1. Social media will be supersized
Ad agencies, for example, will offer bundles that include layers of creative strategy, campaign management and advertising deals all handled through a central dashboard; telecommunications companies will offer video tools for businesses and consumers with greater bandwidth, storage and syndication; learning management systems (LMS) integrators will add engagement, archiving, training and collaboration tools for a deeper and more engaging academic experience.
2. Companies will integrate social feedback into their decision making process
In 2011 we will see a growing number of companies finally go beyond using social channels merely for building awareness and providing support. As “social thinkers,” these companies will use the social engine to inform strategic decisions, and execute on the organization’'s objectives, marketing plans, product roadmaps and more.
3. Mobile will become our gateway to the world
For the first time, sales of smartphones outpace sales of desktops and laptops, iPhone and iPad applications were downloaded more than 7 billion times and research shows e-mail access is now on the rise on the iPhone while declining on the computer.
4. Video will be everywhere
With plummeting video delivery costs and highly accessible and flexible video management platforms custom-use of video by enterprises online, on mobile devices, and across screens is on the rise across all sectors.
In the coming year, gaps in our video experience will be filled with the integration of filtering, tagging, editing and locating tools into each and every video feed.
5. The next big Online Social Network will not be a network at all
In the coming year we will see the rise of dynamic, engaging, easy-to-use community platforms and applications that will better mimic and facilitate the innate way people seek to manage relationships.
For consumers, this means the ability to create smaller, more intimate, context-specific communities using their existing social graph and livestreams. Every company should think of itself as a media company,” said Tom Foremski, journalist and thought-leader.
6. ROI will be redefined
Companies who hire social media strategists with proven marketing analytics background and business strategy experience will have the upper hand and will place first in the race to cracking the ROI code.
7. Psychology is shifting
We have new levels of cognitive flexibility, which is creating a new way of thinking about the world and about ourselves,” said Dr. Pamela Rutledge, director of the Media Psychology Research Center and co-founder of A Think Lab.
As the constructs of relationships, privacy and our ability to influence others evolve, we will also face important questions: How do we respond to the changing definition of relationships? How does the elimination of behavioral cues, only available face-to-face, impact our ability to connect? How does our need for emotional balance get addressed in the face of constant change?
8. Citizen activism brings back purpose and power
With the power made possible by social technologies to connect, inform and mobilize, we will see a surge in self-organized and managed citizen activism.
9. Social business intelligence will heat up and so will privacy
Wikileak’s' eruption on the social media waves and Do Not Track are just previews. Every company now looks to tap into the boundless user data being collected in the cloud.
In the year ahead we will witness (and be part of) major data virtualization initiatives designed to map our activities, preferences and choices.
10. The role of the social media strategist will be changing
In 2011, social media strategists will need to contend with much more actionable, and often mundane, tasks such as selecting and piloting new tools, integrating social widgets and analytics, helping to educate the organization, and integrating social-based thinking into the organization’'s process and culture.
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