2017 Social Media Watch

As social media and technology takes center stage in consumers lifestyle, here are some of our predictions for 2017!

Video takes center stage

With more adoption as well as expansion of video formats to Live and 360, social platforms are finding revenue opportunities. News on Facebook potentially introducing ads in between videos and sharing revenue with the content creators suggest that they are looking to go head-on with YouTube in providing options to the YouTubers to also create for Facebook.

YouTube has not been sitting idle either and look to expand YouTube Red (a paid streaming subscription) to new markets which provides us with an insight on the value of original content. However, Netflix which seems to be doing well with Netflix Originals is being questioned whether the investment in producing original content will offset its negative cash flow situation in the near future.

Video is the clear winner, making the platforms compete to make it a priority.

Data mining for the win

Although Twitter seems to be fading, this micro blogging platform is currently one of the major platforms that is fueling data into the social listening tools that is so valued for understanding the online conversations. While Facebook does provide aggregated data at the moment, Twitter provides information for deep analysis of conversations as well as audiences.

85% of social media updates are done by enthusiasts who post more than 5 times a week, which only constitutes about 29% of the social user base which might not be reflective of a brand’s consumer base. This suggests that social listening should be treated as a conversation starter which would help tailor the analysis of customer data owned by the brand to make business decisions.

Rise in visual content has provided a need for data mining of these various formats: images, videos, and voice. Development in this field has expanded from natural language processing to cognitive analysis and image analysis and we suspect more development in 2017. Which also means that there are opportunities to analyse various other data such as customer service call center data.

Data mining tech is the hero that will allow existing data to be utilized.

Trend of minimalist app design

Limited real estate, caused by the shift to mobile first behaviors, asks for apps with minimalist design resulting in obscure features. It is argued that these obscure features in fact create a more engaging experience as users discuss how tos with peers. At the same time, apps are being optimized to make it easier for users to find content. What then is more valuable: clean design or intuitive features? In fact our sense of intuitiveness is changing to accept these obscure features as intuitive features.

Minimalist design is sweeping the social apps clean.

 Immerse in experiences

Virtual reality and augmented reality technology will be implemented across social media apps in 2017. We see interest in audiences’ willingness to purchase VR gear which shows potential to grow VR experiences on Facebook 360 and YouTube 360 videos.

The popularity of Snapchat AR filters cannot be ignored, which has led Facebook to introduce filters on Live videos and now on Facebook stories which is being tested in Ireland. Snapchat however, seems to be leading this space of immersive experiences with ‘Spectacles’ setting benchmarks for AR and VR with additional opportunities to one up the rest of the platforms. We have yet to see the launch and adoption of ‘Spectacles’ in Malaysia.

Brands seek opportunities to cut through the content clutter by utilizing immersive tech.

 Artificial intelligence, your shopping buddy

The key to commerce is to provide a seamless experience along the customer journey. More and more people are making e-commerce purchases through Wechat in China. Pinterest while has owned the space of inspiration, has also provided options to purchase using the “Buy it” button. Facebook uses different ad formats to send traffic to the e-commerce sites as well.

Brands who have the opportunity to engage with audiences one-on-one on social platforms are increasingly using Facebook Messenger incorporated with chat-bots to provide this seamless experience to convert customers using AI. Twitter has also put forth their AI proposal of using chat-bots via direct messages.

Social commerce will be dependent on artificial intelligence to hold the hands of potential customers leading them to convert.

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