You maintain an active presence for your business on all the key social sites. You follow all of the latest trends and try to incorporate the best of new things without being a fad follower. Now you want to be the one finding a social media trend instead of just following one. Just how do you do that?
Finding new social media trends before anyone else does not have to be like finding a needle in a haystack. There are things you can do that will give you access to information and insights so that you will be the one that others follow versus the other way around.
Be In It
This is sort of a “duh” moment but it warrants being said. You need to be steeped in social activity yourself to really know it in and out before you can spot trends. Many new things are very subtle, and without active knowledge of current usage, there is no way you can identify changes.
Bone Up On Your History
Just as important as understanding current social trends, it’s equally important to understand how the current landscape came to be. Brushing up on the fundamentals that were successful in the past can help you see holes where you could fill a need. Soon enough you’ll be ahead of the curve and setting trends.
Look at Broader Internet Trends
From SEO to email marketing, every aspect of Internet marketing will have its own unique trends and fads. Keep an eye on these and they can be linked in some way to social media activities. Something may start in one arena and then move into another in a slightly different form.
Subscribe…and Read
Take your pick of some top social media blogs and follow them religiously. You don’t need to subscribe to too many, just enough to give you a varied view from credible industry sources. When you see something that piques your interest in one, check out what others may be saying about it—if anything at all.
Being a social media trendsetter and identifier is not something that comes with a clear 1-2-3 set of rules. Instead it requires attention to the big picture and an open mind. It’s also important to remember that if you try something and it does not work, you can simply change again. Do not be afraid to try something new on social sites just for fear of failure.
