Here we are, well into 2017 and looking at what is happening in Social Media. You can check out our other posts in the blog about how a website should work for you, but the essence of our opinion is that your website is of very little use unless you make it work for you. Your website should be working for you while you do what you are good at.
The trends we summarize here are filtered for our customers. We know who you are and we know what you do. This post is just a summary for you. You do not need to do all of this, but the aspects that we highlight are very relevant for you.
A summary:
- Video advertising is King
- Social Media is catching up with and may surpass Search
- Social Advocates are your best medium
- Social Media reaches the under 40s in particular
- Promoting your business via Social Media is very different to selling via Social Media
- Facebook owns Social Media with Instagram as a far off runner up
- Corporate Social via LinkedIn works for some business models
- Let people spread your message for you
- There is a shift away from ‘Vanity Metrics’
Paid Social Advertising is the way forward. It is very low cost and high yield. At a minimum of $1 per day your small Business can reach thousands of people every day without you having to do anything once your campaign starts.
Social Media is vastly lower Cost than TV or Printed Media. If you are not ready for a TV advertisement or magazine coverage then Social Media is your low cost step into Mass Marketing.
There is a general shift away from vanity metrics. Vanity Metrics refers to counting your likes, followers and views and comes back with a heavy bump to profit…back to what helps you make sales and profit. In short, counting your likes or followers does not necessarily lead to profit.
Your potential customers have a higher trust of Friends and Family than any other source – You need to use your Influencers and Advocates to increase sales.
Social Media is Accelerating year on year. Whatever you do this year to engage with social media will not be wasted, it will pay dividends in the future if you continue to engage.
- Consumers that are using Social Media 98%
98% of Consumers use Social Media!
Consumers using Social Media to influence their decision has doubled since 2012
Traditional Websites are declining – they are not being found. A website without Social Media is getting sidelined due to a lack of activity.
Social as a Source 2014-2017
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2014
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2017
Social is Catching Search Engines for Impact
- Search 46%
- Social 40%
Social Media is Just 6% behind Search Engines as a choice for making decisions.
YouTube and Facebook win as influencers in purchasing decisions
Digital Natives is the name given to the people that are comfortable/prefer using Social Media and Search Engines as a major influence in their purchasing decisions.
Mobile Apps threaten websites that are not responsive. In most markets, mobile is the majority terminal used for decision research.
APAC is driving the trend. We can watch what is happening in the Asia Pacific region to predict where the trend is going.
- Know Your Audience – Speak to your customer.
- Focus on Credibility – Use credibility as your guide before interacting with your prospects.
- Hub and Spoke – The website is no longer necessarily your hub, but you can use it to generate Credible Social Media
Pinterest is now a discovery platform for Small Businesses that have a product that benefits from imagery.
- Experiment with Social Media to see what works for your Business
- Persuade with Video. Short Videos are very engaging and can be very effective.
- Short and Visual. We have a new attention span to deal with.
- Get Inspired. Use your imagination but also watch what other people in your market are doing
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Like Employee Posts
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Trust Peer Recommendations
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Use Social Media to Outperform
If you want to know more about Social Media and how it can help you…
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