Facebook, a social media platform with 2.32 billion monthly active users, has shaped the Internet for the past 10 years.

Despite the problems that this social network is having (such as data confidentiality or the departure of young people from this platform) Facebook is still the most popular social network with the largest number of users and which is very important for digital strategy.

The question we will discuss is what will the future bring for Facebook and, most importantly, will we focus solely on it, or should we stay faithful to a comprehensive view of online communication?

Facebook – Present, Past, and the Future

Facebook, a central social media channel, and shaper of our online community experience, has long been a place to communicate with friends, upload photos, and share updates about your life. But, Facebook has been, for the past few years, expanding in many different directions. Besides these changes and many problems and ethical questions this social media platform has been dealing with, Facebook is still the most popular social network and a real gem for the overall digital strategy.

One of the most significant issues that are interesting, not the hot topic in the media anymore, is data security and personal safety on Facebook. The latest issue was yet another major data breach when more than 540 million data about Facebook users were published on Amazon’s cloud service. This scandal comes after Facebook has already been hit with a series of security breaches over the past year (remember the Cambridge Analytica scandal?). The second problem for Facebook is the fact that teenagers (or the Young Millennials as you will) are abandoning Facebook and starting to use other social media networks like Snapchat and Instagram. And why is that? Facebook doesn’t have enough coolness for them. According to a survey, for them, Facebook is filled with too much text and baby cat photos that are published by their friends and family.

And one of the recent problems that emerged for Facebook is the issue of the deceased profiles that will outnumber the living ones, according to a recent study. Oxford University researchers published a paper that found the dead “may well outnumber the living” on the social media platform before the end of the century. According to their analysis, at least 4.9 billion Facebook users will die by the year   2100 if Facebook continues to grow at its current rate, meaning that the dead will outnumber the living.

Despite all of this, Facebook has been going strong and doesn’t plan to rest for long. Soon there is a plan we could easily call – Facebook the Internet itself.

Is Facebook the Future of Social Media Marketing?

Recent announcements that are coming directly from the founder and CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, are stating a new direction for this social media giant. Some are even saying we are entering a post-social era and that this shift will change our social media strategies.

Interestingly, Facebook is shifting towards new technologies and fields of actions and will become less and less a place to connect with friends and family, and more a place for eCommerce and messaging. One of the big changes that are coming is Facebook Product Catalogs and Payment System, and that means Facebook is entering the field of commerce in a big way. According to Bloomberg, Facebook will soon introduce a cryptocurrency which will allow WhatsApp users to send money instantly. Moreover, Facebook is trying to be the new Tinder-like feature. Apparently, except connecting us with our friends and family from all over the world, Facebook will bring us love. This feature, that is currently available in five countries but will soon be available in 19, will expand Facebook’s reach from a meeting place to a place to also find your possible crush. So, when is all said and done, we can easily see how all of the most essential things – eCommerce, money transferring, and dating, will be done through Facebook. Should we be worried about the future of Facebook and the future of social media marketing in general?

Clearly, with these changes coming soon, we are entering a new phase of using this social network but also thinking about it. What will the future bring when at least two (dating and shopping) out of three (information) of the most important online activities we will be doing without leaving the Facebook frames?

From all we know by now, the future for Facebook is private. Their goal is to grow the platform that will focus on the ways “people want to interact privately.”That also explains the current success of WhatsApp – people can interact in a simple, private, and secure way, and that is the future Facebook hoping to build for itself. But, what does that mean for users and marketers? How will it affect our understanding of the Internet in general, and do we need to change our social media strategy? What should we do now, focus solely on Facebook and its channels or focus on a comprehensive digital strategy that will include all online communication means?

What is then the future of social media marketing?

With Facebook trying to occupy all of the online activities under its belt, it’s easy to think you should now focus all of your social media strategies merely on Facebook. Or maybe you are even thinking about giving up on your overall digital strategy?

Whatever it is the case, don’t give up on any other social media marketing channels just yet. When thinking about the future of social media marketing, you need to consider all of the changing trends. It is a good thing that Facebook announced new directions that it is heading. The focus is now on families and friends communicating with each other, including having private conversations and interactions that are away from the regular Facebook news sharing chaos. That way, we can all prepare. And by we, we are talking about business but also digital marketing professionals and people that are writing the digital strategies. Firstly, we need to consider the changes in private communication that are already happening.

Because, social media channels will exist, but communication on them is changing from public to private, and that is what brands and marketing professionals need to understand. This shift to private communication, instead of the public face of social media, is something that will affect all the social media platforms. But, you may think that with the use of private networks for communication such as WhatsApp and Messenger, Facebook will grow even more powerful than before. But think about this other way around – this can lead to huge opportunities for brands to target their users more efficiently.

You need to connect with your customers on deeper levels than ever and convince them to believe in your company and personality. And this is where social media marketing of the future steps is.

With the help of platforms like Instagram and Snapchat, you can reach lots of people, and by further using Twitter and Facebook, you can have a deeper connection with your current and potential consumers.

Therefore, the future of any social media strategy should not be about selling products or services on one channel like Facebook (although it’s tempting!). The future is in mixing and combining different social media marketing networks to connect your brand on a personal level with your customers.

How to prepare your new digital strategy

In conclusion, should you now panic and change your digital strategy from scratch? Or maybe ignore all the changes that are happening and continue with your old social media strategy?

The future of social media marketing will involve many changes, that will be based on technology as well as on consumer preferences. And these new digital strategies shouldn’t be applied only to one social network like Facebook. Even though Facebook’s biggest advantage is its vast potential to reach, target, and track users on Facebook but also to bring them on other sites. But no platform, no matter how strong and widespread it is, should be forced and others neglected because of it. The significance, the role, and the skill of writing the digital communication strategy are precisely in finding the corners and the way of using what is provided as a tool rather than accepting ready-made solutions. The right digital strategy always looks at the bigger picture.

Although, it is necessary to keep track of the changes that are ahead of Facebook, try out the new tools, think about the way they are used, but not to ignore other options available. Just a balanced mix of different, well-designed and creatively implemented tactics in your digital strategy can and should be the desired outcome for the business in the future.

When it’s all said and done… if you would like to learn more about this subject or to help you prepare a digital communication strategy to contact us!