Social media is constantly evolving. There are new apps, updates, features, platforms, and trends coming out all the time. Each year it seems that there are new, unspoken rules to learn.
Businesses can use social media as an important part of their digital marketing strategy. Stay ahead of the game and be one of the first to jump on the all of the new ways to catch consumers’ attention through social media.
Below are some of the top social media marketing trends that are predicted for 2019. Stay aware of these and implement them into your marketing strategy this year to bring even more success to your business.
1. Visuals Are Key
Live video streaming is becoming ever more popular. This makes visuals an increasingly important part of social media marketing. Although video has been popular for years through YouTube, it is now being featured more and more on other platforms, as well, such as Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat. The rise of video content is predicted to continue in 2019. One unique aspect of live video is the ability to interact with viewers in real time, drawing in more engagement and building a relationship with your audience.
2. Artificial Intelligence-Based Customer Service
AI can be extremely useful when it comes to social media marketing, particularly in the area of customer service. Chatbots can be used to provide interaction and answers to consumers 24/7, increasing response time and enhancing customer service. We are living in a time when instant gratification is important to consumers. The more quickly that visitors are able to get answers to their questions, the more likely they are to become customers.
3. Social Television is On the Rise
With the launch of IGTV last year by Instagram, social TV is on the rise and will continue to grow in popularity throughout 2019. The primary benefit of this feature is that videos can be up to an hour long – much longer than stories or videos posted to Instagram – so you can include a lot more content. Be on the lookout for the expansion of this trend and determine how you can best harness the power of this feature for your business.
4. Engagement is Necessary
One huge benefit of social media marketing is the opportunity to engage with a wide audience on a more personal level than was ever possible in the past. This not only allows you to build relationships with your consumers, but it greatly improves your reach due to algorithms’ focus on interactions. Strive to make your content interesting to your audience and include questions to encourage engagement.
5. Influencer Marketing
Influencer marketing is becoming increasingly popular, and for good reasons. Big influencers can expand your brand’s reach to millions of consumers. However, they can also be very expensive. This is where micro-influencers come into play. Although they don’t have as many followers, a smaller influencer, blogger, or YouTube channel who targets the audience you are trying to reach may bring you more business than a bigger influencer.
6. Tell Your Story With Stories
Social media stories became popular on Snapchat, then spread to Instagram and are now on Facebook, as well. In fact, you can easily link your accounts to publish your stories to multiple platforms without any extra effort. Stories are short, stick around for only 24 hours, and can bring a more personal, behind-the-scenes aspect to your social media marketing. They are quick and easy to create, and with new features like the ability to ask questions, they provide another method you can use to increase communication and engagement with your followers.
As always, aim to know your audience and find out which platforms and features work best for your business, and place your focus there, but don’t hesitate to hop on new trends. These are exciting times for digital marketing!
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