The beginning of social media marketing is regarded as 2004, the year Facebook was founded. Since then, social media marketing has vastly changed. Today, 96 percent of marketers are using social media to promote companies and it’s clear that social media will keep growing through 2016. Here are the top five predicted social media trends for the coming year:
1. Direct “buy” links will be huge
Facebook and Pinterest have recently introduced “buy” buttons for their users. This means that people using those apps can see a sponsored product they like, and then click a button that allows them to purchase it without leaving the app. Some are claiming that Instagram will be next, and most marketers believe that the end of 2016 will see virtually every social media platform offering this option.
2. Users will want more privacy
Currently, the average web user has five different social media accounts and privacy is more important than ever. Facebook has introduced more privacy tools in recent months and, in 2016, smart marketers will need to follow suit by decreasing intrusive advertising and relying more on inbound marketing. By creating inbound marketing content that answers questions, provides value, and offers solutions to problems, and then promoting it via social media, marketers can attract and engage clients in the top, middle and bottom of the sales funnel throughout 2016.
3. Organic visibility will gain importance
70 percent of links that users click are organic and this number is only going to go up. In 2016, the competition for organic search visibility will become fierce, which means that marketers will have to develop marketing strategies that combine social media and SEO.
4. Social media will get more visual
The human brain processes visual information 60,000 times faster than it does text-based information, and marketers are taking notice. Currently, 2 billion images are shared on social media each day and, in 2016, it’s likely that we will see social media conversations rely on live-streaming, video and photos more than text.
5. Instagram advertising will be huge
Instagram is currently the fastest-growing social media platform in terms of users. The photo-sharing giant recently introduced advertising options and, in 2016, marketers will be able to run complete ad campaigns on Instagram. In fact, in the first 400 ad campaigns the site ran, rates of consumer recall were 3 times higher than other forms of Internet advertising.
When it comes to social media marketing, it’s important to be prepared and these five predictions can help ensure that marketers stay ahead of the curve throughout 2016.
