It’s 2017, and by now it’s clear that social media dominates the global culture.
Is your business using social media in the most effective way possible?
In America alone, roughly 68% of adults use Facebook and another 21% use Twitter in addition to other social platforms.
Mastering the social landscape is the key to success for any business.
But in a marketplace that moves at the speed of an internet connection, it can be difficult for companies to navigate the terrain.
New social media trends pop up every year along with new platforms vying for supremacy.
How can you know which ones to take advantage of?
We’re going to analyze the top ten social media trends and show how they can help your business.
More Social Customer Service
It seems lately that the traditional customer service helpline is going the way of Circuit City.
Studies show that 67% of consumers have used a company’s social media page for customer service issues.
Social media offers an avenue for customers and brands to connect faster, but you have to use it the right way.
Winding up on a top ten gaffe list at the end of the year is not something you want.
Wider Social Media Skills Gap
A big reason why social media blunders are so commonplace is a wide skills gap that exists within businesses.
As social media evolves, it will become more entrenched in the workplace.
Employees will be expected to use it in increasingly diverse ways, often without the necessary training.
To avoid embarrassing mistakes and use social media to its full $1.3 trillion value, all your employees need to be on the same page.
Invest in social media education courses and make sure everyone knows what they’re doing.
Employee Advocacy
Once your staff has the right knowledge, you can reorganize them into an online marketing army.
Employee advocacy is one of the latest social media trends to revolutionize brand marketing.
Research reveals that social employees have around ten times more followers on social media than the business itself.
In most cases, their connections are new to the brand.
Because your employees can provide person-to-person communication about your brand, you have the potential to increase your exposure exponentially.
Take caution, however.
Don’t force your staff to post and don’t give them free reign.
Have a solid social media policy in place, so employees know what’s acceptable to post and what isn’t.
Make sure they’re comfortable posting and that they know all the perks that come with your company.
More Paid Advertising
In the past, conventional wisdom taught patience when it came to online marketing.
Companies built a following over time using organic posts that reached the consumer directly.
Recent social media trends like this one, however, have pushed that wisdom off the balcony.
The fact is that as we transition online, our social feeds become clogged with messages and images.
Traditional organic posts often don’t make it through.
The paid social strategy targets specific audiences, and each major platform allows you to customize ads to fit that audience.
Users can easily share these ads, and you can track them with analytics to measure their effectiveness.
Varied Content Marketing
When it comes content, what you put online and in what format determines how well it’s received.
But what’s the best and what’s the worst?
Well, the worst is plain text by itself.
It’s bland and often skimmed over and forgotten.
Images drive social media engagement and close behind are video and blog posts.
The most efficient solution to interact with your customers is a combination of these three.
Blogs are the fifth most trusted source of information on the Internet.
They’re perfect for customers who want to research your products.
Videos are entertaining and easy to digest.
Infographics relay information with text and visuals, making them more memorable.
And you don’t have to have separate posts for each format.
Often, you can save time by repurposing old content, like for instance, turning a blog post into a video.
Imaginative Posts
When it comes to social media, especially SEO, quality of content beats out the quantity of content.
You don’t want to just barrage your followers with images and video that mean nothing to them.
Get creative.
For example, look at Dr. Pepper.
Their posts on Facebook are quirky and humorous, keeping the advertising present yet under the surface.
The consumer is entertained and may also share the post with friends.
This approach circulates Dr. Pepper’s brand and implants it in the minds of viewers.
Vicarious Experiences
You ever hear somebody say “man, you should’ve been there?”
One of newest social media trends ensures that everyone can take part in big moments as they happen.
Vicarious experiences via Facebook Live and Live Streaming through sites like YouTube have a massive appeal that you can benefit from.
80% of brand audiences prefer live video to blogs.
You get better interactions with customers and wider brand exposure, while the consumer gets to participate in an event as it unfolds.
Mandatory Mobile
Are you ready for ‘Mobilegeddon?’
On April 21, 2015 Google updated its search algorithm that will demote sites that are not mobile-friendly.
It’s not an option anymore, but a requirement.
Mobile phone usage to surf the web is on the rise.
In October 2016, it surpassed desktop Internet usage for the first time in history.
It’s not slowing down anytime soon, either.
The more online our world becomes, the more we will use our phones to search for things we need quickly.
Influencer Marketing
Did you know that 90% of consumers trust peer recommendations over all other forms of advertising?
The best way to tap into this confidence is through influencer marketing.
Reach out to your fans and make them brand ambassadors for your business.
Use their built-in audience to promote your product.
You may be able to reach people you would’ve otherwise missed.
Pickier Platform Selection
As new social platforms emerge and try to prove themselves, you may find it difficult trying to pick the best one.
You could try and get on each one, but that can be costly and wasteful if the platform goes under (remember Vine?).
The best practice would be narrow your focus to the sites that work the best.
Old stalwarts like Facebook or LinkedIn are always reliable.
Apps like Instagram and Snap allow you to focus more on visuals and reach a younger audience.
It all depends on your market demographic and what you’re trying to sell.
Staying on Top of Social Media Trends
Social media is going to be here for a while.
It changes regularly, and if you want to be on the cutting edge, you have to adapt to it.
Fortunately, we can help.
We specialize in web design, graphic design, and UI design, in addition to social media management.
We’ll work with you to create the online presence that’s right for your business and reach the widest possible audience.
Want to learn more?
Contact me today.