Social Media in 2010: Getting a Glimpse into What's Next

by Mary Kate Smither, Vollmer Public Relations Dallas

Over the last year, social media has proven its sticking power, demonstrating amazing growth for sites like Twitter and Facebook with Twitter alone achieving 21 million unique monthly visitors this June, a 1,928 percent year-over-year increase according to Nielsen . Most everyone has jumped on the bandwagon in one way or another; whether they're updating  friends through Facebook, tweeting away about the day's activities, sharing videos through YouTube or Digging stories that they find interesting.  Businesses too have recognized the value of social media, using it to promote events, announce products, provide customer service and raise awareness and connect with and educate consumers and media about their services and products.  The past year has truly created a boom of excitement and a new method for meaningful conversations and engagement as the world of social media has expanded beyond the experts into everyday activity for the mainstream population.

Now it's time to take a look into the crystal ball and see where we might be headed with social media in 2010.  The past year has provided some great indicators of what might be next as we've experienced improvements and changes on now mainstream platforms like Facebook and Twitter.  The great wide open space that is social media has begun to narrow as Twitter now offers the ability to create and categorize follower lists.  Likewise, Facebook recently altered its format to help us all wade through our news feeds by prioritizing friends' updates.  The good news for all of us as individuals is that we still have control over how much we see, when and where while being able to sort through the clutter that we don't need.  The even better news for the business world is that by offering this more narrow focus, brands now have the ability to utilize their marketing dollars more effectively than ever by honing in on their exact target audiences or grouping various audiences together for specific messaging.

On the flip side, with the increased use of social media by businesses, PR agencies will be further challenged in 2010 to show clients the value of their social media investments. Professional services such as Cision and Radian6 have added social media monitoring to their offerings.  Likewise, agencies have begun to develop ROI calculators to demonstrate to clients the importance of social media campaigns, Vollmer included.  We've looked at the different ways that we measure media for clients, ranging from interviews secured, relationships developed and the reach of media coverage, to evaluate the ways in which we might also measure our social media campaigns and develop a process for doing so.  Just like the multiple platforms that continue to grow and develop, so will our social media measurement model continue to evolve with the needs of our clients.  While we can see exactly what the future holds, we can know that no matter what it will be an exciting time filled with challenges and new opportunities.

To find out more about more about Vollmer's social media measurement or how to put social media into action for your brand in 2010, contact me at marykate@vollmerpr.com, 972-488-4790 or on Twitter @mksmither.