Well, it’s that time of year, folks! Old trends will be pushed to the back of the line as new and exciting ones take the spotlight. Keeping up with new trends and social-media platforms is essential for all businesses. You don’t want to be left out and behind in the new year. We’re going to go out on a limb and make some predictions about what the social-media trends will be this year!
Content Marketing
Content marketing will continue to dominate in 2015. Many companies are realizing once again that posting vague and insignificant information on their social-media sites is no longer working, people want more. Not only will it dominate, but the trend towards visually appealing content will continue. Pictures and videos receive approximately three times more likes and shares compared to text posts, and that trend is expected to increase over the coming months. Short, informative, and specific posts will also generate more traction compared to past lengthy posts. We have a primer on content marketing, to help you get started effectively.
Mobile Use Will Continue to Increase
Seems hard to fathom, right? People live on their mobile devices as it is, but it’s going to get worse…or better. As self-employment increases and the on-the-go lifestyle grows, the need to be plugged in all the time and everywhere will follow suite. It’s expected that by the year 2018, more than 90% of all social-media users will be using mobile devices.
Make Room for LinkedIn
While the site has grown significantly over the last few years, we expect it to blossom fully in 2015. The professional networking platform added a publishing platform made available for users that will aid in brand building and engaging followers and influencers. Ready to get started on LinkedIn? Here are 5 LinkedIn Tools For Business.
Say Goodbye to Google+
OK. Perhaps it won’t go away completely by the end of 2015 — Orkut (Google’s last social networking site) peaked at 120 million users in 2011, and it just got shut down this year; with Google+ at over a billion, it won’t be turned off anytime soon. However, it just isn’t working. You might have thought the site was making a comeback when it introduced “hangouts”, but it just was not enough. Even Vic Gundotra bowed out earlier this year after realizing the site offered nothing unique when compared to other social-media networking sites. The only question now is, does Google let Google+ wither and die, or will it see some radical new changes and features in 2015? We’re predicting the former.
And last but definitely not least….social-media will become the number one form of advertising. Marketers realize it is the most time and cost effective way to market with an endless audience. This change will take one more step towards outsourcing traditionally marketing techniques in the U.S. like newspapers and radio.
We look forward to seeing how good our crystal ball is, and yours too! Let us know in the comments what social-media trends you predict for 2015!