5 Social Media Trends You Need to Know
5 Social Media Trends You Need to Know
There is no denying the presence of social media in our daily lives. With access to the world, just a click away, social media is one of the most powerful tools used to reach and connect with your customers.
There is a radical shift happening in social standards as consumers now expect to be treated as individuals – seeking unique experiences. The resurgence of social media’s roots as being personal, honest, and genuine, has taken back control of what the foundation of social media was built upon.
As property owners/managers, an important aspect of your business is knowing how to offer travelers brief, hyper-relevant, personalized content that will connect with their own unique experience. One of the best ways to do this is through the efforts of social media. To best ensure you’re offering value to your guests, it is important to take note of these emerging social media trends you need to know.
Tell your story
Pioneered by Snapchat, the quick temporary slideshows named Stories has quickly spread into the life-blood of other social media platforms. With Instagram’s 2018 updates to Stories, Facebook’s addition of Stories to personal accounts, Pages, Messenger, and Group, and both WhatsApp (also owned by Facebook) and YouTube adding story-like features to their platforms, it is clear this concept is here to stay.
Stories are a great way to build a relationship and tell your property’s story – the way you want it to be told. Stories also create opportunities to offer discount codes or limited-time booking promotions by creating a behind-the-scenes story of your property. Plus, businesses can receive direct input from followers with Instagram’s interactive poll sticker. These are just some of the benefits of incorporating stories into your social media marketing strategy.
From public to private
With the rise of personalization so has come the rise of messaging apps. According to We Are Social and Hootsuite’s 2018 Q3 Global Digital Statshot, “across the board, users are spending more time on messaging apps and less time-sharing news on social.” This apparent shift from public to private space has a significant impact on consumer expectations.
As an opt-in experience, private messaging can be one of the best ways to connect with your customers and provide them with more personalized customer experience. With this close connection, it is vital that you offer up highly relevant and more personalized content.
Post organic post
Gone are the days of strictly organic reach with social media. If you haven’t already noticed, we are in the pay-to-play era where marketers are increasing their social ad budgets and creating more ads than ever before. Marketers know that the News Feed is paid, and organic posts are the upside to your social media efforts.
Don’t know where to start? Begin by identifying your organic posts that are performing well and amplify those with Facebook or Instagram ads (or your preferred platform).
With the ad space growing, particularly on Facebook and Instagram, it is also essential to make sure you are targeting the right guests with an ad that stands out from the crowd. Your ad needs to be highly engaging, visually appealing, and relevant to the audience you are serving them up to.
Video is king
All hail the phrase, “content is king” with video emerging as the clear ruler in the content court. While video isn’t necessarily new, it has quickly emerged as the top content piece every business should incorporate into their social media strategy. With 81% of internet traffic in 2020 being video, the reality is businesses can’t afford to do video.
While a professional videographer may not be one of the many hats you wear as a property owner/manager, that can’t be the reason for not creating an engaging video. With modern technology, producing a quick one-minute video can easily be done simply with your phone in hand. Guests aren’t expecting perfection when it comes to video, so don’t hesitate and push play today!
Be authentic
In this digital world, it still pays to be human. More and more, consumers gravitate towards brands that come across “more human” and natural. Show your authenticity by being honest and transparent. Take ownership when something goes wrong or share business updates/changes, etc.
Your followers can spot inauthenticity immediately, so don’t waste any time being anything other than yourself!
Understanding these shifts in social media behavior will help guide you through the maze of this ever-changing world and will help you connect with your customer on an entirely new level.