Future Implications

Photo Courtesy of https://www.rivaliq.com/

If any year has shown a continual change in the social media landscape, it was 2020. With the main events of a world pandemic and a presidential election, social media has been affected in so many ways.

2020 changed everything. The way we communicate, the way we shop, the way we greet one another. It also changed how we use social media.

(https://blog.hootsuite.com/2020-changed-predictions/)

I don’t remember a time on social media when so many posts have been blocked or tagged as possible rule violations. This will have a major effect on how businesses and organizations plan for their social media marketing initiatives.

Social media has come to the forefront of digital marketing tactics, therefore, and “Increased executive interest in social media”. With more focus turning to digital communications to replace in-person interactions, social media budgets reached historic highs in 2020. Traditionally, social media earned around 10-12% of the marketing budget. This year, it jumped to 23%. CMO visibility is higher than ever before as a result (Daly, 2020).

Source: CMO Survey, June 2020
https://hootsuite.com/resources/digital2020-q3-update

What tools will continue to be vital for social media campaigns in 2021? Hubspot has put together a list of those tools that will assist brands below (Miller, 2020):

• HubSpot’s Social Inbox Tool
• Kicksta
• Lightroom
• Canva
• Unfold
• LightAuditor
• Retouchup
• Marketing Video Builder

As brands navigate social media in the year 2021, I think it will be more important than ever that they research everything involved in a campaign. For instance, choosing their “Influencers” wisely. Choosing a volatile celebrity can come back and have a negative effect on the brand instantly. With the current political climate of division, it may be a concern for some time.

This has now happened to Jeep. Choosing Bruce Springstein was a great choice of a brand face for the “healing our nation” campaign. It only took a day or two for a DUI controversy to cause an uproar that led to Jeep pulling the ad! Some will say it is warranted and others will say it is an overaction without full facts. Either way, this is the world we live in now.

In conclusion, the theme for 2021 should be “CRUISE”! I think things will continue to be full of fluid change in social media. Positivity will reign and those brands that choose the route of “Cruising through 2021” with positive messages should be able to sustain their brand presence or even grow it.

Resources:

Miller, A. (2020). Top social media tools you need to use in 2021. Retrieved February 12, 2021, from https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/social-media-tools

Daly, C. (2020, September 03). How 2020 changed social media: A CHECK-IN OUR TRENDS PREDICTIONS. Retrieved February 12, 2021, from https://blog.hootsuite.com/2020-changed-predictions/