2012 review & 2013 trends

Simplogy’s digital business experts are back with their compilation of the best of reviews of the previous year and trends / predictions for 2013 & beyond in the world of digital business, marketing, media, search, social, analytics, start-ups, and even gadgets – all things digital.

This is our fourth year when we have produced this annual document and it’s getting bigger and better with inputs from not just Simplogy but also our associates and partners.

So, here is our review and comments on developments in the previous year and trends for 2013, followed by a compilation of what we found web wide.

What we think

Just like in 2011, the digital and mobile bandwagon continued to roll with players across the globe coming up with interesting innovations that were lapped up by consumers and businesses alike.

Major players that drove technology news in 2012 included Apple (iPhone 5 and iPad Mini), Microsoft (Windows 8, Surface tablets), Google (Google Glass, Play Store), Amazon (newer Kindle models, significant partnerships to bolster its Amazon Instant Video offering) and Facebook (a billion users, an unexpected IPO).

2012 saw its share of some mind boggling array of new product launches (iPhone 5, iPad mini, Windows 8, Samsung Galaxy SIII, Nokia 808 PureView), and a solid rally of others (Ultrabooks, tablets, smartphones, and cloud computing).

2012 also saw some major downers (the disastrous Facebook IPO, the woefully inadequate handling of queries on privacy concerns by Instagram, the Apple Maps fiasco), the twin effects of PIPA and SOPA anti-piracy bills in the US, and high profile lawsuits (Apple vs Samsung, Oracle vs Google).

In 2013, we would be looking to hear a lot more about re-targeting and will see it going mainstream, mobile search and mobile ads would grow even more, big data’s hype cycle would continue, Android will be a much bigger threat to iOS and Apple’s profits unless Apple continues its winning streak with Apple TV, online start-up space will get more crowded than ever (I wish ‘April 2000′ does not happen this year), and oh yes, Simplogy will finally grow up and become the world’s best digital strategy company in 2013. How I wish!

Good luck for 2013.

Sincerely,

Hasnain Zaheer
Simplogy | Rent a Digital Expert | Start-up & Go

2012 reviews and 2013 trends by category

Business & Marketing

(With inputs from SAI Marketing)

2013 small business predictions by FreshBooks, one of the leading small business business cloud solution
Top trends to watch out for in 2013 in business
2012 top lessons for B2B marketers in Marketing Profs
10 resolutions marketers must make for 2013: imedia Connection
5 trends to ignore in 2013: Don’t get distracted by these hyped up trends: Inc
11 big tech trends you will see in 2013
The best and worst brands of 2012 revealed

Online Business

(With inputs from Meraj Huda)

26 sizzling Australian digital stats to round out 2012: Digital Ministry
20 top Youtube & video marketing stories of 2012
2013: The year of digital business: Forrester
Social media, content marketing, and mobile trends of 2012: Clickz
Your bucket list for 2013: Clickz
Top web design posts of 2012 in Website Magazine
4 best practices for digital marketers in 2013
Featured – Top 12 posts related to online recruitment by recruitment industry disruptor – Recruitloop

Online media, marketing & advertising

2013 predictions from online advertising and marketing experts
Emerging digital and media marketing trends for 2013 in Branding Strategy insider
Featured – 6 social-digital trends to look out for in 2013 in Harvard Business review
Industry experts’ pick of top digital marketing trends in Adotas
Australia’s top 5 defining digital moments of 2012
Social PR tips to get fit for 2013 digital marketing
10 digital marketing predictions for 2013 in Clickz
Featured – The biggest disruptions to hit the ad industry in 2013

Featured – MediaScope’s most read articles from 2012

MediaScope offers marketers and media owners a comprehensive media planning directory with over 3,500 ‘beyond mainstream’ advertising options. This is the link to their most read articles from 2012.

Sales

Top sales trends in 2013 – Harvard Business Review
The 12 sales trends that will drive 2013: Smart Company’s review of Sue Barrett’s sales trends report

Search

Small business SEO trends to keep an eye on
Top 10 Google searches of 2012 in pictures on Mashable
10 free SEO gifts – SEO tools in Website Magazine
List of great free SEO tools for keyword research
How to spot trends and make the most of it
Featured – Why PR is key to SEO in 2013: Search Engine Watch
Top news in 2012 and their relation to PPC trends: Search Engine Watch
The Search Marketing Roller Coaster: 2012 Year in Review: Search Engine Watch
Top 5 trends in pay-per-click search marketing in Search Engine Watch
The hottest articles in search and social in 2012 in Search Engine Land
paid search advertising gets more complicated in 2013: Search engine land
Featured – SEO trends for 2013

Social Media

Social media trends for businesses in 2013 by Social Media Explorer
14 experts pick social media trends for small business in 2013
Staying social in 2013 by Website magazine
What is next for social marketing? Looking ahead to 2013 in Clickz
Featured – Corporate social media marketing strategies checklist for 2013
Top company pages on Linkedin
The hottest articles in search and social in 2012 in Search Engine Land

E-commerce

Top 5 small business trends to watch out for in e-commerce – By Infusionsoft, a leading marketing automation services provider
4 tips for retailers in 2013 on how to keep afloat in the data storm
Latest trends and statistics about e-commerce in Australia: Digital Ministry
5 ways traditional retailers can avoid the guillotine in the 2013 retail revolution
But Australian retailers are not yet ready for it as shown in Experian report reported by Smart company

Data & analytics

4 tips for retailers in 2013 on how to keep afloat in the data storm
Social media analytics in 2013
2013 Quick Start Guide for 2013 in digital metrics in Clickz
What’s your big data strategy for 2013? Asks Mike Walsh

Mobile

(With inputs from Rob Marston – Zeus Unwired)

Mobile year in review by the Mobile Future team
Revisiting 2012 Mobile Trends
Mobile marketing tips for small businesses in 2013
12 top mobile apps for web workers in 2013

Start-ups

2013 start-up trends
Most promising startup trends for 2013 in Mashable
Round up of start ups launched in 2011/2012 and how they fared
Featured – Looks at what Wall street Journal views as top 50 Internet startups of 2012
6 rules to becoming a successful entrepreneur in 2013: Digital Marketing
The best and worst start-up ideas of 2012
Most active VC firms in 2012: VCCircle

Personal tech

(with inputs from Sibtain of Tabletworld & Easytech)

My tech purchases of 2012 and how they fared
By the numbers: How’d 2012 mobile forecasts turn out?
5 hottest tech gifts during Christmas 2012
2012 year in tech: A timeline in Engadget
Good categorized sections of trends to watch out for in 2013 CES show
Hype vs. actual happening in 2012: Rumour round-up in MTV Technology blog
The top 10 gadgets of 2012, and 10 more for 2013 in Smart Company
Australian Broadcasting Corporation’s pick of best and worst tech products of 2012
Round up of most watched YouTube Videos: Youtubne rewind in Digital Ministry

Finally, as they say, if you want to do things differently in the new year, then break old ineffective habits and make new and better habits. Here is the science behind the making and breaking of habits.

Good luck for 2013. Hope you found this compilation interesting. If you have any other interesting links to contribute, please add in comments and keep the discussion going.