Over the past couple of years, social media sites have evolved greatly. Many business owners have started to use social media networking given its huge marketing potential. Pinterest, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and Google+ are only a few of the most popular social media platforms. Here are some social media predictions for 2013:
Content Marketing Efforts Will Explode
Facebook and Twitter have helped organizations so much that owners have come up with new job names, such as Online Content Marketing Director. Having said that, it is highly possible that content marketing efforts will simply explode this year – which is good, both for businesses and consumers!
The Year Of Visual Marketing
Visual marketing is undoubtedly one of the most powerful marketing methods known to man, after word-of-mouth. This is why professional marketers believe that 2013 will be the year when visual marketing will reach a whole new level – after all, the best way to advertise a product is by combining graphics with audio.
Social media platforms, like the ones mentioned above, already allow you to distribute, but it is expected that developers will come up with new features that will enable users to share visual content faster, easier and without the hassle.
Facebook Will Become Even More Business-Friendly
With over 800 million active users, Facebook is by far the most popular social networking site, followed by Twitter. This is why most brands already have a profile on this website. However, it is believed that Facebook will become even more business-oriented this year: new features and function will arise and they will allow business owners to gather customer feedback more efficiently.
This aspect is essential for the future marketing campaigns of every business. Moreover, it is believed that Facebook will also allow brands to track and reward top commenters, and that it will have a series of analytical tools that will come in handy for market research purposes.
Job-Oriented Websites Will Grow Even More
In 2012, millions of people managed to find a job through websites like LinkedIn, Facebook or Pinterest. They either applied for a particular position themselves, or they were recruited by top recruiters from various brands, based on the skills they showed on these social networking sites. This is why the above-mentioned websites are very likely to have a greater contribution regarding employment, and this will attract even more job seekers in 2013.
Instagram Will Develop
Compared to Facebook or Twitter, Instagram is still a relatively new and small social media platform; however, it has grown more than any other network over the past couple of years. This website allows users to let their creativity flow, and it is believed that in 2013 Instagram will lower the standards for content creation even more, which will eventually lead to the growth of the website – the easier it is, the more appealing it is to users!
To sum it up, the marketing potential of social networking sites will be fully exploited, there will be additional tools for analysis and market research, and the website interface is expected to become even more user-friendly.
Our social media and marketing team definitely agree that both content and social media are critical to engagement. Marketing is no longer a one way conversation- and is more about developing the community, brand and value than it is simply advertising.
I do think many brands (such as with Law) have a harder time developing a community based on social media, but we still think its important to SEO as well as like-ability
Hey Marco,
Yes, you’re right that many industries still have a difficult time developing a strong social presence. I typically have strategies in place for those fields, like Law, that work strongly. A combination of SEMO (search engine marketing and optimization) and social media typically do the trick.