It is clear as day that you cannot simply make a something trend on social media. Using social media trends to your advantage takes prediction, calculation and, most importantly, execution at the right time. Otherwise, you won’t be using those trends in the most beneficial way.
However, some trends are easier to predict than others. You could, for example, consider the trends that were popular in 2018, whether they became so through mainstream media coverage or were simply remaining popular from previous years. Here are some key trends to watch out for in 2019.
Video
A strong performer on social media for many years now, video is one of the key areas to focus on when it comes to social media trends.
With over 1.9 billion monthly users on YouTube, video will undeniably continue to have a large impact on social media trends on a day-to-day basis. However, videos on their own are not enticing enough – another component is needed when you are considering video in 2019.
Influencers
Earlier this year, YouTube influencer Shane Dawson published an eight-part documentary on infamous social media influencer Jake Paul. The documentary itself gained an average of nearly 18 million views per episode, becoming so popular that mainstream media were reporting updates on the show’s release schedule, despite the show having no connection to the mainstream media.
Influencers are a key pillar for social media trends in 2019, and Shane Dawson’s documentary series shows how relevant they are to the public’s interest.
Live streaming
Influencers do not just come from YouTube. This year, competitive gamer ‘Ninja’ was placed on the cover of the ESPN Magazine, signifying his meteoric rise in popularity fuelled by collaborations with hip-hop artist Drake, which resulted in a record-breaking 600,000 concurrent viewers on Twitch, Amazon’s popular live streaming platform.
Live streaming has untapped potential to become popular on social media trends, with live streaming having been embraced by more traditional celebrities, like Jimmy Fallon and footballer Dele Alli, in efforts to increase their public profiles and become more discussed on social media. Expect to see much more of this in 2019.
User-generated content
Drake didn’t just have an influence on live streaming’s relevance for 2019 – his music is also a perfect example of user-generated content. Earlier this year, influencer Shiggy uploaded a video of himself dancing to Drake’s song, In My Feelings.
This user-generated content eventually morphed into the Kiki Challenge, where unpaid users would, to social media, upload videos of themselves dancing to the song. This resulted in the song going Platinum in more than five countries.
User-generated content will continue to be relevant in 2019, as it is content which tends to take off through being shared and liked on social media. This means that it will spread and trend on its own accord, rather through marketing.
Sometimes, knowing the trends can only be half the battle, you also need to know what to avoid in social media strategies. We can also directly help you with your social media marketing efforts.