In 2021, a unique customer base with special demands will be formed, and social media trends will follow suit.
As people adapt to their virtual lives, technology advances
in many ways, and consumers are working hard to make a difference in society.
No marketing strategy will last long unless you recognize and adapt to these
forces.
You don't have to check all of these items yet. It's never
too late to get started.
These social media trends are in the spotlight right now, so
be flexible and get started. That way, you can interact with your customers in
a timely, appropriate and visionary way.
1. Continued acquisition of TikTok
2. Live stream to connect with consumers
3. Virtual reality becomes mainstream
4. Spread of AR (Augmented Reality)
5. Introducing audio chat platform to business
6. Video becomes the leading role
7. Instagram story for strategic marketing
8. Focus on channels other than Twitter / Instagram
9. AI-based initiatives will be implemented everywhere
10. Value-based purchasing boom
11. Psychographic insights as a differentiator
12. Comprehensive in shape and function
13. Sustainability moves in earnest
14. The impact of flexitarians on food
15. Influencers and KOL take the lead
1. Continued acquisition of TikTok
Last year, TikTok topped the app store charts, well beyond
what other social media platforms have achieved over the years.
TikTok has more than 689 million monthly active users and spends an average of nearly an hour on a single-use, making it a well-established social media trend. Don't assume that this platform is for young people only. And don't hesitate to let your brand join the platform.
By pointing your social listening tools in the right direction, you can understand the best way to reach consumers with targeted content. TikTok hasn't exploded yet. If you need inspiration, look out for the men's "waist-down" grooming brand Manscaped.
They are aware of social media trends. Not only are they
working with NetBase, but at TikTok, they're doing home runs with ironic humour that
resonates with brand fans.
2. Live stream to connect with consumers
Last year was a year when everyone was used to live streaming.
Social media trends have been around for a long time, but
they weren't something consumers use on a daily basis. Nowadays, there is
almost no anxiety factor like a pandemic, and Zoom, Facetime, and Instagram
Live are used like wearing worn-out jeans. Everyone is familiar with it now, so
your brand should also take part in this action. At the same time as telling
the story of the brand, you can make the brand human and meet the needs of
consumers.
Use social listening tools to understand the direction
consumers are speaking and create content to meet your needs.
For inspiration, check out what Chewy, an online pet
supplies retailer, does. Chewy is riding this social media trend to increase
engagement with live streams.
Of the other content styles, the Chewy Vet Q & A live show is the most sought after by fans.
3. Virtual reality becomes mainstream
Since the coronavirus pandemic last year, many people have been unable to go out. As a result, VR has become mainstream indoors.
VR headsets and games are the protagonists, but many other creative uses are also attracting attention as a social media trend. You can train in remote areas, visit distant places such as Vatican City on a VR tour, buy a virtual car in Vroom, and so on. Virtual reality takes the brand message to a new level.
Every brand has a story to tell, but why not tell it
virtually? Twice
We made it possible with the Virtual Hacienda Tour. On this tour, you can see the process of tequila manufacturing, ageing and bottling from a bee perspective. This tour was originally created for the Oculus Rift headset. After that, it became compatible with Google Cardboard and can be viewed on smartphones and tablets. This is a very exciting way to guide consumers and tell a brand story.
4. Spread of AR (Augmented Reality)
AR is a technology that everyone knows about on social media
such as Snap chat and TikTok.
This technology does more than just turn the faces of
grandpas, grandmas and children into animals. Foresighted brands are already
taking advantage of this social media trend to incorporate AR into their
marketing mix and find it worthwhile to see if it fits their brand.
The implications for AR and CPG retailers will be enormous.
For example, Ikea has introduced an AR-enabled app that
allows consumers to visualize Ikea's products in the home. Similarly, Converse
offers an app that allows users to choose a shoe style and point their tablet
or smartphone at their feet to superimpose that style on the user.
This is certainly advanced marketing, and many attempts will
be made in the future.
5. Introducing audio chat platform to business
Audio chat platforms like Clubhouse and Twitter's Spaces are
still evolving. The clubhouse is by invitation only and is very popular, especially
with Android users, and the number of users is increasing. Twitter's response
to Clubhouse was announced in the form of Spaces, which is still in the process
of being put into operation. The clubhouse is a trial and error stage and is still
not a good channel for marketing. But that will change too.
