2020 was such a shocking year with the COVID-19 pandemic and people locked in their homes. The number of people using social media platforms heavily increased, and employees work from home and attend their meetings via zoom.
Now in 2021, people have adapted to world consequences, but businesses have found a way to survive through social media and increase their ROI (Return on Investments). To take advantage of social media, you should focus on the new updates of social media strategies and trends.
This article, we will discuss some of the 2021 trends and updates on social media and how they can benefit any marketing strategy.
What is the most popular social media 2021?
In a very short period of time, social media has managed to become an important part of our lives. It’s true that it began as a way for friends and family to remain in contact. Then, it quickly evolved into a medium for companies and enterprises to engage with their target audience and provide customer services.
social media business trends 2021
Social commerce is about to become a mainstream retail channel on par with websites and brick-and-mortar businesses. This tendency will continue to grow as more social media accounts include pre-selling features such as shoppable posts.
In 2020, the number of online shopping increased due to the pandemic and social distance, which turn businesses into social media. A social networking site such as Instagram has added new features to enhance their users’ online shopping, like shoppable posts and stories.
Instagram checkout, which makes users discover and buy the products without leaving the app. Social commerce has become a new retail avenue for brands, and this trend is going to get stronger.
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Stories become a content format
So far, Story features have proven popular with social media users. Every day, 500 million people use Instagram Stories. 6
2% of users say they became more interested in a business or product after seeing it in Stories instead of search engines.
Fun fact: Facebook currently has 300 million daily active users on Stories only.
The fleeting nature of stories increases the motivation for viewers to see them before they disappear. Furthermore, the stories format, along with editing and design tools that allow anybody to produce excellent content from their phones, has been a major success for Instagram and raises questions about user preferences and perceptions.
In 2021, Facebook and Instagram stories have become an important content format that should be used in your business; a study has found that stories have a 5.65% higher tap-forward rate than traditional video sharing, In 2021, platforms such as Pinterest and Twitter have followed Facebook’s lead and are launching their own features for Stories.
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Facebook live
Facebook Live has been used highly through 2020 by influencers and brands, increasing customer engagement and making brands more connected with their customers through live streaming. In 2021, Facebook live is still in use.
With some of the most amazing Facebook Live facts and data, let’s have a look at the most prevalent reasons why people watch live streams.
25% of users said that watching live videos keeps them informed and up to speed on the latest news and happenings. 20% of people watch live streaming to feel as if they are a part of an event, while 17% believe that live videos offer a level of trust to video material.
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User Generated content
UGC or user-generated content is a type of content that users create for the brand, and it has become more critical for the business to market for their brands using other content.
Some businesses, such as Daniel Wellington, encourage customers to produce content and tag the brand on a specific social media site in order to be featured on their page. Some, such as Olay or Dove, run relevant marketing initiatives in which individuals are encouraged to submit their ideas in order to be a part of the campaign.
Some companies, such as Airbnb, rely entirely on user-generated material for their social media content. This content can be photos and videos content produced by users themselves to promote their ideas.
User-generated material is completely free and is thought to be far more authentic than content marketing. It may make your brand appear more trustworthy and improve your image.
So, if you’ve never used user-generated material on your social network sites, now is the time to start.
New trend app
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Clubhouse
The clubhouse became one of the most trendy apps on social media. It relies on audio chat instead of the traditional typing one that we’re used to. As for now, it’s available for Apple users only while the Android version is under construction. It has different chat rooms, but you must have an invitation from other users to join the clubhouse.
Clubhouse currently does not have a paid social advertising campaign. Its foundation is built on networking and content marketing. Businesses and people, on the other hand, have the chance to profit from the app. Paid room memberships, sponsorships, and, of course, marketing brands are just a few examples.
Businesses may, of course, market their rooms on other platforms; but, because not everyone has a Clubhouse invitation, targeting can be difficult.
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Audio rooms
LinkedIn, Facebook, and other platforms try to add audio chat rooms after clubhouse becomes a trend on social media.
Twitter is also aiming to expand its audio presence, with audio tweets and the “Spaces” feature that has been recently launched.
These features allow users to create rooms that only rely on audio. Both capabilities offer extra opportunities for developing your company’s sound identity or sharing excerpts from brand podcasts.
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Augmented reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR)
As companies strive to provide an engaging user experience, Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) are currently social media trends in 2021.
Many e-commerce businesses have adapted to shopping powered by augmented reality, allowing consumers to test on items before purchasing them. This will assist consumers in making informed purchase decisions before investing in something.
While VR acceptance in social media is still in its early stages, the same cannot be said about AR. Augmented reality filters are currently being utilized on a variety of popular sites, including Snapchat and Instagram. These were created to improve the visual material posted on social media and have proven to be quite popular.
Instagram, for example, makes extensive use of augmented reality in its picture filters. Have you seen those filters that can add lashes, sunglasses, or rabbit ears to your face? That is just an augmented reality application for social networking.
Although Instagram and Snapchat have dominated this trend, other types of social media sites will follow suit in the future years. Facebook, for example, has already introduced AR filters before Instagram, but they gained traction later.
Facebook is also experimenting with additional AR and VR features and plans to build more AR and VR apps and ads in the upcoming years.
Conclusion
As long as we have modern technology, we can never expect social media trends to go anywhere but up. Numerous social media trends have arisen and changed as a result of this medium’s fast expansion throughout the years.
Being aware of and adapting to these new and emerging trends is what allows firms to stay ahead of the competition by promoting services and products more effectively.
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