2. ITâS THAT TIME OF YEAR AGAINâŚ
Itâs that time of year again â time to take a stab at whatâs While I didnât specifically connect it to the election, it was the
going to matter in the year ahead as technology continues to behavior of social sharing that many of us felt during the
influence how we work and live. In the previous years, Iâve entire election year. You couldnât get away from Facebook
looked at trends under the social lens because, from a macro posts of friends who were all too happy to leverage their
perspective, it has been the major disruptive force both in networks to talk politics, often sharing posts and memes in
creating new opportunities as well as threats. This year I am support of their candidateâ Big bird, binders and
using the umbrella term âsocial-digitalâ to broaden the focus.
First, a quick re-cap:
bayonets anyone?
3. Social TV has continued to gain steam, though interestingly enough it has been TV
itself that has been fueling much of the trend. For example, the popular series âThe
Walking Deadâ has been experimenting with simple Twitter hashtags for each
episode in addition to the official one connected with the series. Social entertainment
platforms, however, like Get Glue, which was recently acquired for 25 million in
cash, have yet to enter the mainstream.
What has mainstreamed is the micro-economy powered by once unknown entities
such as Kickstarter â it is now not uncommon for individuals to raise thousands and
even millions of dollars without a middleman, thanks to the crowd-funding platform.
On the flipside, gamification has either lost some of its luster or
taken a backseat to useful functionality. A recent Gartner study urges us
not to âbelieve the hypeâ â and indeed I may have been caught up by the promise
of making experiences stick via serving neuro-rewards vs. utility. Meanwhile, the
cult of influence continues to attract a following with new digital influence
measurement services like Little Bird receiving funding, followed by studies crowning
the most influential CMOs. So what can we potentially expect to see next year?
In no particular order,
HERE ARE SIX SOCIAL-DIGITAL TRENDS TO WATCH IN 2013:
4. THE CONTENT ECONOMY
Content just might become your companyâs most valuable asset in 2013
for several reasons. For years Google has been refining its algorithm,
cracking down on the individuals and organizations that benefit from
unsavory tactics often compromising the quality of search results. Now,
it is the most compelling content that dominates search results, and
organizations will scramble to produce this. Some already have,
including companies like Coca-Cola and Intel, which launched
corporate entities focused purely on content. Separately, Facebook is
making its own changes, forcing companies to rely on both creativity
and spending (promoted posts) to ensure their content is seen and
more importantly shared by users. Brands like Oreo may have
unwittingly set the bar for content creation for other organizations by
pioneering a form of âcontent marketing,â putting out one piece of
timely, relevant and highly creative content every day as part of a
campaign. In 2013, content
will not only be king â it will
be the queen, prince and jester.
5. CYBORG CENTRAL
Think your mobile phone is making you part computer? Now it
has accomplices. From âfuel bandsâ to bracelets and Google
Glasses, these are just a preview of what weâll see more of in
2013 as we begin to look part-human, part-machine. There
are already ski goggles that display a tiny screen allowing
you to not only sync to your mobile device but help you
determine where you are and how fast youâre going. As we
move into the next year, the phrase âpersonal
computingâ will begin to take on another meaning.
6. THE SMOBILE WEB
Social + mobile = âsmobile.â While thereâs no real insight in pointing
out that both mobile and social are going to be big in 2013, they are
increasingly becoming co-dependent â and most businesses arenât
ready for it. A smobile Web means your customers, coworkers and
colleagues are increasingly spending time with apps, and digital
experiences optimized for mobile and social sharing and, as a result,
spending less time tethered to a PC or television. In addition,
technology is still evolving. NFC technology, for example, allows you
to transfer data to your mobile device via touch versus scanning a
cumbersome code, making mobility seamless. While Instagram
developed for smobile before the traditional web, Facebookâs
platform is still playing catch-up, but by the end of 2013 it may
become one of the leaders. Will you be ready for the smobile
web?
7. SENSORY INTELLIGENCE
Sensors will get smarter and become more pervasive. We
already have cars that can help us parallel park or sense
if we are too close to an object by letting us know with a
beep or a vibration. Then there are thermostats, which
learn based on how you use them â essentially self-
programming and adapting along the way. In 2013 there
will be sensors built into athletesâ helmets that measure
the impact of blows and provide real-time data outputs,
thus potentially preventing further injury. Sensors will
be everywhere â in our homes, transportation,
technology and clothing. They will become a part of our
lives by tying into our existing devices and networks. If
our plants need water, weâll get a text or tweet, and even
a note of thanks. Now thatâs smart.
8. SOCIAL COMMERCE
In many ways, social has mirrored the original digital revolution with
the exception that digital was built in information and social,
relationships. But when digital took on transactions and financial
exchanges, things really began to accelerate. So it will go for social
as we begin to buy each other gifts through social networks or even
set up a storefront. The idea of social commerce isnât new,
but signs show that itâs picking up steam and 2013 may be the year
it actually begins to coalesce.
9. DATA SURPLUS, INSIGHT DEFICIT
As I write this, Facebook has already begun rolling out its âPhoto Syncâ
feature, which automatically downloads photos from your mobile device
to Facebook (privately). Some see this as a land grab for data, but itâs
not the only one â itâs often described as âthe cloud,â âsocial dataâ or the
While itâs true that more of
overhyped macro label âbig dataâ.
our data is being collected, mined and stored, people
donât necessarily know what to do with it. Thereâs now an infinite
surplus of data out there but not enough qualified human beings
(analysts, sociologists, strategists, anthropologists etc.) who know what to
make of it or what to do with it. But this wonât last for long â 2013 may
be the year we focus less on data capture and start thinking about how
to understand, interpret and make good use of it.
10. Whether itâs content, data, sensors, smobile or feeling
like weâve become one with technologyâ2013 should
be an exciting year for the social-digital revolution.
What do you think will be
TRENDS TO WATCH IN 2013?
Tell us at #EDTrends2013
11. THE WORLDâS FIRST GLOBAL SOCIAL-DIGITAL AGENCY
RESEARCH PLAN
⢠Insights & Intelligence ⢠Social Business Planning
⢠Social Conversation Analysis ⢠Organizational Design
⢠Influencer Identification ⢠Policy & Governance
⢠Survey & Focus Groups ⢠Technology & Workflow
ANALYZE TRANSFORM
⢠Conversation Analysis
⢠Social Media & Brand Monitoring OUR ⢠Strategy
⢠Education & Certification
â˘
â˘
Listening Programs
Measurement Framework SERVICES ⢠Program Planning & Integration
COUNSEL CREATE & DEVELOP
⢠Online Engagement Counsel ⢠Design & Development
⢠Issues Management ENGAGE ⢠Mobile/Tablet App Dev
⢠Crisis Preparedness ⢠Digital/Social Advertising
⢠Community Management
⢠Online Influencer Engagement ⢠Digital Creative Content
⢠Social Search Optimization ⢠Technical Development
For more information on Edelman Digital, contact: Kevin King, Global Practice Chair, Edelman Digital, Kevin.King@edelman.com