To say there’s more uncertainty in the world right now is to suggest digital is a critical new factor in marketing communications. No duh to each.

While we at Peppercomm aren’t gifted fortune tellers, our senior executives are very serious students and analysts of the events, trends and what might be’s in the various categories in which they specialize.

So, I thought we’d focus on five key “verticals” and ask our thought leaders in each to tell you what’s next.

Our lead-off hitter is Jacqueline “Jacko” Kolek, the top dog in our Financial Services group. Please feel free to riff on her thoughts, add some of your own or, if you disagree, tell her why.

One of our top priorities in 2017 is to upgrade our soothsaying capabilities.

• A Trump administration will potentially completely shake up the FS sector, from regulation to tax reform the pain points of clients and products they will need could change dramatically over the next 4 years.
• The push for a more robust social media presence for FS companies will accelerate as more senior leaders recognize the value of social selling, including in B2B organizations.
• Silos between marketing, communications and compliance/legal will collapse as firms seek to create a more robust and efficient way to share content across paid, owned and earned platforms.
• Analytics rule – understanding the customer journey and gleaning insights to inform more than just marketing strategy will become of paramount importance.
• Millennials are starting to have money, and lots of it and have very different values in terms of investing it. FS firms will have to figure out how to connect and engage with them more than ever before.

Check out tomorrow’s two-part blog that will provide consumer trend forecasts in the AM and experiential ones in the afternoon.