The 7 Social Media Trends Startups Should Watch
There are literally 1000 things you could do to bring more attention to your startup, you can’t do them all (or even care about them all). But if social is a strategy that’s been working for you, here’s a rundown of what you need to know for the coming year…
1. Live video content is here to stay.
Live video content is on the rise — in fact, 14% of marketers experimented with it in 2016, according to Social Media Examiner, and nearly half planned to use interactive video this year, according to new survey data from Wyzowl.
While there are a ton of streaming sites and platforms out there, both Periscope and Facebook Live are among the most popular — and they have the numbers to prove it.
In its 2016 annual recap, Periscope noted that users watched 110 years of live video every day using the app. And just last New Year’s Eve, live streaming on Facebook reached record-breaking numbers around the globe:
In addition to Facebook Live and Periscope, Instagram and Twitter launched their versions of live video streaming in November and December 2016, respectively.
Live video is a fantastic medium for broadcasting events. This approach aims to keep your followers engaged with your brand by bringing an event they otherwise might not be able to attend directly to their screens.
At INBOUND 2017, The INBOUND Studio shared Facebook Live interviews with speakers so our followers who couldn’t join us in Boston still had the opportunity to learn from the experts:
WeWork has been using Facebook Live videos to broadcast book clubs, meetups, and award events–all of which nicely show off WeWork’s beautiful co-working spaces.
Facebook Live is also a great format for things like:
- Customer service
- Q&A sessions
- Product demos
This year, keep an eye out for new features rolling out to the different live streaming platforms to amp up your video strategy. For example, Facebook Live is launching 360-degree capabilities, which would be a neat way to record a crowded event, a beautiful landscape, or a behind-the-scenes tour.
2. Messaging apps have earned their spot in the communication channel lineup.
If you’re only thinking about messaging apps such as Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, and WeChat as alternatives to traditional text messaging, think again — messaging apps are used by 4 billion users worldwide, and there’s tremendous opportunity for startups to leverage this presence.
For example, Hailey Friedman, a product manager Realty Shares, found that while her marketing emails were getting 20% open rates, her chatbot messages were getting 88% open rates. Amazing, right?
But the opportunity in messaging extends beyond marketing. Many companies are using messaging apps to communicate one-on-one with customers, which is completely changing the way customer service gets done. These apps provide a faster and easier way for customers to get the assistance they need, rather than being placed on hold or waiting for a returned email. Deploying messaging for customer service is more scalable and cost-effective for businesses, and by providing a better experience for the customer, startups can solve their problems quickly and retain them more easily.
HubSpot Vice President of Marketing, Meghan Keaney Anderson, predicts that messaging apps will eventually become a part of every online interaction:
“Maybe we shouldn’t be thinking about messaging in terms of apps at all, but rather as an evolving infrastructure.” — Meghan Keaney Anderson, VP of Marketing at HubSpot
So far, Anderson’s theory is well-supported by the stats: A quarter of all apps that are downloaded are abandoned after just one use — except for messaging apps. In 2018 and beyond, marketers should anticipate less social networking and more messaging for instant, real-time connection with audiences.
3. Social media ecommerce will become a powerful avenue for sales.
Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Pinterest offer ways for users to purchase products from directly within their apps, and Snapchat started testing and rolling out ecommerce features in the spring of 2016.
And startups in every industry are jumping on the opportunity. See the following Instagram ad examples:
According to a survey from Aimia, 56% of consumers said they followed brands on social media to browse products for sale, and 31% of online shoppers say they’re using social media specifically to look for new items to purchase.
Startups should leverage these shopping habits when thinking about their social media strategy for 2018. People come to social media to interact with interesting content, so instead of sharing a photo of a product on Instagram with a “Buy Now” call-to-action, share gift ideas and product trends (24% and 16% of survey respondents relied on social media for these, respectively) and encourage online shopping without directly asking for it.
Another idea? Product demonstration videos on social media. According to research from Animoto, 4X as many customers prefer to watch a video about a new product, so share them on social media to encourage online shoppers.
Here’s an unconventional “Will It Blend?” product demonstration from Blendtec to get the wheels turning:
4. For early adopters, virtual reality will be an important, new emerging channel
Virtual reality is still new to the marketing scene, and we predict the market will get even more popular. What’s unique about virtual reality is that it encourages engagement by offering an immersive, memorable experience unlike any other medium — and brands are quickly recognizing that value.
