6 New Year's Resolutions for Marketers
The New Year provides a great opportunity to reflect, reset, and create new business and personal goals. Yet, while 41 percent of Americans make New Year's resolutions, only 9.2 percent are successful in achieving them, according to HubSpot.
So what are some specific realistic goals that marketers can set for 2019? Here are six suggestions:
1. Stay up-to-date with Google changes.
According to Moz, Google changes its search algorithm around 500 to 600 times each year. Many of these changes are small, but Google sometimes rolls out big algorithmic updates, like Google Panda and Google Penguin, that significantly affect search results.
This year, try keeping up with Google’s changes by producing high-quality content. By creating content you’re proud of, you’ll keep Google’s algorithm—and your clients—happy. Be sure to revisit your content strategy throughout the year too.
2. Become a better designer.
Did you know visual content is 40 times more likely to be shared on social media than other types of content? Just that statistic alone is a good enough reason to become a better designer in 2019. You can improve your design skills through online courses on Coursera or Khan Academy. You can also test out your design skills with free design tools like Canva and Adobe Spark.
3. Listen to one podcast a week.
Listening to podcasts is a great way to stay inspired, educated, and informed. Try listening to one podcast a week, whether it’s a marketing, business, sports, comedy, lifestyle, news, or science podcast. Some business podcasts you could try include Side Hustle School, Startup, and The Tim Ferriss Show. Other popular podcasts you could listen to include Forever35, Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend, Today, Explained, Fresh Air, TED Radio Hour, and Hidden Brain.
4. Learn about emerging technology.
Learning about new tech can be intimidating, but it can also be exciting. If you’ve ever been to the creativity conference Adobe MAX or South by Southwest (SXSW) Conference & Festivals, you can feel the energy and excitement in the air around new technologies. New tech can make your life easier as a marketer, and it also can be fun to use. If you can’t make to a tech conference, try staying up-to-date on new tech through webinars, online courses, and articles.
5. Go on a vacation.
When you’re an entrepreneur, a small business owner, a marketer part of a small team, it can be hard to take a vacation. What if they need me? What if there’s an urgent client question and I don’t have access to my email? What if I miss out on a big opportunity to sign a new client?
Yes, these are all hypothetical situations that could happen while you’re on vacation, but if you’re burned out, you can’t do any of these things. A popular quote/metaphor in self-care is “Put on your own oxygen mask before assisting others.” You need to put yourself first before you can help others. Go on a vacation, try something new, and connect with family and friends.
6. Prioritize reading this year.
According to Pew Research Center, 26 percent of American adults admit to not having read even part of a book within the past year. It can be hard finding the time to sit down and read a book, but try making it a priority this year. According to Inc.com, reading fiction can help you be more open-minded and creative; reading protects against cognitive decline; reading a paper book is good for your memory, compared with e-books; and reading is a habit held by successful people.
Do you have any other resolutions for 2019? Let us know in the comments. Happy New Year from North Water Marketing!
