Social media is one medium that seems to constantly be shifting across the digital landscape. This year we’ve already seen the shift in Instagram’s news feed algorithm and Snapchat shaking up the digital advertising space, but there’s still a few months left in the year, and we have some thoughts about what might be coming up. Here are our Social Media Predictions.
There shouldn’t be any massive changes that change how we interact across the social world, but it’s always fun to think about what the future has in store. Below we offer our opinions about the future of social media for the remainder of 2016.
1. More Visual Content Options
2016 has been the rise of visual content. By looking at the surge in Instagram’s popularity it’s easy to see what kind of content users are leaning towards. Both images and videos are seeing a rapid rise in consumption, with written content actually starting to take a backseat.
Almost every single popular app has a video or image-based feature included. Expect this trend to only increase into the future. User’s are on the lookout for new ways to share and connect through video and images.
2. Growing Prevalence of Live Video
This year we’ve seen the rise of live video streaming. Some apps, like Periscope, are entirely based around this feature. But, Facebook and Instagram have now hopped on board.
So far Facebook Live hasn’t grabbed the world by storm, but we can expect the popularity of this to grow as people beginning to realize its potential. In the digital world we’re always looking for ways to connect on a deeper level, and live video seems to start to address that need.
Expect live video to become more widespread and user friendly as the year continues.
3. In-App Content Developments
We’ve already seen this feature start to trickle in slowly. Such as, Facebook’s instant articles, but we can expect features like this to grow and become more prevalent into the future.
As social continues to evolve, these platforms are looking for more inventive ways to keep us all tied to their apps, so we can assume they’re looking for ways to keep us glued to the screen with more in-app content.
4. Privacy Concerns Will Grow
It’s safe to make the assumption that more and more people are becoming concerned about their online privacy. We’ve seen the explosive rise of Snapchat, which has high levels of privacy, as user’s messages will disappear within a certain time period.
With most of our lives being public and sharable expect private messaging services to become more prevalent. Some things are better kept off the internet, and as the overlap between our physical and digital lives continues to swell we can expect people to look for an oasis of privacy and security.
Trying to keep tabs on your social media presence can be a lot of work. If merely thinking about social media overwhelms you, then reach out to our team today to help manage your social media, or help you create a strategy from the ground up.
