The editors of the Socially Aware Blog put together a great infographic outlining how social media is currently being used today (see below). See my top 4 takeways below, along with where things are going to go in 2013.
1. Time spent on new entrant Pinterest is almost 5x of that spent on Twitter
Where it will go in 2013: Time spent on Pinterest will only continue to grow as user base increases and it becomes the go-to place for visual inspiration. I predict time spent will at least double to 3 hours per month as people find it easier to cram in more ‘visual’ engagement versus reading.
2. Time spent on Facebook is 135x that spent on Google+
Where it will go in 2013: While I don’t expect people to check-in to Google+ anywhere near as much as Facebook, the definition of time spent on Google+ will be blurry since any one who uses Google Apps (Gmail, Maps, Google Search, etc) or Android will be sort of always checked-in with the social layer being seamlessly integrated into their experience. So, don’t expect Google+ to be a destination like Facebook is in 2013, rather think of it as something you are going to see a lot of as an amplification of activities you already do online.
3. 100% of Ad Age top 100 advertisers have established Facebook pages for brands
Where it will go in 2013: Well, you can’t go much past 100% as it relates to the top 100 advertisers, but what this signals is that we have moved past the early adopter phase for social media marketing. In 2013, we will see a massive tipping point in exceptional activations within social media by businesses – versus simply being present. Now that businesses are more comfortable with social media as a valid marketing platform, we will also see a much more strategic approach and more comfort as it relates to total integration into the business. (**We still have a long way to go though!)
4. 61% surf the web while watching TV
Where it will go in 2013: This is a biggie. The big transition that will happen over the next year is that rather than surfing websites completely unrelated to the programs they are watching, we will see a big shift to integration between activity on the tablet/laptop/phone and the activity on the TV. Lines will blur significantly between what is a TV and what is not. People will become increasingly comfortable with doing ‘internet-like’ tasks on the TV (Photos, Email, Social Networking, Skype) while they will also become more comfortable doing ‘TV-like’ activities on their mobile device or laptop (watching TV programs, netflix, hulu etc). This will continue to occur until the term TV may need to be redefined all together . While I don’t think it will go to that length in 2013, it will make some huge steps towards this.
Where do you think social media will go in 2013? Leave your thoughts in the comments.
By Jeff Berezny.
Sourced from Business2Community
