2013 was a busy year for the social media industry. We saw the teen demographic leave Facebook for other networks that better capture their attention and don’t yet have the entire family engaged. Twitter added video to its repertoire by purchasing Vine, the mobile app, on top of the announcement that it’s going public. In response, Instagram added video, and more recently launched sponsored images in users’ newsfeeds. 2013 was also arguably the year when GIFs hit it mainstream, bringing humor and creativity to social activity.
Despite all these changes, acquisitions, and announcements, there are still trends to keep an eye on in the social media space for 2014.
1. Google+ Emerges as a Serious Player
2014 will be a year of substantial growth for this underrated platform. Aside from the SEO benefits, Google+ offers a lot of functions that other networks don’t have, such as Communities, Hangouts and the ability to share specific content with targeted groups – not to mention its obvious connection to the world’s number one search engine, Google.
2. The Evolution of SoLoMo and Rise of New Networks
SoLoMo is a combination of the words social, location and mobile. SoLoMo explains where the digital world is heading and how the best share content with audiences in the future. Obviously, social is a key part of sharing and distributing content, but moving forward, location and mobility are going to be key to the formula. The digital space is evolving rapidly, and to be successful, content must be proximate, relevant and in the right location.
Furthermore, mobile is becoming an increasingly important platform for marketers, with over 133 million registered smartphones in the U.S. This statement might be met with some pushback, but watch for Snapchat to be the breakthrough social platform of 2014. It may not be worth $3 billion, but it does offer many possibilities and it could be a source of untapped consumers for your company.
3. Visual Content will be a MUST in your Content Strategy
Whether it’s infographics, GIFs, still images or video, visual content is driving more interaction throughout social. This is not to say that text or other content types aren’t worth sharing, but visually appealing posts are likely to become the bread and butter of content strategies. 89% of people between the ages 18 and 34 watch online video content once a week and in 2014, this number will easily surpass the 90% mark.
Not only will visual content be vital to successful strategies, but so will personalization. Businesses that go to extra step to tailor content will better resonate with consumers.
Social revolutions: Here this year, Revamped the next
The social space is constantly changing, and what might be a hot topic today could be old news tomorrow. These three trends are just some of many that will be important for marketers moving into the New Year.
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