TRENDS
For social marketers, 2015 was
an exciting year. New platforms,
software and consumer
preferences brought about a host
of changes and opportunities.
As a result, social media—and
subsequently your strategy—has
evolved and will continue to do
so.
It’s impossible to predict how
the social media landscape will
change over the course of a year,
but here are six social media
trends marketers should keep an
eye on in 2016:
Real Real-Time Engagement
Social media thrives on real-time
engagement, but each year the
window for response becomes
smaller and smaller.
According to Search Engine
Watch, 70% of Twitter users
expect a response from brands
they reach out to, and 53% want
a response in less than an hour.
That number jumps to 72%
when they’re issuing a complaint.
In 2014, consumers complained
about brands 879 million times
on social media. What’s worse is
that in 2015, brands still weren’t
responding as 7 in 8 messages
to them went unanswered within
72 hours.
One of the key strategies
marketers need to implement in
2016 is faster response times.
Thanks to advances made to
social listening and automation
Visual Contenting
tools, if you’re not quick to
respond one of your competitors
might be.
Social media is moving fast, and
if your business has a presence
on any of the platforms then
you’re expected to keep up.
Live Streaming Video
Faster response times aren’t
the only thing you’ll want to
focus on. Consumers also want
faster access to real-time, offline
events. Live streaming video is
considered to be the next big
thing in social media marketing
thanks to apps like Periscope and
Meerkat, which took the Internet
by storm in 2015.
Social media allows for
communication between brands
and customers, but live stream
goes a step further, revealing
a much more authentic side
of your business. It’s unedited,
unfiltered and shows that you’re
not just reading off of a cue card.
Both Periscope and Meerkat
allow you to broadcast a live
stream of the world around you.
Periscope:
• Owned by Twitter
• Available on iOS and Android
• 2 million daily active users
• 40 years worth of live video
is watched daily
• Available in 25 languages