What to Expect for Social Media in 2016 with Gail Alofsin

Angles & Insights founder Suzanne McDonald talks with Gail Alofsin on 1540 AM WADK Newport’s Open Forum radio show about how to prepare for upcoming social media trends in 2016.

Gail Alofsin is an internationally recognized speaker, author, career coach, mentor and university professor. Her programs are focused on coaching, mentoring and assisting others, especially women, in becoming their best selves. 

Her book Your Someday is NOW – What are YOU Waiting For? focuses on the integration of life and career commitments, communication and leadership. The books also reviews building YOUR personal brand focused on integrity, authenticity and bringing value to the workplace. Since being published in April, 2014, the book has raised over $30,600 for non-profit organizations.

Here’s what Alofsin had to say about what you should do to improve your social media presence and get ahead in 2016:

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Suzanne McDonald: What’s to look forward to – or dread – in 2016?

Gail Alofsin: Time for an audit – Social media has been around a while, and likely your profiles have too. Now’s a good time to “audit” your social presence.

What do all those posts really say about you? You may not always be in a bar, but perhaps your Facebook, Twitter, Instagram show you there. Try to assess and give a more complete – and professional – picture of who you are. If you’re job-hunting this is even more key.

SM: What should you do with channels you don’t use anymore?

GA: It’s OK to delete them and focus on the channels you really like. Although I’d say always keep LinkedIn … you never know when an opportunity will arise. Oh and while you’re deleting, remove blurry images too.

SM: Doesn’t it take up so much time, though?

GA: It does indeed, but that’s where analytics come in to help you understand what’s working and what’s not. You don’t want to invest where there’s no ROI.

Don’t forget time-saving tools like Hootsuite and Buffer that let you schedule things out. Don’t forget you’ve scheduled posts, though, in case of tragedy. Expect blowback if you’re tweeting about a sweater sale when Paris is terrorized.

Maybe you prefer being in-the-moment: Twitter & Facebook apps for mobile make it easy to engage and update.

SM: What if you’re a small business or a nonprofit and are only a casual user?What do you recommend for speakers like me?

GA: Pick a channel few people are flocking to these days – how about in-person? All of my business comes from referrals, and many of those stem from Newport Interactive Marketers.

Over 5+ years, I’ve demonstrated my knowledge and skills by bringing cutting-edge marketing intel to the wider community. People come from Boston, Hartford, New Hampshire to see the speakers I’ve invited.

SM: Does that mean I can ditch social media altogether?

GA: Not all. Think of it this way: Some people prefer email; others the phone. You want to be there, and be responsive when people reach out to you. I messaged a local greenhouse on Facebook in search of a live Christmas tree, which they had. But by the time I got details on price etc a day or so later, my husband already bought a regular tree. That’s just 1 very small example, but think of how many businesses are missing sales because they’re not as responsive as social media users expect.

Gail Alofsin Suzanne McDonald on WADK NPT

SM: What’s new & trending for 2015? Any predictions?

GA: A year is a long time in the media-technology world. One of the perks of being a student of new media – attending conferences like Social Media Marketing World – and the curator of NIM is being connected to so many experts. We’re just about to release a survey asking all those experts what brands should expect – and where the opportunities are – in 2016.  My predictions: more video (think YouTube, Facebook auto-play videos).

Plus, more live video like Periscope, Meerkat & Blab. It’s interactive & can be archived. Think of it like a live talk show – on demand. Evidently, we love it … think Jerry Springer meets YouTube … live video media isn’t quite there yet, but maybe this time next year it will be. Jimmy Kimmel Blab-only shows? I say: Maybe.