2019 is here, and social media behemoths wished they could take a peek behind the curtain to see the next big thing (maybe in 2019) that will change the way people interact on their smartphones and even online.
Perhaps it makes a lot of sense to take a bet on the social media space. Little wonder everybody is eager to know the next significant trend is. I guess there are some earlier trends we can turn to that can give us a clue.
Let me take you down memory lane. Remember MySpace? It was the place to be between 2005 and 2008. News Corp. thought paying a whopping a $580 million for the platform was a wise investment decision just two years after it launched, but they were wrong. Eventually, Justin Timberlake and some business moguls bought MySpace for only $35 million, a far cry from its initial worth.
Then a little network called Facebook began to grow in leaps and bounds and garnered popularity. Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram may be on cloud nine right now, but one thing is sure, one day they’ll trail behind something else because nothing lasts forever. As seemingly impossible as it looks, it will happen, and you know why? The challenge of money-making is troubling today’s social media and people will want to offer something different to stay ahead of the pack.
The established social platforms don’t want to be kicked out of business too soon. Because the smartest person is not able to predict the next trend that will drive social interactions in the future, the big platforms decide to “play smart.” They are buying out competitors to create integrated platforms and dominate the market, with the hope of transforming them into the next big thing.
Check out these trends:
Google bought YouTube for a staggering $1.65B in 2006 to control online videos.
Yahoo! bought Tumblr for $1.1B to be on top of micro-blogging and create a connection with young internet users.
Facebook bought Instagram for $1B because it was a better photo-sharing site and was gaining traction with each passing day.
Some smaller players with competence, innovation and technology and have the potential of becoming the “next big thing” are also on their radars too.
• Facebook purchased Onavo (an Israeli mobile app startup) quite recently.
• Twitter is also not relenting in their effort. They acquired MoPub (geolocation startup Spindle) and Trendr (social analytics company).
As a marketer, it’s up to you to unravel what’s out there in the digital world, what your competitors are doing, and the best way to leverage technology and tools to reach your customers and prospects.
Some platforms are gaining popularity, giving us clues on what to watch out for in the future.
- Vero: An alternative to Instagram
Vero is a direct competitor to Instagram. It allows a user to share movies, music, TV, photos, and links. It helps build a better profile within an array of features. Artists can leverage the platform to release their art and share with other.
Vero has no ads except content. Sharing of content is through four options: close friends, friend, acquaintance, and followers. You can set for whom you want to share content with among the possibilities. See it as virtual socializing in real life privacy. I believe the four options for sharing content are innovating and will bring Vero to the frontline with a solid customer base.
Vero has incredible potential. It opens up with a feed view of posts, and at the top, there’s a “search’ function to find other users and content within the platform. Vero comes with “collection,” something Instagram does not have. Here, you divide posts into photos/videos, music/TV, book, and other mediums. The ability to create and share on this platform makes it a potentially-next-phone social media giant.
- Musical.ly: An alternative to Snapchat/Vine
Musical.ly is similar to Snapchat/Vine but differs in that it focuses on 15 seconds to 1-minute videos. Again, you can use soundtracks to accompany your video with different speed effects and filters in the mix.
Musical.ly allows you to create shorter videos referred to as “live moments” which are GIFS with music. Users have the option to “remuse” sound from other users and also create interaction through “Ask a Question,” “Best Fan Forever,” and “Duet” features.
With Musical.ly, most videos come with song enhancements; as a user, you find the same song used in other videos when you hit the spinning record on the bottom right. You can swipe up if you want to go to the next video or click the heart to like(which is to your right). Musical.ly has a more connected community and more features for video editing, making it a viable alternative to Snapchat and Vine.
- Steemit: An alternative to Reddit
What is this buzz about upvotes? What about the plenty of “likes”? Can I buy a Ferrari with it? The point here is, you should be getting paid for every content you create. The individuals at Steemit are coming with something different. It is running on Steem blockchain via STEEM cryptocurrency. Content goes in immutable chain ledger where it is stored. Users get a reward for their contributions with digital STEEM tokens.
You earn STEEM tokens by sharing posts, and you can gain upvotes from the community members. Earn a curation reward when you upvote a post before it becomes popular.
Steemit is a grand idea that might change the face of social media soon. The purpose of gaining money from posts and upvotes gives an incredible feeling. A partnership with platforms like Facebook or Reddit could help Steemit gather customer base.
Nobody has the crystal ball to know what the “next big thing” will be in the future. However, watch out for companies that seamlessly allows you to create, share and curate great content like never before.
It will happen! Nothing last forever, but innovations will always be in our faces and drive the social media space now and in the future. So are you ready for the next significant trend in social media?