4 Social Media Marketing Trends to Watch Out for In 2015

social-trends

Since “social media” became a recognized term in the early 2000’s, its popularity has been growing at an incredible rate. In 2014, 74 percent of Internet users were using social networking sites. Those numbers are only going to grow throughout 2015.

Given the prevalence of social media, it’s become a wildly effective marketing tactic for corporations and small businesses alike. This year, business are only going to devote more time and money to social media marketing, and with this comes evolving and emerging trends. Check out these social media marketing trends for 2015.

1. Short Video Content will Rise in Popularity

William Johnson predicts on Social Media Today that visual content on social media will rise, but not in the form of still images. Instead, more businesses will be pushing short video content on social media. Short video content will be effective for several reasons:

  1. People love visual content. Given that 65 percent of the population are visual learners, it makes sense to produce visual content that they can connect with.
  2. With the benefit of audio, you can connect with your audience on a more personable level.
  3. People’s attention spans are short; a 2-minute video is likely to perform better than a 20-minute video in the fast-paced world of social networking where people want information quickly.

These short-form videos will include everything from entertaining content to educational material. With the rise of video content will also come an increased popularity in sites like Instagram that offer video marketing opportunities.

2. Niche Networks will Grow

Niche social networks have been around for a lot time. Dating sites, for instance, are a type of niche social network, and 2014 saw several niche network launches. 2015 is likely to see a rise in niche network popularity for all industries. For instance, social networking sites like Foodie will attract the likes of chefs, restaurant managers, food manufacturers, and other food enthusiasts.

Time.com says they’re unsure of how long these networks will stick around, but we will see new networks launch this year. While these niche networks won’t reach the type of popularity Facebook and Twitter currently have, many businesses will turn to them to reach their target audience.

3. Ecommerce and Social Networking will Merge

We’ve already seen the start of the ecommerce and social networking partnership when both Facebook and Twitter started using “Buy” call-to-action buttons. In 2015, the prevalence of social commerce will only grow as businesses start adopting the use of these marketing options.

This will be especially useful for businesses that have a tough time getting customers to visit their website since you’ll no longer need the website traffic to make a sale. This social commerce movement is likely to work best with time-sensitive offers to get customers to act quickly, so expect to integrate these tools into your sales campaigns.

4. Mobile Optimization will Become More Prevalent

In 2014, the world saw mobile Internet use surpass that of desktop use. Social media usage alone boomed by 23 percent on mobile devices in 2014.

This year, mobile will continue to dominate, and the concept of “mobile friendly” will evolve to “mobile first.” For business, that means putting more focus on mobile optimized websites and practices. For social media, that includes optimizing posts and ads for mobile and wearable devices. Businesses will also continue to use geo tracking for real-time marketing on social networks and in mobile apps.

Which one—or ones—of these trends will your business be focusing on in 2015? Or do you see social media marketing going in a different direction? Let us know in the comment section.

Written by
Alicia Rades
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6 comments
  • Hi Alicia,

    This is a very interesting post. As a freelance content writer, I am concerned where the video comes from. Does anyone think that there will be a collaboration between freelance writers and freelance video makers? Or, will there be curated material available from the client around which the copy is written. If a collaboration seems likely, who is working for whom,? and what will happen to pricing?

    I am generally an optimist but view this development as troubling.

    • Alan,

      You mention something interesting about freelancers. I think that’s only one option businesses have, though. They could also go to a content marketing agency to film their videos, or they could put together an in-house team, which is what I think will probably happen most often.

      However, I can see that more freelancers would offer services in the video marketing category. Given that demand is predicted to increase, I would think the prices for that kind of content would increase, too.

  • Some video creators are also bloggers. I collaborate with Julie Weishaar at NewHorizons123.com who sometimes turns my content into a video and/or SlideShare. We are not hiring each other for this, but we can both benefit. If she particularly likes a piece of content I publish, she has asked for permission to create a video and/or SlideShare. I agree, and then I add what she creates to my content.

    Doing this makes my content more compelling and increases views to her YouTube and SlideShare accounts. Eventually, I believe we will see more clients paying for our content to be created in additional formats

  • In obsessing about video, I neglected to say that I think the most important of all these developments is “niche social media.” I think this could lead to many new jobs for freelance writers. The example of foodies is only one area, from wine enthusiasts to the scientific community, any expansion of social media will have a beneficial impact on freelance writers – whether or not they are experts in a given field. Brands will jump on the bandwagon, as you said, to have a more laserlike focus on their target audience.

    • You’re so right. I think one thing that will drive more people to niche social networks is the fact that Facebook is making it so hard to reach your audience today unless you pay to boost your post. (That’s just one factor, though.) I think niche networks are a good idea, and I really think more are going to pop up as people realize that niche targeting is something Facebook and Twitter don’t really have as a unique selling point.