Wrapping Up 2015 in Social Media
December 14, 2015
Wrapping Up 2015 in Social Media
Can you believe 2015 is already coming to an end? Last year’s predictions for social media trends mostly came true, but there were also some unexpected trends that took the Internet by storm. Here are some of the top trends we saw in social media in 2015, and which we expect to get even bigger in 2016!
Social Selling Via Mobile
We saw the rollout of different buying options directly from social media throughout 2015. These call-to-action and buy now buttons allow users to checkout directly from the social media application they are on. This is a great tool for businesses big and small to take advantage of to increase sales, and it makes the entire buying process seamless for the consumer. Rather than searching online for a product after seeing it on social media, the user can checkout without leaving the application.
- Buyable Pins
Pinterest rolled out “buyable pins”. After partnering with 5 different ecommerce brands, sellers can sign up to have their stores sell via “Buy it” on the Pinterest Application, allowing users on Pinterest to “Pin it” or “Buy it”. Rather than users having to take the extra step to find a product online that they saw on Pinterest, they can now easily check out right through the application on their phone. iPhone users have the added convenience of checking out through Apple Pay, meaning they can have their product purchased and shipped with the press of their fingertip.
Image via Pinterest
- Targeted Advertisements on Instagram
Instagram opened up targeted advertisements to everyone in 2015. The advertisements allow businesses to link to one of the following calls-to-action: “Shop Now”, “Book Now”, “Learn More”, “Sign Up”, “Download”, “Watch More”, “Apply Now”, “Donate Now”, and “Contact Us”. These calls to action allow users to take direct actions that marketer’s desire, directly through the convenience of the mobile application. With over 400 Million users and growing, Instagram is the perfect network for reaching a targeted audience.
Image via @todays_business
- What about Facebook?
It is rumored that Facebook is working a similar feature that would allow users to checkout from within Facebook without leaving the site. They have released a “buy now” button, but it simply serves as a link to the website where the user can buy the product. We are definitely looking forward to seeing Facebook roll out a checkout feature through their application.
Going Mobile
2015 saw a huge spike in mobile traffic. More and more people are visiting websites, shopping, streaming video, and utilizing social media primarily from their mobile device. Google even announced that mobile search has surpassed desktop search for the first time in history. We predict that 2016 will see even more mobile traffic, especially via social media applications.
Snapchat Continues to Impress
Snapchat was named the fastest growing social network of 2015, with approximately 100 Million users on the app each day. It is especially popular among teenagers, who we all know are most sought after by advertisers. For a long time Snapchat was making zero revenue, until this year when Snapchat began offering advertising options. They are still working out their advertising model, but have so far collected about 50 Million dollars in revenue. Pair that with their new buyable filters, updates, and daily additions to the app, and Snapchat is expected to gain even more traction in 2016.
Dating
Dating websites have been popular for a while, but dating applications geared towards millennials exploded in 2015. These social media applications all differ in their methodology but have the same premise of meeting other singles in your area. The most popular social media dating applications of 2015 were Tinder, Hinge, Bumble, Ok Cupid, and Coffee Meets Bagel. Most of these sync with the user’s Facebook account, allowing them to look at pictures and decide if they want to be matched with other users. In 2016, we should expect to see even more of a rise in popularity of various dating applications targeted towards niche demographics.
Wrap Up
With all of these new additions to the social media stratosphere, it became more apparent to advertisers, marketers, businesses, and individual users that social media is not going anywhere soon.
Have any other trends that you think are worth highlighting for 2015? Tweet me at @todays_business or comment below!
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