Change always comes thick and fast in this industry but 2016 has felt like a real turning point. All the tech giants are making big things happen as we move into the next stage of marketing and Facebook has been particularly active this year.
The network’s ‘financial problems‘ a few years ago seem like a distant memory now. Since then, it has established itself as the only genuine rival to Google’s online dominance and it’s rapidly cornering the social commerce arena. There’s more to come, too.
In 2017, Facebook marketing is going to look very different compared to this time last year – so let’s take a quick peek at what’s ahead.
Facebook page conversions
The days of Facebook business pages being static profiles are way behind us. Users can now reach out to you directly via Messenger bots, click to buy products and complete a range of other conversion types – all from your business page.
People can book appointments, request quotes, book tickets and order takeaway directly from Facebook pages. So consider 2017 the year where Facebook becomes a genuine social commerce tool, where users go to find brands and buy on the spot.
Messenger chatbots
The biggest news for advertisers this year is the release of Messenger Platform. Sign up and you can build your own chatbot in a matter of minutes (or longer if you want more functionality). A lot has been said about chatbots this year and Facebook is among the biggest players in the technology right now.
Finally, we have a mobile shopping experience that makes buying products easier on the go – even down to making payments without leaving the Messenger app.
Chatbots are the first platform to give us that one-on-one connection with shoppers, providing you with a channel to target consumers with 100% personalised marketing messages – something we’ve been talking about for years.
Facebook Live
The other big headline this year (from all the way back in April) was Facebook Live. Now anyone on the network can post live videos of themselves or anything around them – and the race is on for brands to dominate first.
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