Social Media Predictions 2019 - 1 | 2019 Social Media Predictions - Sysomos

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Social Media Predictions 2019 - 1 | 2019 Social Media Predictions - Sysomos
2019
                             Social Media Predictions
1 | 2019 Social Media Predictions
Social Media Predictions 2019 - 1 | 2019 Social Media Predictions - Sysomos
Nobody could ever accuse the social media business of being dull
                                    and 2018 certainly saw lots of changes that kept social marketing
                                    professionals on their toes. As the world continues to grapple with the
                                    question of how exactly platforms like Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram
                                    fit into our lives in a positive way, it seems likely that 2019 will be just as
                                               eventful for those of us who work in social media.

                                    In this eBook we’ve summarised some of the big changes that took
                                    place during 2018, and made some informed predictions about what
                                    you can expect in the coming year. We’ve also tried to offer some clear
                                    guidance on how brands can prepare for these trends, to help you plan
                                                            your social media strategy.

2 | 2019 Social Media Predictions
Social Media Predictions 2019 - 1 | 2019 Social Media Predictions - Sysomos
The Big Changes to Social
                             Platforms in 2018

3 | 2019 Social Media Predictions
Social Media Predictions 2019 - 1 | 2019 Social Media Predictions - Sysomos
Facebook

Timeline Algorithm
The big story for marketers on Facebook in 2018 was the continuing        untapped opportunity with brands still exploring its potential. This
decline of organic reach. This has been happening for a while, but        year Facebook added some interactivity features to both live and on-
this year saw a change to Facebook’s algorithm designed to prioritise     demand videos, enabling brands to run different types of polls and
content from friends and family in users’ timelines. What that means      quizzes for viewers.
for brands is that it’s even harder to get your content seen, and
paying to boost your posts is really the only way to address that.
Of course, focusing on producing great quality content that people        Breaking News Tag
want to share and engage with will help a lot, but you’ll still need to
                                                                          It’s no secret that fake news has been a serious problem for social
put some budget behind your posts to get the ball rolling.
                                                                          channels over the past few years, and Facebook took a step to
                                                                          combat it this year by introducing the ability for trusted publishers to
                                                                          tag their stories as breaking news. This may sound like a small thing,
Video Features                                                            but in theory it should help users to differentiate between genuine
Many of the social channels are making a play in online video,            news from reliable journalists and fake stories dressed up to look like
particularly with respect to live-streaming, which is still a largely     legitimate news sources.

4 | 2019 Social Media Predictions
Instagram

Timeline Algorithm
Much like its parent-company, Facebook, Instagram has been                  form videos. This, obviously, puts Instagram in direct competition
tweaking its timeline to provide a better experience for users. Again,      with YouTube as a channel for distributing video content, and has
the idea is to give priority to content from people that users have         the potential to completely transform how the service is used by
authentic connects with rather than branded content, and in some            consumers and brands.
ways this is walking back a little from a 2016 update which ditched
the chronological timeline. While the 2018 update doesn’t completely
restore the timeline to chronological order, it is certainly a lot closer   Commerce Features
to the original version that users loved. For this reason, brands need
                                                                            Instagram has been experimenting with various commerce features
to pay more attention to the timing of their pots on Instagram, since
                                                                            for a while now, exploring different ways to help brands sell through
recency is once again a key factor.
                                                                            the platform and for users to more easily buy cool stuff that they see
                                                                            in their feeds. This year the company introduced an in-app feature
                                                                            that enabled brands to provide users with more information about
Video Features                                                              products, and to direct them to the shopping page where they can
Instagram has also received updates to its video capabilities this year     purchase the item. Pinterest has led the way for commercialisation
with the introduction of IGTV which enables users to host long-             of image-focused social media, but Instagram is clearly catching up
                                                                            and innovating.
5 | 2019 Social Media Predictions
Twitter
Timeline Algorithm
Unsurprisingly, Twitter has also enhanced its video capabilities
this year, with a focus on live-streaming improvements. Live
video streams are now given priority in users’ timelines, and this
is very much in line with Twitter’s ethos of being the social media
channel that people turn to when they want to know what’s
happening right now.

Chronological Timeline
As with other social channels, Twitter has experimented with
moving away from a strictly chronological timeline and tried
instead to use an algorithm to decide what content to show
users. Unsurprisingly, this caused a backlash from users who liked
things just the way they were. Responding to this, Twitter now
offers users the ability to opt out of the algorithm and switch
back to the chronological timeline.

