2020 has been a challenging year for everyone. Nearly 60% of businesses closed down during the pandemic. If you're planning to survive in 2021, you're going to have to bring your A-game to the table.
In today's economic times, brand owners are looking for cost-effective ways to boost their business. What’s the easiest way to engage and retain your customers as well as generate more traffic, leads, and revenue?
No, this is not a trick question. And no, you don’t need a magic spell to make all this happen at the same time.
All it takes is being market-savvy and using the right techniques to get the right results. 2021 will be the year of survival of the fittest. So there’s no time to double guess. You need to get your digital marketing strategies spot on.
Social Media To The Rescue
Reports show that by July 2020, there were 3.96 billion social media users (an increase by more than 10% from last year). And ever since the pandemic settled rather comfortably into our lives, people are spending more time on social media -the average time now is 2 hours 22 minutes. However, the time varies considerably depending upon the age of the users.
In an effort to reach these audiences and survive COVID-19, as a digital marketer, you need to leverage your marketing strategy on social media and focus on improving conversions here.
Is It The Right Time To Be Concentrating On Social Media Marketing?
If you’re looking for a one-word answer, then that’s yes.
The pandemic is producing a unique situation where more and more people are online. This is creating the ideal opportunity to re-engage with current customers and reach out to new audiences. And since a majority of them will be active on social media platforms, this is where you need to be.
More importantly, significant companies are investing in social media marketing. So you can’t afford to be left behind. The CMO Survey showed that 274 top marketers are allocating more of their marketing budgets to social media. The report states that spending grew from 13.3% of total marketing budgets in February to 23.2% in June. And that’s a significant increase within a very short amount of time.
Interestingly, despite the easing of lockdowns, digital habits that customers developed during the initial coronavirus wave still exist. It appears that this will continue well into 2021.
So What Should Marketers Focus On?
COVID-19 has made businesses realize the extreme importance of digital marketing. While SEO and email marketing (two major components of digital marketing) remain just as essential, social media is picking up a great deal of traction.
Entrepreneurs can use social media for a variety of reasons.
As you can see, brand awareness and customer retention are at the top of the list. Business owners realize that in order to survive 2021, they’re going to have to invest in branding as well as building relationships with their customers and influencers.
Social media is a robust platform that has substantial potential. While many companies still limit it to a channel for promoting and advertising, it’s also an excellent place for collaborations and relationship building.
As we head into the next year, you can further enhance its offerings by planning the right course of action. Ideally, you need to take on a holistic approach and reach customers at every touchpoint.
Let's take a look at some ways you can rethink your current SMM strategy and get the best bang for your buck.
Social Media Marketing Trends In 2021 And Beyond
1. Increased ecommerce activity
Data from Contentsquare shows that overall ecommerce transactions increased by almost 20% in July from the beginning of the year, while conversion rates rose by nearly 22% during this same period. Businesses foresee that this trend will continue as online shopping activities are still a preferred option.
Marketers are turning to social media to recoup the losses incurred in the wake of the pandemic. Not only is it a great way of reducing marketing costs but also an easy way of reaching a broader target audience.
As one of the largest marketplaces, it helps deliver short-term ROI through targeted marketing strategies while building brand image and loyalty through long-term strategies. But to get the most out of social selling, you need to reach and interact with the right target audience. Present your brand in front of people that are more likely to be interested in buying your products and services.
By enhancing customer experiences, you can improve customer relationships. It begins by understanding customer behavior. With the help of analytics and social listening tools, you can gather relevant information about your customers and your brand.
More importantly, you may even be able to grow your business. You could introduce new products that are pertinent to your target audience and help resolve their problems. Or you may even be able to expand your reach, importing and exporting to companies around the world.
2. More focus on influencer marketing
Over the past decade, social media has developed into a platform where people can easily offer or find advice and recommendations. That’s why businesses are increasingly using customers as brand advocates.
And this is becoming more beneficial in pandemic conditions as people are shopping online. That means they will be turning to online reviews, recommendations, user-generated content, and advice before making a decision. So influencer marketing is bound to take off.
According to the Digital Marketing Institute, 86% of women use social media for discovering purchasing advice. On the other hand, 70% of teens trust influencers more than celebrities. And that’s why 86% of marketers are paying attention to influencer marketing. After all, a brand backed by people's voices that customer’s value simply holds more weight than traditional ads.
It’s high time you allocate funds for your influencer marketing campaign. Even if you have a restricted budget, consider incorporating micro- or nano-influencers. Not only are they a cost-effective solution, but because of their niche-specific influence, they tend to offer higher levels of customization and a stronger audience engagement.
