2017 has been a big year for social media and, despite some ups and downs (such as the Facebook-Cambridge Analytica scandal), the positive trend continued in 2018, showing one more time how these places of virtual interaction represent a vital and immersive reality for the users.
In this moment social media marketers should focus their attention on those tools that result the most appreciated by the users, in order to plan a social media strategy that is both focused and measurable.
Which are the main trends that companies should monitor and adopt right now?
- Videos everywhere, everytime. For a few years now video-marketing has become one of the favourite strategies for social advertiser. In 2017, internet video traffic made up 69% of all global consumer internet traffic and 64% of online shoppers made a purchase after watching branded social videos. In 2018, a solid marketing strategy won’t be able to avoid the use of videos for its campaigns. But be careful: not only it’s important to create and share appealing videos, but it is also essential to monitor the performances after their release, to help you improve your strategy.
- Ephemeral content. Instagram stories were launched just two years ago but they are certainly the favorite tool of Instagrammers (and companies), which see these “ephemeral content” as a perfect way to sponsor their products, or just to make a more authentic communication. But have you ever wondered why these kinds of content became so popular? In addition to the fact that they are videos (usually preferred by users), the ephemeral content cause in the users the so-called FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out), the fear of losing the news, the offer, the exclusive content, stimulating it to stay connected and to don’t lose anything.
- Social customer care. It is estimated that to date, in the world, there are 300,000 monthly active bots engaging with customers on Messenger and over 8 billion messages are exchanged between people and businesses each month: 4 times more than in 2017! It is therefore logical that companies can no longer ignore the use of this new technology, which not only save time but also money. But if bots are already part of many social media strategies, the voice search is just emerging and, as shown by the recent release of Google Duplex, the next step for a successful customer care is represented by the voice and digital assistants.
- Influencer and UGC. In 2017, brands spent over 1 million euros in influencer marketing just on Instagram. In 2018, a further and increasing growth of this trend is expected. For this reason, the approach to this kind of strategy, combined with a social media plan that involves the use of UCG: User Generated Content, is extremely important to increase brand awareness, receive feedback from the customers and increase the confidence that users feel towards a company: we trust more to an authentic content posted by a user, rather than the “built message” shared by a brand.
- Web Listening: the importance to listen to the web. This is certainly one of the pillars to keep in mind when planning a social media strategy: you must to know the opinion of your consumers and to know how they talk about your brand and your products, to collect fundamental insights that allow you to implement your communication and production activities. For this reason, to develop a successful social media strategy you cannot miss web listening tools, such as Social Listening.
