Industries are always in flux as new technologies come about and old ones fade away into the past. They say that the only thing constant is change, and I can think of no better industry than social media where things change at a rapid pace.
For instance, Facebook’s algorithm changes periodically and with that new shifts made in what it prioritizes for its users. Twitter changes the character limit for tweets sent. Further, new modes of communication come up with the creation of Stories that are part of the newsfeed on Facebook and Instagram. The year 2020 is coming up soon and in this post, I’d like to share with you my top five predictions for social media and marketing.
Social media, as one well known figure states, is an ever changing jungle and people need help understanding what works. The only way to know what works is to understand as best we can what changes are ahead for us so we can keep up and perhaps stay ahead of the curve.
A new approach, to be more human
I think nothing more important is about to hit than a fundamental shift in the approach we take as marketers and how we will tell our stories. We will trade our transactional style of marketing for our sense of humanity. We will shift from making the sale to making a connection with our audience in ways we never thought possible. The race will be between brands to see which one can position themselves as most relatable, empathetic, and sensitive to the people we want to serve.
Video will only get stronger
Sure, there are ways to connect with and create a human connection through text and graphics, but there’s no better way to create connection than video. Live video is only getting stronger in the social media and digital marketing landscape, so I see no reason why it wouldn’t continue on in the next year. Years ago it was through Blab.im and also Meerkat, but as those things went away new tools emerged and now have prominence like Streamyard and Switcher Studios. While the tool isn’t as important, the tool will help brands and organizations create more human connections with others.
Messenger Bots and AI
Now, before you click the X button to leave reading this post, hear me out. In some ways Messenger (Facebook) Bots and AI are already here in some regard and may show to be yet another way that brands and organizations can create that human connection. Where visitors used to be greeted with just your website, new tools like customer chats are now emerging on major brands and I think that smaller brands will follow suit with the same technology.
I think it’s vitally important to fight for the attention of visitors and website owners would do well to employ these technologies to increase their connectedness in their online presence.
Stories will reign supreme
Facebook and Instagram stories are prominent in the feed of both channels and I suspect that the social media channels will only ramp up the Story in the next year. In fact, we see now that YouTube has jumped on the Story bandwagon on their own site.
Stories are important because it combines the elements of story in a fun, easy to consume manner and if done right, can really do a number to connect with and stay connected with your audience. I only suspect that the format will gain more presence on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.
Like Counts Going Bye-Bye
We have already seen evidence that Instagram will begin or have begun experiments on hiding the number of likes to posts in their news feed or timeline. Many experts believe it’s a way to combat what’s going on in social media these days where people are becoming obsessed with the amount of likes they receive on posts and the personal pride they have as a result. I don’t suspect Facebook will do the same though because they still want to know users’ reactions and interactions with posts to gauge how they can show the right things to the right people through the algorithm.
What I think you will see is more of a focus on instagram on community, like the amount of comments and engagement you have for a post, rather than just sheer like counts.
Conclusion
Social media marketing and digital marketing will see new trends in 2020. Those are, a new approach to human marketing, video will become stronger in social media, advances will be made to Messenger bots and AI to help create a connection, Stories will be given a shift towards primetime, and like counts will be hidden in an effort to reign in the nasty side of social media.
Now it’s your turn. What new things will we see in social media and digital marketing in 2020? Sound off in the comments below!
Good article! Keep up the good work.