However, any influencer, big or small, can effectively sway customers to your brand by:
- Engaging better with the target audience
- Increasing brand awareness
- Enhancing interactions between the brand and consumers
- Increasing consumer trust and confidence in a brand, product, or service.
- Influencing purchasing decisions of consumers
- Boosting conversions
To ensure you’re singing on the right person, do your due diligence. Utilize influencer marketing tools to identify the perfect ones for your niche. Also, initially consider short-term agreements to see whether you are harnessing expected results.
3. Incorporation of emerging technologies
Due to social distancing and sanitization issues, shopping physically remains a source of concern. But Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality are helping out considerably. Because they support ‘in the moment’ shopping experiences, these trends are not going away any time soon.
In fact, because consumers find these technologies more engaging, they’re becoming quite popular on social media. At the moment, AR has picked up more traction than VR.
Snapchat pioneered the AR revolution on social media with its lenses and filters. Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and others have been quick to follow suit. But more than entertainment, AR is helping to promote ecommerce on social media.
An expected 43.7 million people will use social AR at least once a month. Prominent use cases are thriving in the fashion industry. Overlays augment the user’s real-world environment, allowing potential customers to try on makeup, accessories, clothes, shoes, and whatnot virtually. But this is only the tip of the iceberg.
By bringing the showroom into your home, brands know it’s the perfect way for them to improve conversions.
VR, on the other hand, is still evolving. Social platforms for VR, such as XRSPACE and Altspace, among countless others, are quickly picking up momentum. VR allows people to connect on an entirely new level.
VR creates an immersive experience, blurring the lines between digital and physical worlds- a suitable solution for pandemic conditions. And because VR enhances video content, there is a great deal of potential for live streaming. This takes us to the next point.
4. Live streaming
As marketers, we all know how effective videos are in digital marketing. Not only are they more engaging, but it’s the preferred choice of consumers- 80% favor video content. So by uploading them on your social media channel, you’re bound to receive a lot more traffic and boost conversion rates.
Live streaming is a recent trend that has gained popularity with consumers, especially over reading blog posts. Facebook and Instagram are already using it. And much like Stories that are available for 24 hours on both platforms, live streaming also triggers FOMO. Because users know the content won't be repeated, they are eager to watch it.
Live streaming is a trend that will likely carry over into marketing strategies for years to come. It’s time you brought it on board as well. It can help maximize your reach and generate new leads.
To create a flawless live stream:
- Use attractive titles to draw in more potential viewers
- Keep the setup simple
- Have backup equipment
- Start live streaming on multiple social media channels
- Go live at a regular time to help build a steady following
5. Get more conversational
Humans, by nature, crave social interactions. But COVID-19 is making this somewhat difficult. Instead, consumers are searching out brands that interact with them on a personal level.
The good news is that, according to Sprout Social, 76% claim that they will buy from a brand they feel more connected to. For brand owners, this means engaging with prospects in a conversational setting.
And social media live chat can significantly help. It allows brands to communicate with customers in real-time, especially when they want instant answers. Not only will this trend boost the growth of your business, but it’ll also improve engagement and increase the chances of repeat interactions.
38% of customers claimed they purchased due to a good live chat session. More importantly, data by Ambassador states that 71% would recommend a brand that offers a positive experience on social media to others. Perfecting live chat options can increase conversions and ROI.
6. Invest in social media ads
By investing in social media advertising, you’ll make sure people take more notice of your brand. Since every platform offers the option to create ads or promote content, you have the chance to acquire higher visibility, raise brand awareness, drive more traffic, and increase conversions.
Moreover, segmenting the target audience and customizing ads to make your offers more relevant is a tried and tested strategy. Lexus personalized its 2014 marketing campaign on Facebook. It was able to reach over 11M unique Facebook users using different versions of the video ad based on user demographics, location, likes, and interests. The result- engagement increased by an impressive 1678%.
At the end of the day, it all comes down to knowing how to get the most of the platform you are on. And social media advertising is one such feature that will thrive in 2021.
Closing Note:
Implementing any trend that has the potential to increase conversions is only one side of the story. You need to look at the bigger picture.
If your focus is on increasing conversions, it’s a given that you must streamline the checkout and payment process. How smooth is your checkout? Do you offer multiple online payment options?
Final Thoughts
People’s behaviors are evolving. At the end of 2019, I witnessed an incredible hype for technological trends that would prevail as we entered the new decade. But at that time, no one knew COVID-19 would press the reset button on our lives.
As we brace for the full force of the pandemic and its repercussions, marketers are left scrambling to discover innovative ways to deal with the new normal.
At the moment, SMM is a light at the end of the tunnel. Renowned as a strategy with techniques that have a greater influence and lower cost, entrepreneurs are keen to strive forward on this platform. The critical question now is,
Are you headed in the right direction?
