Take a look at what we believe are the key social media marketing trends for 2020 that marketers need to be aware of in order to ensure their marketing strategy is up-to-date and as effective as possible.

Social media has now become synonymous with digital marketing, going hand-in-hand with most – if not all – digital campaigns. However, social media is far from static and what worked a few months ago may not get you the same good results now. Habits change, platforms evolve, and new platforms come into existence. All of this influences how people use and react to social media marketing, as well as how marketers are able to reach their audience.

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It is more important than ever before for marketers to understand and stay ahead of the curve when it comes to social media. Doing so ensures you have the right tools at your disposal, an up-to-date strategy,…

Google adding warning badge to slow sites, Facebook's new fundraising tools, influencers and big brands lacking credibility, traditional TV ad spend declining and Instagram's new feature takes on TikTok

Following the addition of a new Speed Report in Google Search Console, Google has announced that it is set to start adding warning badges to sites with slow load speeds as a signal to users. This could ultimately lead to other 'badges' rewarding sites that offer good experiences. Facebook is aiming to make donating and fundraising on its platforms easier ahead of the holiday season by releasing several new tools. A new report has found that consumers don't believe that big brands or social media influencers have any credibility and that they support social issues purely for profit. New data reveals that spend on traditional TV advertising is declining with more people switching to streaming services. However, this could provide some…

Omnichannel is the preferred marketing method, Facebook sees app usage decline, Instagram testing new Stories notification list, Pinterest launches Mobile Ad Tools and Facebook reaches $5 billion data privacy agreement

Facebook has had a bit of a busy week, with internal research looking at its app's decline going public and the $5 billion US Justice Department fine being confirmed. On top of this, the platform has also agreed to a raft of new data privacy measures with the FTC. In other news, research has revealed that consumers from all generations prefer an omnichannel experience rather than just a traditional or purely digital approach. Instagram is reportedly testing a new type of notification list for Stories, which could be a sign that new features are on the horizon. Pinterest has also launched new features, with its latest ad tools allowing brands to create advertising campaigns on the go via mobile devices for the first time. Read…

A record-breaking year for digital advertising as mobile and video dominate revenue in the US

The IAB’s internet advertising revenue report is a survey commissioned by the IAB and conducted independently by PricewaterhouseCoopers. It’s released in full twice a year and provides an overview of digital revenue performance and the influencing factors. Although this report is from the US, many of the trends provide a strong indication of the direction digital advertising is taking in other western countries, including the UK. The 2018 report has revealed some interesting insights, most notably in relation to desktop vs. mobile, formats and market share by media. [si_guide_block id="98899" title="Download our Individual Member Resource – Paid media and digital advertising playbook" description="This paid media planning guide will provide marketers with a structured approach to paid media planning to help exploit these opportunities while managing the risks."/] The report contains a lot of information so…

Social video shares are king, making video one of the most powerful marketing tools in your arsenal

In case you’re not yet convinced how dominant video is on the internet landscape, here’s some compelling data. According to 2017 Cisco projections, online videos will comprise more than 80% of all consumer internet traffic by 2021. The internet has officially become a watching, rather than reading, medium. The implication: to stay on the forefront of this video binging, you need to become a strategic producer of videos for your brand. You also need to post them where your prospects’ gaze and attention will increasingly be focused: social TV apps. [si_guide_block id="23343" title="Download our Individual Member Resource – Video and YouTube marketing guide" description="Our guide shows you how to review the full opportunities from video marketing whether you are a company looking to integrate video marketing more into your campaigns or a…

What exactly are shoppable posts and how to get your product into the "explore" section?

Instagram has transformed from your ordinary social network into a powerful marketing tool within a couple of years. Every day business owners are coming up with new and creative ways to reach their target audience and boost sales while maintaining the entertaining tone of the platform. With 800 million active users during 2017, according to CNBC, Instagram is becoming one of the most popular social networks in the world. Such an inflow of users creates an incredibly attractive pool of potential customers for those savvy businesses that know how to wrap their head around innovation. [si_guide_block id="35932" title="Smarter Instagram marketing guide" description="Our guide to smarter Instagram marketing will help you create an integrated social media marketing strategy that will increase engagement to boost leads and sales."/] In response to brands actively promoting their image and products on the…

Chart of the Week: More than 1.12 billion accounts spread across Snapchat, Instagram, Facebook, Facebook Messenger and WhatsApp now watch or create Stories every day

When it comes to social media marketing trends, Stories is the big one you need to watch. More than 1.12 billion accounts spread across Snapchat, Instagram, Facebook, Facebook Messenger and WhatsApp now watch or create Stories every day, representing a 987% increase since the start of 2016. It isn’t just individual users that are causing Stories to grow hugely in popularity, more brands, companies and marketers are making the most of them. Buffer’s State of Social 2019 report has found that 57% of brands have found that Stories have been an "effective" part of their social media strategy.

The effectiveness of…