2020 is here and it’s the perfect opportunity to up the ante on your online business marketing. The last decade has seen social media platforms solidify into thriving, multifaceted communities, where according to Entrepreneur.com, more than 3.2 billion people worldwide are active daily. In saying this, it’s not hard to see why nearly 75% of marketers worldwide believe social media is an effective part of business strategy.
As we enter this new decade, there’s no doubt that social media will continue to play a growing role in our lives for the foreseeable future. But you’re probably wondering how you can take full advantage of what social media has to offer to boost your online presence, engagement and growth in 2020…
Here are four key points regarding predicted trends for the continued growth of social media platforms in 2020:
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Video content is king: In recent years, video content has rose to new heights of popularity, becoming a much more engaging form of content for audiences worldwide. With the rise of platforms like TikTok, as well as the introduction of IGTV for Instagram, creators and businesses alike are making the transition from generic images and photos, to attention grabbing short video clips. In fact, video will make up 82 percent of all internet traffic in 2020, according to Social Media Today. There will be an emphasis on creative, engaging storytelling that captures user attention in seconds- think quick tips, storytelling and value-providing posts to grab your audience attention quickly.
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Social media shopping: This is a trend that grew last year and it’s predicted to continue to grow. Social shopping has made online shopping so easy, that with just a few clicks, you can go from seeing something you like while scrolling Instagram to sharing your credit card information and making a purchase right then and there. Giving consumers this type of ease and speed can cut your sales funnel almost in half. While currently it’s mainly being used by larger, well-established companies, we personally think 2020 will give smaller businesses, and hopefully even startups, access to such tools.
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Influencer marketing will continue to grow: We know that consumers are growing increasingly wary of ads and sponsored posts in their feeds, and more than ever before, they're now seeking reviews from people they trust when making purchasing decisions. These people can be friends and family, but the circle of trust has now grown to people they follow on social media, ranging from celebrities to niche artists and experts in specific fields. However, with being fair to influencers, small to medium businesses usually don’t have to budget to spend on working with influencers with tens of thousands of followers, thus, the predicted growth for micro and nano influencers (less than 5k followers) in the new year.
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The rise of new social channels: Social media is changing at a very fast rate and it’s always useful to keep up with the latest trends. One of the biggest trends in 2019 had to do with the popularity of TikTok and the fact that it even became the #1 most downloaded social media app. If you don’t know what TikTok is, it’s basically a short video creation and sharing app, that has huge potential for growth (it’s predicted to take the market share from platforms like Instagram and Snapchat in the same way that Facebook took over majority market share of MySpace). TikTok is upping user engagement with its engaging, fresh and entertaining content that isn’t overly focused on a hard sell. TikTok has seen impressive growth over the last 12 months and it is expected that it will appeal to more brands in 2020. As we’ve seen with Snapchat before, the earlier you jump onto a popular social channel, the higher the chances for your brand or business to be among the early success stories. In the case of TikTok, it can also help you improve your creative direction among all your social media channels by understanding what stands out as engaging content and how you can imitate this strategy in your overall marketing strategy. This channel is mostly used by Gen Z - so age ranges are 16 to 24 years old, and will emerge to be a lucrative marketing channel for those targeting this demographic.
When thinking about how these trends relate back to your overall social media marketing strategy, just remember, it’s important to evaluate your current positioning first, and analyse your analytics and metrics to see if where there are gaps in your strategy.
From there, you can then widely explore these trends and how you can potentially implement them into your 2020 marketing plan and get the most of your social media efforts this year.
If you’d like some advice or assistance with your Social Media in 2020, get in touch with Jess Cook from Socially Squared at jess@sociallysquared.com.au .
Jess is our speaker for our 7th February Coffee & Connect, and will be discussing how to reach the right people for your business using social media. Get your tickets here.