng and Quansah (2013), the Nigerian Communications
Commission (2015) and COMCEC (2015), all of whom contend that Nigeria
is the African internet giant, with almost 11.2 million social media users

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 Search engine marketing and social media marketing predictive trends

networked through broadband, who are frequently active on their mobile

devices. Sherif and Senja (2015) predicted that the number of mobile users
was expected to rise globally by 7 billion as a result of internet connection
and more social media usage. In more economically developed and emerging
countries such as the United States, Russia, China, Canada, Brazil and India,
about a quarter of the population owned a smartphone with access to social
media mobile application by 2014.
Statistics from the Pew Research Center (2018) indicate that about
39 states constituting almost three-quarters of the European continent use
the internet and their residents use smart mobile devices. South Korea leads
in terms of internet use, with almost 96 per cent. The economy with the
lowest usage rate was Greece, with 66 per cent (Pew Research Center 2018).
In contrast, about 70 per cent of emerging and developing countries have no
stable access to the internet. It can therefore be argued that internet connec-
tion is much higher in sub-Saharan Africa. More than half of the South African
population has access to the internet, standing at 59 per cent, in comparison
with other countries in the Southern African Development Community (Pew
Research Center 2018).
In Zimbabwe, fixed landline phones have experienced a downward trend
of 8.7 per cent in terms of subscribers. The number of active subscribers had
fallen from 334,828 to 305,720 as at 30 September 2016 (Musingarimi et
al. 2020; POTRAZ 2017). This decline in fixed landline subscribers has led
to a corresponding decline in fixed telephone density, from 2.5 per cent to
2.4 per cent. Among these, 22.4 per cent were active fixed corporate subscrib-
ers. Musingarimi et al. (2020) argue that the information and communica-
tion technologies sector is operating in volatile, dynamic, unpredictable and
confusing environment, where companies face difficulties retaining customers
and compliance with technological trends (Musingarimi et al. 2020; POTRAZ
2017). As a result, people are moving to the use of mobile devices, which is
why the adoption of and adaption to social media marketing trends is so
important.

PROBLEM STATEMENT
The motivation for this article was to provide an insight into the predictive
trends in SEM and social media marketing. In recent years, Facebook has
acquired a bad reputation due to negative issues related to data breaches,
generation of fake news, political propaganda and cyberbullying. The interac-
tivity of younger people with the platform has declined.
Global statistics have shown that about half of Facebook users today are
above retirement age (Digital Marketing Institute 2020), which shows that the
social media platform is no longer a kingpin of social media marketing (Digital
Marketing Institute 2020). Companies need to embrace other newly trending
social media marketing and SEM platforms, which can yield more profitability
and better brand visibility in the future. It is vital for digital marketing profes-
sionals and business organizations in developing countries to look for other
alternatives, as the once dominant Facebook is now deemed to be less suitable
for effective social media marketing campaigns. The new platforms include,
but are not limited to, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, Pinterest and others.
Although Facebook is still massive in America, developing countries around
the world need to take note of this new paradigm for dynamic strategic shifts.
Furthermore, customers today require sophisticated services with less
effort. The use of voice search as part of customer service, according to the

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researcher, is predicted to be the future of digital marketing. This would

increase with more artificial intelligence being incorporated. Social messaging
is also growing. Content creation on blog spots is no longer an option.
However, the mere use of the social media marketing is not enough; there
is a need for concerted efforts to pool resources in order to make it effective
(Bilos and Kelic 2012; Jurado et al. 2019). Unanswered questions such as what
new digital offers can be given to the customers in the future still stand; hence
research is required to explain the predicted trends. This article is based on
a rigorous systematic literature review, designed to close existing theoretical
and knowledge gaps and address research paucity in general, to benefit both
academia and professional social media marketing and SEM fields.