6 | 2019 Social Media Predictions
Our Trend Predictions
                                           Our Trend Predictions for 2019

                            for 2019

7 | 2019 Social Media Predictions
Fake News Backlash
Fake news remains a problem that is under intense scrutiny
from governments around the world, and the social platforms
are looking at ways to address the issue, knowing that if
they can’t find a solution it’s likely that they’ll face stricter
legislation. They also know that if the quality of content found
in social media continues to nosedive, it won’t be long before
users turn away from their platforms. So you can expect to
see a lot stronger action on disinformation, propaganda, and
untrustworthy information sources in social media as the major
players seek to maintain the integrity and usefulness of their
networks.

To make sure you’re ready for this, assess your content and
advertising approach, make sure you’re not doing anything
in social that could be mistaken for ‘fake news’. Also, pay
close attention to algorithm changes and how they impact
your social media strategy. We know that organic reach is in
terminal decline, but be on the lookout for other changes to the
way content is published in social timelines and make sure you
understand what that will mean for your owned social channels.

8 | 2019 Social Media Predictions
The Evolution of Social Video

Experimentation with video features has been a common thread               If you’re not already using video as part of your social and content
running through all of the major social media players over the past        marketing strategy, now is a good time to take a look at how it
couple of years. The huge success of YouTube and popularity of Snap-       might work for you. Look at what features are available on the dif-
Chat, as well as streaming services like Netflix and Amazon Video has      ferent social channels you’re already active in, and think about which
not gone unnoticed by the established social media players, so it’s no     might be the most useful for you - for example, if you think you could
surprise that they’re making a play for the online video space.            do something really compelling with live video streaming, then it’s
                                                                           worth exploring what Twitter can do for you.
It still feels like the social media world is trying to work out exactly
how to use online video, introducing features just to see if their user
base can find a compelling use case. We expect to see more inno-
vation in this area over the coming year, as the platforms introduce
even more video focused features, and users find interesting new                Find out how Meltwater Social can help you build a
ways of using them. It’s also likely that the big social channels will          world-beating social strategy in 2019.
start experimenting with ways to monetize video, as users spend
more time viewing on their platforms.
                                                                                         meltwater.com/social

9 | 2019 Social Media Predictions
Influencer Marketing Shakeup

There’s been something of a backlash against influencer marketing         There are some steps brands can take to future-proof their influencer
in 2018, with many questioning the real value of working with online      marketing. First, set some clear policies and guidelines about the
influencers. This issue has been compounded by increasing awareness       kind of influencers you want to work with and rules of engagement,
of “influencer fraud” which involves dishonest influencers artificially   to ensure that you’re really getting value from the relationship. If and
inflating their audience sizes, and charging naïve marketers high fees    potential influencer deal falls short of those policies, think carefully
for sharing their messages with nothing more than a network of bots       about why you’re doing it.
and fake-followers.
                                                                          When assessing the true reach of an online influencer, don’t just take
Another development is that an increasing focus on data privacy           their word for it – ask for proof of their influence, and positive referrals
means that it is becoming more difficult for brands to identify           from previous partners they may have worked with. Don’t forget you
truly influential people online. This creates a situation where the       can use tools like Meltwater Social to analyse their audience and get
influencers who excel at self-promotion are most visible to brands,       a good idea of whether they have as much clout as they claim.
but they might not be the best people to help you reach the audience
you want to focus on.

10 | 2019 Social Media Predictions
Transparency and Accountability

As social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter play a bigger role in     How should social marketers prepare for this? It’s a good idea to get your
society, they attract more attention from governments and the media,          house in order ahead of any increased scrutiny. Document all of your social
and the way that brands use these channels also comes under closer            media processes and policies, make sure you have a complete picture of
scrutiny. This is compounded by the previously mentioned backlash against     how you spend money in social the business case for that spend. Make sure
social influencers, which is contributing to an increasingly apprehensive     that your social media policies are aligned with your organisation’s broader
environment for social media marketing activity.                              CSR and ethics policies, and any codes of practice that apply to your
                                                                              industry. Pay special attention to how your social media activity fits in with
This isn’t entirely a bad thing, as it should help weed out some of the bad   appropriate data protection and privacy rules that your business may be
practices and establish more trust in the social media industry. At the       subject to.
same time, we’ve seen social ad spending boom over recent years, so it’s
understandable that people are going to start asking a lot more questions
about how we use social media, our relationships with the platforms, how
social budget is being spent, and what it’s delivering.

