Experts in the field weigh in on the biggest trends you can jump on to make your brand stand out on social media.
With emerging trends and Technology in social media moving faster than your busy Twitter feed, it's hard to know what to pay attention to and what to discard.
I turned to the experts to see what to watch for as 2014 unfolds. Massive
change is no longer on the horizon--it's here. It's worth investigating these
opportunities to boost your social impact and improve your marketing results.
The
social Web will have more impact than search-engine ranking.
In
2014, the way that consumers interact with your product online (whether through
an Amazon review, Yelp rating, or simply a Facebook like) is much more
critical. With the release of Google's new Hummingbird algorithm, more weight
will be placed on how your business, product, or service is being talked about
on the social Web. We will see it directly impact your search-engine ranking in
2014 more than ever.
As Instagram, Pinterest,
and other newer social networks continue to gain the attention of consumers,
you will need to continue to use a combination of various analytic programs
(because there still doesn't seem to be one that can give you all the
information you need to truly measure the impact of your social-media
strategies) to determine the best use of your time and budget on specific
social sites.
Simplicity
will become critical.
The
triumph of simple will continue in social networks. Communities that achieve a
truly fundamental simplicity and utility will gain traction over those that are
complex. Keek, Pinterest, Twitter, and Snapchat will thrive. Disaffection with
complex platforms like Facebook will accelerate. Simple will win for three
reasons:
·
It
speeds adoption. Because attention spans are shorter than ever, immediate
gratification and easy learning drive growth.
·
Simple
translates better to mobile. Small screens need to be simple.
·
Simple
means you won't make mistakes.
Interestingly,
Facebook will play a key role in helping these canonically simple platforms to
grow. They can all import your Facebook friends list, eliminating a key
sticking point in spreading your social identity across sites. Facebook becomes
your contact list, but you don't hang out in your contact list.
Businesses seeking to
take advantage of this trend will need to achieve a new level of simple,
concise messaging and engagement models. How can you productively interact with
your customers in short bursts? What can you say in a 35-second video that will
have impact? How about a six-second video? Find the core of your value and
explore ways to deliver it in minimal, targeted bursts.
Social
customer service is on the rise.
In
2014, social media will be used more and more by consumers to force companies
into rapid response. With more than one billion smartphones at work in the
world, the masses will increasingly begin using social media via mobile devices
to express issues and complaints instead of dialing the traditional customer
support line. Call centers will become obsolete or at least change the way they
work, resulting in the rise of mobile customer service apps.
Because
of the changes in how customers are communicating with the brands they follow,
companies will begin developing strategic customer support teams. This
dedicated team, consisting of customer service, sales and marketing, and public
relations professionals, will focus on delivering a positive social experience
for each and every one of its users.
This rise in customer
social service will also cause an influx in the adoption of social engagement
by new industries. Until now, B2C companies have predominantly owned this
space, taking advantage of community building and competitor tracking, but lead
generation is huge for any business, and B2B companies are beginning to realize
how many potential customers will emerge by utilizing social customer service.
--
DEV Tripathi dev.tripathi76@gmail.com
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