Many of us may recall the days when Myspace was the most popular social media platform and Facebook was little more than a blip on the digital horizon. These portals were primarily used to speak with friends and to share viral video feeds. Of course, times have inexorably changed. Social media now represents one of the core tenets of any successful marketing campaign. Even larger organisations that were wary about taking a foray into such a world are now fully embedded. Let’s also not fail to mention that the majority of these changes have only occurred over the past five years. This leads to an important and logical question. What might we see in the near future? Are there any notable trends which should continue to gain ground? Whether you own an online business or you are a avid virtual shopper, the answers below are entirely relevant.
The Undeniable Presence of Artificial Intelligence
Whether we realise it or not, we deal with artificial intelligence on a daily basis. From emails which are targeted towards past buying habits to autocomplete forms when searching for a specific product, the presence of AI is ubiquitous. Even our mobile phone apps are recommended based off of personal preferences. Thus, we see the true power of AI.
This very same technology has now trickled down to the average online store. Website owners can employ algorithms which cater to the unique personal tastes of the customer in question. This is why Facebook Business Manager has become so very popular. Not only is it possible to reach a truly massive social media audience, but broadsword marketing approaches have been replaced with more targeted solutions. Businesses can therefore spend more time interacting with their client base; leading to higher levels of engagement and ultimately, to greater success.
Greater Interaction Between Businesses and Consumers
We stressed the concept of interaction in the previous section. Interaction is the obvious foundation of any social media website. However, businesses can now enjoy the same level of real-time feedback as the average user. There are several benefits directly attributable to this scenario:
• It is possible to gauge the success of an ongoing marketing campaign.
• Negative reviews can be dealt with in a more proactive manner.
• Marketing techniques such as loyalty rewards points and one-day discounts can be advertised within seconds.
It other words, the world of social media in relation to businesses has become an extremely fluid environment. While this might make some owners nervous, others will undoubtedly jump at the opportunity to leverage such benefits. This is the very same reason why e-commerce platforms such as Shopify have placed a heavy emphasis upon social media apps.
It is estimated that more than half of the global population now uses some form of social media on a daily basis. There is no reason to believe that this trend will not continue in the same manner. Businesses which can capitalise upon this momentum are slated to perform extremely well.