What Does 2023 Hold for Canadian Marketers?

Another year has come and gone! 2022 taught us many things, including the importance of consumer-first content, how to plan for a cookieless future, and of course, ending the year with a lot of Twitter turmoil.

These are just a few of the countless happenings over the past year, in which we are reminded of the talented and valuable work performed by Canadian marketing professionals. From digital ads experts to public relations campaigns that captured our attention, there are countless ways that marketing has impacted our lives throughout the past year. With a new year just around the corner, it’s time to start preparing for yet another year of influential Canadian marketing advice.

To help us better prepare for 2023, we asked some of our favourite Canadian marketing professionals for their predictions for the coming year. Here’s what they had to say:

“CRM technology in 2023 - the courage to change, the serenity to accept. 2023 is going to be the year of CRM implementations, either getting one for the first time (to keep up with the competition) or consolidating many legacy databases (to keep costs down). There's going to be frustration as stakeholders debate the ideal physical-digital customer journey, as well as an opportunity to map and execute this journey on CRM technology. Have the courage to push for change, have the serenity to accept decisions out of your control, and have the wisdom to know the difference.”
— Khalil Guliwala, CRM & Marketing Automation Manager, Solutions Metrix

"We’ve endured a lot in the past few years—pandemic, recession, uncertainty, toxic environments that are detrimental to our wellbeing. The toll on mental health has been significant and we all feel it in our personal and professional lives every day. I predict that as an industry, we’ve reached our tipping point and 2023 will be the year we begin to see a seismic shift towards responsible and socially-conscious media diversification."
– Yen Conrod Tran, Business Marketing Lead, Pinterest Canada.

"In 2023, we'll see more and more brands creating their own podcasts. For years, marketers have been sinking billions into “renting” audiences, but are now becoming less trusting of the integrity and safety of their brand on social channels like Facebook and Twitter. Instead, brands will look to new channels to create even more content, to build their own audiences, generate more value and longer engagement opportunities, with greater control of preserving their own brand safety."
— Roger Nairn, Co-Founder and CEO, JAR Audio

“2023 will see a splintering of social platforms, as Twitter self-destructs and upstart platforms rush to fill the void. Brand marketers can no longer afford to “be everywhere,” and will have to focus on one or two platforms to make an impact. Meanwhile, the battle between marketing efficiency and consumer privacy will be the largest focus of the platform executives, likely creating ripples of confusion as competing protocols are live-tested, with marketers’ campaigns as the Guinea pigs.”

— Tod Maffin, Host/Producer, Today in Digital Marketing

“Don’t chase your next press hit. Help build the next generation of great companies. The hard truth most brands aren’t willing to accept is that 99% of their news doesn’t matter. A rainbow-coloured logo in the Summer, or carbon credits on Earth Day just doesn’t cut it anymore, and consumers are onto you. Rather than focussing on the next press hit, PR pros should think about how they can help build a long-term sustainable brand that attracts positive attention from the media and people. Trust us, the press coverage will naturally come. It won’t be easy though. Setting up the foundation to do it right will take time, investment and buy-in from the C-Suite but patience and sticking to the strategy is how the next generation of great companies are going to be built.”

— Crystal Kwon, Principal, front + centre communications

“2023 will see a continued focus on “back-to-basics” communications principles and tactics, such as company town halls and CEO messages, with all stakeholder groups. As economic fears persist, employees, customers, etc., will be looking for clear, consistent, timely, and value-driven messaging. We’re seeing continued conscious consumerism with consumers being increasingly thoughtful about where they spend and an expectation that organizational leaders will communicate a company’s values and goals and then follow through with authentic action.”

— Kylie McMullan, Principal, Finch Media Canada

“In 2023, first-party customer data will become even more integral for successful paid marketing campaigns. The value of cookies continues to degrade on the industry's march towards the cookieless future. Companies who will win in this new normal are those who own the one-to-one relationship with their customers, rather than staying dependent on third-party platforms.”
— Jyll Saskin Gales, Marketing Consultant, jyll.ca

“Chaos Over Curated: Perhaps the only thing that’s become predictable over the last two years is realizing that nothing is predictable. From concurrent health crises to volatile economics, this era of “new chaos” has replaced what we once believed would be a “new normal”. What’s true today may not be true tomorrow; the future is anyone’s guess. As marketers, it’s our job to tap into the customer mindset and understand where our target audience is coming from in order to reach them. So if consumers are experiencing this “new chaos” in their daily lives, it stands to reason that our marketing efforts should reflect that. An overly polished Instagram feed might look appealing to the naked eye but one that’s less curated and more free-flowing will read more authentic and resonate more powerfully in the end. In 2023, we expect the marketing industry to continue embracing the “chaotic” over the curated and keep stepping outside the box with their digital content. Because if the world isn’t sticking to a script, neither should we.”
— Ruth Goudie, Vice President, General Manager & Partner, 1Milk2Sugars Communications.

“Tapping into New Audiences with Connected TV! Connected TV is changing the way that we consume content as the lines between online streaming and traditional TV viewing continues to blur. Today, more than 16 million Canadians are watching YouTube on their TV screens, redefining what it means to “watch TV.” You can expect to see marketers in 2023 focus on YouTube on Connected TV as an opportunity to reach audiences that are no longer accessible through traditional broadcast while driving the business results they’re after.”
– Karen Zuccala, Head of Brand Strategy, YouTube Canada

“Awareness amongst hiring employers for the skills and training required for digital marketing roles will grow. One thing is clear - the demand for digital marketers in SMEs has never been higher, as companies continue to build the infrastructure to operate online since the pandemic. However, what is not so clear is how to do that and who can do the work, and do a great job. Micro-credentials such as Google Analytics Individual Qualification, the Meta Digital Marketing Associate certificate, and more will become even more important on a candidate’s resumé, proving their knowledge and skill sets.”
– Chris Penner, Operations Manager, Jelly Academy

Do you have any predictions for the coming year? Send us your thoughts or contribute an article!

Written by Emma Whiten, Editor of Marketing News Canada