Brands, on the other hand, note that the platform is
responding to the hottest trends in social media and has a large number of
influencers.
Some brands and institutions will have already created and
participated in an account when the platform becomes some form of marketing.
Participants have a definite love and hate for the immediacy of this channel
and the real conversations that take place there, which I think is a great
idea.
Meanwhile, many brand managers and executives are already
participating in Clubhouse conversations, bridging the gap between brands and
consumers in a unique way. These social media trends will continue to grow
after the beginning of the year.
6. Video becomes the leading role
Video content is the king of social media content and
dominates social media trends. But this doesn't change immediately. Facebook
users watch about 100 million hours of video every day. According to YouTube,
YouTube users watch an amazing billion hours of content a day. In addition,
platforms such as Instagram, Snapchat, and TikTok are full of video content
that takes advantage of their individuality.
Not only do you need to understand the nuances of each platform you upload videos to, but you also need to have a deeper understanding of your target audience and the social media trends that are inspiring. To that end, social listening tools are indispensable.
Groupon, for example, does a great job with video content
that targets unique aspects of consumers. Groupon has a broad customer base,
but we offer such content when we need to target some of our customers
directly, such as travel content and videos showing recipes.
In this way, by creating content tailored to each platform,
sophisticated marketing becomes possible.
7. Instagram story for strategic marketing
50% of Instagram users know about a brand's products through
the story feature, and 85% follow at least one brand. This is a social media
trend that won't go away anytime soon. However, not all brands use it. It's
like having a table for one person when you have space for two in a restaurant.
The story displayed at the top of the app is very useful in addition to regular
posts. Instagram stories can feature consumers, tell brand stories, work with
influencers, create polls and quizzes, and even live streams.
Brands are using IG Stories to change their content and keep
it fresh.
Stories are a wealth of resources for brand marketing. For example, this is a snapshot from the story of NYX Cosmetics with one of the
products and a link to purchase.
Your fans can easily get the products you have introduced.
8. Focus on channels other than Twitter / Instagram
Reddit is often overlooked by brands, but it's a social
media trend itself and shouldn't be overlooked.
It's not as flashy as other social media, but users take it
very seriously. Your brand should also be watched as it is a treasure trove of
customer feedback (VOC) information.
Reddit boasts 430 million monthly active users. That's 77
million more than Twitter.
This platform is used by many people who are doing due
diligence on new products and ideas, as users discuss brands and products in
depth.
Since discussions and content are primarily text-based, it
can be easy to incorporate Reddit conversations into social media listening
tools to extract market information and find and make up for weaknesses in your
category.
9. AI-based initiatives will be implemented everywhere
Brands that don't use artificial intelligence-based social
media analytics will be left behind. It's that important. So how do you keep
track of social media trends? Currently, there are too many social media
activities, and it is far beyond human ability to absorb all of them. But with
artificial intelligence, you can capture what every brand says to get the
ultimate information about consumers, competitors, and markets.
Brands that do not participate in this simply cannot
compete. In the last 30 days of online conversations about artificial
intelligence, the emotionally driving word was "help." Brand managers
need AI because it helps clean up the noise on the net and understand endless
social media trends. As a result, your brand always needs AI.
But keep in mind that not all artificial intelligence is
made the same. Rather than relying on poor quality, clean graphs, top-notch AI
gives you a reliable indicator of brand health.
10. Value-based purchasing boom
At this point, consumers are accustomed to e-commerce and
know some of the best-priced brands to shop for. Although not completely free
from the pandemic, consumers want to get the most out of their money. This is a
fact, not a social media trend. Consumers have had a lot of time to review how
to buy and where to buy. In addition to cost, some of the values consumers
perceive include customer service, customer experience, how other users feel
about the brand, personalization, loyalty rewards and discounts.
Brands that do the wrong thing in these areas lose to consumers who seek total value from start to finish. Another aspect of these values is "sustainability" and "inclusiveness".
11. Psychographic insights as a differentiator
The days when brands "understood" their customers
simply by slicing consumer data demographically are over. Today's social
listening tools rely on artificial intelligence to provide much deeper
information than gender, race, geographic location, and more. Some social
analytics tools can extract psychographic data to understand the values,
attitudes, interests, and personality traits of consumers talking about your
brand.
