What’s dominating social marketing in the second half of 2022?
Staying up-to-date on the latest social media trends can help fuel your marketing strategy, keep ahead of your customers and stay on top of trending items. So what can we anticipate for the future of social media, and how does that impact your marketing strategy?
Quick Thoughts:
➖ There are significant shifts towards prioritising privacy for customers.
➖ Users expect more personalised experiences every day.
➖ Social commerce is on-platform product selling (going far beyond ads that lead users off-platform), and it’s majorly on-trend right now.
➖ Live videos aren’t going anywhere – Live video streaming is available on many platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Twitter, and LinkedIn.
➖ Community building is a significant focus on social media right now, which goes far beyond gaining new followers.
1.TikTok has seen undeniably fast growth. The term ‘TikTok’ saw a 61% increase in mentions year-over-year during the beginning of 2021 and was the first non-Facebook app to reach 3 million global downloads. (Hubspot)
2. Improved customer loyalty. So you’ve found new clients – how do you keep them? Brands are contemplating how to reach new audiences through social media, foster deeper relationships with existing audiences, and improve customer service to ensure long-term customer loyalty.
3. All businesses should have a dedicated social media hire. It’s the best way to helo your business grow audiences online, keep tabs on social analytics, be part of industry-specific discussions, and experiment with new content trends.
4. Going Live will be a priority. Instagram Live is excellent at boosting discoverability and engagement, gives your audience a more personal experience with you and your business and allows immediate interaction between you and your customers. Given most platforms will prioritise LIVE in the newsfeed, your content will get bumped to the first position in Stories at the top of users’ feeds. Speaking and interacting directly with your audience is a great way to build relationships and trust.
5. Organic traffic takes a while to build, and you want to invest in short-term plays as a small business. Pay-to-play tactics that target buyers with high intent are great for short-term wins to jump-start other objectives. For example, Google Ads are perfect if you know that your target audience is searching the web for your product or solution. If they aren’t, you might consider social media ads instead. Individuals on social media have less buying intent, but with highly targeted ads and enough impressions, you’ll gain the interest of your audience.
6. You must embrace automation. With everything happening in real-time, you need to focus on a service that provides immediacy, personalisation and easy accessibility for your customers. When it comes to customer service, more than half of all consumers now expect a response within one hour, and they require your business to be accessible and on-demand, 24 hours a day, seven days per week. Embracing automation can make your customer experience journey more accessible and convenient for potential buyers. In addition, your business should now offer multiple channels for contact, including phone, email, social media, live chat, and even text messages.
