Not all brands need to be on every platform and not every platform will warrant the same level of interaction, but if customers cannot find a brand on their chosen platform, that brand’s opportunities in this digitally connected world may plummet. 

Networks

When choosing potential networks, prioritise them according to their relative levels of penetration as well as how well they lend themselves to the brand.
 
According to World Wide Worx’s South African Social Media Landscape 2015 report:

  • Facebook currently has 11.8-million SA users, of which 8.8-million utilise their smart phones to access the platform;
  • YouTube has reached an active SA user base of 7.2-million;
  • Twitter has achieved a healthy 20% growth, reaching 6.6-million SA users; 
  • LinkedIn has grown by 40%, reaching 3.8-million SA users;
  • Instagram has grown to 1.1-million SA users in 2014;
  • Mxit user figure dropped in 2014; and 
  • Pinterest user figures dropped in 2014.

Mobile 

A significant number of users access social media platforms via their smartphones. This highlights the importance of ensuring that websites are mobile friendly.
 
The online community is aware of the importance of being in the know about changes that favour mobile optimised content and sites. Google, for example, has announced changes to its search algorithm which will result in websites that are optimised for mobile to rank higher in search results.

World Wide Worx’s 2015 report indicates the following mobile operating systems used by South African Facebook mobile app users: 

  • Android, 3.2-million users; 
  • BlackBerry, 2.4-million users; 
  • iOS, 580 000 users; and
  • Windows Phone, 260 000 users.

Visual Content

Visual content and platforms have become more pervasive than ever, making the integration of it in a social media strategy increasingly necessary. The use of images can serve to highlight and attract users to content and therefore increase potential performance.

Including images in tweets has been found to increase retweets by 1.5 times. Including images in Facebook posts receives an 87% interaction rate, compared to 4% rate for posts with no visual element.

With the increasing popularity of visual apps like Instagram, Vine, Periscope and Meetkat, it quickly becomes apparent that not including a visual component in engagements means missed opportunities.

Since these visual content apps are relatively data intensive it’s unlikely a rapid proliferation in South Africa will be seen, as it was with platforms like Twitter. However, as Fin24.com reports, a data cost decrease and connectivity increases will certainly see a greater increase in the popularity of visual content and platforms.
This points to a new phase for the social media ecosystem, where brands will have to represent and market themselves more visually.

Reach, Leads and Sales

For most brands social media’s benefit is derived from three potential areas; reach, leads and sales.  

Social media serves to increase the potential reach of communication and marketing efforts. The more customers reached by a brand the greater their brand awareness, which can influence purchase behaviour favourably.  

When it comes to leads, social media serves brands in two ways; using social media platforms to mine for potential leads or data and social media profiles can be used to connect with potential customers and markets.  

Social media aids the sales process by allowing for a direct connection between customers and brands. Clients are in a position to drive the sales process and communicate their needs directly to the brand like never before. Brands can draw on this level of client connection to gain additional insights about customers’ needs and market forces. Brands can use this additional level of interaction and data to improve and promote their products, which in turn serves to increase the efficiency of the sales process.

Looking forward

The social media ecosystem’s next phase may be its evolution into an environment more closely aligned with traditional marketing and public relations. It’s inevitable that digital agencies, departments and campaigns will find themselves and their traditional counterparts taking a more holistic, integrated approach.

When brands truly pursue an integrated cross-platform campaign, amazing executions are sure to follow.

amaSocial is a social media management and monitoring tool based in South Africa.

For more information on amaSocial, click here. To set up a free trial and see how beneficial amaSocial can be, phone +27 11 288-6600 or email [email protected]. Alternatively, connect with them on Facebook and on Twitter.