A majority of the business people out of the estimated 2 billion active users of social media today say that their sales have increased because of their presence on social media platforms. Since the growth of active users is estimated at 25% per year, it’s obvious that it has become a very handy tool for marketing around the world. Let’s see what the trend will be this year.
Social is now a search engine: Consumers are increasingly being influenced by online comments and reviews. People are being directed straight to company websites from the social media. It’s a growing trend and in 2016 social media platforms will be used even more by potential customers looking for products and services of particular companies. As in 2015, Facebook and Twitter are expected to be the top two social media sites expected to be searched in 2016.
Decline of small platforms: Small social platforms like Blab and Ello have proliferated in a crazy way in the past few years, but they could quickly go into decline. The Big Three – Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn – could eat them up, like Facebook’s purchase of Instagram in 2012 for $ 1 billion. This trend will make things simpler for marketers who will have to focus only on the few big networks.
Employee engagement as social media strategy: This resource that has not been completely explored will be a trend. Companies will be likely to invest in staff satisfaction across the board and encourage them to share valuable content on their personal accounts turning them into powerful marketing machines.
More paid ads: Paid advertisements will dominate news feeds next year, it has been predicted. This is because brands are spending more cash to get maximum visibility on social platforms. The fact that this year there was a 34% jump on 2015 in this kind of spending confirms this trend.
Security will be tightened: Increasing security breaches will force brands to re-evaluate their security systems. Hackers have targeted password reminders and e-mail addresses and this has frightened consumers. So, expect privacy features on the social media this year.
Make half Integration with e-commerce: Consumers using mobile devices need not quit the app to make a purchase on Pinterest and Facebook, for these networks have a click-through choice called one-click purchasing which allows them to hook up to the store and buy an item of their liking on the network. So the idea of a ‘buy’ button will crop up on social media networks to help consumers shop without leaving their treasured social experience.
In sum, get ready for 2016 right now. Plan your budgets and social media campaigns to stay ahead of the predicted trends and get the most out of these platforms.
