What’s Trending in 2018 Social Media And What it Means For Your Workplace

It’s about that time again, time where we try to sneak a peek into the future and predict what’s going to be popular in social media for businesses and workplaces next year. Here are the top three trends that keep popping up, and are sure to cross your radar in the new year.

Video Climbs the Social Media Ranks

Sorry to say, but you can no longer avoid video in your social media marketing. Consumers expect it, and they actively engage more with recorded video content than two dimensional posts. In fact, 43% of people want to see more video content from marketers on social media. You hear that? The majority actually want to see these types of posts, that’s a big win!

So, what exactly should you be recording? Start small. If you run a coworking space, try creating a short video guiding viewers through your space, or a peak at some of your available offices. If you run social pages for a smaller organization, try featuring employees at your office with one-minute bio videos each month. Run your own facilities management team? Do a brief how-to video teaching viewers how to winter-proof their office entrances or how to reduce AC usage during the summer. Your videos don’t need to be expensive or complicated to produce, they just need to entertain or teach and showcase your organization’s personality.

Generation Z’s Social Media Takeover

It may seem as though you just mastered how to market your workplace to millennials, but here comes generation z. This group of youngsters is turning 22 this year, which means they’re going to be looking for corporate jobs – hopefully at your organization. How can you attract them? By being active where they are, including on social media.

Generation z enjoys sharing their life with friends more often than any generation before them. Even though Snapchat is slowing losing popularity, its most popular with this group.

Nearly 90% of generation z reported they use Snapchat and Instagram Stories, while 80% said they are active on Facebook. This group doesn’t utilize LinkedIn just yet, but is anticipated to start using the site once they begin to enter the workforce. What type of content are they most likely to pay attention to? You guessed it, video. Generation z stated this was their main trigger, including “real stories and day-in-the-life” or “behind-the-scenes”. Want to peak their interest? Try Increasing video posts and possibly doing a day-in-the-life of a typical employee at your workspace or behind-the-scenes at the office.

Advancing AI in Social Media Messaging

Have you ever have ordered an item online, and received a Facebook Messenger ding confirming your purchase? A day later, you may have received another message confirming your item had shipped, and a final when that shipment was delivered. This was a classic example of a company using social media direct messaging to enhance your customer experience. While this type of AI interaction may seem complicated, and reserved for large corporations, its actually easier to use than most people think. Here’s a great how-to detailing how to create a simple chat bot on your workplace’s Facebook page.

If creating or managing a social media messenger application is too much for your workplace to manage, try installing a simple automated response. This way if someone messages your page, they will receive an immediate automated reply, assuring them your received their inquiry, giving you time to reach out personally later that day.

Above all, while predicting trends is fun and often exciting- it may not align with what your workplace needs to focus on when it comes to reaching your audience on social. Each audience is different, and if you’re seeing results with your current efforts, by all means don’t throw them to the wayside in favor of the “predicted trends”. It’s always a good idea to keep doing what’s working, and experiment with new tactics to see if you get any traction. This way, you’ll know if it’s worth investing additional resources to that new method. For example, if you’ve posted a few videos on your workplace Facebook page, but they haven’t received many views, it might not be in your best interest to spend thousands of your marketing dollars to develop new video content even though it’s trending. Do what works best, try a few new things, and remember to keep your active audience your first priority. Happy posting in 2018!