Rather than looking back at the past year, here at Posse Social Media we love to look ahead at what trends, topics, etc may impact the social landscape. Whether it’s an up and coming social network, a change in how socials are viewed by users, or new means of reaching out to fans, followers, and all those who track businesses and individuals, it is important to be prepared so that any of these can be taken in stride. Thanks to the input of several outstanding individuals here is a list of social media predictions for 2014.

– CEO TopDog Social Media

LinkedIn Continues Momentum Into 2014 – This is one social network that has thrived on innovation in 2013 and has moved into being a content platform versus just a resume site which many have previously mistaken it as. New additions like LinkedIn Pulse, Influencer Network and LinkedIn Contacts are blowing the doors off business social networking and are guaranteed to take things to the next level.

B2B companies, sales professional, and marketers are seeing outstanding results using LinkedIn for social selling. LinkedIn has been shown to be 277% more effective for lead generation than Facebook or Twitter. Those that are trained in LinkedIn etiquette and social selling best practices will be reaping the rewards well into 2014 and beyond.

– Social Media Strategist @iBloom

To be successful on social media in 2014, businesses are going to have to become better writers! Gone are the days where you could just put a post up and get engagement. More and more social media platforms are now placing an emphasis on posts that have engagement and if businesses want to be seen and engaged with, not only are they going to have to write in the language of their ideal client, but they are going to have to think like their ideal client.

Social media is so much more than just putting up a post that focuses on your business and what you have to offer. Businesses today have to learn the fine art of storytelling and writing in such a way that leads people to realize that they need what your business has to offer. If all you are doing is posting about your blog posts, products, services, etc., people will immediately be turned off! Instead, you have to lead people to what you offer through the art of storytelling. When you can write like this, not only will your community grow, but you will begin to see a return on investment.

Erin Tillotson – The Social Media Phoenix

In 2014 video will fuel the most spectacular social media campaigns

Video has slowly climbed the ranks the last few years with Google buying YouTube, Instagram adding video capabilities and it’s popping up in more places every day. Video, especially companies who excel in crafting short ones, will excel next year. Just think in 2013 one hundred hours of video were uploaded to YouTube every minute and over 6 billion hours of video have been watched each month. Wow that’s almost an hour for every person on Earth, and 50% more than last year.

With this growth companies should consider how they can add video into each promotion they have planned. From advertisements, to previews, to behind the scenes, using it in email marketing… getting creative and involving the audience is key. Expect to hear more about video from your marketing mentors! These videos have the unique opportunity to convey powerful messages that reach the masses in a way that text or images just can’t compare. I’m personally excited to see how this unfolds, what genius videos will we see next?

– CEO and Founder of Social Media Examiner & MyKidsAdventures.com

I predict that podcasting will continue to grow by leaps and bounds as more consumers begin to discover the prospect of on-demand talk on their smart phones. You will see a lot more marketing pros starting podcasts as a new way to connect with their fans base.

– Founder and CEO of Boom! Social

One prediction for 2014… It’s About Show, Not Tell: Visual-Based Content Will Prevail

Given what we have seen so far in 2013, there is no doubt that the popularity and use of visual-based content on social media is going to continue to increase in 2014.

We know that posts that contain images or videos outperform those without when it comes to likes, shares, comments, and retweets. Failing to incorporate image-based media into your social media content strategy will mean losing out on huge amounts of potential engagement!

Just take a look at what we know from this year:

  • Articles with relevant images receive an average of 94% more views than those without.

  • Photos on Facebook receive 53% more likes than posts without.

  • Tweets with images receive 18% more clicks than those without, 89% more favorites, and 150% more retweets.

Businesses will need to be creative in terms of incorporating images and videos into existing content, and coming up with fresh new ways of incorporating visual-based content into all aspects of their social strategy.

Dina Marzban – Digital and Social Media Research Manager

Statistics show that 75 percent of people living on the planet have at least one mobile phone and that number is increasing rapidly. As more and more Smartphones are hitting the market regularly, you can be sure that by 2014 the number of people using Social Media networks via mobile will have risen exponentially. This makes it imperative for marketers to have a greater presence on social media to reach their targeted audience even better.

2014 is all about the full campaign design cycle or the whole 360 degrees for marketing your services or products, which is why focusing on designing a combined physical and digital experience will be a key element of success for marketers and agencies. As with both sides of the Online and Offline experience, by properly implementing a fully developed plan that perfect moment of connection between clients and consumers will be even easier to achieve.

– Community Manager Posse Social Media

The beginning of 2014 will herald the continued evolution of what we already notice at the end of 2013. Visual content dominates social networks. This is expected to rise even more during the next year. Status updates turn into images, quotes become visualized, information turn into infographics and ads turn into videos. This means that Facebook, Twitter and the rest will see an increase in visual content, while Pinterest, Instagram, Tumblr and the rest will grow even more.

Facebook and Twitter will keep on thinking of ways to commercialize their fame, which will be a big bet to see how it goes. Instagram will sooner or later introduce ads. Pinterest will become more mainstream and necessary for a social media marketing plan, and Google+ will be even more heavily promoted by Google. Don’t forget Vine and the rise of short videos which have already reduced our attention span to just a few seconds.

What’s even more important is that now that social networks are starting to grow again, users are more aware than ever on their use and what they expect from brands. They are willing to like, engage, and share, but only for pages that manage to grab their attention and stand out!

What Are YOUR Predictions For The 2014 Social Media Landscape?

Do you have anything in mind that you feel will be a game changer for 2014? Sound off below!