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It’s almost the year 2020, and with a new year comes a vast change in business practices, software and skills.

It’s a good idea to brush up on your tech skills with the changing of seasons, quarters and years.

In 2020, there will be a number of tech skills in high demand.

Read on to learn about the top tech skills you should be focused on to keep up in the new year.

Top Tech Skills in Demand for 2020

Here are the tech skills that you need to be learning for the new year:

1.Machine Learning

Machine learning is becoming more and more popular in modern tech.

Machine learning is when a computer program improves through experience automatically. Machine learning specialists study the computer algorithms that allow this to happen, ideally improving the use of this new tech.

Machine learning is an important tech skill as it can be applied to every industry.

Things like chatbots, Siri and Alexa, and self-driving cars all rely on machine learning to work.

2. Chatbot Marketing

I’ll be honest, I started my company MobileMonkey because I can see the writing on the wall and I’ve experienced for myself the power of chatbot marketing.

Using chatbots is one of the most underrated tech tactics in the modern marketing technology landscape.

As companies continue to move towards a customer-first culture, chatbots are incredible tools for customer service and are becoming more and more necessary.

Chatbots can reduce customer service costs by 30%, saving businesses more than $8 billion per year by 2022.

This is a tech skill that is important to learn, as more and more customers demand chatbot options and more and more companies jump on chatbot opportunities.

3. Artificial Intelligence

Right now, all industries are being propelled by artificial intelligence, so it will be a highly profitable tech skill to learn in 2020.

In fact, business value created by AI will be at $3.9 trillion in 2022.

This technology is being applied to all sectors, from healthcare to ecommerce.

4. Mobile Development

It’s not enough for companies to simply have a great website anymore.

These days, in order to stay relevant, companies need apps.

That’s why mobile development is a great tech skill to learn in 2020.

And it’s not simply for mobile phones — in the future, mobile development will be a tech skill necessary for the creation of wearable tech, virtual and augmented reality, and more.

5. UI/UX Design

UI and UX design sound quite similar, but they are actually very different — though they both serve an important purpose.

When you visit a website and see the site layout, navigation, and the flow of the webpages, you’re seeing the UI — user interface.

UI designers help make websites visually appealing and easy to use, an incredibly important aspect of business.

UX, or user experience, designers, however, work more behind the scenes, researching and testing for all elements of user interaction with the site.

UX designers make sure that the site will work properly, no matter how the user interacts with the site.

So if you’re into design, especially in combination with A/B testing, consider learning this tech skill.

6. Search Engine Marketing – SEO/SEM

Business is more competitive than ever, and that will only continue to be true in 2020.

Because business is more competitive than ever, businesses need to be able to stand out in the digital landscape.

This means having a great website and creating great content.

SEO (search engine optimization) and SEM (search engine marketing) are some of the most important aspects of modern marketing departments, making this one of the most useful tech skills to learn in 2020.

More site visits means more conversions and sales for businesses, so it’s important to learn how to drive traffic to websites and other content.

In order to do this, it’s necessary to understand data and performance analytics; one of the main aspects of this data-driven marketing style.

7. IOT

IOT stands for the “Internet of Things.”

This term is usually used to define objects that “talk” to each other over the internet without requiring human-to-human contact.

This could mean machines, devices, objects, or people.

The thing is, as IOT becomes more and more popular, security is becoming the most important aspect. That’s why cybersecurity professionals are expected to be one of the positions in the next major tech jobs boom.

8. Data Science and Analytics

84% of enterprises have launched advanced analytics and Big Data initiatives.

Why?

Because revenue from Big Data applications and analytics is projected to grow to $19.4 billion in 2026.

Data scientists are some of the most sought-after professionals right now due to this massive boom in Big Data.

So learning data analysis — and better yet, data science — could be a highly profitable skill for 2020.

9. Data Visualization

Data visualization combines science and art by turning things like spreadsheets and data reports into charts and graphs that are more easily understood.

Turning hefty analytical information into more artistic graphics is not an easy job, which is why it’s a sought-after and important tech skill for 2020.

Data visualization helps businesses drive results by helping employers understand large amounts of data, aiding them in decision-making for the future.

10. Cloud Computing/AWS

These days, more and more companies are switching to cloud-based solutions.

One of the most important and most used cloud-based services today is Amazon Web Services. AWS features over 50 different services in total.

The massive shift to cloud-based solutions means that cloud computing and Amazon Web Services are some of the most profitable tech skills for IT employees to learn in order to advance their careers.

11. Blockchain

Blockchain has evolved from its original purpose, being made for the cryptocurrency Bitcoin.

It’s now used for apps and services people use in everyday life, such as peer-to-peer payments (things like Venmo), crowdfunding, digital voting, and more.

Learning how to use blockchain in your programming is a tech skill that could greatly pay off as technologies continue to shift and change over the next few years.

12. Extended Reality (AR/WR)

These two may sound the same, but they’re quite different.

AR stands for augmented reality. Augmented reality adds digital elements to a live view, typically using a mobile smartphone or some other type of camera.

You might see this a lot in ecommerce, particularly when the product being sold has the potential to be “wrong” in person.

Think furniture, eyewear, and more.

Virtual reality, on the other hand, is a completely immersive experience, shutting out reality entirely.

Virtual reality in business is often used for different types of trainings, advertising campaigns, and marketing tactics.

Both AR and VR are very important tech skills to learn for 2020 as more and more companies try to catch up and outshine competitors.

Developing Your Tech Skills

Now you’re empowered to equip yourself with 12 different in-demand skills you can learn to up your tech game for the coming new year.

The business landscape is changing as new tech is created and implemented every day.

Picking up a new tech skill could greatly benefit your career moving forward.

Republished by permission. Original here.

Image: Depositphotos.com

This article, “Figuring Out Your Business’s Future Tech Needs Doesn’t Have to be Hard, Read On” was first published on Small Business Trends