MARKETING 2019marketingmag.com.au88 MARKETING LENS: SOCIAL MEDIA PREDICTIONS
Five social media trends
you need to know about
in 2019
or the past three years, I’ve been honoured to
write this piece and it turns out that I’ve been
pretty accurate thus far. In order to come up
with these trends, I research and genuinely
immerse myself in all things digital, all
year. Gathering stats, case studies, facts and fi gures, I’ve
identifi ed the hot ticket items that 2019 will bring.1
STAYING VERTICAL
Pinterest started it, Snapchat took it mainstream,
Stories and IGTV have fi rmly cemented it. Consumers
are wedded to it, but marketers still lag behind the rise of
vertical video. Vertical is the only kind of content worth
viewing, according to Instagram’s own research, which
shows 70 percent of Millennials don’t and won’t rotate
the screen. It makes sense when smartphone viewing
is the default. YouTube has recognised that 70 percent
of its views are on mobile and has recently introduced
responsive vertical ads. The game-changer for vertical
video views, Instagram’s video viewing is up 80 percent
year on year. If you want to meet market demand, create
fl exible format videos and images (9:16 or square) with
captions. Start with a bang to hook your audience and
inject emotion into the storyline to make them care –
and share.2
NANO INFLUENCERS
Infl uencer marketing has all but replaced traditional
forms of digital advertising; because personalised,
engaging content better sells a product. Instagram wins the
platform wars – Harvard Business Review reports that 80
percent of brands consider Instagram their main platform
for brand collaborations. Seventy percent of viewers
would rather learn about products through authentic
content than traditional advertising. The average rate of
engagement for infl uencer produced content is 5.7 percent,while content generated by brands is only three percent.
While 2018 was the year of the micro infl uencer, 2019
will see the rise of the nano infl uencer as brands seek to
build deeper engagements with the right kind of friends
and followers. Nano infl uencers are defi ned as having
100 to 10,000 followers. They’re ordinary digital citizens
with clout. What they lack in followers, they make up in
intimacy with their audience. There are many out there
posting on every topic imaginable. They’re cutting through
the clutter and successfully building trust, engagement
and empathy with fans. According to the New York Times,
brands are in hot pursuit. It’s their lack of fame that makes
them so approachable, infl uential and inexpensive. They’re
easy to work with, will toe the company line and are proven
to deliver. Win/win/win!3
INFLUENCERS 3.0 – MEMES AND CGI
As infl uencer marketing gets more sophisticated,
marketers are looking to more creative ways of delivering
the message. Enter memes and (literally) unreal
infl uencers.
Memes
Do you know Brown Cardigan? Into ScouseBarbieX?
These are just two of the underutilised meme communities
into which advertisers are itching to get their ads. Meme
communities share a common theme – often ironic or
humorous – and consistently break through the noise to
go viral. Short videos or photos accompanied by clever
copy that captures the zeitgeist are the big winners.
Brands beware: meme marketing is hard to get right. And
these communities know their worth, with many making
their accounts private to protect against copycats happy
to sell out.
CGI/unreal infl uencers
Have you met Lil Miquela? Her frenemy Bermuda? Their
friend Blawko? With incredible back stories and hundredsAmaury Tréguer
is head of social and
content at The Haus.