As the end of the first quarter draws near, I find myself evaluating what projects marketers have launched this year. Industry forecasts have been read and planning is complete, so what did marketers learn and what do they have up their sleeves?

By and large, things are looking good. New product launches, social-driven campaigns and valuable consumers engagements have created an excited atmosphere pushing marketers to step up their games. However, we cannot let the lure of shiny new platforms distract us from fundamental digital marketing strategies. The following is a list of things that digital marketers are still forgetting to do this year.

Keep your ears open. I cannot think of a scenario where there is nothing to gain from social media, but if you're not ready to embark on a social expedition, you sill need to listen. Tuning into the social conversation can help guide strategic marketing decisions. Customers are gravitating towards brands that listen, and those that do are able to be more competitive.

Work smarter. Running isolated campaigns has never made much sense, but with web analytics advancements, marketers need to think holistically and see cross over
opportunities. One example is applying paid search marketing lessons to search engine optimization plans. If a certain keyword group converts at a higher rate, SEO teams can create new content around these keywords or focus efforts on increasing these high value keywords.

Catch a virus. Viral marketing is a dubious concept. However, taken in its simplest form, a campaign that’s easily sharable, it does not sound so scary. One thing to think about this year is making sure viral efforts incorporate SEO. Embeddable pieces of content like videos or badges should include links and anchor text, so you get the most out of your viral marketing.

Look mom I’m on TV. Digital video is a widely adopted marketing format, but it’s still relatively underutilized. Take advantage of your video assets or create new ones that can be distributed through targeted channels.

Closing the communications loop. When running multichannel campaigns, it’s important to have your analytics duck in a row. Make sure you implement tracking that can attribute these campaigns like tracking a TV campaign to an online purchase or a social media push to an in-store buy. Bridging these gaps will help optimize campaigns on all platforms and create a solid perspective of consumer behavior.

Create smooth landings. Consumers who click on an online advertisement are viable customers, so it’s crucial for marketers to help them along their path to purchase. Create relevant landing pages to direct this traffic that relates to the ad they just clicked. This will help conversion rates dramatically.

These are just a few tactics that marketers should keep in mind when planning their campaigns going forward. It is by no means a comprehensive list, but hopefully, it shows that marketers cannot abandon the tactics of yore for emerging trends and platforms.