Is Your Social Media Strategy Ready? 5 Trends to Watch

As you prepare for the coming year, it’s a good idea to consider upcoming social media trends. Social media is increasingly becoming an important part of marketing your products and services. If you want to connect with customers (and turn them into fans) during 2013, you need to be ready to take advantage of the following 5 trends:

1. Social Search More Entwined with Content

You will need to make sure that you make social sharing easy when you publish content. More and more, social search is becoming part of regular content search. The Google Plus button included on your post can cue Google as to the importance of your post, depending on how many “+1” it receives, as well as how many “shares.”
Additionally, your posts on Google Plus, some of your Facebook information, and even your tweets are increasingly being included in search results. Keep this in mind as you create and share content.
 

2. Go Mobile

It’s increasingly important to make sure that your web site is mobile-friendly. Your web site needs to be able to display on smart phones and tablets. Increasingly, consumers share information, and engage socially, using their mobile devices. You want your content to be easily accessible from the devices so that it can be easily shared by your customers.

 3. Geo-Targeting

Thanks to GPS technology in mobile devices, it’s possible for you to target your efforts to locals. This can be helpful, especially if you have a brick and mortar store. Geo-targeting can provide you with a way to send coupons or other specials to those nearby. You can also get involved with the trend of checking in. There are plenty of opportunities to use geo-targeting and social media in your marketing efforts to grow your brand.

4. Coordination Across Platforms

2013 is expected to be a year of increased marketing coordination across social media platforms. Rather than just putting disparate items up on different social media sites, make a coordinated effort. Coordinate Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook, and other social media platforms. Put together a plan to create content that can be shared in multiple ways, and share the content so that your image is consistent across the Internet social media platforms. And remember to include keywords in your submissions, since social search is becoming more important online for effective marketing.

 5.  Use the Cloud

Even though the cloud is gaining adherents slowly, it is expected to pick up somewhat in 2013. Even though it’s not strictly social media, cloud computing provides a number of opportunities to help you grow your business. The barriers to entry for web services, data backup, fax, and other technological services are lower with the cloud. It’s possible to do more on a smaller budget when you make use of the cloud.

Look ahead to 2013, and the social media trends, and make a plan for the coming year. Put together a marketing plan that includes the above trends, and get ready to improve your brand’s situation.