A lot has changed over the last year when it comes to social media and online marketing. While some trends were short lived fads, others took the online global community by storm and are still going strong into the New Year. Keeping up with these changes is key to making a strong impression with online consumers in 2019.
Here’s a quick look at the five biggest social media trends to catch on in 2018.
Videos Reign Supreme
If current trends hold, in a few short years most internet users will consume the vast majority of their internet content in video form. According to networking giant Cisco, by 2022 as much as 82% of internet traffic around the world will be ascribed to video content-related traffic. Seventeen percent of internet traffic will be attributed to live video content. Advertisers and businesses can hop on this trend by investing more resources into creating more video content and incorporating it into their marketing campaigns.
Paid Ads
Paying for ad space on social media sites is a fundamental part of online marketing at this point. Reaching target audiences through social media offers a lot of positives including making a direct connection with users in a way that is most convenient to them.
A quick scroll through your feed on Facebook or even Reddit will reveal plenty of ads structured like regular posts. Social media sites make it dead simple for advertisers to lock in one of these coveted spots by giving businesses access to ad creation tools and features like “boosting” right in their dashboards.
Instagram Stories
Instagram’s Stories and similar short video clip features on other social platforms are now fully integrated into our social media habits. Stories have a few benefits going for them, but the biggest one is their short length. Viewers can consume content in just a matter of seconds.
To take full advantage of Stories, businesses must offer valuable content. Clips that share tips, recipes, hacks, facts and otherwise meaningful content will gain more views. High-quality visuals and graphics are also a must for widespread success.
Filters and Augmented Reality
Augmented Reality (AR) has been around since the mid-‘90s, it but hasn’t gained true mainstream popularity until recently. With the huge success of Pokémon GO, Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery, and filters and stickers, we have entered a new era of AR enhancements. There are many levels to AR technology to play around with even though the current market is revolves around mobile devices. The attraction of AR is ultimately rooted in giving users the power to add something new to their current reality. Some businesses can go the L’Oréal route by creating AR apps that allow shoppers to test out their products, while others will find more success with creating AR game and activity apps.
Influencer Partnerships
As the fastest growing marketing trend, influencer partnerships have become a huge boon for small and mid-tier businesses. Influencers are typically entertainers and content creators who have the attention of a loyal following. A successful partnership with an influencer requires a natural fit between a business and its product with the influencer’s niche. In order track well with audiences, the brand or product on offer must offer real, practical value.
Will these hot social media trends carry forward into 2019? Only time will tell. Stay tuned to this space learn more about social media trends and marketing your business online!
Work-Life Balance: lately an over-used phrase that is used to explain that human beings require a stability or an equilibrium between work and their personal life. In the media, work-life balance has been portrayed as an impossible notion – workers need to be forever accessible, connected to their work for fear of losing their jobs or their clients.
In a Harvard Business School survey, it has been noted that 94% of workers reported that they worked more than 50 hours per week and nearly half said that they worked closer to 65 hours per week. The media goes on to talk about how stress and mental health issues are also arising out of the lack of work-life balance which consequently affects happiness, relationships and health.
When we turn our heads to the balancing factor in work-life balance, we are encouraged to spend time with our children, husbands, friends and of course, to practice “me” time; go to the gym, go for a walk, get a manicure, practice yoga, treat yourself to a day at the spa…and this is done with the intention that we don’t burn out.
As a wife, mother and business-owner, I often revisit this notion of work-life balance – what does it mean to me specifically and my thoughts on this overused, and in my opinion misunderstood phrase.
“Work” Has an Inherent Negative Connotation
For whatever reason, whenever used, “work” comes with a negative implication suggesting that individuals require the “life” aspect as a means to balance their “work” life. Yes, I agree it is important to spend time with your loved ones, to break away from your computer or your phone and to enjoy your surroundings. That is a practice that needs to be embedded in our everyday life…and not just as a means to balance work and life; but as a means to practice healthy habits. We are all connected to our screens, to emails and iMessages and as a result, we miss out.
When talking specifically about taking time for yourself as a way to achieve a healthy work-life balance, I have to ask: could it be possible that “work life” provides a healthy balance to one’s personal life?
As a mom of two young children, here is what evenings and weekends look like: cooking, cleaning, grocery shopping, changing diapers, bottle feeding my youngest, meal preparation for my eldest, baths, approximately 2-3 outfit changes daily, nap times, activities and then about a 1-2 hour bed time fiasco involving “no”, “more water”, “another story”, “cuddle more”… and the list goes on.
When Sunday night rolls around, Monday morning isn’t looking so bad. I love my children with all of my heart, but let’s be honest – being a parent is a job in itself…sometimes two!
…this leads me to my next point.
It Takes a Village
For women who have children and also work and contribute to a two-income household (even moreso for single mothers – all the power to you!), there is an inherent desire to provide for the family, not to miss out on important events, but also to practice that “me” time – fitness, quiet time, whatever it may be. Rarely do articles mention what exactly needs to be in place in order to accomplish this.
In our home, my husband is beyond helpful, our nanny is god-sent, our parents play a vital role, half-day nursery is essential and time management is a MUST. Needless to say, there must be a method to the madness… we work hard to play an integral part of our family and we both value our work life, as well as our personal life.
Healthy Habits
More so than a push to practice a healthy work-life balance, I would stress that it is important to set healthy boundaries and implement healthy habits in your life – in whatever way works best for you.
Here are some of my top tips:
Set boundaries between work time and personal time – it is OK to disconnect
You are allowed to put family first
You are ALSO allowed to prioritize your work as well
Time block
Take time for your relationships – friendships, marriages, etc.
Consider what success looks like in your work life, personal life as well as your relationships?
Identify what specifically is important to you and take the time to practice that – whether it be a work objective or personal objective
…last but not least… try to find a job that doesn’t feel like WORK! When you truly love what you do, it doesn’t!
