Online Marketing has to be part of any businesses marketing strategy for 2016. So if you haven’t embraced social media for your business yet, what are you playing at? Grab your online space and do it now! Don’t wait to see what happens or you’ll have missed your opportunity. Let’s look at the top 3 online marketing trends for 2016.
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- Social Media
It’s free and easy, right? WRONG!
Yes it’s free to sign up and set up a social media presence but how do you know if it’s the best it can be? How do you know if it’s working? There’s a lot more to social media marketing than meets the eye. It’s about how you communicate, what you say, where you say it & how you say it. It’s about who you engage with and what they say to you. Most importantly it’s about your audience and how you work together.
We’ve seen brands set up on social media but then not posting or completing parts of their profiles. This can be more damaging than not being there in the first place. Think what impression this could have on clients and potential clients – can’t be bothered to finish things off, don’t have all the skills, too busy to complete the task and unprofessional!
Predictions for social media marketing in 2016. Well we’re already seeing big changes in how people use the likes of Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, Pinterest & GooglePlus. Not to mention Periscope, Meerkat, Whatsapp & Snatchat.
Facebook are set to launch Facebook at Work which lets you create a work account separate from your personal Facebook profile. You can use this tool to collaborate with coworkers, share things only visible to others in your company.
Twitter has just recently introduced Likes and Moments. Likes have replaced Favourites, essentially they’re both the same thing but Twitter have brought their language in line with Facebook. Moments are just what’s Trending or in other words popular at that moment in time in your neck of the woods. It’s thought that in 2016 Twitter will introduce more changes that will appeal to mainstream audiences. We still find that for many businesses (and individuals alike) they still ‘don’t get’ Twitter!
Other things to consider –
- Individuals will become more concerned about their online privacy and security.
- Facebook are creating more privacy tools.
- Real-time and got-to-have-it-now are what’s important to consumers. The easier it is to buy, access, connect and chat, the more like you are to win the business.
- Social searching – if consumers are looking for something they’re more likely to ask in a Facebook Group, check Twitter or LinkedIn to see what others recommend.
- Mobile usage has overtaken desktop. If your website’s not mobile responsive you’re losing market share. Get mobile now!
- Buttons – Buy, Shop Now, Contact Us, Visit, Learn, Donate – they’re being introduced everywhere from Facebook to Pinterest. Too spammy and in your face and they’re a turn off but positioned in the right place, in the right colour with the right content and images and BINGO!
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- Content
It’s still the king of all online activity and the one thing that seems to have stumped most of our clients in 2015.
Content on social media, blogs, websites – what to write about, where to find inspiration, who should write it are just some of the many questions we get asked.
You would be forgiven for thinking “what does content have to do with ROI” but it’s crucial and underpins everything your business stands for. Your content should provide information for existing clients and potential new ones too. For this will help to develop your brand, build trust and develop a loyal network who will promote you, your products and services.
Why else do you need to work on your content? Well it’s not rocket science but great content, which emphases what you do & how you do it, is also great for search engine rankings too which will put you above your competitors.
This isn’t anything new for 2016. It’s been there all along but still not something businesses focus on.
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- Video
It’s been said that if a picture paints a thousand words, then a video is priceless
Video marketing has been around, well for forever. Ok well not forever, but ever since social media started to boom video has been there. What’s interesting is how social media channels such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, Google Plus & even LinkedIn have embraced & used this medium to their advantage. Think about how you use your own social media, are you more likely to watch a video than read two pages of text?
So why video? How is that going to help? Well for starters searchable websites are automatically ranked higher on Google. And that’s not just video content on You Tube, although clearly since Google own You Tube they’re going to rank that high.
Predictions for video in 2016 according to www.onlinevideo.net:
- 4K (ultra HD) resolution will grow at an accelerated pace. Consumers are already capable of recording in 4K on smartphones, GoPros and DSLR cameras. The more people are able to record 4K, the more demand there will be for 4K content.
- Drones and aerial video will increase. Although highly regulated to protect people & property drones are becoming more and more useful in everyday life. We’ve seen them used to perform structural checks, track sports events such as cycle races and show the flood damage in places such as York, Leeds & Hebden Bridge in December 2015.
- 360-Degree footage will grow due to the fact that Facebook introduced the facility to pan and rotate a video through newsfeed player. Brands such as Star Wars have already experimented with this concept – Star Wars: The Force Awakens Immersive 360 Experience
Video marketing in 2016 should be in every online marketers toolkit. If you’re not already using video or could use a little more help in understanding how to plan, edit and market your videos in 2016 we have some excellent half day video workshops coming up from January through to April 2016. This also includes workshops on Social Media Strategy, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, GooglePlus, Blogging and Content Marketing.