According to Heraclitus the only constant in life is change, and social media shows us just how true that is. With slight interface changes to whole new networks every year, social media changes are big and small. Social media use needs to be purposeful but it can be hard to stay on top of all the changes, and even harder to adapt your social media strategy for every update. Here are three ways that social media is changing and how you can adjust your outlook accordingly.
1. The largest growing demographic on Twitter is the age 55-64 category. Following a level of ubiquity on a social network, the older demographics have become the biggest group to hop on the bandwagon. Dr. Laura Carstensen, who heads the Stanford Center on Longevity, gives two reasons for this (http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=247220424). The first is that the vast majority of young people have already joined the networks. The second reflects the changes to the demographic itself, with new members of the 55+ crowd being more technologically sophisticated.
How to adjust: Evaluate your mindset. Do you think that social media doesn’t apply for certain industries or companies? Or do you assume older people really aren’t seeing content shared via social media? As more people from this demographic join social media, these networks are becoming even more well rounded, and your strategies should reflect that.
2. 189 Million Facebook users primarily use the network on a mobile device. This is particularly useful information if you’re using Facebook ads. The social giant is switching to a more pay-to-play model, meaning how people view your social media is even more vital.
How to adjust: Is your content quick and to the point? If your target demographic has heavy smart phone use, then consider Facebook mobile use very likely. Your audience may only see your content for a few seconds, so make sure it’s visually pleasing and short!
3. Social Media is more measurable than ever. You can see best days and times to share certain posts, see how many tweets is one too many, and analyze overall follower growth. Every network is making analytics a key part of social media use.
How to adjust: Make sure you’re actively looking at this information and making changes accordingly! Determine which metrics are important to you, and set aside some time to review them. Maybe you’re all about engagement as opposed to followers, but decide what fits best with your business goals. This way when you try something new you have concrete details to compare!
___________________________________________________________________
Elizabeth McCumber, marketing maven and freelance writer, focuses on providing quality creative content for entrepreneurs. She also specializes in email marketing and social media planning. Connect with Elizabeth on LinkedIn.
