Social media in 2013: 5 trends |
When it comes to most technical systems, there is so much change in one year, that it can be a bit tricky to predict what the next year will bring. Social media is no different. While there are a number of trends that will continue on from last year, there are going to be some surprises along the way too. What we can do however is take our best guess based on what’s going on right now. Social goes mobile Because of this, the use of web technology that resizes text, images and other content to any screen size, will become even more popular. What this means for social media managers is that you will need to keep mobile users in mind when developing content and ensure it can be easily viewed on tablets and smartphones. Visual marketing Social media sites like Pinterest, Instagram and Facebook, are perfect platforms that, with effective use, can create an awareness that resonates with target groups, creating increased engagement. While this marketing concept isn’t new, you can expect to see more companies focusing on developing more content that’s visual in nature throughout the next year and beyond. Content marketing (B2B) In 2013, you can expect to see many enterprises turning to social media platforms like Pinterest, Facebook, Google+, etc. to develop and share content. Couple this with an increase in visual content and there will be an increased trend for smart marketers to develop engaging posts that are also visually appealing. Google+ is a Google must Last year, Google rolled out a number of services, such as Local, into Google+. This forced businesses with a Google presence to use this service to manage it. This trend will likely continue over the next few years, with the slow release of valuable services that are exclusively for Google+ users and force users to switch to them. In other words, for companies using Google’s services: Google+ is a Google must. Facebook remains king. For now! We can expect Facebook to introduce a premium version of Pages, along with increasingly powerful analytics tools. Alongside this, their mobile advertising service will likely mature into a viable business option. What this means for businesses is that they will need to keep on top of these offerings and figure out how to best leverage their content. These are just five social media trends for the coming year. Have you identified any more? What do you think will be the biggest change to social media in 2013? We’re interested to hear your thoughts. |
Productivity key to work-life balance |
While being an entrepreneur can be a rewarding experience, it’s also a time consuming one. Work-life balance to many business owners is non-existent because they spend all of their time focusing on so many different aspects of their business. An entrepreneur’s attention is often pulled in 100 different directions at once, which often leads to poor productivity and a non existent work-life balance. However, it doesn’t have to be this way. |
Mobile advertising options on the tablet |
One of the biggest tech trends from 2012 was the growth of tablets and more specifically, Android tablets. It’s a pretty sure thing that this trend will continue in 2013 as more tablets and mobile devices in general are purchased. With the increase in mobile devices the idea of advertising to users through mobile advertising has become feasible for companies of any size. The issue is finding a company that can help you reach your intended audience. |
Get Outlook to send you text alerts |
Mobile phones can do many things. Since the inception of the smartphone, many people have switched from voice calls to SMS/texts as the main way they communicate. This heavy adoption of text messaging has given companies like Microsoft a new way to keep people integrated with their services. One example is a little-known feature of Office 365 that allows users to turn their phones into a mobile notification center. |
Beware: Windows tech support scammers |
Social engineering – the act of manipulating people into giving up confidential information – has long been a threat to businesses. One of the more common social engineering tricks, in terms of IT, is scammers posing as Windows technicians who call Windows users and try to trick them into believing their computers have viruses and that they need to pay to have the problem fixed. Have you had these calls? |