METHODS FOR COLLECTING AND ANALYSING LITERATURE

The study was a systematic literature review survey that utilized an inductive
research approach. Qualitative analysis was employed to collect and analyse
the literature and the research was done using the Google search engine.
Terms such as ‘social media marketing’, ‘predictive trends’ and ‘search engine
marketing’ were used to guide the search process.
To look for authorship in the research area, the researcher carried out
investigations in journals with a strong reputation in the area of social media
marketing: the International Journal of Advertising, The Journal of Strategic
Information Systems, the Journal of Research in Interactive Marketing, the Journal
of Consumer Marketing, the European Journal of Marketing, the Journal of
Marketing and others. The gathering of literature was done in May 2019 and
was not limited to certain years. Articles that were not related to the study
area were deleted from the selection. All non-empirical articles were excluded.
The process of search resulted in summation of 120 papers that the author
subsequently coded. The discovered articles were heralded between 2003 and
2018. To discover the main areas in the 120 papers, each journal was analysed
and given codes with descriptions. The keywords were then analysed and
populated into defined and identifiable strategic themes. All this was done in
tandem with the precepts and/or procedures of the grounded theory approach.
The databases were Scopus, Springer Link and Emerald Insight through the
Chartered Institute of Marketing catalogue, WorldCAt, Congent, Routledge,
CRS, SAGE open, Taylor and Francis abstracts. The following are the SEM and
social media marketing predictive trends that marketers across the globe need
to embrace in a bid to create market space visibility and agility.

SEARCH ENGINE MARKETING PREDICTIVE TRENDS

SEM is the marketing of an organization on the various search engines avail-
able on the internet. It is defined by HubSpot (2011) as a concept function-
ing to express the meaning of digital marketing on a website through search
engines. This entails both natural search engine optimization and paid search
strategies. In this study, SEM is described as process of giving an organization
or a company a higher level of visibility within the search engines’ result list-
ings. All the online public relations activities triggered by SEM lead to recovery
of corporate identity, which is viewed as ethos, aims and values that create a
sense of individuality (de Chernatony 1999; Harris and de Chernatony 2001;
Harrison et al. 1998; Kapferer 1997; van Riel and Balmer 1997; Vingirayi et al.
2020), which helps differentiate a particular corporate brand from others. The

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 Search engine marketing and social media marketing predictive trends

idea of corporate image, reputation, branding and identity was put forward by
scholars in various disciplines (Balmer 2001; Balmer and Gray 2003; Caruana
1997; Eberl and Schwaiger 2005; Fombrun 1998; Harris and de Chernatony
2001; Hatch and Schultz 2003; Helms 2007; Kay 2006; Knox and Bickerton
2003; Balmer and Greyser 2006; Spotts et al. 1997; Wartick 1992, 2002). Thus,
SEM is mainly meant to improve customer engagement for any corporate. The
purpose of search engines such as Yahoo or Google is to lessen the burden
of searching for results by entering a specified key phrase, term or word.
Scientific algorithms designed through the computer programming language
tend to rank the searches in line with highly related web pages.
DeMers (2017) proposes that greater online social media interactions
have been necessitated by a rise in the efficiency and effectiveness of internet
connectivity. Due to this, the population is actively encouraged to circulate
or share videos and photos on social media platforms such as Instagram and
Facebook. Furthermore, this agrees with the notion that companies leverage
social media not only for digital marketing but also as part of their corporate
storytelling for branding.
Corporate storytelling for branding is a key phrase in today’s corporate
social media marketing and communication world, as many other concepts
of branding also cover different approaches and fields of interest (Chen and
Seng 2016; Nyagadza et al. 2019). This is because online ecosystems are
always dynamic. New developments in terms of technological software for
social media applications are constantly being developed in larger quantities
and with better quality (Nyagadza et al. 2018). The predictive trends for SEM
include those explained in the next section.

Mobile awareness
Research has proven that many youthful customers and consumers who
regularly transact on digital platforms are high users of smart devices such as
smartphones, tablets, laptops and iPads. There has been frequent daily usage
of mobile devices to access social media applications for business market-
ing functions (Alexander and Losh 2010; boyd 2010; Hartley 2009; Phillips
et al. 2014; Turner 2009; Voorveld 2019). It could be argued that most of the
social media applications meant for business purposes are readily available
for commercial purposes in online platforms like the Google Apps Store. At
the beginning of 2019, the major and best known social media platforms
widely used on mobile devices were Facebook, YouTube, WhatsApp, Facebook
Messenger, WeChat and Instagram (Statista 2019; Voorveld 2019).
The wider use of social media platforms translates to the development
of user-friendly pages and paid-per-click advertisements for engaging and
reaching users of mobile devices (Statista 2019; Voorveld 2019). Massive use
and awareness of mobile devices revolutionized the information and data
exchange related to social media marketing (Castells et al. 2009; Sherif and
Senja 2015). In order to create an impactful engagement with the audience,
the computer scientists and information systems engineers are making efforts
to increase effective real-time access to social media marketing data through
smart mobile devices (Sherif and Senja 2015). This notion agrees with the
views of Sherif and Senja (2015), who see that mobile devices are so frequently
and extensively utilized that they are replacing old modes of communication.
They are also reshaping the attitudes of the people involved in the communi-
cation process.

