Crystal Ball 2018: Predictions for Social Media in the New Year
Our Crystal Ball Predictions for Social Media and Social Media Marketing?
Here at JRH Graphics, we actually hate predictions. AKA a random guess! But content planning is important. So, we took a look at our crystal ball (the internets) and tried to assess the social media predictions for 2018. The perusal of articles and posts by talented writers and companies and helped us compile this list. Including some of what we believe will happen based on these trends and what we are seeing ourselves. We want to help you manage your social media. Make smart plans. And slay the year so here is what we think (aka guess)!The TrendThe PredictionsTakeaway
Instagram Killing it With Stories
Instagram Stories will continue to capitalize on the successes of 2017 and will continue to gain popularity. Stories are just over 1 year old, yet over 200 million users utilize the feature monthly. More than the number of users on Snapchat, plus with opportunities to tie in e-commerce the future looks bright for Instagram Stories.If you are not already using stories to engage followers then it is time to start using them. Stories are a great way to provide followers and non-followers with an exclusive behind the scenes look of your brand, tell your story and engage customers and potential customers. Check out some tips here!
The Customer Experience from Start to Finish
The customer experience throughout the entire life-cycle is incredibly important. Your brand is built on the experiences that customers have. This could be anything from in-store customer service experience, to seeing your items at a local reseller or seeing one of your business’s posts Facebook. Every interaction impacts brand!
Creating a great experience for the customer is more likely to help you gain brand loyalists. Negative online experiences, bad customer service, late delivery of an order, or inconsistent messaging can all hurt your business and they WILL NOT USE YOUR BUSINESS AGAIN. Make no mistake they have other choices.
No customers = no brand loyalists = no champions of your brand = fewer customer = fewer sales = bye bye businessLock this one down in 2018. Make sure all your employees. Anyone with customer contact. Or anyone who creates a policy that will impact a customer. KNOWS THAT THE CUSTOMER COMES FIRST. Create a loyalty program to reward followers and customers. Encourage and reward feedback from customers that post reviews (good or bad). Pay attention to these reviews. You can be certain your customers are reading them. Go Above and Beyond. Everyday. All Day. Until it hurts!
Content Creation Still Remains Incredibly Important
What kind of content are you creating? Is it informative? Entertaining yet educational? Is your content unique to your brand and offer greater insight for your followers?
An overwhelming 70% of people said they’d rather learn about a business via an article instead of an advertisement. Content marketing is cheaper than regular marketing and drives more leads so content marketing will continue to grow. Blog posts, infographics, video, live stream, stories, photos, articles, and so on is all part of content marketing.
Content creation. Is hard. It is even harder to do when running your business. If you don’t have time, consider outsourcing your content creation or certain aspects of your social media to a local company focused on your growth like JRH Graphics. Find the company that meets your content creation needs!
Great Job Getting On Social and Creating Content But What's Next?
Oh c'mon you knew this was going to happen!! In 2017, there were more than 50 million small businesses using social media pages to interact with their customers. Great. Many of these businesses are creating content to educate and inform customers. Awesome.
But, many consumers are starting to get tired of sponsored or branded content and are skipping over it! Well, shit! Consumers are going to outside sources to get information not directly to brands. Brands are going to need to create more content with independently verifiable information and sources in order for this content to gain traction and help market.Now what? Stop creating content? No continue creating content but use stats and specifics that apply to more than just your company. Share content that can be verified independently. Pro Tip: Look at how you are collaborating, is it possible that one of your past collaborators would be able to create valuable content.
Get Your Toolkit Today and Start Planning: Collaboration Toolkit & Pre-Collab Worksheet
Influencer Marketing Goes Micro
Over 90% of marketers that utilize influencer marketing believe that it is successful and with traditional marketing continuing to struggle with social more and more companies are likely to move towards this form of marketing. But Influencer Marketing is stepping away from mega-influencers who represent multiple brands.
Mega-Influencers or spokespeople are not where companies are getting a return on investment. This is why Influencer Marketing is starting to go micro. Followers and consumers are looking for actual people within a community that has invested and real followers.If you are already engaging with influencers are you getting the return on investment you should be? Have you looked at other options or begun to look at the opportunities that may be available from micro-influencers or brand advocates. Also look to create a community around your brand and make sure your influencers are a part of that community. PRO TIP: Don't end your relationship with an influencer at the end of a contract. Continue to engage!
Rise of Augmented Reality
Both the iPhone 8 and the iPhone X have ground-breaking new chips that allow for extraordinary augmented reality experiences. Social Media is likely to incorporate some of these features for their platforms as soon as possible and will likely look for innovative ways to do so. Possible early uses include selfie filters with celebrities or brands having the ability to project products into our homes. What other possibilities do you see from this trend?Small businesses should actively observe what is happening with augmented reality as it develops. It is likely that large companies will be the first to jump on this trend but as social media platforms change and include this technology look to see if it makes sense for you to utilize.
Gen Z Enters the Workforce
The impact of the Gen Z generation is about to be felt with marketers as these 22-year-olds are about to enter the workforce. As they step into the workforce and they will gain more buying power and become more important to organizations. We just got used to millennials but its time to change again.
Engagement on platforms where Gen Z resides will be key. How are they engaging with companies and changing the way you do business?Actively observe the developments and pay attention to trends here. Small businesses may have a bit more time to react to Gen-Z, but start looking for opportunities now. Key platforms will include YouTube, Live Streaming Sites, and possibly still some Snapchat. Key practices will include transparency and authenticity.
It's Going to Be All About Live
Live messaging apps and live streaming are going to become more ingrained in the mainstream. Over 2.5 billion people are utilizing live messaging apps and live streaming is making up a large part of video content consumed. Brands will need to begin looking at options to engage on these live apps when followers are looking for them.Live gives businesses many opportunities to show off the behind the scenes, tell a story, give followers special benefits and to be unscripted. Live messaging is a good place to begin working with bots, but don't forget the human touch!
So, What Do You Think?
Those are some of the trends we believe will be dominating social media this upcoming year, based on our readings, and what we are seeing with our clients. We invite you to share your thoughts throughout the year below! To read some of the articles we read and to draw tour own conclusions then please visit these links.
Hootsuite: 2018 Social Media Trends