Happy New Year!
We’re 5 days into the new year, and so far, so good. But, what is to become of the rest of 2013? To answer that, I thought I would offer 5 social media predictions for the coming year.
So, what will 2013 bring to the world of social media?
1. More businesses will move towards social media, and will begin to take it as a serious part of all aspects of their companies, and not just as a marketing tool.
In order for businesses to really succeed today, they need to incorporate “being social” throughout the entire organizations. From customer service to accounting, everyone should have a hand in the social strategy.
2. Businesses will begin to implement strategies for their social behaviors – they won’t just “do social”.
In order to be successful within social media, you need to know where you are going. You wouldn’t set out on a trip to a new city without some planning and a roadmap. Your social strategy is your roadmap. It is going to show you where you are going, why you want to be there, and most importantly, how you are going to get there. Gone are the days of putting up a Facebook page and calling it good enough.
3. GooglePlus will begin to transform into a “go-to” social network and will begin offering advertising within GooglePlus.
As of now, there are over 500 million Google accounts, and there are 253 million actively using this social network. This year, GooglePlus will grow to over 500 million active accounts, and the network will become a great source of information and offers as Google brings Plus into their advertising network.
4. Visual content will become even more important.
Right now, Facebook ranks videos and photos above regular status updates and links (as part of the EdgeRank algorithm), and as the year progresses, the use of photos and video will become even more important to gain access to users newsfeeds. In addition, a recent study from Mashable showed that videos are shared 12x more than link and text posts and that photos are “liked” 2x more than text updates.
5. LinkedIn will begin to fade.
Although this seems very specific, Facebook has begun to roll out a job finder function, and should that grow and be accepted by the over 1 billion Facebook users, I believe LinkedIn will begin to fade. People rely on their community to help them make decisions, from where to stay to what products to buy. They will also begin to look to Facebook for job referrals and endorsements, and Facebook Groups tend to be more active and more conversational than LinkedIn, which may spell the end to LinkedIn.
So, there you have it. 5 predictions for 2013. Do you have any predictions of your own? What do you think of these? Feel free to discuss below.
Resources
2013 Social Media Predictions for Facebook, Google+, Pinterest and more
5 Social Media Predictions for 2013
6 PR and social media predictions for 2013
Web and Social Media Predictions for 2013
Google announces stats for its Plus social network
There are a few things agree with here and a few I don’t. For starters I do believe more companies will move to social media, and some companies will start being more proactive with social media from a marketing standpoint. However, the rise of Google+ and the decline of LinkedIn I view as misguided. Google is a powerhouse, but their social media platform is much to be desired and unless Facebook up and flops in the near future, there is no way it will reach 500 million. Also LinkedIn is more popular than ever, and is ever adapting. Facebook is just not a place employers are looking for applicants; it is and always will be too informal. On the other side LinkedIn is made for the purpose of showing off your job and business record in a professional way. These I understand are predictions, but there seems to be little faith here in the business world as it relates to social media.
Thank you for the comment, and your points are well taken. Although, I must take issue with the comment that there is no way Google Plus will reach 500 million. As of September 2012, they were at 400 million accounts (yes, only 100 million are “active”) and the network is only coming up on its second birthday this June (when it was beta only). I stand by my assertion that they will reach that number, and probably sooner rather than later. In addition, I find that the GooglePlus audience is incredibly passionate, about whatever it is that interests them. They are very active and engaged, which may be worth more than sheer numbers.
As for LinkedIn, I still feel that it is a great place to find individuals for employment as well as clients/customers for your business. I feel that it is Facebook’s informality that helps with the credibility. We are more honest there. LinedIn is a great place for showing off your job and business record in a professional way, but there is more to us, as individuals, than where we worked.
I look forward to continuing the conversation!
Craig