12 Social Media Trends For 2015

The other night I gave a talk in my personal capacity (not as a representative of the National Archives, or the U.S. government) for the University of Maryland University College MBA program, which was kindly hosted by UMD’s Universities at Shady Grove.

The video is now available here. It’s an hour-long webcast; you’ll see me answering the questions as they come in.

Below is a brief summary of the trends outlined there. To get the full flavor and context of the talk, please view it. There’s a lot of interaction and it rolls pretty quick – hope you enjoy.

I. “People” Trends

1. Employees as social media ambassadors
2. The end of corporate messaging in favor of employee-generated, user-powered collaborative spaces
3. LinkedIn as a social space – with real opinions

II. “User Process” Trends

1. Immersive social
2. Services that post content for you
3. Continued imbalance between total anonymity and disregard for privacy

III. “Content” Trends

1. Web-based shareable entertainment content
2. Music as a focal point of social
3. Real-world events captured on social media

IV. “Business Model” Trends

1. The end of the term “branding”
2. Focus on the individual expert / boutique agency, owned by a corporation
3. The demise of traditional project planning and the rise of ever-faster agile and spontaneous approaches, with instant metrics

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Disclaimer: This blog is written by Dannielle Blumenthal in her personal capacity. The opinions expressed here are the author’s own and do not reflect the view of the National Archives and Records Administration, or the United States government. Photo by Flavio via Flickr.