2016's best social media trends

Just like any other form of technology, it is a constant battle to keep up to date with the latest trends. Marketers need to ensure they are aware of the latest trends to have the best chance at getting in front and engaging with their community.

Let’s have a look at some of the emerging social media trends:

Mobile Devices

By 2016, it is expected that 2 billion consumers will own a mobile device. In 2015, mobile devices have taken over desktops as the most preferred device used to browse the internet. It is very important that company websites are now optimised for mobile devices in order to get their message across clearly and effectively. Google has also updated their algorithm to have websites that are mobile device optimised to be placed higher.

Real time engagement

In this day and age when communication is at the tips of your fingers where 80% of internet users use smartphone as their preferred digital device, consumers are increasingly expecting quicker responses from the brands they reach out to. According to Search Engine Watch, when users reach out to brands via Twitter, 53% expect a response within 1 hour.

Live Streaming

We heard last year that video will be the next big thing, this trend has already started to go one step further through live-streaming. One of Facebook’s biggest changes this year was including Facebook Live, allowing users to live stream real-time activity. They were not the first ones to lead the bandwagon though, as Periscope and Meerkat both created app for the sole purpose of engaging people via real-time video. Not only does live streaming show what is happening real-time, it also displays a side of authenticity through the unedited and unfiltered side of the company.

Personalisation

Just like online ads, not every post is relevant for everyone. As we see more online ads every day, it is the ones which are personalised that will capture the attention and engage with your audience. Have you seen the posts on Facebook where it says Friend A and Friend B are celebrating X number of years of friendship on Facebook? Has that compelled you to share that moment at least once?

To learn more about emerging social media trends, Akolade’s 7^th Social Media for Gov conference, that will be held on 22-24 November in Melbourne, brings together speakers from Facebook, Twitter, The Greens, Network Ten, Visit Victoria and many more to discuss the next steps in social media and how to implement it into your strategy. 

Being brought up in a typical Chinese family in Australia, Vivian takes pride as an ABC (Australia-born Chinese) where she happily embraces both the Chinese and Australian cultures. 

In high school, Vivian wanted to become a fashion designer, however she has developed a passion for running events after working backstage for multiple live shows. Prior to starting at Akolade, Vivian worked 4 years in the wine industry and she misses the wine tasting sessions and openly drinking on the job. As the Marketing Coordinator, Vivian enjoys using her creativity to design unique and fun campaigns for each event. In her spare time, Vivian loves to spend time with her two adorable pets; a cat and a dog.