Even with their decades of experience with the social network system, many marketers still find this platform a hard nut to crack. With this platform changing almost every time, it can be tricky to know exactly where one can commit their time and resources to. Several marketers are transforming how they use their social networks in many different ways to increase their brands with relevant audiences and drive real ROI. With 2013 in its latter stages, it is important that we look the biggest marketing changes of the past year and ahead where the social network will be heading in 2014 so that we can get on board.
Here are some top marketing trends, stats and events that made the news in 2013 and six cutting-edge trends that will dominate and be at the core of the most successful social media marketing campaigns in the coming year. They are not magical bullets or industry secrets that will give you an edge overnight, but organic strategies that will drive real rewards for any organization or individual with patience and diligence to implement them.
As 2013 comes to a close, we started thinking – what were the predominant marketing trends of this past year? Turns out 2013 was an interesting year in marketing! This infographic all about it.
Content marketing, responsive webdesign, changes in search engine marketing and the rise of native advertising are just some of the topics covered in this retrospective. Take a look to see the biggest marketing changes of the past year, how these changes have affected the way brands behave and what marketers should pay attention to in the months to come.
1. The Ascent of Videos
The upward ascent of videos should continue as a social media marketing toolbox in 2014, particularly the short videos. YouTube continues to rule, with no signs of fatigue, and with its record 100 hours of video uploads in one hour, it will get even much better in the coming year. Additionally, the rise of Vine and Instagram with a 6 seconds and 15 seconds video capability, promises marketers even more options as these two can be well integrated within Facebook.
2. The Impact of Google+... Finally
A recent study in 2013 published on E-marketer found that Google+ had over 500 million active users, making it the #2 social media platform in the world after Facebook. Google+ is slowly gaining steam, and this growing trend is expected in the coming year. With SEO techniques evolving, and its importance at the heart of many marketer's concerns, this social media network remains an integral part of digital landscape puzzle.
However, the big question still remains whether it will be able to keep users for longer and the time spent on the platform to have them drawn to adverts and the marketer's attention. With the activities experienced however; 1.5+ billion photos shared every week, 2014 will be a key year for Google+.
3. The Plunge of Facebook, the rise of Twitter
With over 1.18 billion users worldwide, of whom 58% are active daily, Facebook is most definitely going nowhere anytime soon. While marketing on Facebook is still growing, this social media platform has reached a certain plateau with even a decrease in the number of teen users realized, especially those between 13-17 years of age. It has proven a difficult platform to master for small and medium businesses (SMB). 2014 is the year for Twitter, and with many bystanders wanting to understand this platform better, it should convert many latent users to come back and give the platform another try.
4. The Growth of Image-based Networks
2013 has seen a growth in image and video sharing more than text-based content. This trend is expected to grow tremendously in 2014, and sites such as Pinterest will see huge success and continue to shed their reputation as the best content strategy. It will continue to be an integral part of many marketer's strategies. Slideshare, Path and Tumblr among other image based social media platforms will grow and businesses will have to be more mindful about sharing photos on their websites so as to benefit fully.
5. The growth of LinkedIn in B2B Business
LinkedIn is now 10 years old, and still remains the number one social networking site for professionals with over 240 million users. It remains a largely uncharted territory for business people trying to engage their audience of interest. It has launched influencers programs that has positioned it as not only a networking site, but also as one of the biggest source content creation platform and curation for many professionals.
It offers limitless resources for chambers, associations and professional organization to manage their presence on social media. As it continues to grow in terms of users, this will advantage B2B marketers in 2014.
6. MySpace will Grow in 2014
Initially launched in 2003, this social media darling has sparked a lot of bidding wars in recent years between Viacom and News Corp. Since its re-launch in June 2013, the company stated that their audience had grown from 24 million to 31 million in the first two weeks and now enjoys over 36 million visits every day. The company has grown an extra mile, offering an iPhone app that allows users to receive private messages, network and listen to radio stations. It seems to be on the right track in 2014, and its growth will be tremendous.
image by: flickr.com/photos/mcgraths
Author Bio:
This guest post is contributed by Derek Fraser, he is an online marketer for Empire-cat which provide a wide selection of Cat machines for sale, as well as quality used heavy equipment.