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Technology has emerged with great dynamic developments, which have

yielded merits and demerits for social media marketers and business prac-
titioners in general. These changes in technology have also impacted how
people socialize and behave on various platforms (Ha et al. 2008; Jordaan and
Surujlal 2013; Wang et al. 2011; Yen et al. 2010). The argument is that the way
people interact or socialize is closely linked to the way technology has evolved
in the period since 2000. Psychologically, some of the anti-social behaviours
exhibited by young people are seen to have emerged due to technology and
social media use; these include truancy, rudeness, and sleeping and eating
disorders (Jordaan and Surujlal 2013; Weiss and Samenow 2010). There have
also been reports of sex addiction due to pornographic material shared on
mobile devices (Jordaan and Surujlal 2013; Weiss and Samenow 2010).

Accelerated Mobile Pages

One notable SEM futuristic trend is Accelerated Mobile Pages (AMP), which
enables news articles and web pages to open significantly faster on mobile
devices (Gil et al. 2018; Jurado et al. 2019; Sterling 2016). According to the
Google AMP project of 2017, AMP brings instant page uploads to internet
users, making it ideal for initial user interactions with a website. AMP thus
contributes greatly to a customer’s e-commerce experience, compared with
the traditional mobile web. Users have been observed to abandon slow-
loading sites; therefore, the future of SEM is to prioritize mobile page speed
(Smart Insights 2020). However, AMP on itself is not a ranking factor, as most
organizations that have adopted AMP have reported receiving lower click-
through rates (Smart Insights 2020). Most users do not know what the term
AMP means and the icon that is next to the word looks like an error message,
so the user may move on to another listing that is indicated as mobile friendly
(Gabe 2016; Smart Insights 2020). This has many advantages, both informa-
tional and commercial (Gil et al. 2018; Jurado et al. 2019; Kaplan and Haenlein
2010; Martin and Van Bavel 2013).

Voice search
Although device voice search has been in existence since the early 2000s, there
is a growing trend among mobile device users to approach search engines
using voice commands. The idea behind voice search is that it is fast, a hand-
free and futuristic, which holds great appeal for many people. This is a moving
search engine optimization marketer from text-based queries to search engine
voice searches termed virtual assistants (Smart Insights 2020). Therefore, digi-
tal marketers need to re-strategize and incorporate voice search into search
engine optimization through key word restructuring to focus on question-
based inquiries in a conversational manner. However, voice search is still
facing resistance from users as the voice recognition tools continue to struggle
to understand regional accents and words (Stone Temple Consulting 2017).
Not many people predicted that it would become a major digital trend of the
future (Chandrasekhar 2018).
Currently, many voice-related technological functions are available on
the commercial software markets. More businesses are optimizing for voice
search every day, using the same strategies and becoming equally competi-
tive (Chandrasekhar 2018). The fact that Google has plans to add voice query
data to Search Console in the future is one prominent example to which

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 Search engine marketing and social media marketing predictive trends

development marketers can look forward (Chandrasekhar 2018). Although

voice recognition is prone to mistakes and problems in the process of infor-
mation conveyance and communication enhancement, it is deemed to be a
quicker way to make people execute their duties and responsibilities, with
fewer hassles (Chandrasekhar 2018; Pribanic 2020). Research suggested that
the voice detection or recognition was projected to rise to US$600 million by
2019. Such an increase is crucial for corporate and product brands to be recog-
nized without risking the loss of search increase potency in the predicted time
period (Pribanic 2020).

SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING PREDICTIVE TRENDS

The swiftness of social media messages and images circulation has made these
more appealing for organizations (Nadaraja and Yazdanifard 2013; Xiang and
Gretzel 2010). Social media marketing involves the use of digital marketing
activities on social media platforms. It can also be viewed as the use of social
media platforms to develop an organization’s online brand – its products and
services (Nadaraja and Yazdanifard 2013). Various social network platforms
enable the sharing of podcasts and videos, which fuel viral marketing. A vari-
ety of academic researchers have proposed that social media marketing devel-
ops far more effectively by networking people so they can interact, making
room for their voices to be heard and understood (Lipsman et al. 2012;
Malthouse et al. 2013; Mangold and Faulds 2009; Pereira et al. 2014; Peters
et al. 2013; Tafesse and Wien 2017). A compilation of data from the leading
social networks shows that social networks are raking up more and more
active users (Statista 2020). Fostering the idea of sharing social messages to
personalized contacts via social media platforms has created a paradigm shift
towards exponential social media marketing growth and massive communica-
tion trust among users (Hafele 2011). It also encourages consumers to share
and link information and stories related to great brands and enables them to
share and diagnose their views, espoused experiences and creation of custom-
ized personal branded content (Davis et al. 2014; Gensler et al. 2013; Tafesse
and Wien 2017). The dynamic nature of social media has created a huge
multiplier effect. Through the networking of friends and contacts, this leads
to higher direct leverage to the digital marketers, who rely heavily on social
media as a key platform and level field to deliver valued promises and better
customer experiences (Ashley and Tuten 2015; Berthon et al. 2012; Kim et al.
2015; Peters et al. 2013; Tafesse and Wien 2017). The next section examines
predictive trends in social media marketing.

Micro-vlogging
‘Micro-vlogging’ is a term used to describe the sharing of short videos on social
media platforms (Flowers 2017). Social media networks were created for users
to share pictures and posts. However, social media networks have updated
their applications to accommodate video-sharing, which is a growing trend
among users. Statistics show that 85 per cent of the internet now comprises
video and most social media users prefer sharing videos compared with other
forms of sharing information with their followers. This trend has affected how
companies produce, amplify and distribute content (Chaffey 2016). Social
media platforms have tapped into micro-vlogging, which organizations can
use to target customers who do not have time to watch full videos and/or

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tutorials. These platforms include Instagram Live, Facebook Live, Twitter

Videos and Snapchat. These are key to brand resonance among customers,
providing reaffirmation of brand promise and identity (Laskey et al. 1989; Puto
and Wells 1984). Instagram Live, Facebook Live, Twitter Videos and Snapchat
build digital self-identity and self-image (Vernuccio et al. 2015; Wallace et al.
2014), as people tend to be emotionally attached to them. In tandem with this,
micro-vlogging helps people to make informed decisions. A lot of people who
turn to video reviews learn better through a more visual medium. People crave
authenticity and credibility when it comes to vlogs. While there will always be
room for growth when it comes to blogging, vlogging can help someone learn
new skills (Roces 2018).
Even though blogging takes more work than most people realise, vlogging
takes twice the time and effort (Roces 2018). It requires setting up the camera,
checking the sound quality, and creating a well-lit environment. And that is
just the production work. Vlogging yields multiple interactivity (Tafesse 2016;
Zaglia 2013), which means that post-production involves time-consuming
editing and rendering of the final video.

Social messaging
A future trend in social media marketing involves companies moving from
social network platforms to social messaging. In the beginning, compa-
nies focused their efforts on social networks. However, future trends are
showing that more and more companies are investing massively in social
messaging applications, which educate and stimulate purchases among
customers (Cvijikj and Michahelles 2013; de Vries et al. 2012; Kim et al. 2015;
Taecharungroj 2016). These applications give a company’s audience a plat-
form for client support, as well as the brand features for e-commerce. These
also platforms are also effective in implementing electronic customer relations
management strategies, such as database marketing after profiling customers
digitally (Cvijikj and Michahelles 2013; de Vries et al. 2012; Kim et al. 2015;
Taecharungroj 2016).
Facebook is deemed to be the best social media platform, given that it is
frequently used, popular and has greater chances of executing social media
marketing. The costs and effort invested in building the nomenclature and
structure of social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram
have made it possible to increase the speed of message-sharing (DiMicco et
al. 2008; Hohenthal et al. 2014; Jurado et al. 2019; Karoui et al. 2015; Lorenzo
et al. 2011). Through experience on the social media platforms, the researcher
observed that the use of hashtags with a sign # and ‘at’ with a sign of @ has
made it possible to push the messages quickly, to reach audiences and engage
them like never before. The majority of social media users who get to interact
with their corporate and product brands mainly through Facebook or LinkedIn
may be astounded to see one of their corporates reach out (Sweeney 2013).

