The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge took the U.S. social media world by storm in 2014.
Between Jul. 29 and Aug. 12, the ALS Association received $4 million in donations compared to the usual $1.12 million during the same period of time. “We have never seen anything like this in the history of the disease,” said Barbara Newhouse, President and CEO of the ALS Association. “We couldn’t be more thrilled with the level of compassion, generosity, and sense of humor that people are exhibiting as they take part in this impactful viral initiative.”
To say what 2015 holds for us social media gurus at this point is pretty up in the air.
Video content has been coming in hot recently. Several trends have given us the opportunity to communicate through a video in a very short amount of time.
Recently, Snapchat brought Geofilters as a new feature to the social media scene. The sticker like filters are a unique addition for your “Snaps” that can only be accessed in certain locations. According to Snapchat, “artists and designers are encouraged to use this tool to bring their one-of-a-kind style to the Snapchat community.”
The demand for anonymous social media will only further grow this year.
As seen on New Years Eve, game days, various award shows and even the beautiful kite festival in India, Uttarayan, Snapchat has begun broadcasting to its consumers Geofiltered snaps on the “Our Story” feature. This feature takes users submitted coverage from live events and makes them available on one video stream bringing people from all over the world closer together. These filters are truly ingenious and allow you to share your location on Snapchat without giving away your exact location. However, the company notes that “all images must be original artwork and have to be approved by the Snapchat team.”
Allowing businesses to create their own Geofilters would be a creative and advantageous new way of advertising that could take advantage of the app’s near-100 million active users every month.
To add a Geofilter to your Snap, swipe right on the Snap preview screen to see what filters you have around you. But, you must allow location services in the app’s settings before using Geofilters, which can be accessed through your smartphone’s general settings.
As we continue to enter an increasingly mobile-first world, apps need to plan for expanding content and have it presented in a creative fashion, much like a Geofilter.
More marketing on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram has been introduced to meet the demands of the social media users across the globe.
Twitter allows brands to be creative and tweet regularly, as well as its appeal of an overall greater visibility. Instagram allows marketers to bring their presence over social media via photos and short video posts.
Follow Hailey Geller on Twitter @hgeller30