AllThingsD.com has released its "Top Five Social Media Predictions for 2013" and you may be surprised at what’s included. Here are the highlights:
Measuring ROI – How do "likes" translate into dollars? It’s the age-old question in social media, and with marketing budgets continuing to shrink, it’s one that isn’t going away anytime soon.
Think Visual – Pinterest saw an unprecedented growth this year, and Facebook’s timeline layout followed suit with a distinct focus on visual content. Expect this trend to continue.
Mobile Optimization – With everyone browsing on different platforms including phones and tablets, text heavy content is less desirable while visual content and small links make the online experience easily digestible.
Brand Journalism – If you’re not familiar with the term, now is the time to read up. Think of brand journalism as a corporate blog with more of an industry-focused purpose versus a brand-focused purpose. In 2013, more brands will create and publish their own content for a wider variety of audiences.
Social Advertising – Thanks to extreme targeting and the ability to measure ROI, brands will continue to push advertising dollars into placements on social media sites.