By Ernie Caponetti on Apr 14, 2021
In today’s digital world, social media is not only used for socializing, but it has also become a non-negotiable part of any brand’s marketing strategy.
It will not be an exaggeration if we say that most people spend a good part of their days on social media, and it has become an integral part of their lives and daily routines.
Given the effect of social media on consumers’ lives, marketers and businesses are shifting towards social media platforms to connect with their target customers. However, the competition is very high, and it will be difficult for you to stand out unless you have a clear social media advertising strategy. Adapting to new social media trends can help you build an effective strategy and make you stand out in the crowd. Here we have compiled a list of social media trends that you need to be aware of for 2021.
By saying ephemeral content, we’re talking about the trending short-duration content that disappears within 24 hours of postings. Facebook and Instagram stories are perfect examples of this type of content.
Today, people’s attention has become very short, and their content consumption has also changed. This is the reason for content formats like stories’ popularity. They’re short, addictive, and interactive in a way that users can spend hours scrolling through one story after another.
According to a Hootsuite report, 64% of marketers have already incorporated Instagram stories into their strategies or planning to include them. Another study revealed that brands post a story once in four days, and the number will likely increase in 2021.
Brands have long used social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest to sell their products. Social commerce has become new retail for businesses, and the trend is getting stronger with each passing day. Soon it’ll become a mainstream retail channel with other mediums like offline stores and websites. Social networks are introducing pro-selling features like shoppable posts. Which means they are also continuously evolving to become retail platforms.
In the recent survey, Hootsuite asked their clients what they were trying to achieve by using social media. By far the most popular reason was to increase acquisition of new customers. The second most popular reason was to raise brand awareness.
In 2021, people averagely watch as long as 2.5 hours of online video daily. Moreover, people prefer watching videos to understand a product or service.
Today, video is one of the most engaging forms of content, beating other content types, and soon, it will dominate social media. Whether it is short-form videos such as stories or those famous on TikTok, or long-form content on YouTube, videos are the future of social media content.
In their annual internal report, Cisco stated that by 2022, 82% of all online content would be video content. It is proving how important it is to start creating videos to stay relevant in the future.
If you aren’t currently creating videos, it is high time to include them in your social media advertisement strategy, especially Facebook. If you don’t have expertise in this regard, avail services of a good Facebook advertising agency.
Influencer marketing is going to gain more popularity. Today, social media is dominated by influencers who are getting paid heavy amounts to promote brands. A sheer rise can be seen in the number of influencers on social media, and businesses are also increasing their marketing spend on influencer marketing.
Investing in influencers costs brands very little than running paid ad campaigns, yet it delivers good results. Brands tend to achieve a variety of marketing goals from influencers and not just generating leads. These are the main reasons why influencer marketing is continuously getting more robust and bolder.
Instead of collaborating with 1 or 2 influencers, marketers work with a whole network of small and relevant influencers. These kinds of influencers take social media advertising to the next level and cost much less.
In 2019, one in five videos published on Facebook was live. In 2020, the numbers could be higher because many brands were forced to take events, conferences, and other marketing experiences online.
Due to Covid-19, many brands shifted online and used Instagram, Twitch, Facebook, and Twitter to stream Q&As, tutorials, events, and other content types. This helps them keep their followers engaged with their brand.
Live chats are an excellent way to gain your audience’s attention and make important announcements, mainly when the businesses are restricted and lockdowns are imposed worldwide due to pandemics.
By looking at the continuous rise in popularity of live streaming, you should include it in your social media advertising strategy.
Social media has been very beneficial for brands, but certain negatives have come to light in recent years. Security and User data privacy are such issues that have made the headlines for social networks like Facebook.
Social platforms can be easily used to collect information about anyone and misuse that information. There are allegations against specific social networks that they sell their user data to other companies.
Due to these allegations, social networks and regulatory bodies will tighten their rules and put more policies in place.
It will be in your best interest to follow your country’s rules and regulations while creating a social media advertising strategy. If you’re planning to utilize a Facebook advertising agency’s marketing services, choose the best among others.
The online marketplaces are becoming more saturated with each passing day, and Facebook advertising costs continue to rise. So, returning to the foundational aspects of running ad campaigns on Instagram and Facebook is going to be critical to success.
The success will be based on accurately assessing the average customer value and customer lifecycle. It will give you an insight into how much you can pay for a lead and remain profitable. Find out how lead joins your list. Reviewing records of your past customers can help you in this regard. Other than that, you can also find out the length of time between someone joining your list and becoming a paying customer.
Utilize all that information to build out your Facebook advertising strategy that reflects your genuine customers’ data. Only then will you be able to develop innovative ad campaigns.
If you find it difficult to assess all these things, avail services of a good Facebook advertising agency.
It is essential to watch out for new social media trends in today’s digital world and act accordingly. Use stories to interact with your followers, start creating videos for marketing, and take advantage of social commerce and Facebook advertising agencies for better ad creation and campaign setup and development.
Test all the strategies mentioned above to see what can do wonders for your business. It’s never too late to start.
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