Predictions for Social Media Marketing in 2021
Any way you look at it, 2020 has been tough 💪😤.
Many businesses had to rapidly pivot in order to stay afloat amid global shutdowns to limit the spread of COVID-19 🦠, while many others weren't so lucky, and were forced to close forever as a result. We've learned to work from home 🏠 navigating our daily tasks amid home-school and other distractions, and find new forms of entertainment to keep each other occupied.
2020 is a year that many would rather forget, and in amongst all this, the major social platforms have also rapidly evolved and shifted focus in order to meet rising 📈 demand and user needs during the pandemic. It looks set to be a year of growth, and exciting developments. Hopefully, at the least, we get a more settled environment, expanding economic opportunity across the board. 🙏
Let us focus on two platforms predictions for what's coming next in the world of social media marketing, starting with the blue behemoth, Zuckerberg's ever-expanding social empire, and follow by Instagram.
1️⃣ Facebook
Facebook has once again seen a year of many challenges, and has once again come through them in a stronger 💪 position than where it began.
Yet, despite an ad boycott, a critical Netflix documentary, and the forced removal of certain concerning groups, Facebook marches on, and 2021 looks set to see some major developments aligned with the next stage of The Social Network.
The New Storefront
eCommerce will be a major focus for Facebook this year. We've already seen the first stages of Facebook's next big revenue push, with the introduction of Shops 🛍️ on Facebook and Instagram, which simplifies the process of building an eCommerce outlet on the world's most used digital platform.
That will give every business the chance to quickly build their own digital storefront, with helpful, familiar presentation options and streamlined payment tools, fueling a new wave of online business.
For Facebook, this has been years in the making, with Shops essentially being an extension of its Marketplace offering, giving more businesses the chance to connect with buyers in-stream. But Shops is also much more than that.
2️⃣ Instagram
Instagram has become the next golden goose 🦢 for Facebook, and the integration of new eCommerce tools looks set to take its earnings potential into a new stratosphere. Some have suggested that the additions of IGTV, Reels and shopping have all started to clutter what was once a simple app focused on photography 📷
In-stream shopping 🛒
eCommerce is obviously the big focus for Instagram, with a new Shop tab and dedicated features aligned with facilitating more immediate purchase behavior in response to IG posts.
Instagram will look to continue the development of its shopping tools in order to further encourage habitual shopping behavior - expect Instagram to add advanced one-click purchasing, new AR try-on tools, building on its existing AR shopping options (and potentially linked into Facebook's AR glasses 👓), and video tags for products, providing more ways for businesses and creators to facilitate direct buying.
Instagram is already where many people go to discover new products and brands, and its advanced shopping options could open up a whole range of new possibilities.
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References:
Andrew Hutchinson, Nov. 30, 2020, Social Media Today, 25 Predictions for Social Media Marketing in 2021
