In the extremely fast-paced world of digital marketing, it seems as though the number of social media platforms continues to go up while the attention span of people continues to go down. Depending on desired target audiences, it’s more important than ever that businesses determine the best channels and strategies to effectively—and quickly—connect with their ideal customers online. While this looks a little different for everyone, here are three content trends that are expected to dominate social media marketing in 2018:
Ephemeral Content
Ephemeral content—content that lasts for 24 hours or less—is currently booming and shows no sign of slowing down anytime soon. Snapchat, which specializes in such content and has proven to be the best platform to reach younger millennials and generation Z, has led the way in popularizing this type of content. Ephemeral content resonates with customers because it’s generally believed to be more authentic than spammy sponsored posts; plus, the potential of FOMO (fear of missing out) is raised due to its short-lived nature.
Personalized Content
If you want to connect with millennials, don’t go the traditional advertising route—younger customers are not interested in content that’s written from a selling point of view or isn’t relevant to them. Instead, personalized content is monumentally more effective, as user personas and brand influencers can connect with your desired audiences on a personal level. Engaging with customers in this way often leads to direct sales by means of simple recommendations, as it’s been proven that the opinions of others play a large role in purchases made online.
Interactive Content
Live streaming is growing in popularity with the dominance of video content and will only continue to gain traction in 2018. Since this type of content requires commitment from customers, it’s a great way to reach niche target audiences and filter out those who are uninterested in your brand or product. Live streaming is also appealing to marketers due to its integration within existing apps, such as Facebook, rather than requiring customers to download an entirely separate app. Major social media platforms are expected to continue improving their live video experiences in 2018 with better streaming quality and more interactive features.