Social Media and Content Marketing Predictions for 2013

At the beginning of a new year, it’s always interesting to reflect on 2012 and also to have a look at the predictions made for Social Media and Content Marketing for 2013.

According to the Content Marketing Institute, the following predictions were made for 2012 of which several became true:

• Google+ will become a force in 2012 – this is true as Google has become a major player after Facebook and Twitter with 500 million users.
• Video and mobile will finally both take center stage – this prediction has proven true if you think of the explosive growth of YouTube, smart phones and tablets in the past year.
• 2012 will be the year of integration; marketers were struggling to learn which social media sites worked best for different content pieces. Many integration tools and tactics have evolved to help with integrated communication marketing in 2012.
• Delivering content any which way that the audience wants it will be critical in 2012 – communicating with prospects and customers on the channel of their choice has become the mainstream approach for customer service in 2012.

Social Media and Content Marketing Predictions for 2013

Now let’s have a look at some of the main Social Media and Content Marketing predictions for 2013 as sourced from the Content Marketing Institute.

Here are a few highlights of trends predicted by the experts:

‘the “Content Strategist” role will become an important part of the marketing department in more than just a handful of brands. Content strategy will be seen as an integral part of the marketing planning process’

Michael Brenner, Senior Director, Integrated Marketing and Content Strategy, SAP

‘2012 brought new roles like Content Marketing Director. These leaders are now accountable for maintaining and growing sustainable content marketing programs for their brand — with aggressive schedules for publishing and production. In 2013, I believe we will see more companies internalize production-level content marketing personnel, adding titles like Production Manager and Managing Editor to the organizational chart. That’s great news for displaced journalists’

Nate Riggs, Director of Social Business,  The Karcher Group

‘2013 will be the year of visuals. From Pinterest and Instagram to SlideShare and YouTube, visual appeal will rule content creation and curation. In an era of content overload, users will be looking for a fresh face and innovative presentation. Creative graphics, photos, and videos will capture imagination’

Joellyn Sargent, Principal, BrandSprout Advisors

‘Tablets, smartphones, and laptops make up the buyer’s multi-device ecosystem. In response to this companies need to cater for this by providing an optimal viewing experience: easy reading and navigation with minimum resizing, panning, or scrolling across a wide range of devices. Content needs to be structured in chunks that can be flowed into this architecture.’

Valeria Maltoni, Sr. Director of Strategy, Empathy Lab

To download the full Report of Predictions for 2013, click Social Media and Content Marketing predictions.

From my perspective I think companies cannot afford to continue to participate in Online Marketing in 2013 without a proper integrated Communication Strategy and Content Marketing Plan. Your marketing message needs to be tightly focused and aimed at the target audiences by using the channels where they prefer to hang out and making it easy for them to find you. Your content also needs to be educational, entertaining and always providing value.

In terms of going mobile, for 2013 I strongly recommend that companies should ensure that their websites/blogs/newsletters are mobile friendly for easy consumption by so many audience members who prefer to do everything on-the-go, instead of sitting in front of their computers. You cannot afford not to be found from mobile devices like smart phones or tablets or for your website to be difficult to navigate. This will only dilute your online marketing efforts and effectiveness. This is an easy situation to rectify in 2013 if you haven’t focused on mobile yet.

To enable my customers to create and implement their own customised integrated Online Marketing and Social Media Strategy Plan, I have released the Marketing Strategy Action Plan for 2013!

To leverage from Mobile Marketing I recommend a good book: “Everything you ever wanted to know about Mobile Marketing” to help you understand Mobile Marketing, or to go straight to the Mobile Marketing Activation Kit if you’re ready to start.