Social media has become a critical tool to marketing during the pandemic. Research has reported that the spend on social media has increased from 13.3% of marketing budgets to 23.2% in just 4 months between February to June 2020. That’s a 74% increase. Social media has had a positive impact to many businesses during Covid-19, as companies online performance has risen dramatically. It is predicted that the investment in a social media strategy will remain high throughout 2021.
However, there are many discussions about what a post-pandemic world will look like for social media marketing. The biggest lesson many of us have learnt from 2020 is that nobody can ever be 100% prepared for the future.
Here are some tips and trends we have identified that may help you prepare a strong social media strategy for post Covid-19.
Our top 5 predictions are…
- The use of video on social media will continue to rise.
- The more authentic content is, the better it will be perform – be honest.
- Creativity within social media will be valued more than ever.
- Consumer needs and community engagement will be at the forefront of any marketing strategy.
- The industry will constantly be adapting to new technology.
#1 Always integrate a social media strategy into your overall marketing strategy
Many reports suggest that social media is not well integrated within marketing strategies. As social media has taken a centre stage within the marketing world during the pandemic, it needs to be integrated more seamlessly within a company’s marketing strategy.
“Out of all marketing strategies, I believe that social media will be the main one to thrive in the post-Covid world.”
Social media is meant to be used to be ‘social’. So remember to not always just like posts, but to start chatting more on these platforms. Conservational marketing has grown during Coronavirus, and will continue to grow. Use your company’s platform to ask consumers how you are performing as a business. Get clients to leave reviews, and provide feedback on how you can improve. This will help you to build a really credible reputation on social media.
#2 Influencers and creators
Many marketing budgets towards influencers have risen, and this is linked to the use of social media during the pandemic. With budgets having already risen by 1%, they are expected to rise to 12.7% in the next three years. It will be critical for brands to identify the right influencers to attract their target audience. Influencers are a great way to build trust and authentic relationships with your company’s followers and potential clients. They are a fantastic way to discuss product updates online and gain feedback.
#3 Authentic content
Since the first lockdown, many businesses and brands have started showing an unfiltered side on social media. Whether you’ve posted videos in your lounge or someone in their pyjamas, it’s all been authentic content. This is something that is likely to continue post pandemic, as many people have seen the positive impacts of doing this, and how people trust a brand more because of it. Covid-19 has led people to feel more comfortable with creating and publishing unedited content.
#4 Video production
There has been a massive surge in popularity of TikTok since March 2020, which was downloaded 115 million times in March alone. As well as live streaming becoming popular during Coronavirus, it has led to an increased demand in video production within the marketing world. Coming back to authentic content, video production contributes to this. It is a fantastic way to derive a story or display your company’s values. Overall, videos generally encourage a lot more engagement to your target audience.
#5 New technology
Within this day and age, new technologies are always appearing and social media platforms with continue updating to align with new online social needs. It’s important to never rely fully on one single social platform to meet all your marketing needs. For example, data and privacy settings are always updating to limit your targeting capabilities on social. As marketers, we need to always be well-equipped to adapt to this forever changing industry.
Starting building your social media strategy…
Here at onefoursix, we’re happy to help you build a strong social media strategy for coming out of lockdown and how best to use these platforms post pandemic. Get in touch here.
