Social media marketing: five trends to watch in 2017:- www.deekpay.com

Social media platforms are evolving. Today, every brand becomes a content publisher and every consumer a creator. From posting videos via Facebook Live to sharing millions of tweets, there are endless ways to connect with customers.

Most online users today post videos, photos, comments and blogs on all major social media channels. Simple interactions such as replying to a comment, replying to a private message or retweeting a tweet can build strong relationships with consumers.

However, when every consumer becomes a publisher, it becomes a major challenge to get relevant content to the top of the social media news stream. Therefore, you need to keep an eye on the emerging trends that are destined to impact your social media strategy and the performance of your marketing campaigns in 2017.

The trends in social media platforms in 2017 are as follows:

Facebook: continuing to lead the market

With 1.23 billion daily active users, Facebook will continue to be the undisputed king of social networking. With over 60% internet users using FB, it will continue to top marketers' lists and drive conversions. With the introduction of new features such as Facebook Live and FB Marketplace, online businesses will find new ways to promote their products and services through Facebook.

Twitter: the real-time experience

Twitter will work to integrate real-time moments into consumers' daily lives. Businesses will continue to use Twitter to respond quickly to customer enquiries.

LinkedIn: Peer-to-Peer Influence

With the acquisition of LinkedIn by Microsoft, we expect LinkedIn to invest more in its content platform.LinkedIn is aggressively promoting its news stream, inviting businesses to harness the power of peer-to-peer connections.

Instagram: a community building and selling platform

Instagram is set to become a major force in driving sales and generating leads for online businesses. It's perfect for raising brand awareness and engaging consumer communities.

Snapchat: engaging the audience

Leading brands are now using Snapchat to distribute content across multiple segments.Snapchat will evolve into a content distribution platform to further engage users.

Here are the top five emerging social media trends likely to emerge in 2017 and beyond:

Trend 1: Real-time video

Last year, social video made a big splash on social media platforms. The next stage of development will be to combine the emotional connection of social video with the scale and reach of social media advertising. Real-time video platforms such as Facebook Live will fill the news stream with relevant, targeted and on-demand delivered content.

"Facebook and Twitter have become the go-to destinations for video consumption. the rise of Facebook Live could challenge YouTube's dominance."

Trend 2: Mobile First

Businesses will continue to optimise their mobile communications in 2017. However, mobile users interact with adverts differently than desktop users. The mobile experience will see a huge shift in user experience. You need to treat mobile users quickly because they have limited time and your communications must cut to the chase quickly. This trend is coming fast and you need to differentiate your communications for mobile and desktop devices.

Trend 3: Social e-commerce

Consumers are actively researching brands on social media channels. The next step for consumers is to skip visiting websites and buy directly from social media platforms. With the upgrade of Facebook Messenger, brands can now accept payments through the social channel, and Facebook also allows businesses to direct users to Messenger using calls to action such as "Buy Now".

Trend 4: Artificial Intelligence and Chatbots

Who would have thought a few years ago that we would trust bots to make online retail purchases? Times are changing and so is social media marketing. Businesses may start using chatbots as an easy way to interact with customers and promote products or services at the same time.

Trend 5: Social Competition with Search Engines

Search engines are still the leaders in helping consumers research and evaluate products or services. But social media is evolving as an alternative and consumers are using it to learn about brands. It is being used as a research tool, and social media is definitely catching up in 2017.

2017 will be an exciting year for social media marketing. Real-time video, chatbots and search mediums are trends that are likely to dominate the social ecosystem. Read also our blog post, "Top 5 Content Marketing Trends You Should Try in 2017."