RECAP: Our 2016 Predictions - How Did We Do?
[1] More Twitter characters [CORRECT]
We predicted that pictures, and links will not be included in the 140 character limit.
In May 2016, Twitter announced you would be allowed to express more, within 140 characters. Then in September, Twitter rolled out a feature that meant photos, videos, GIFs, polls, and Quote Tweets no longer count towards the 140 characters.
We’re still expecting a feature that will extend the character count way beyond 140 characters. Similar to a ‘read more’ button that will expand and collapse text.
[2] Moving further away from television [CORRECT]
The way we watch television has fundamentally changed over the last decade. We’ve moved further away from watching a traditional TV set, into consuming via computers, mobile, and smart TVs.
Our behaviour has also shifted from live to on-demand.
The content we consume has shifted from professional content to amateur. More young people are consuming amateur content on YouTube and Facebook.
This impacts marketing in two ways:
- Content Creation
- Content Distribution
It’s never been easier to create a piece of video content, and to distribute it to millions of people around the world. Use this to your school’s advantage. Think of your marketing team as a media company.
[3] Periscope inside Twitter, and the real launch of live streaming [CORRECT]
Technology capabilities quickly evolved in 2015 to allow for suitable live-streaming capability through mobile.
Earlier in2016, Twitter embedded Periscope streams into tweets. Towards the end of 2016, live streaming (through Periscope) was built directly into the native Twitter app.
Facebook Live has launched globally, to huge success. With the release of their Live adverts, Facebook are expecting this feature to continue be adopted by mainstream users.
[4] 360° videos and 360°live streaming [CORRECT]
We’re now in a blended hardware / software world of 360 video. We have 360° hardware from Samsung Gear and GoPro Omni, and the software to view through YouTube and Facebook.
Facebook is betting on the future of VR, with its release of Oculus Rift. We’re going to see 360 video and streaming continue to grow in 2017.
[5] One-click purchasing on social media [INCORRECT]
We’ve seen one-click purchasing on social media grow, but not adopted to the scale we expected.
Social commerce just isn't living up to the hype. Social has a huge audience, but human behaviour just isn't aligning to the way people want to buy.
It looks like we're going to be using social to assist with purchasing decisions, rather than be the end point of a sale.
The Bold (Risky/Unlikely) Prediction…
[6] Snapchat to be sold [INCORRECT]
Snapchat continues to surprise with its continued rapid growth. In 2016, Snapchat changed its company name to Snap Inc. and now have to core products - Snapchat, and Spectacles.
In 2017, we expect to see Snapchat file for their anticipated IPO. It's rumoured to be valued at $25 billion.
The Wild (Maybe Too Futuristic) Predictions
7. Battle for news [CORRECT]
Facebook has become more of an entertainment platform, and Twitter a news company.
We're shifting from using social 'networks' as communication tools, and into media platforms.
We’ve started to see schools use their websites less and less for uploading news to. Instead, news is being published directly to Facebook and pull through into the website. That way, it’s distributed straight to the channel people spend their time in.
[8] Vertical video [CORRECT]
Popularised by Snapchat, vertical video has grown in 2016. We consume video content on a mobile device, which is naturally a portrait device.
Facebook followed in mid-2016, with vertical video ads. One agency claimed to get 3x better CPM rates using vertical video ads.
We’ve even seen more video orientations popularised - vertical, square, circular, 360 etc.
[9] Messaging apps = The new OS [CORRECT]
We’ve seen the growth of messaging platforms, and the applications built into them.
You can order an Uber directly within Facebook Messenger. You can install apps into iMessage. Chatbots are growing on Slack.
We’re going to continue to see more applications being integrated and built onto messaging platforms in 2017.