27 Dec Best Digital Marketing Changes in 2017
When it comes to digital, daily changes and updates are inevitable. This year we’ve seen so many positive advances from our favourite social media platforms.
As we head into the new year, it’s a good time to reflect on all of our accomplishments not just as a marketing agency but the industry as a whole.
Instagram Stories compete with SnapChat
SnapChat’s main video competitor was born: Instagram. With 700 million monthly users Instagram Stories have become the go-to update for celebrities, influencers and everyday users. With the ability to tag local business, people, brands, locations and connect fleeting content with a stable feed, it’s not a surprise that these features will continue to take over SnapChat.
Twitter Character Limit Expansion
Twitter doubled its previous 140 character limit this year. In an effort to help users become more expressive, Twitter now allows users to use 280 characters. With less restriction to users’ thoughts and less need for multiple tweets, comes more opportunities to share more information and include keywords, hashtags and website links.
Increase in Direct Messaging
Direct messaging through social media platforms (also known as DM) has become the primary mode of direct communication. Influencers and businesses as well as businesses and customers talk in live time to establish a professional connection. Social users are more likely to contact someone through a direct message than via phone or email. This isn’t surprising considering we spend way more time patrolling social media than on the phone or refreshing our emails.
Business Features on Applications like Instagram and Facebook
Platforms like Facebook and Instagram have made it much easier to promote and create business pages for small businesses. Now that Instagram and Facebook are integrated it’s easy to direct customers and followers to your multiple platforms and business website. Analytics and trackable links are making it easier than ever for businesses to monitor their return on investment, based on the content that they post to social.
Rise in Social Media Influencers
When it comes to traditional sales tactics, the majority are no longer relevant. Social media influencers have changed the promoting and marketing game. Their own unique brands and an audience that will trust, make them invaluable for businesses of all sizes. Approximately 70 percent of consumers trust brand recommendations from friends (and yes, influencers fall into this category), but only 10 percent of consumers trust marketers, according to Forrester Research.
Increase in Video Content
Compared to 2016, 2017 was extremely engaging in regards to video content. Both Facebook and Instagram will become video-first platforms by 2021, according to CEO of Facebook Mark Zuckerberg. Twitter, Instagram and Facebook all have the capability to live stream video with audience interacting capabilities. Although text-based content will always be present in content marketing, if you’re not already on the video train, 2017 was the time to hop on and 2018 is a must.
Automation Applications for Scheduling and Posting Content
There are multiple social media applications that hold important aspect to your marketing strategy but it can be extremely time consuming when posting to each platform every day. This year, scheduling applications have become advanced enough to replace the details required during manual posting (including location, first comment for hashtags, etc.). Digital marketing is more efficient now than ever.
With all of the changes to digital marketing in 2017, we are able to become more efficient and focus on higher-level thinking marketing approaches. We look forward to another bright year in the digital marketing industry.
Need to define your 2018 marketing strategy? Contact the Spark Boutik Team today.
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