You know this already: social media is of ever-growing importance to businesses, and should absolutely be taken advantage of. Part of that is keeping informed of the newest trends so that you are able to give your business the greatest leverage. 2018 has been a year of expanding and building off of 2017 social media trends. Video content and influencer marketing have been prevalent in 2018, but we find ourselves thinking: what will 2019 bring? We at Loud Canvas offer five predictions of what will be important digital marketing trends in social media marketing, advertising, and branding spaces.
1. Social media platforms will be even more integrated with each other and other services. The companies that brought us platforms like Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter will work to expand their ever-growing footprint and influence by integrating their services with even more third-party apps. Social media platforms sit on a treasure trove of user data and by integrating further, they will remain at the forefront of user attention.
2. Live streaming will continue to grow as more and more businesses and individuals realize it’s benefits. Facebook Live and others like it have been simply infectious (and we’re still just getting started!). Radio stations and traditional ‘old guard’ companies live stream. Even Mark Zuckerberg tried his hand at live streaming. Such a marketing tool can be a complete game-changer for companies. 67% of viewers have said they are more likely to purchase a concert ticket if they have seen a live stream of a similar event. And 45% of viewers would pay to see a favorite athlete, team, or performer on a live stream video.
3. Messenger Apps and Chatbots. Messenger Apps provide customers another means of reaching out to a business and vice versa. Take Facebook for example; users may visit a company’s profile page with no intention of buying anything. However, digital markets can deploy a chatbot to engage in conversation that may lead to a sale, further developing customer relationships with the brand. Think conversing with a chatbot is weird? Think again. A recent study showed only 19% of 5000 surveyed had a negative perception of chatbots.
4. Influencer marketing. Think of YouTubers who have a ton of followers who subscribe to their channel. These influencers may have sponsored videos which are ways that companies can give their brand and/or product a boost. This is also a terrific way to target your marketing efforts as viewers (subscribers/followers) will be doing so because they like or agree with what the YouTuber is saying. By engaging with an influencer, you inevitably are able to reach the exact type of person you think would appreciate your products.
5. Business leaders becoming more social. This may come as a surprise on our list when we have a President who tweets as often as he does, and T-Mobile’s CEO tweeting and hosting live stream videos of him cooking. However, in an era of fake news, who better to put forth the truth and positively represent your brand than your CEO? Doing so helps to build a positive reputation of the company, gives your company a presence and a voice, and makes the company more appealing to customers and job applicants. In 2016, 40% of CEOs were active on social media, and of those, 70% were only on LinkedIn. In 2019, CEOs will likely do more blogging, tweeting, and live streaming.
Cited:
- https://www.socialreport.com/insights/article/360000663006-7-Digital-Marketing-Trends-That-Will-Own-2019
- https://www.business2community.com/social-media/the-top-7-social-media-marketing-trends-going-into-2019-02119776