11 | 2019 Social Media Predictions
Rise of the GIFs
OK, GIFs are nothing new, but it seems like only now are brands really
sitting up and taking notice of how they can be used as part of
marketing campaigns. The big GIF platforms like GIPHY are starting to
engage in commercial partnerships, especially with media companies
and consumer brands. Popular UK TV show,
The Great British Bake Off, uses GIFs to help generate online buzz for
each episode, while Italian auto maker Fiat, also creates some great
animations to spice up its social channels.

It’s not just B2C brands either, some B2B companies are also making
great, creative use of animated GIFs, like MailChimp – you can view a
video case study of how they use social media, including GIFs, here on
our website.

There are a lot of examples of all kinds of brands using GIFs, so if you’re
not already using them, now’s the time to start thinking about what they
could do for you.

12 | 2019 Social Media Predictions
Social Media Growth Forecasts
Global Social Media Users                 Social Network Users
                                          Worldwide, 2018 – 2022
There’s no sign yet that the growth of
social media has plateaued in terms of
user numbers. Global forecasts show
user numbers continuing to rise, driven                                                                              3.29

by increasing penetration in developing                                                          3.17
markets and more widespread adoption of                                          3.04
smartphones.                                                  2.89
                                              2.73

                                               2018            2019              2020             2021               2022

                                                                      Billions          % of population

                                                                                                        Source: eMarketer, November 2018
13 | 2019 Social Media Predictions
Facebook, Instagram and Twitter Growth
The expected growth in user numbers will largely benefit Facebook and Instagram, with Twitter experience very modest growth in
the same period. Based on current forecasts from eMarketer, other social channels are dwarfed by the big three and, short of a
surprise explosion in popularity, are unlikely to achieve and similar levels of growth.

                  2.5B

                  2.0B

                  1.5B

                  1.0B

                 500M

                     0
                                 2017             2018               2019                 2020                   2021    2022

                                                  Facebook Users        Instagram Users          Twitter Users

                                                                                                                        Source: eMarketer, November 2018
14 | 2019 Social Media Predictions
US Social Media Ad Spending
The already huge social media advertising       Social Network Ad Spending
market is predicted to see double digit         US, 2016 – 2022
growth over the next couple of years as
advertisers continue to flock to the channel.                                                                                 $37.71
Over the past couple of years we’ve seen
                                                                                                          3.17
organic reach completely evaporate, and
                                                                                      3.04            $32.18
brands have turned to paid social in order to
make sure their content gets in front of the
                                                       41.0%                          $26.95
right eyeballs, which has resulted in revenue
boosts for social platforms.
                                                                  $21.08

                                                        $15.63                        27.9%
                                                                  34.9%

                                                                                                      19.4%
                                                                                                                             17.2%

                                                         2016      2017                2018               2019                2020

                                                                           Billions            % change

                                                                                                                 Source: eMarketer, November 2018
15 | 2019 Social Media Predictions
US Social Media Ad Revenue Share
Where is all that social advertising budget being spent? There are no surprises here, as we see that Facebook completely dominates the social
advertising market with its subsidiary, Instagram, a distant second. All other channels are completely dwarfed by these giants and any predicted
growth is relatively small in comparison.

                   35B

                  30B

                   25B

                   20B

                   15B

                   10B

                    5B

                     0
                                       2017                            2018                         2019                         2020

                         Facebook           Instagram       LinkedIn          Other social venues     Pinterest       Snapchat          Twitter

                                                                                                                                   Source: eMarketer, November 2018
16 | 2019 Social Media Predictions
Summary: 2019 Social Media Predictions
                                     Timeline Algorithms                                     Influencer Marketing
                                     Major platforms are focusing on                         The true power of online influencers is
                                     improving the quality of users’ timelines.              increasingly being questioned. If you work
                                     Brand content needs to be brilliant, and                with influencers, make sure you’re getting
                                     will require advertising budget to get                  value for money.
                                     seen.

                                     Social Video                                            Transparency & Accountability
                                     Platforms are trying to muscle in on                    Social has been in the news for all the
                                     live and on-demand video, and will                      wrong reasons recently. Social marketers
                                     often prioritise video content. There’s an              need to be ready to answer tough
                                     opportunity here for content marketers.                 questions about how they work with
                                                                                             platforms.

                                     GIFs are Great
                                     GIFs aren’t new, but they’re exploding       Learn more about these 2019 social
                                     in popularity and all kinds of brands are    trends by watching this webinar
                                     finding new ways to use them in their
                                     social marketing activity.
                                                                                     Watch Now ››

17 | 2019 Social Media Predictions
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