Websites like YouTube and Instagram will overtake Facebook and Twitter to be the dominant social media force by the end of the decade, according to leading marketers.
Experts at London School of Marketing (LSM) have analysed the growing trends in social media and the use of image and video sites among different demographics.
They found that “millennials – the generation born around 2000 – are using video and photo-based social media sites such as Instagram more than Twitter and Facebook.
Experts at LSM believe this shift is a result of the prevalence of smartphones as well as the trend for social media to become increasingly image-led.
With 85 per cent of adults outside China considering themselves to be regular YouTube users, it has one billion active users each month.
Its appeal crosses more demographics than its other social rivals and, as a result, many companies have mastered YouTube as a marketing machine, making more than $1bn a year for the site.
Jacques de Cock from LSM said: “If you look at the stats, around half of the corporate videos from the world’s top 100 brands have less than 1,000 views.
“Where most brands go wrong, though, is around consistency. To market successfully on YouTube, a brand’s presence has to be regular and consistent.”
“For a video to work well, the message should be relevant to both the viewer and the brand in question. It needs to also tell a story or assist the viewer. Videos don’t need to be highly produced to gain the most views.
“There is a huge possibility that photo and video sharing will be the dominant social media by 2020 and, if brands are not ready to engage, they run the risk of ignoring an entire generation of consumers.”
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