Many an opinion has been pushed out there over the past month discussing what will be hot, and what will not – for 2013.
The common denominator between all conversations – is that social media will be pushed to you in new and exciting ways. New technologies and algorithms are making it easier for you to connect and find what you need. Of course, there is a hidden agenda – it’s business and everyone has to make money. How does this happen? Integration. Think of Facebook being the main mother ship of all things social, and look to all other brands as it’s spaceships.
A new feature on Facebook allows you to give gifts to friends. Online gift giving is nothing new, amazon offer the ability to purchase online gift cards that can be sent via email to anywhere in the world. A lot of other retailers do this too. So why is Facebook different? Well, most gift giving is to friends, so wouldn’t it make sense to integrate the worlds largest social platform with retailers to offer a one stop solution for purchases? Of course it would.
With the Knowledge Graph, things have taken a different step. Not only will you be notified of your friends birthday and be able to send them a gift – but you’ll also see what they ‘Like’ Take a look at the snapshot below. It was my friend Jeremy’s birthday recently. Of course I would wish him a happy birthday. I’ve also known for a few weeks that you can send ‘gifts’ through Facebook. What’s new – is that brands are starting to partner up with Facebook like never before. I was told that ‘Jeremy likes Starbucks’ – it cut out probably 10-20 minutes of me wondering what I could possibly buy him. I clicked, I purchased, I sent a gift. Starbucks had amazingly integrated with Facebook.
It’s completely changed the game and gives us an idea on what the future will bring. Facebook’s philosophy is to keep you connected to friends and find what you’re looking for. We are fast moving to a society where your life is going to be streamlined. 2011/12 saw a ton of partnerships, i.e. the popular music platform Spotify partnered with Facebook at the end of 2011 and saw their user base grow near 30% in no time!! Yahoo also partnered with them and their news sources are spread far and wide throughout ‘see what your friends are reading’ So if 2011/12 saw the foundation of such bonding – 2013 is going to be the year that technology takes on new forms, by way of smarter integrations.
The crux of all this – is simplicity. We live in an ADD world now. How often have you sat at home in the evening without touching your smartphone – be honest! And how many of you keep your smartphone within 5 feet of your pillow!? What comes with ADD is impatience and as a society who has a wealth of data and convenience at their fingertips – everything else has to keep up. We all want things now now now, and that attitude isn’t going to stop – so brands might as well cash in – and that’s exactly that Facebook is doing. You think they don’t make a percentage every time you buy someone a Starbucks gift card through their platform? Think again! If you’re also thinking it will never catch on – think again….Word of mouth is the fastest form of trust, and who better to trust than your friends.
As I said – it’s business.
The post Facebook & Social Media in 2013 appeared first on SEOhaus - Search Marketing Blog.