4 Social Media Trends We Will See in 2015
Has another year seriously passed? I seems like it was 2005 – my oldest was one, Facebook was just an idea in Zuckerberg’s head and heck, we all still had flip phones.
Social media has evolved in the past 10 years thanks to smartphones, tablets and the always-connected lifestyle the majority of us have adapted. If you told me 10 years ago that I’d have a phone with an app to order pizza or tell me the traffic, I would have laughed at you.
We’ve come leaps and bounds. 2014 saw a record amount spent on social advertising. Facebook topped well over 1 billion users and Instagram is now surging as a top social media platform.
As the industry is ever-evolving, we will see no shortage of changes this next year.
Facebook’s Algorithm Will Limit Your Posts
As previously announced, Facebook will start limiting the reach (drastically) of posts that appear to be salesy, like ads. They want you to spend money to get those posts seen. So what does that mean to you? Retool your Facebook strategy, if you even still have one. Make sure your posts are of value. Provide your fans quality, non-salesy content that encourages engagement. Even if only 100 people see it, if 75 of them are commenting or sharing, it’s still a success. Quality matters.
Instagram Demands to be Taken For Real
Yes, you can still Instagram pictures of your dinner, but with the major growth this platform saw in 2014 (200 million users!), expect it to grow even more. Imagine Pinterest in 2013. That’s Instagram now. More and more businesses are using this to reach their community, in fact according to the Social Media Marketing Industry report, 42% of marketers are planning to increase their use of the platform this year, compared to 38% in 2013. I’m following just as many businesses now as I am people. The posts are quality and entertaining. This platform gives you the chance to show your business’ personality. Relating matters.
Content Marketing Will Become the Centerpiece
Content is huge right now. It’s become the vehicle for information, education and sales pitches. More content is being published on the web than ever before. My friend Mark Schaefer wrote about one of the consequences of all this content – content shock. The premise is that we will get to the point there will just be too much content out there for us to ingest. We are speeding towards that, but first make sure your content provides value and is respected by your community. That will stand out when this shock happens. The message still matters.
Social Advertising Becomes a Requirement
For some businesses, social media advertising is already a requirement. More money is being allocated to this every month. With Facebook’s changes and Twitter’s new business offerings, expect to see more ads in your social feeds. If the business is using them correctly, that’s not a bad thing. Watch out what you promote – it needs to create value for your community and help you meet your end goal. Money matters.
I’m sure you could google “2015 social media trends” and see more than these 4 I’ve listed, but these seem to be the biggest four to me.
What trends do you see happening in 2015? Are you excited about any of them?
