Tag: social media marketing trends

The experts in the industry are seeing a bit of a bumpy ride for advertisers and promoters using this channel.

Now that 2013 has come to a close, analysts are scrambling to assemble their data to help them to decide what 2014 social media marketing is likely to involve, including the most effective trends and the changes that will occur regarding actual usage of the networks.

The results of these efforts are already coming in and are helping marketers to rethink their strategies.

Following the trends from last year, the shape of 2014 social media marketing trends is starting to become clearer. There have been a number that have already been identified and that have been making technology news headlines since the start of the year. What is clear is that it will certainly hold a position of notable importance within any successful online and mobile strategy.

The evidence and data from last year are helping to provide a more solid shape to 2014 social media marketing campaigns.

Among the strongest predictions for this year have been the following:

• Images supporting statements generate the most attention, with comments accompanied by pictures receiving 53 percent more likes than image-free posts on Facebook. On Twitter, tweets with supporting images received 18 percent more clicks and150 percent more retweets and 89 percent more favorites than text alone.

• Snapchat and Instagram will carve out a bigger share for themselves in terms of business uses for reaching consumers. Instagram is already the fastest growing network with every day bringing 40 million photo uploads from its 150 million users.

• Mobile marketing will be a vital part of an online strategy. Simply having a website that is smartphone or tablet friendly will not be considered enough for the necessary impact. Features that can be used in store – such as mobile coupons, product reviews, etc – will be among the most popular efforts in this direction.

• 2014 social media marketing will become a serious effort for a growing number of brands. These techniques are already being used by 93 percent of marketers, but the actual focus on the presence they hold on the networks will increase considerably.

As the environment continues to mature and grow it is pushing other techniques aside.

Recent analyses and reports are showing that social media marketing is not only greatly expanding in its use and effectiveness, but it appears to be achieving its goals at the expense of display advertising.

Using social networks is proving to be much more appealing to consumers who are growing weary of other ad forms.

Recent research by IZEA, a social sponsorship startup, has revealed that after having surveyed 10,000 brand marketers, social influencers, and social media consultants, approximately one in three marketers are equally weary of display ads as has been seen from the side of consumers. On the other hand, social media marketing appears to be continuing to expand and mature on every level.

The social media marketing study revealed that actions in this area are improving in every direction.

For example, the use of sponsored photos has increased to 33 percent in 2013 after having been only 24 percent at the same time last year. Moreover, 29 percent of marketers said that they had been using Pinterest’s sponsored pins opportunity, said the report.

IZEA also pointed out that when comparing the revenue generated by sponsored images with that of display ads, it is the sponsorships that bring in more money according to 55.7 percent of the participants in their study.

At the same time, though, the rise of promotions and advertising in social networks has led to a notably greater demand from influencers. In fact, these individuals who are highly connected should now increasingly expect to receive brand compensation for making mention of the products or services that they are selling, said the report. Twenty six percent of influencers have said that the amount of time that they spent in the maintenance of their social presence can now be compared to the hours that they would apply to full time employment.

Equally, though, social media marketing remains a confusing environment, as a considerable percentage of influencers have not yet completely mastered the best practices for compensation disclosure, as the FTC now requires that this must occur when a substantial reward is traded for the creation of content.