These psychographic elements create a crisp image of your
audience that is far deeper than standard demographics. By understanding your
audience in this way, you can stay one step ahead of your competitors and make
your marketing messages and product placement more specific. For that purpose,
it is necessary to devise tools. For example, if you look at the information
posted by the poster about the clubhouse, you can see that there are probably much
younger people than expected, such as the 25-34 age group being in the volume
zone with 19% of the total Increase.
12. Comprehensive in shape and function
Comprehensiveness goes beyond social media trends and falls
into the category of movements.
Comprehensive marketing is a must for modern brands, and
it's not off the mark. Too many brands are in unnecessary crisis due to a lack of
social listening skills. Diversity and inclusiveness are very important to
consumers, and a brand message that reflects these principles is what consumers
want.
For example, a 2018 survey found that if 70% of millennials
show diversity and inclusiveness in their brand message, they are more likely
to choose that brand than their competitors. This is a great reason to
piggyback.
Disney recently announced that it will relax its appearance
guidelines in the name of inclusiveness.
The statement states, "Gender-friendly hairstyles, jewellery,
nail styles, costume choices, and tattoos that look good." "Not only
is this guideline suitable for today's workplace, but we'll update it to help
the cast better express their culture and personality in the workplace,"
he added. Of course, there was considerable opposition to Disney's
comprehensive efforts. But according to social listening, those social media
users are in the very minority, and social media trends are firmly on the side
of inclusiveness.
In short, this is heading in the right direction for all
parties. That is "shape" and "function".
13. Sustainability moves in earnest
Due to climate change and socio-economic factors,
sustainability movements are in full swing.
This has been a trend for many years, but it's gaining
momentum year after year. In particular, there is an enthusiastic excitement in
the field of food and energy that everyone on the planet consumes. We are in
the midst of a true arms race for renewable energy in the pursuit of long-term
sustainability to combat climate change and limited reliance on fossil fuels.
The food industry is rethinking what we say as consumer
tastes are shifting to more sustainable and healthy alternatives to
resource-intensive meats and seafood. ..
This move has reached a critical point and is attracting
user attention as a social media trend. Using Net Base to analyze the most
important topics that have been talked about in a month, climate change was the
most important issue, but science and engineering clusters are well educated
and the fashion industry is second to none. ..
14. The impact of flexitarians on food
Today's vegan options are a lot better than they were a few
years ago in terms of quality, availability, and appeal. Aware consumers are exploring
a record number of vegans, and this trend is booming.
However, some are not fully prepared to accept it, and
others want to take it more casually. Others prefer not to eat meat for a
healthier lifestyle. The social platform is full of curious "flexitarians"
looking for recipes, diet tips, and shops with vegan menus.
Flexitarians care about their health and focus on
sustainability. But for some reason, they aren't ready to make a drastic
commitment to their lifestyle. As such, the vegan situation evokes comments and
inquisitiveness from many, not just vegans.
Social listening tools should reveal conversations about
what they want, what makes them hesitate, what they want more, and what they
don't like it.
15. Influencers and KOL take the lead
Social media trends are often triggered by influencers and
KOLs. At least influencers and KOLs play a role in pushing trends to the
mainstream.
With the speed and change of social, it can be a daunting task to keep track of all the voices that influence conversations within a
category. But with social analytics tools, you can quickly identify the people
who lead the discussion and adjust your influencer and KOL marketing
accordingly.
Most brands don't have an infinite marketing budget, so it's
impossible to sign contracts with all potential influencers. Nor would it be
necessary. The important thing is to know who they are, where they are talking
to, and to whom. These conversations and their volumes are changing rapidly,
and new people are appearing on a regular basis.
Therefore, social media monitoring tools should be used to
keep the brand's face fresh and informal about influencers and KOL metrics
within the category. That way, you can quickly adjust so that when other
influencers start to gain the support of some of your target audience, they
will benefit ahead of their competitors. As you can see, many changes are
happening in the world of social media.
Not all of these social media trends apply to all brands,
but keep track of them so your brand doesn't get out of date.
Experienced brands adapt to where they are. Does your social
listening game hold the point? If you are interested in social listening,
please try Net Base.