2023 outlook: what the Empirical team will be watching

2023 marketing

The dawn of a near year is always an exciting time. Here we all stand at the start of 2023, filled with both uncertainty as well as a great deal of opportunity.

Yes, there are new challenges that lie ahead for businesses in the coming year (and many of these challenges have yet to reveal themselves!), yet experts are confident there are many new prospects as well. 

Who will be best prepared for the coming year? Success will come to businesses that are agile and able to adapt to a changing environment – and who have a strong team of talent ready to execute when needed.

We are pleased to unveil our new year’s blog, where our team shares predictions, observations, and insights for 2023. You will also see that in some cases, a team member shares what he or she has an eye on and will be watching closely.

One thing we can say for sure: the Empirical team sees an exciting year ahead!

As we’ve seen in other times of uncertainty, fortune will favor the bold.  We’ve seen it as recently as the pandemic, the leaders who take the time to understand the marketplace and not overreact, outperform their competitors.  2023 could be the year that your company takes a big leap forward.
Bill Morrow, Sales & Marketing

2023 is here, and talent acquisition will be a lot like 2022, 1989, and 1975 – and here’s why:
– Candidates that meet 80% of job description requirements are viable and likely trainable.
– Telling a great company story to a candidate is only the beginning.
– Customer and employee reviews do impact hiring efforts.
– Conducting a compensation analysis regularly is a good thing to do.
– Employment brands aren’t created, they already exist and need to be uncovered and cultivated.
Laura Schlessinger, Talent Acquisition

I believe 2023 will be another roller coaster year, but there will be continued focus on retaining top talent and improving the employee experience.
Karen Butz, Human Resources

One marketing trend I will keep an eye on in 2023 is live streaming and video-based content. Recent stats show that customer engagement is largely driven by video content on digital channels, especially bite-size videos that deliver concentrated messages within 5- to 10 minute-long videos, or Vlogs.
I’ve also recently seen an uptick in user-generated content and several clients have already benefited from soliciting and utilizing original user content that promotes their products and brands. I believe integrating video and user-based content into marketing campaigns in 2023 will drive engagement, promote brand visibility and reach younger generations online.
Kelley Nelson, Digital Marketing

The trend in talent:  I’ll be monitoring the after-effects of the pandemic and the past two years, and how this impacts previous norms. (i.e., talent acquisition and how complicated it is to fill roles as people go from work-life balance to work-life integration as a priority).  It has stayed a sellers’ vs. buyers’ market in recruiting even with economic hardships, inflation, and some sector layoffs.
I’ll also be carefully watching:
-Salary negotiation as the market moves into the age of pay transparency.
-Digital Transformation and its impact on companies to balance priorities between people, processes, and technologies.
-Generation Z entering the work market and how this impacts companies’ positions with people, language (Gen Z words and meanings), and technologies.
Jason Fisher, Human Resources

Trends change every few years in recruiting, however, the key is connectivity and responsibility. Potential candidates may need to “recreate” themselves and on both sides, be completely transparent. Build trust and relationships. As much as we live in a huge world….it is also very small and everyone knows someone!
Jerri Lynn Cech, Talent Acquisition

Influencer marketing is an essential part of a brand’s social media efforts, and it will continue in 2023 with a greater demand for micro-influencers in particular. Micro-influencers (social media users with less than 100,000 followers) allow businesses to organically target niche audiences, expand their reach, and build consumer trust and brand credibility. Micro-influencers cost less and typically have higher engagement rates than mega- and macro-influencers, making them an ideal choice for businesses that have limited marketing budgets.
Erin Dalton, Marketing

This is as true in 2023 as it has been in every other year: competitive risks can appear out of nowhere, especially if nobody is in charge of keeping watch on the numbers where they first show up.
Chris Lee, Operations

I expect 2023 to present many opportunities for companies who play their cards right in a generally tough market environment: rising interest rates, continued supply chain disruptions, and shifting demand. Those who focus on efficiency improvements and providing a higher value of products and services to clients will come on top. In the world of sales operations, you will see an increasing adoption of technologies that enable effective operations and make better use of company data. Post-pandemic, we have seen an explosion of these tools in the lower mid-market at rates we had not before – this trend will continue.
Ajay Joshi, Sales Operations

I will be on the lookout for the everyday, professional, and global living implications due to prevailing geo-political, economic, and technological events and influences.
Shubho Chatterjee, Digital Transformation & Supply Chain 

While many of the core pillars that comprise good marketing will remain in place, I will be watching the many moving parts of marketing in 2023. Traditional marketing remains important for many industries, but the power of some channels has diminished.  On the digital side, I will be watching closely to see if platforms such as Google retain their stronghold, or if other options emerge as we see the rise in adoption rate of technologies such as AI (artificial intelligence).
Laurel Cavalluzzo, Marketing