With an increasing number of social connection-related apps and app extensions being released, 2016 social media trends are some of the most popular of the year due to their ability to take over the daily lives of consumers at low or non-existent costs. Some of the more prominent patterns associated with social media this year include the domination of Snapchat in social and marketing worlds, as well as brands branching out to capitalize on selfie trends.
Snapchat is without question one of the most popular social media sites used by the Millennials and Gen Z demographics – with competitors like Instagram seeking to harness some of Snapchat's ideas into its own business model. The marketing capacity of the social media site is endless due to its creativity and far reach – as can be seen in marketing schemes like the one that promoted Frank Ocean's newest album. The album was marketed on Snapchat using filters, ensuring that the anticipated release became even more so through this promotion.
With selfies being a craze that doesn't appear to be dying, brands are taking advantage of this by creating competitions and products that cater to selfie lovers. Coca Cola jumped in on this trend with a Selfie Bottle for its Summer Love event – with the bottle taking selfies of the person who is sipping from it and automatically posting them to popular social media sites.
Trend Hunter's 2017 Trend Report features upcoming insights in industries related to social media, marketing and online promotion.
- Gen Z (primary audience)
- Gen Alpha (primary audience)
- Millennial (primary audience)
- Gen X (primary audience)
