With most people nowadays spending a vast majority of the time on social media (over 2 hours a day) and with the market increasing day by day, we have decided to take a look back on 2019 and bring you an expected forecast of what might happen in 2020 with some key trends that you need to be aware of for the year to come!
Instagram to remove likes world-wide and looks at removing video views…
The move to remove ‘likes’ on Instagram has been put in place to encourage users to focus more on their content, instead of seeking validation with likes and view numbers. This is turn could help legitimise Instagram accounts and flush out those created by bots and individuals currently purchasing likes.
Instagram has also been criticised in the past for the connotations ‘likes’ play on popularity and mental health meaning the worldwide removal of likes is thought to improve this. The platform recently made a statement where they talked about removing video views as well.
Don’t worry however, this shouldn’t change the way company pages are run, but it could play a role in the way companies work with influencers, hopefully basing their collaborations on engagement figures instead of likes and follower numbers.
Ephemeral content (i.e. Snapchat, IG Stories and TikTok) will continue to grow in popularity, as statistics show people’s attention span on social media becomes shorter growing demand for a quick turn around on social channels. This can be seen on the graph below provided by Statista, that there is a huge growth in the amount of daily users on IG stories.
Social media has become an integral part of people’s lives and daily routine, so much so, it’s the first thing people check when they wake up in the morning.
The best way to stay on trend and make sure your stories are being seen, is to post regular, on trend content with (if over 10K) swipe up links directing people to your website.
Posting IG story ads linking people to your grid is also a great way to engage those key ‘forever followers’ on socials so make sure you’ve got your target demographic right!
If you would like any support with this, we’re here to help and can offer expert advice on planning stories, creating content and creating detailed targeting to make sure you’re tapping into the right demographic!
Businesses are going to have more competition on socials in 2020…
As mentioned in one of our previous posts, strategy is vital when posting on social media as a business, and it is certainly worth your time exploring ways in which your brand can strategize and plan social posts.
With more and more competition, and more brands than ever joining the social media movement, you need to make sure you stay relevant, with key targeted posts showcasing a flow across your account! This could be through seasonal content, colour waves, story arcs of 3/6 or 9, or by targeting key trends to your business throughout the year (i.e coffee day / veganuary).
Using multiple influencers on socials (10+)
2020 is set to be the year for influencers, which is great for businesses. Influencers are cheaper than traditional marketing techniques, get (on average) a higher return on investment and are a great way to reach a larger, different pool of potential customers.
Just make sure to always ask for statistics, screenshots and testimonies from previous collaborations!
Customer service is going to flood socials…
If you haven’t noticed already, you are sure to in the coming months as we notice a growing trend in people turning to social media for their customer service queries!
Since more of us are now using social media to complain, ask questions and look for support from our favourite brands as we expect a quicker turnaround, it’s going to be increasingly important for you to have something in place.
With this in mind, it is key to stay on top of any questions, messages or social postings. Making sure you have someone monitoring your Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, Twitter and other social accounts so you don’t end up with a backlog of customers later down the line.
Voodoo top tip: enable instant replies on Twitter and Facebook DM’s, this is a great way to direct people to a customer service page or let them know you have heard them and will respond shortly…
Video content is going to flourish!
Video content is not only going to flourish in 2020, it’s likely to continue to dominate.
With more people spending time watching IG stories, TikTok videos and IGTV, it’s silly not to plan for this moving forwards! We would suggest you look at creating, boomerangs, short-form videos (i.e. IG stories) and longer videos for IGTV, Facebook and Youtube.
Overview…
As you can see from the above there are some expected trends we have picked out of the enormous world of social media, that we think will dominate in 2020. Along with these, there are many more trends set to happen which means you need to be listening, looking and staying ahead of competitors! If you would like any support with your social media plan, channel management and content creation, then get in touch with us today!