Blogging
Blogging is an important element of content marketing strategy or social
media marketing technique for several reasons. Blogging and Wikipedia are
typical examples of online content that is generated or created by users (Bruns
2008; Madsen and Slatten 2015). Authorities contend that blogging influences
a large number of people with minimal effort (Bilos and Kelic 2012; Subramani

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 Search engine marketing and social media marketing predictive trends

and Rajagopalan 2003), although it has its own inefficiencies due to infor-
mational factors (Calvo and Zenou 2005; Kaplan and Haenlein 2010; Torrent
2015). One argument is that blogs provide room for everyone to express
views and comments independently and freely (Van der Heide and Lim 2016;
Voorveld 2019) in response to brand communication as a result of social ties
(van Noort et al. 2012; Hayes et al. 2018; Shan and King 2015; Voorveld 2019).
Blogs allow experts to share their expertise openly and assist them to present
themselves within specific social settings (Boyd 2008; Goffman 1959; Swart et
al. 2019). Blogging can help a company obtain more customers for an existing
business and enhance interactivity (Chen and Xie 2008; Fernadez et al. 2016;
Lai et al. 2011; Radu 2016). Under normal circumstances, if online customers
are not able to see the product brands or services they might be seeking on
the blogs, chances are high that they will not revisit the same site.
On the other hand, blogs cannot have the most relevant and recent infor-
mation if the bloggers are not constantly updating their blog spots (Chen and
Xie 2008; Fernadez et al. 2016; Lai et al. 2011; Radu 2016). Other proponents
argue that blogs are naturally followed by lesser stakeholders, but in politics
and business elites tend to read them (Farrell and Drezner 2008; Guillen 1994;
Madsen and Slatten 2015). Blogs are deemed to be inexpensive to start up in
terms of content creation (Farrell and Drezner 2008; Guillen 1994; Madsen
and Slatten 2015). However, for bloggers to realize returns, a considerable
investment is necessary (Farrell and Drezner 2008; Guillen 1994; Madsen and
Slatten 2015). Research shows that blogs are one of the most important social
media platforms, and they have transformed even broadcast newsroom prac-
tices such as sourcing, gatekeeping and verifying (Brems et al. 2017; Broersma
and Graham 2013, 2016; Canter 2015; Lasorsa et al. 2012).

DISCUSSION
Marketing challenges and limitations may come and go, but the power of
reaching customers through search engines and social media never changes.
Currently, the world has more than a thousand active social media market-
ing platforms. This is a result of the drive towards focusing on digital market-
ing channels in response to customer demand and the dynamics taking place
globally. These social media marketing platforms are seen as strategic places
where customers desire to be updated regularly with information relating to
their product brand choices. The level of loyalty to social media platforms leads
to the development of brand advocates who have a bold emotional attach-
ment to product and service brands. Further, social media marketing platforms
can always be a place to express corporate storytelling for branding in terms
of how corporate associations, corporate values, corporate personalities and
corporate benefits can be conveyed to intended internal and external stake-
holders (Nyagadza et al. 2019).
Similarly, social media marketing platforms are now being used among
migrants and tourists to connect with others from their nations of origin as
well as to assist with social-cultural adaptation (Alencar 2018; Brekke 2008;
Croucher 2011; Elias and Lemish 2009; Komito 2011; Sawyer and Chen 2012).
When used effectively, both social media marketing and SEM can have several
valuable outputs (COMCEC 2015; Kiralova and Pavliceka 2014).
The volatility of social media marketing and SEM has caused divisions
and business wars. Both social media marketing and SEM represent massive
advantages for customers and owners of businesses (Alencar 2018; Nadaraja

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and Yazdanifard 2013). Nevertheless, problems are also generated as a result

of negative impact of social media (Nadaraja and Yazdanifard 2013). This
concurs with the views of Nadaraja and Yazdanifard (2013), because social
media marketing and SEM platforms can magnify matters of concern and
can even be associated with deception. Sometimes brand promises can
never be fulfilled. Many legal cases have related to character defamation
and/or assassination, fraud, embezzlement of funds, corporate reputation
problems, dystopic digital marketing cultural development, negative coer-
cion of customers, cyberbullying, pornography, personalized imposters and
impersonation.

