Social media platforms are where Millennials (those born into the 21st Century), most commonly have a say about products and services they or their parents have the disposable income to purchase. Could these platforms/tools of empowerment - be the reason why this sociodemographic group constantly share their unique views throughout most days? Or could it be, they simply enjoy having their opinions shared, valued and endorsed with ‘likes’ and comments?
More importantly for business, Millennials authentic opinions are proving to be far more engaging and influential than the generic, corporate sales blurb that often causes mouths to stretch and release a sequence of yawns.
In response to the above, we’ve watched Facebook Live detonate in the first quarter of 2017 with live video streaming. Twitter and Instagram are quickly following suit. So how else will our much-loved platforms continue to rapidly progress through 2017? To be consistent with the well-known phrase, we do believe ‘You ain’t seen nothing yet.’ Read on to learn about the need for commercial organisations to increase their presence on social media platforms, as we speed towards 2018:
- Authentic commercial video content. As a result of FacebookLive, Snapchat and Instagram giving people more freedom with video, more members are independently sharing recommendations and reviews that virtually eliminate the need for the product/service provider’s spiel. This, in turn, is increasing the demand for commercial organisations to step up the authenticity of their video content to better communicate the desired message about their brand. Businesses are being forced to invest in producing and sharing video in a more competitively engaging way. The good news is a lot of authentic video content can be produced cost effectively. It’s worth observing how strategies behind content placement contribute to successful brand communications.
- More Over The Top (OTT). Again, OTT social messaging apps like Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp and WeChat have become a preferred form of communication. Marketing through these more accessible and interactive channels provides access to a wider audience than Linked In, Facebook and Twitter. There’s already advice available on how to use WhatsApp for business purposes including customer support, communications, marketing and promotions. Businesses should ensure they have a sequence of carefully considered social media messages (including planned notifications and responses), that are ready to go before using this faster, more widespread communication channel.
- Social commerce. Social commerce is allowing people to complete e-commerce transactions using social networks. Twitter has successfully tested a ‘buy’ button and the trend is set to emerge amongst competing platforms, thus further promoting the demand for multi-channel e-commerce solutions.
- More sponsored content. It’s becoming increasingly clear that if you want to get the best reach for your content, you have to pay to distribute it. Businesses choosing not to invest in social media marketing are beginning to struggle to compete. The good news is that the cost of successful campaigns is scalable to the percentage of required business growth.
- Fake news. We’ve already witnessed huge waves of fake news rolling into 2017, following the election of Donald Trump. Restrictions and penalties for misinforming audiences may begin to emerge later in 2017. Social media management will help more businesses to properly protect their brands.
- Personalisation. Data is becoming more readily available than ever before, allowing social media to show you content that is relevant to you. This is important – with so much content published online, it needs to be directed towards the right people. Data can help companies who target their ads well in 2017 to achieve excellent results.
All in all, 2017 will continue to see some exciting changes in the world of social media. We look forward to monitoring how new trends develop, and to keep you updated along the way.