Social Media Trends for 2018

Social media is a dynamic field with 2017 seeing no shortage of changes in the form of new features, brand opportunities, and consumer preferences. 2018 is set to take the industry even further than it has ever been before, making it imperative to marketers everywhere to be up-to-date with the latest trends.

Although it’s impossible to predict how the social media marketing landscape will during the upcoming year, we can, at least, be certain about a few trends likely to dominate marketing campaigns in 2018.

Live Streaming Will Continue To Grow

Live streaming grew to immense popularity in 2017. In fact, around 80 percent of consumers preferred watching a live video rather than read a blog and 82 percent chose live videos over written social media updates. With companies actively using this method for promotions in 2017, live streaming will grow even more since brand and audiences, both, have grown accustomed to it. Live streaming is no longer optional – it’s an expectation.

Gamification will find its way to social media apps

Although users love interaction, they also love to experience life as a game. Many companies have successfully created immersive gaming experiences and generated significant revenue from this field, hence, the probability of an app that seamlessly blends social media and gaming together is quite high. Only time can tell us what this hybridization will result in, but it’s likely to dominate platforms in 2018.

Influencer Marketing Will Reach An All-Time High

Influencer marketing has grown to become a billion-dollar industry and the extensive list of micro-celebrities with significant incomes keeps on growing. It allows brands to increase their overall awareness, and cater to new target markets through influencers engaging with their audiences across various social media platforms. Thus, it’s no surprise that, 2018, 39 percent of marketers are likely to increase their budgets for influencer marketing budgets to $25,000 to $50,000 a year.

Increasing Marketability Of Instagram Stories

Considering the fact that Instagram Stories is just a year old, the social media giant has managed to engage 200 million people every month, which is more than Snapchat’s monthly users. At the rate it’s growing, fifty percent of all of Instagram users will be using this feature by the end of the year.

From a marketing perspective, Instagram Stories are increasingly relevant, since video outperforms all other kinds content, making the very foundation of this feature one that marketers need to get behind as soon as possible.