Our friends from Social Media Examiner reached out to 14 social media pros and asked them what the top social media predictions will be for 2016. We’ve taken these predictions and put our spin on it by grouping them into what we see as four common themes. More importantly, we end with our take on what these trends mean for you and how you can apply them to marketing and to growing your business!
Personalization— Your Consumer Relationship
- Messaging apps (Facebook Messenger, Whatsapp, etc) and private group communication on social media platforms will surge.
- Marketers will take a more adaptive approach – crafting their messages and content based on the needs, wants, and behaviors of prospects and consumers.
Customization—Your Content Strategy
- Social media messages that are visual and customized to fit each platform will grow ever more important.
- Brands will syndicate more content on social media channels with the goal of building email subscribers and driving users to their newsletters, where original content will be the emphasis.
Instant Gratification—How Consumers Want it!
- Live-casting, which allows you to stream video live from your mobile on to social networks, will grow in popularity and become mainstream.
- Interaction and communications become more instant with video meetings.
- The emergence of real-time content, such as instant articles, lead ads, and immersive ads, will change the way consumers receive information. Instant content becomes prevalent!
“Strategization”—How to improve your visibility and targeted reach!
- More social networks, including Twitter, will start charging for traffic and for increased visibility of your posts.
- Improved Facebook Ad targeting
Multibrain’s Take: The predictions for 2016 shows us one major takeaway—social media users are getting smarter and more demanding in what they want and how they want to receive communication via social media. Change the customer experience by building personalized relationships. Do this through direct and small group messages and by crafting your messages to fit their needs. Start to mold your content in a way that makes sense for each platform you use with a growing focus on visual content such as image, videos, and infographics. Make sure that your content is easily and quickly accessible through live-casting, instant articles, and virtual parties! Finally, maximize your visibility on social media by considering boosted posts and targeted ads. A little bit will go a long way in expanding your reach and possibly gaining prospects!
http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/2016-social-media-marketing-predictions-from-the-experts/