Constantly evolving, rapidly advancing and rapidly growing – these words perhaps best describe the social media landscape that we all see today. Of all the digital channels, there are social media platforms that are arguably the most aggressive when it comes to introducing new features to help their users connect, communicate and share content with their friends, family, acquaintances and even strangers online.
With more than 3.3 billion active users worldwide, social media generates many interactions on a daily basis. With the right strategy, the right tools and a hint of creativity, businesses and marketers can take advantage of this phenomenon to reach and engage their target customers, improve their brand image and ultimately lead their business to success. That being said, staying one step ahead is still the rule when it comes to social media marketing. So without further ado, here are the latest social media marketing trends that you need to prepare to get the most out of these online platforms in 2019.
1. Live Video Content Will Still Dominate
Videos and social media integrate perfectly with each other, which is why no social media marketing strategy is incomplete without some type of video marketing strategy. In 2019, the video will still dominate in social media, as more devices and platforms support the video format – and in particular live video. Since its launch, Facebook Live has had enormous success; there have been more than 3.5 billion Facebook Live broadcasts since its launch in 2016. As popular and engaging as they are, the authentic, short-lived nature of live video allows brands to increase the reliability and perceived relevance of their brand, a trend we can all expect to continue in 2019.
2. A Separate Strategy for Ephemeral Content
As ironic as it sounds, ephemeral content such as live videos and stories is here to stay. Unlike traditional videos which have to go through several pre-production, production and post-production processes before they are distributed on social media sites, videos and live stories are created and uploaded in real time, which explains its authenticity to viewers. That said, live video still requires some planning to be played at the right time and with the right concept. This is why we can expect brands that plan to use this format in 2019 to favor a solid strategy specifically created for this type of social content.
3. Continued Rise of Messaging Apps and Chatbots
According to eMarketer, more than a quarter of the world’s population will be using mobile messaging apps by 2019 – a trend that more and more marketers are starting to take advantage of in recent years. Being present on messaging applications such as Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, Line and Kik is not only imperative to provide better customer service these days, but also because the majority of content sharing is done nowadays on these platforms. Chatbots are also expected to continue to gain popularity as more and more brands are looking for a more efficient way to facilitate personalized, real-time conversations with their customers.
4. Social Listening for Lead Generation and Social Selling
While social listening has been an important aspect of social media marketing, its use will become more evident in the areas of lead generation and social listening. Some brands have already started using social listening tools to find potential prospects on different social media sites. With these tools, businesses and marketers can find people who ask questions about their industry, which enables them to feed these prospects into prospects and, ultimately, customers.
5. The Need For More Meaningful Content Experience
In early 2018, Mark Zuckerberg announced that he would make significant changes to Facebook’s newsfeed functionality, saying that updating the algorithm would prioritize what friends and family users share and comment while focusing on content from publishers and brands. This means for marketers that they need to refocus their social media strategy around creating engaging content that delivers a meaningful experience to their audience. In 2019, we can expect more brands and businesses to produce content – especially in video format – that connect with the emotion and main interests of their viewer.
6. The Rise of Social TV
In June 2018, we saw Instagram deploy the latest feature on its platform, IGTV. Many experts believe that this will allow general users and companies of their application to broadcast video content in the same way as traditional television – but online. services, which could be available on both Facebook Business Manager and Instagram Business Accounts.
7. Focus on Striking Balance Between Personalization and Privacy
Social media incidents accounted for more than 56% of the 4.5 billion data records compromised worldwide in the first half of 2018, according to the Breach Level Index. radical changes that guarantee more transparent data collection. Because of its ever-changing nature, it will take an incredible amount of hard work, a deep understanding of your audience, and good use of the platforms you use to take full advantage of social media marketing to make your business competitive. Keeping up with these changes is a good start to keeping your business at the top of the curve in 2019 and the years to come.
