One thing is certain in this day and age. Count on change. Count on rapid and aggressive change. Learn how to roll with the rising tide of tech, Big Data, and anything new coming down the pipeline, and you should be ahead of many of your competitors.

1. Social Media Trends, News and New
Platforms
Who knows for certain what the newest innovations and changes will be seen while surfing the
web, but some things you know are going to continue to grow for at least several years. Just look
at what target marketing accomplishes now. Just a few years ago, no one even considered the
level of sophistication and accuracy that can be achieved through social media. Big Data had to
be born and make it through the early years to get us to where we are now. Who knows if there
are any limits to where that will lead.
Video. Recent trends are leaning toward more and more video presentations. As more social
media platforms embrace the hosting of video on their sites, this will continue to grow.
Businesses will make use of videos and learn to use them more effectively as well. Facebook
now has more than a billion video views happening every day. Businesses will begin to use
videos, webinars, podcasts and video blogs more as time passes.
How can you use that knowledge now?
1. Schedule a regular video post to share on your Facebook business page, YouTube, or
your company website—including information about your product or service and include
your call to action.
2. When customers and clients ask about one of your products or how to install something
or information about what to check, have an employee video their answer. For many
people, it is easier to talk about a process than to write about it, and your customers are
more likely to respond positively to a video answer.

2. 3. Establish an area on your website for customers to leave video reviews and comments
about your products and services. Just little blips lasting 15 seconds or less would be
perfect.
Content density. New apps and sites will develop to help individuals more effectively search for
relevant content using filters. One that is already in use is called Zite. It learns from your habits
and choices so it can make personalized recommendations when you search the Internet.
SideShare. This new site is all about business and professionals. Comparing Facebook to
LinkedIn shows they are similar platforms for different consumers (personal vs. business).
Making a comparison between Instagram and SideShare yields similar results. SideShare is the
business and professional platform for quick pics and content on the go.
Decline of YouTube. Because more social media platforms are embracing video hosting on their
sites, it is likely that YouTube will begin to see a decline in usage. That is unless they come up
with some innovations that put them back in the front of the field.
One thing is certain in this day and age. Count on change. Count on rapid and aggressive change.
Learn how to roll with the rising tide of tech, Big Data, and anything new coming down the
pipeline, and you should be ahead of many of your competitors.
David Milberg is an investment banker from NYC.