At the beginning of 2013, we looked at social media and declared that it was going to be a major marketing tool for pretty much any brand or business in today’s society. Facebook and Twitter grew up and grew into effective marketing platforms for generating and maintaining target audiences.

New features and different tools were introduced throughout the year and pulled in even more potential consumers for businesses in almost every single industry. Social Media marketing stepped into using visually-oriented content, ranging from photos on Instagram and Pinterest to videos on Vine.

We can expect trends like this will only continue this year. Here is a list of Social Media Marketing trends that will show their faces this year, and for many years after this:

1. Social Media Marketing will become seriously integrated into business structure. Integrating social media marketing into other marketing resources is probably the smartest business move you could make, if you haven’t made it already.

2. Social Media Marketing will receive a bigger budget from companies. Already 93 percent of respondents to a Digital Marketing survey say they are increasing their budget for social media marketing.

3. Social Media Marketing will move from the online world to offline materials. Promoting your brand’s social media sites, the use of QR codes, and using 3D print technology are just a few different ways to promote to your target audiences while they are offline.

4. Social Media Marketing is going steady with contests. Contests and a variety of promotion tools can be a great way to garner success with your marketing efforts. It can give your business even greater exposure and stir up customer engagement.

Business owners that would like to compete in this quickly evolving, fast-paced technology-inclined society need to be sure they are keeping up with these (and all the other) social media marketing trends. Contact Susan J. Campbell today if you’re ready to take your social media marketing, and your business, to the next level.