It’s that time of the year when we talk about Social Media trends in 2016. What are they, how can we implement them in our day-to-day work and our business/marketing goals in order to succeed?

Here are some of my thoughts and predictions.

No matter what line of business you’re in, digital marketing is or it should be your right hand and everyday work, so talk about Social Media trends is something you should get into, get to know it and embrace it in order to stand out and be better that competition. Yes? Knowing that, here’s what we all need to put our minds and focus on to.

Video

Yes, last year’s trend in video is still holding on, in fact, it will continue to grow and be a huge part of business/brand communication. Did you know that only on Facebook, people watch more than 8 billion videos – a day? Facebook really made a game change with favoring its own video instead of copy/paste YouTube links, making it to have more reach (12%) than YouTube links with only 5%, so brands and business are now changing the way they make videos and are shaping them to meet Facebook video rules. You know, KISS: keep it short&sweet.

So, when making plans and strategies regarding your video content, keep this info in mind. Ask yourself what kind of video content your fans and targeted groups want, in what way, how long and make sure that the first 5 seconds count the most. Let the “bate” be a good one in that time and you’ll get yourself a catch 🙂

Also, big, huge thing (for those that don’t know it yet): we live in a mobile era so everything that you do – do it in a mobile friendly way. Not just videos which you can shoot with smartphones, but every other aspect of your digital strategy: visuals, texts, e-books, PDFs; make them in a way that they can be easy readable in smartphone and tablet formats. Did you know that in 2015. YouTube had 100% more views through smartphones compared to 2014.?

Content Marketing

Again, a trend that is here for quite some time and the one everyone talks about, but.. We still need to do this because the old way of advertising and promotion is on its dying ages and we really need to understand the big importance of Content Marketing. It should be an essential part of every marketing/promotional/business strategy of your brand, your company, your product or service. You know, Facebook and LinkedIn know it and are doing it with its Instant Articles and Pulse tools which are (for some) replacing publishing on blogs and websites. The trick is that by using Content Marketing you attract internet users to the place/platform you want them on. So, think and do a research on what is the thing that attracts your fans, followers, customers to you and your product/service; why do they choose you and not the competition; what can You do for them and how can you help them, make their day, their life better? Then make a list and work to ensure that your key messages and offers are packaged in the specific content that reaches to your targeted audiences. Give them value, solve their problem and you’ll make yourself an opportunity to turn them into potential clients and customers. Unlike traditional marketing where you scream Take me, Buy me, Rent me; in Content Marketing you have to give (and give) before taking.

Influencer Marketing

People believe more to each others than brands and companies and that is a fact. Brands and companies that get to understand that will prosper and gain in this competitive line of work. Simply, like in offline world, internet has it’s own influencers, in every niche. Do your research, find the ones that are important to your business, your brand, offer them cooperation and make them the right hand of your brand. Why? Influencers are the people who, by speaking positive about you and your brand, are promoting it and are a bridge between your potential customers and your brand/service/company. So, explore your industry and competitors, find the people that have social influence and are fond of you and make them your brand ambassadors that people will trust. eWOM is maybe bigger than ever, use it to your advance.

Customer Service

Get into the last train for this trend, because customer service is the one of the main things you’ll have to have in your day-to-day online presence. Online communities have a million questions and if you’re not there to answer on them, you are missing a lot: a chance build relationship, to provide them with valuable info and a way to make them your fans, followers and future clients/consumers. Whether you like it or not, Social Media are a stay on tool that you can’t afford not to use and by using them the right way, you’ll eventually get better business results. Talk to your employers, educate them how to be a part of your customer support in a way that they talk about your product/brand/service in a positive way; encourage them to resolve doubts and answer the questions that your fans or targeted audience have about your line of work; make the most of what you got and make your employees the face and the voice online; humanize your work.

Snapchat

This is the Social Media you need to know on if you want those Millennials and Generation Z to be a part of your consumers and clients. Do you know how they use Social Media and how are they consuming all that content online? Snapchat is the No. 1 tool that will help you with that, provide you the valuable info ow the way those kids think and use Internet. Long blog posts, super funny videos, cool infographic are not the ways to lour them. Millennials and Generation Z wants real time, raw, unretouched and authentic info/content that they can relate to and they want them now. So, download the app, follow brands and people that you find interesting and valuable to you, learn from them for some time, educate yourself for “The Next Big Thing” that comes real soon. Al that we know and use nowadays will no longer be valid in a year(s) to come, and Snapchat has much stake in it.

The continuous growth and development of social networks are forcing us to follow them and catch the signals about new trends and methods for their use. These are my predictions for Social Media trends in 2016 so, if you need assistance in creating and implementing strategies and achieving business goals, contact me and will develop something together.

Info sources:

* Facebook
* Simply Measured
* HootSuite
* Socialbakers
* eMarketer

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