Just like you, I get hordes of messaging on social media. And this is in addition to all the other work you might be doing in the area -- conferences, summits, your own personal social media activities. The list goes on. When I was asked to write this article, the focus was on how to make these social activities digestible, actionable, and relevant to marketers, media, and those who work with them. And even while writing this piece, news of evolving trends was pouring out at a dizzying rate.
To give this article more long-term relevancy, I've categorized the trends I will discuss into interconnecting "ubertrends" -- the trends that will directly impact the emergence and growth of supporting micro-trends and how they might relate to your business. Make no mistake about it, there will be more progression as we move into the new Yyear and beyond -- and there is a vast beyond.
Ubertrends: Social monetization and social ubiquity
The escalating, evolving social media landscape is being driven largely by two interconnecting ubertrends:
social monetization and
social ubiquity. We define social monetization as social applications, programs, platforms, and features that drive revenue and ROI. Social ubiquity is the proliferation and convergence of the social web across platforms, devices, and channels. Privacy matters are also a critical trend to watch; as the web becomes more social, more personal data are being captured and shared with marketers eager to apply social data and profiles to marketing efforts -- which, in turn, could be cause for increased attention and concern.
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Social monetization
While all this socializing is great fun, somewhere economics has to come into play. Certain social media platforms might attract critical mass, but sustainability and scalability can only be achieved when viable revenue streams are created. The focus on facilitating relationships and enabling transactions that enhance, complement, and integrate with the social experience has created extremely viable environments that connect socialization with commerce.
Micro-trend 1: Social commerce
Shopping, whether it is for a pair of pants, diapers, or seeds, fertilizer, and a plow on a virtual farm, is inherently social. And while social commerce is not new (in fact, I've written on the topic before for iMedia Connection), the trend is going to escalate and expand in 2011.
Social commerce with the end goal of increasing conversions, leads, and sales started to gain attention years ago with consumer reviews and began to escalate with the introduction of social shopping sites and functionality such as Facebook Connect. Storefronts on Facebook are swiftly escalating, and we recently saw this concept extracted to YouTube with what was described as the first "YouTique" launched at the end of September, by French Connection.
The connection of social media to sales, sales indicators, promotions, and other measurable or valued marketing and sales conversions -- including couponing -- is fueling the investment in social media as companies begin to prove the capability to drive commerce.
The ability to drive commerce and hence expand the potential advertising and marketing opportunities is also fueling the growth of location-based social networking, such as place-based saving apps like Shopkick and incentive-based offers from Foursquare. Currently advertisers can offer "deals" when someone checks in at a location near them, and Foursquare co-founder Dennis Crowley has said that the company is exploring models in which local store owners can offer incentives to users who tweet or check-in each time they frequent a location.
More is evolving on the check-in front and literally in stores. Shopkick describes itself as the first mobile app that gives consumers rewards and offers simply for walking into a store. The app allows you to collect "kickbucks" for checking in, as well as by scanning products in the store with your phone. This is a great promo and offer play for marketers, and current companies taking advantage include Best Buy, American Eagle Outfitters, Facebook (credits), and Sports Authority.
"Location is a key factor in the future of search, social, commerce, and media, among a lot of other things," Federated Media founder John Battelle has said. "Local is the most important signal to emerge in the database of intentions since the link."
Micro-trend 2: Virtual goods and currency
New media models are being built based on virtual goods and currency, currently connected directly to the increasingly popularity of social games. As a category, social gaming has grown incredibly quickly, becoming one of the dominant drivers of usage on Facebook. The current leader moving this trend is Zynga, which is building a new media model from micro-transactions -- millions of people buying seeds, sheep, tractors, weapons, skill points, and other virtual goods.
How big is this market? The Inside Network reported that the market for virtual goods in the United States was expected to grow to $2.1 billion in 2011, up from $1.6 billion in 2010.
