2018 Social Media Trends: Were We Right On The Money?
In 2018, we suggested that Hawaii brands try out these four social media trends: Stories, Transparency, A.I. and Chatbots, and Videos and Live Streaming. Now it’s time to check-in to see if these trends lived up to the hype in 2018 and what their future looks like for 2019.
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1. Stories
2018: Stories include photo or video content that is only available for 24 hours and they are quickly growing in popularity. This type of content is versatile; the possibilities of content are endless. Brands have been using stories for branding, promoting, and advertising.
The following infographic, compiled by story-experience producer Fastory, shows the popularity growth of stories.
Read more on Rise of the Story Format.
The Verdict: 2018 was a major win for the story format.
The Stories trend continues to be victorious! EMarketer reported that 400 million people used Instagram Stories, 450 million use What’s App Stories (owned by Facebook), 300 million used Facebook Stories, and 186 million used SnapChat Stories.
In fact, its wild success got Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook’s CEO, to claim that stories will eventually be bigger than the News Feed. Many other prominent brands, such as Facebook, Vogue, Microsoft, and Deutsche Bank, recognize the influence and see a strong future for this new content and ad placement medium.
So, what’s next for Stories? SocialMediaToday.com reports that Instagram is currently testing a new Stories feature where users can ask their followers to donate to their favorite charities. Another new Story feature in the works, as reported by Mashable.com, will give Netflix users the ability to share what they’re watching on the Netflix app to their Instagram Stories. This means that brands could possibly have another organic way to interact with the story format beyond posting on stories or buying ads.
2. Transparency
2018: One of the greatest (and sometimes worst) things about being on social media is how quick news spreads. One tweet or post can go viral, and with this political climate, people are feeling more empowered to voice their opinions. Audiences are demanding change, transparency, and advocating for social justice (i.e. #MeToo and #MarchForOurLives).
- 81% of consumers say social media increased accountability for businesses
- 47% of consumers use social media for complaints
- Only 8% of consumers say they would be silent if a brand posted something inappropriate
Statistics provided by Social Sprout.
The Verdict: Transparency is evolving and the public want brands to be more transparent.
Last year some brands and influencers are really making an effort to appease the demand for transparency and social justice movements:
- Last year, Facebook made some major changes in the social media’s platform algorithms and security measures after sitting on the hot seat before the public and court.
- CVS is debuting a new social campaign where consumers are encouraged to upload their own unaltered photos under #beautyunaltered to social media for the chance to have them displayed on the brand’s Times Square billboard. As part of the effort, CVS partnered with lifestyle influencers Sara and Erin Foster on a new Beauty Mark t-shirt; proceeds will support nonprofit Girls Inc.
- An increasing amount of celebrities and social media influencers are pledging to improve the way they declare sponsored posts and endorsing goods.
Although extra transparency actions taken by Facebook and other brands are appreciated, there is still so much room for improvement. Jen Wong, COO of Reddit, says, “There’s going to be a much longer arc [in 2019] around this movement around data transparency and management.” According to a Sprout Social report, topics consumers want brands to be more transparent on business operations, marketing, policy changes, and business values.
For 2019, brands have two challenges to overcome: 1) Go deeper in their transparency and 2) Create new, engaging ways to address public issues as big as scandals to individual complaints on products and services other than press releases and replies in the comment section.
3. Artificial Intelligence (A.I.) and Chatbots
2018: To help effectively communicate with consumers, more brands are using chatbots or A.I. programs to increase positive experiences, handle customer service, complete purchases, or to provide more information about a product or service. According to CMO by Adobe, 72% of business leaders agree that A.I. can provide a fundamental business advantage. These bots can help your brand identify business issues, compile data, and target audiences with your posts better.
Read more A.I. statistics from CMO by Adobe.
The Verdict: How did we live without AI?
The growth in AI usage is undeniable. According to Hootsuite, the International Data Centre reported that worldwide spending on AI solutions will increase more than 22.1% from January 2017 – that’s $103 billion. In 2018, Salesforce’s State of Marketing reported that 52% of consumers are more inclined to change brands if a company doesn’t offer personalized communication.
The future for AI Marketing in 2019 is to incorporate it into personalized marketing strategies to form a deeper relationship with their consumers. Big names, such as Digital North America, Reddit, Unilever, and Clorox, say that data marketing, data-driven marketing, AI, and personalized marketing is the future.
Read more on Let’s Get Personal: How To Win At Personalized Marketing
4. Videos & Live Streaming
2018: Live streaming and videos are quickly becoming an important tool to communicate and market your brand. They add authenticity, keep your audience engaged, and can get your audience talking about your brand. Video also entertains and can help influence purchases.
Here are some tips for creating successful videos and live streams:
- Catch the audience’s attention in the first 7 seconds
- Rehearse before filming live
- Have a concise message
- Host a live Q & A and get your audience to post their questions on your social platforms
Check out Team Vision’s video work.
Read more video and live streaming tips.
The Verdict: The stats don’t lie! Make 2019 the year you start video marketing.
If your brand is not on the video and live streaming train, you better hop on now. Why deny your brand from using the top engaging media format, which has been a staple in digital marketing for years? If you want to stay relevant to your current audience and attract potential consumers, get your team started on producing videos, building their skills in video/live streaming, and collecting data on what engages with your audience most. Still need convincing? Here are some stats from 2018 that prove the success of videos and live streams:
- Facebook reported that daily watch time for Facebook Live broadcasts grew four times over the course of a year.
- 71% of people have increased their online video viewing and 60 percent expect to watch more social video next year.
- 30% of mobile shoppers say video is the best medium for discovering new products
- People gaze five times longer at video than at static posts on Facebook.
- Tweets with video attract 10x as much engagement
- Promoted tweets with video saved 50% on their cost per engagement
- Facebook Live broadcast watch times quadrupled in one year
- Since Live videos standardly receive six times as many interactions as regular videos, they rank higher in the newsfeed.
If you’re looking for help with your Hawaii Social Media Marketing, give Team Vision Marketing a call at (808) 536-0416, or check out samples of our social media work in our extensive online marketing portfolio at www.www.teamvision.com/portfolio.
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