2018 will bring important changes in social networks. Facebook, Instagram or Twitter will continue to introduce news on their platforms that will change the way we communicate. Knowing the trends in social networks and knowing how to adapt quickly is fundamental for the achievement of a good digital marketing strategy. Here are 5 trends in social networks for 2018:
5 trends in social networks for 2018
1. The power of stories
The ephemeral content is the new king. Its volatility is its main advantage and also one of its disadvantages. Currently, the format of popular stories has become a mandatory mandate for social networks. Snapchat and Instagram are the social networks best known for their ‘stories’, but other platforms such as Youtube or Facebook have also been uploaded to the stories’ ship. 2018 may be the year in which companies finally disembark without fear in the field of stories and take the whole game. This content is no longer used only by Generation Z, but the millennials have also joined this wave driven by the FoMo (fear of missing out), syndrome representative of the digital era and one of the 5 trends in social networks for 2018.
2. The insatiable demand for video
Recognizing that video already governs a broad spectrum of digital marketing is obvious. This 2018 will definitively bring the video as the central format of social networks. Here you have some obvious data:
- 82% of the Twitter audience watch videos
- Youtube users watch 1,000 hours of video per day
- Facebook users consume 8,000 hours of video per day
If this seems like little, the use of video governs all social platforms, displacing the computer from the equation: 60% of YouTube videos are viewed from mobile devices, as well as 90% of Twitter videos are viewed on mobile. We will also say goodbye in 2018 to organic visits from social networks. Increasingly, visits will cost publishers money and neither Facebook nor Twitter will be such a profitable source to receive traffic on our website.
3. The growing influence of the ‘influencers’
The benefits of the ‘influencers’ are well contrasted and it is the reason why the companies will increase their efforts in working with the ‘influencers’ most demanded in 2018. And in this sense, the brands will try to close longer agreements with the influencers with the goal of moving away from this bid continues for the most influential people. Even so, the audience is very attentive to discover if a content creator has received money for advertising a product in their channels. Knowing how to introduce these products correctly and minimally invasive will be key within the 5 trends in social networks for 2018.
4. The definitive implementation of the ‘chatbots’
2018 will bring the definitive implementation of chatbots as a tool for business communication, which will save costs and reduce response times to offer more detailed attention to weight problems. If at the beginning of the use of the chatbots the users were not receptive to the idea of being answered by a machine, the satisfaction of the users has reversed this trend.
5. Whatsapp Business
WhatsApp presented its payment version for companies in September that will allow a direct and personalized interaction with its customers thanks to artificial intelligence (virtual assistants and chatbots). Companies like KLM already use this service, which will be generalized as of this year.