The way brands and consumers are utilising social is constantly evolving at a rapid rate; from the content we create, to the way we communicate. Brands now must work harder than ever to make use of the latest innovation and formats, by producing thumb-stopping content to acquire new customers.
Fast-growing channels and emerging placements
TikTok will grow its UK user base by 75.2% this year, reaching 8.5 million users, after triple-digit growth last year. The video-led channel that first established itself among a teen audience, is now known for influencing real-world trends and habits across a much broader audience (almost 30% of users are in the 20-29 age bracket and 16% between 30-39). Brands have begun to piggy-back off these trends, adding their own personality, and increasing their share of voice.
We’re also seeing networking apps such as WhatsApp and Messenger growing due to the need for instant responses and staying connected. Cultural shifts such as the COVID-19 pandemic have pushed this further as families and friends try to stay in touch. This type of networking has also resulted in the development of AI and Messenger bots, transforming the customer service landscape completely for brands.
The growing popularity of Stories has been taken to next level with LinkedIn recently launching Stories on their platform. Stories are growing 15x faster than feeds and the new tool will provide ‘lightweight conversations related to your work-life‘. Facebook revealed that Stories are on track to overtake the news feed as the primary surface for social media engagement and 64% of marketers either already have incorporated Instagram Stories into their strategies.
Aside from Stories, Facebook is constantly looking for ways to keep users within the app – introducing polls, gifs, the ability to go live with other accounts, and so much more.
Whilst all of the above is good to know, brands need to understand where their audience are and how best to engage with them. They need to take advantage of the latest tech and formats that are right for their industry and leverage them to make a difference in the busy world of social.
Changes to the algorithms
Whilst brands are learning about what works and what does not, so are the social media giants.
Facebook’s renowned 20% text rule (that penalises adverts through limited or no reach if text within an advert exceeds 20% of the total frame) has recently been discarded. Whilst these changes are made we however brands can choose whether to follow them or not. Our opinion? Keep text succinct, short, and most importantly, to the point. As most users only digest the creative, it’s important that it’s clear what the advert is about without being too text heavy and putting users off.
Our opinion
- Changes within the digital space are constantly evolving and growing. We however believe there are two fundamental parts in creating good content that are timeless.
- The first is knowing your audience – who they are, the channels they’re native to, and how they digest content.
- The second half of good content comes from great creative ideas. Using the latest innovation and brilliant ideas to tap into our audiences and create great thumb-stopping content.
That’s why we developed Customerology™, our own, proven, methodology. Customerology™ maps out core consumer insights to create engaging content to maximise performance and drive a strong ROI.
If you’re looking to produce content that’s talked about online and offline, get in touch today: Contact us today or book one of our bespoke Transformation Sprints to start accelerating your brand now.
