Overwhelmed by all the stats from 2018 and all the predicitons for 2019?
I’ve checked out all the top social media news sources to bring you a round up of what to look out for this year so you don’t have to!
Authenticity will rule
Take responsbility for your channels to ensure the tone of voice is YOU, is YOUR brand and YOUR story - not that of your Social media Managers.
Get that gorgeous little bottom on Instagram Stories and show your personality, the face behind the brand and behind the scenes!
You don’t need to bare all to be authentic. There’s a great podcast on choosing what to share with Emma Gannon and Pandora Sykes
Facebook is not dead.
First of all, despite all the hoo-haa of early 2018 - Facebook is not dead. Far from it. It’s still the reigning social media channel and Facebook advertising has in fact overtaken TV advertising with 1 in 4 page owners now advertising and more of the big brands switching their spending from press and TV to Facebook.
However, that does mean more competition.
Facebook is running out of space for absolutely everyone.
That doesn’t mean if you don’t have big pockets you can’t advertise on Facebook BUT in 2019 it is going to be key for you to have a clear objective for your ad campaign, understand the anatomy of a high performing ad and know exactly how and where to put budget. More on this at my Facebook ads workshop or book in a 1-1 online in person
Here’s some fresh stuff facebook is working on:
Search ads
This year Facebook will be testing Search Ads in a bid to directly compete with Google Ad Words which will be a super interesting development.Live Video Shopping
Live video shopping will be making an appearance - Facebook is currently testing this in Thailand which is a hot bed for TV shopping. To check out someone who is manually absolutely aceing this right now with her products - check outFacebook is already testing the boost button in Groups.
56% of posts using video did better than those without - so video really is king. But it doesn’t have to be expensive. Armed with a good camera phone and some basic editing software - you can produce some simple but great videos. TIP - Ensure they’re shot in vertical and TIP 2 - Make sure you add subtitles as most people watch videos on their phone with sound off.
You won’t be able to ignore Instagram Stories
Yes Instagram stories are growing…
…. by an exponential amount! 500 million people are using stories every day! So you cannot ignore them - and I am a HUGE advocate for them for these top 3 reasons (but there are tons of others!):
You can keep your grid on brand and post in the moment content which is not as curated as your feed
You can share user generated content - if someone’s posted a story shouting about your brand/product/service - you can re-post and share to a highlight e.g. ‘testimnoials/Reviews’ so anyone can check out what other people are saying about you i.e. your ‘social proof’
Going Live builds trust and credibility with your audience
… which brings me on to….
The rise of Live
The interactivity of live video makes it a powerful tool for marketers to engage with their audience and strengthen the relationship between a brand and its followers.
So be it on Facebook or Instagram, going Live is key for 2019.
But it's not enough to just 'go live' - you have to be able to offer a high production value and deliver excellent, engaging content. Instead of just talking about your product or service, for example create a video for every frequently asked question.
I recently went Live on Instagram and oh my gosh, it was scary but so so worth it to show the value of my workshops and a sneaky peak at what we get up to!
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