For example, TOMS uses virtual reality to shed light on the mission and impact customers are having. Its mission, “One for One,” refers to its pledge to match with each pair of shoes purchased a new pair for a child in need around the world. While visiting children who received new shoes during a trip to Peru, TOMS shot the following 360-degree virtual reality video to create a firsthand account of the impact this initiative is making:
What’s so great about this video is how transportative it is. Most customers might not be planning a trip to Peru, but all of them can see the direct impact of their purchase. The experience is improved when they use a VR headset or viewer, but the video is still viewable on mobile or desktop devices, so the brand can effectively share its story.
This year, video streaming will represent almost 75% of all internet traffic, and since audiences want more video content, startups should continue experimenting with different formats — including virtual reality — to see which audiences respond best to.
5. Ephemeral content will find its place and purpose.
Social media manager Marissa Emanuele artfully coined the term “Frankenfeatures,” which are born when a social media platform launches its own version of another platform’s successful feature.
One example? Snapchat started the ephemeral, or disappearing, visual content sharing trend, and Instagram recently launched a similar disappearing video feature — but with the ability to share live ephemeral video, too.
We’re not suggesting that you abandon professional photography and marketing video production, but ephemeral content on Snapchat and Instagram is a great way to showcase the “other side” of your brand’s personality with authentic, unscripted, unpolished content. Content ideas for ephemeral stories include:
- How-to videos
- Behind-the-scenes looks
- Contests and giveaways
- Recipes
- Interviews
- “Takeovers,” or when a different user chooses what content to share
- Live events
- Daily or weekly video series
- Holidays
- Announcements or product reveals
“The most important part of ephemeral content is to be human. This is a unique opportunity to show an unpolished, lighthearted side to your brand, so don’t be afraid to share content that’s humorous or otherwise ‘flawed’ in some way,” urges Emanuele.
MeUndies is a wonderful example of how to do this well. The team regularly produces raw, humorous videos centered around its product. The quality often looks like something shot in a dorm room, but that’s part of the magic.
6. Startups will make the shift from Snapchat to Instagram for Stories.
Instagram introduced its Stories feature back in August 2016, and after just over a year of competing with Snapchat Stories, TechCrunch reported that 250 million people were using Instagram Stories — which is bigger than Snapchat’s total user base, period.
At 800 million users, Instagram offers a vastly bigger audience than Snapchat at 173 million users. And because Facebook owns Instagram, Instagram advertisers can target based on Facebook and Instagram insights, which means there is a bigger target audience on Instagram than Twitter.
Not to mention, Instagram lets users publish photos and videos in a permanent portfolio in addition to ephemeral Stories, so users can more easily share content with their friends.
BrandFire CEO Adam Padilla agrees with Emanuele’s prediction, also noting the adoption of Instagram by a larger number of celebrities and public figures, and a slicker Instagram interface.
Despite its rapid growth and sheer volume of content being shared, Snapchat offers fewer means of measurement and analysis for social media marketers, so Instagram may offer greater ROI in 2018.
7. Mobile advertising will grow more competitive.
Here’s a rundown of what that will look like on some of the largest social networks:
- Facebook is the behemoth when it comes to social media ad revenues, bringing in more than $7 billion last year — 80% of which came from mobile ads. Facebook’s News Feed algorithmic changes now prioritize content from friends and family first, so the 75% of brands on Facebook that pay to promote ads will have to get creative and design visual, engaging ads to get noticed first.
- Twitter’s ad revenue is increasing, especially in the mobile format, and they’ll likely continue experimenting with visual content, such as sponsored hashtag icons and stickers, to provide a variety of ad options to users.
- As we’ve discussed previously in this article, Snapchat and Instagram will be competing for a lot of attention this year, and advertising revenue will be no exception. Where do they stand in terms of developments? Well, Snapchat recently launched a self-serve advertising API that makes it easier to buy ad space, in addition to a greater variety of video ads and sponsored filters. Instagram, on the other hand, is doubling down on ecommerce with the introduction of Shoppable Instagram, a feature that lets users buy products directly by clicking on a CTA in the app.
According to an Adweek survey among millennial Snapchat and Instagram users about their experiences with ads, the results are roughly split — with a few noteworthy distinctions. While a greater percentage thought Instagram ads were more memorable than those on Snapchat, more millennials loved Snapchat ads than Instagram ads:
In short: Startups should experiment with ads on different platforms to see which perform better among their audience and take advantage of the cool new features each rolls out.
Learned something? Click the 👏 to say “thanks!” and help others find this article.
A version of this post was first published on the HubSpot Marketing Blog.
