Picture this: You’re sitting at the doctor’s office, patiently waiting to be seen. After an hour, you need a pick-me-up so you pull out your phone and head to Buzzfeed. Lucky for you, there’s a list of the most Instagram-worthy travel destinations. And just a day prior, you told your partner you had to get out of town for a week.

Hoping to travel to one of these newly-found destinations, you copy the URL and paste it into your Facebook Messenger. Off it goes to do your convincing for you (you hope). Guess what? Your action just became a part of “dark social."

Ringing in the New Year, 2017 has a lot to offer in the world of marketing. 2016 was great, don’t get us wrong. It brought us enhanced visuals, real-time social media, and a new world of mobile experiences (see the 5 hottest marketing trends 2016 had to offer).

But now technology is a year older, a year wiser, and it’s rapidly changing. Marketers have never had so many channels, technologies, and products at their disposal to leverage their overarching strategies. We came up with our list of the hottest marketing trends on the 2017 horizon.

Here’s the age-old question: What is the difference between digital and inbound marketing?  Well, maybe it can’t be an age-old question when neither digital nor inbound are older than a recent college graduate.

Surprisingly, a cone is a great way to differentiate the two.  A cone is a simple shape, but it comes in handy for this comparison. A cheerleader’s megaphone, for example, is used to shout messages for everyone to hear. In a nutshell, that’s digital marketing.

Have you ever come up with an ingenious food combination that most people wouldn’t think could possibly be good? Like the classic potato chips-in-sandwich union? Or the broccoli and Cheetos bowl? Don’t forget the Sriracha and peanut butter burger (we’re very serious).

Just like these unique combinations, graphic design and marketing are two very distinct disciplines — which together can create something magical (like a grilled ham and Doritos sandwich).

Do you know what these three statements have in common?
Napoleon was short.
Bulls hate the color red.
Wait thirty minutes after eating before swimming.

That’s right, they’re all common misconceptions that have been circulating for decades. If you want the facts (and we’re big on facts), Napoleon was taller than the average French man of his time at a whopping 5’7”, bulls are colorblind, and eating before swimming does not increase your risk of cramping up in the water.

People get carried away with misconceptions. After all, if you read it on the internet it must be true, right?

What are your top three favorite movies? Books? Top three favorite foods?

You might be thinking that it’s hard to narrow those things down into such a short list. Well, we’re not sure we could pick movies, books, or food either—but what we can narrow down our list of favorite content—and we’ve created a lot it!

Ever needed a friend’s opinion on which shirt to buy? Maybe you want to see their reaction to one of your witty comments? Well, now there’s (another) way to video message your friends—and this time, it’s even simpler. Facebook launched a visually-focused feature that they say will bring life and authenticity to your text conversations—through seamless instant video.

Are you well-versed in the latest that inbound marketing has to offer and want to make sure that you don’t miss anything? Or, if you are unfamiliar with inbound, would you like to know more in order to decide if its right for you?

Either way, you’re in luck.

Each year, HubSpot —  a leader in inbound marketing software — produces a report on the State of Inbound which details the activities, priorities, and challenges of marketing and sales personnel from around the world.