CONCLUSION
Understanding and keeping abreast of the new trends brought by social
media marketing and SEM is vital for business survival and growth. The trends
constitute the digital marketing futures for the art of doing business. The find-
ings of this article show that, predictively, digital marketers need to consider
involving themselves more closely with social media marketing and SEM in an
effort to improve the viability of corporate strategies. Furthermore, the study
indicates that there is ease of use in embracing social media marketing plat-
forms as well as speed and better reach of target audience. These platforms, as
well as being meant for social and business purposes, are increasingly being
used by politicians, musicians and the arts sector to promote product brands
and services.
Social media marketing outlets are highly self-propagating in that the
people who use them spread in terms of numbers. Due to the speed of spread
in expressing messages and information, social media marketing is predic-
tively deemed to be the most appealing digital platform on which business
organizations and entrepreneurs can sell products and services (Xiang and
Gretzel 2010). Social media marketing is now a developing phenomenon in
marketing. Thus, digital marketers need to embrace and understand the use
of social media marketing and SEM predictive trends as components in their
marketing strategies and campaigns to reach out to more customers. Critics
cite that the behaviour of customers while purchasing and socializing online
has an impact on the way profits are realized within the concerned businesses
(Zhao and Elesh 2008; Huberman et al. 2009; Miles 2018).
The advent of artificial intelligence and machine learning, along with
the availability of big data and algorithms, has made it easier to better target
consumers. The post-2000 period has witnessed great growth in the numbers
of social media followers who are extremely active on virtually a daily basis
(Kaplan and Haenlein 2010; Wilson et al. 2011; Wilson et al. 2012). This
has lured business operators to shift their marketing efforts to social media
marketing, as better leverage to engage customers (Kaplan and Haenlein
2010; Wilson et al. 2011; Wilson et al. 2012) together unifying social communi-
ties with the commerce and industry fraternity (Archmbault and Grudin 2012;
Madsen and Slatten 2015; Skeels and Grudin 2009).
At times, the transactions done on social media can be costly (Hamzaoui
and Zahaf 2008; Padel and Foster 2005; Roitner et al. 2008; Rousseau and
Vranken 2013; Tsakiridou et al. 2008). In terms of messaging, Sweeney (2013)
argues that majority of businesses are rightfully taking advantage of social
media marketing to push their messages directly to customers.

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 Search engine marketing and social media marketing predictive trends

LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY

This research study unpacks the view that social media marketing platforms
are a more effective and cost-effective means of conveying a message without
limitations. As more widely accepted social media platforms, LinkedIn, Twitter
and Facebook provide more room to communicate messages with intended
recipients. However, the type of message generated, its purpose, content
and its target audience all differ. This also applies to dealing with blog spots.
Content type created determines the consumers who will use the blog output.
In keeping with this article, future research directions could focus on trending
pandemic matters such as COVID-19 and its impact on socialization, religious
proliferations, business operations and political inclinations on social media
marketing platforms. Futurology is always an important epistemic concept to
humanity when it comes to sustainability.

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18 Journal of Digital Media & Policy

 Search engine marketing and social media marketing predictive trends

SUGGESTED CITATION
Nyagadza, Brighton (2020), ‘Search engine marketing and social media marke-
ting predictive trends’, Journal of Digital Media & Policy, doi: https://doi.
org/10.1386/jdmp_00027_1

CONTRIBUTOR DETAILS
Brighton Nyagadza is a Ph.D. finalist in marketing management at Midlands
State University (MSU), Zimbabwe, a full-time digital marketing lecturer
at Marondera University of Agricultural Sciences & Technology (MUAST),
Zimbabwe, an associate of the Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM), United
Kingdom, a power member of the Digital Marketing Institute (DMI), Ireland,
Dublin, and a member of the Marketers Association of Zimbabwe (MAZ). His
research expertise is focused on corporate storytelling for branding, public
relations, marketing metrics, financial services marketing, digital marketing
and educational marketing. He has published in several reputable referred
journals, such as the Journal of Global Economics, Management and Business
Research (JGEMBR), Retail and Marketing Review (RMR) (UNISA), European
Journal of Business and Management Research (EJMBR) and Africanus Journal of
Development Studies (AJDS) (UNISA Press).
Contact: Faculty of Agribusiness and Entrepreneurship, Department of
Marketing Management (Digital Marketing), Marondera University of
Agricultural Sciences & Technology, CSC Industrial Site Campus, Plot 15,
Longlands Road, P.O. Box 35, Marondera, Zimbabwe.
E-mail: [email protected]; [email protected]

http://orcid.org/0000-0001-7226-0635

Brighton Nyagadza has asserted their right under the Copyright, Designs and
Patents Act, 1988, to be identified as the author of this work in the format that
was submitted to Intellect Ltd.

www.intellectbooks.com 19