Sorry 2020, but there wasn't a lot going for you. With a pandemic disrupting every aspect of life, it's hard to find anything about this past year we'd want to keep. However, there are three social media trends and best practices we should roll over from 2020 into 2021. Keep reading to learn more!
#1 social media trend to continue in 2021: adapting your small business to change on social media and online
Hundreds of thousands of small businesses were forced to close their doors in 2020 due to government mandates. In order to survive, small businesses had to learn to adapt. Customers were no longer shopping in stores or dining in restaurants, instead they were looking to online resources. Enter: Instagram shops, e-commerce platforms, virtual tours, delivery and pickup apps, and so much more.
McKinsey & Company reported 10 years of e-commerce growth in 3 months from the end of 2019 to the beginning of 2020.
It was also reported that 75% of US consumers tried different stores, websites, or brands during the pandemic and 60% of those consumers expect to frequent those newly discovered businesses in their post-COVID-19 lives.
This shows how consumers revisited brand loyalties during the pandemic, and
Adapting to changes in the world on social media is just going to continue in 2021, especially as social media platforms continue to introduce more features to support e-commerce this year. Research the ways you can utilize social features and adapt to stay relevant.
#2 social media trend to continue in 2021: short video and informal social media features galore!
Tik Tok, Instagram Reels, Twitter Fleets, LinkedIn Stories... and the list goes on. Every social media platform released some sort of story or short video capability as part of their suite of features in 2020, and we're here for it! Short form and informal video is stealing the spotlight in 2021—so dedicate some time to learning how to use these features for your small business!
Some resources and step-by-step guides can be found on our blog:
#3 social media trend to continue in 2021: authenticity
Businesses learned how to humanize their brands more in 2020, amidst a global crisis that made everyone on earth reevaluate what's really important in our lives. One of those things was stiff, formal approaches to marketing. Brands are run by normal folks, and consumers can relate to brands more when they put off an authentic vibe on social media. Try building authenticity in your social media marketing in 2021 through informal posts, quick snapshots and behind the scenes, stories and Reels featuring real people, and personal anecdotes or challenges you've faced.
Instagram user and small business @sunshine_and_grace_ recently posted a great example of a personal story and behind the scenes rolled into one.
