Social media is now a lot more than just a way to stay in touch with friends and peers. Social media’s journey from the days where it was used to share photos and chats to its present avatar of being the marketing influencer, is quite quick and intensive. Gen-X and most other users too are relying on social media for making their purchase options.
Here are some of the unmissable trends of social media marketing in China (adstochina.westwin.com/social_media_marketing) that you should not ignore:
Influencer marketing
Users are more willing to purchase when the product is being advertised by influencers. That said, influencers are also growing every day on social media channels and brands are in constant search of influencers who can take their brands closer to the audience. Reports suggest that customers are trusting influencers in choosing their purchases. Thus, influencer marketing is bound to see an increase in the coming future.
Video marketing
Videos convey the message of the brand engagingly and a short period. Keeping in mind that the attention span of the users is dipping day by day, videos turn out to be an effective medium to take the brand into the customers compared to text-rich content. Videos also make it easy to ask questions, create curiosity in users, and take their feedback in the form of comments.
Personalized ads
Users are increasingly ready to share their data to see ads that suit their tastes and needs. This trend projects a positive scope for an increase in personalized ads where companies can easily target their intended customers, thus making the obtaining the best of ROI.
Stories
Stories, the new features of most social media channels, that are introduced as a competition to Instagram’s initiative, are now in vogue. Their short life creates a sense of fear of missing out (FOMO) in the users and thus make the best choice to grab their attention towards the brand. Stories are crisp versions of videos and most users agreed that they research a brand and its products when they watch a related story or video.
Chatbots
Chatbots are getting accepted by a growing number of users than before. The reason being they are turning smarter day by day in understanding and offering solutions to customers’ needs. Companies are also ready to invest in chatbots due to the reason that they tend to offer a cost-effective solution for answering to customers’ queries 24×7 as compared to human counterparts who have their limitations.
Augmented reality
Shopping decisions are now more based on augmented reality. Customers want to try out the product virtually before they finally purchase. This is boosting the introduction of AR technology on social media platforms. Experts predict this trend will just increase more in the coming years.
Social commerce
The marriage of social media and e-commerce is now the latest trend. Users are happy to purchase straight from their social media accounts with just a few clicks. This is boosting social commerce more than ever before. Hence, more and more brands are adding social commerce features to their Instagram and Facebook pages lately.
Probable dip in social media population
While all the above are great news for businesses, there is another trend that has to be considered with attention. Social media users are increasingly tending towards digital detox. They believe that social media is influencing their lives away beyond that expected and they are getting addicted to it. Some users believe that social media is impacting their mental health and happiness levels. Thus, they are mercilessly deleting their accounts as well as apps from their smartphones. This trend, too, is projected to see growth in the coming years.
Conclusion
Social media marketing is a cost-effective and impact making way for brands to boost their online presence as well as business. Influencers and videos are making their mark in impacting customer’s purchase preferences. Stories and personalized ads are in their infancy and have immense scope to affect customer’s thought processes. On the other hand, social media users are also preferring to stay away from digital life due to various reasons. Thus, companies that are keen on social media marketing in China should consider all the aspects and plan their marketing strategies accordingly.