As we make way for 2020 and the start of a new decade, it’s natural to wonder what may define the next 10 years ahead. What’s in store for the industry? What will the next big new jewelry style be? What’s going to happen with social media?

I can take a crack at some of the future possibilities that lie in wait for the jewelry industry, but when it comes to social media, I feel less certain. I mean, if you had told me a year ago that in 2019, a karaoke/lip-synching app would be taking the entire world by storm, I would have told you to lay off the eggnog.

I do think that Instagram will continue its reign, at least for the next couple of years, though I also expect a new platform to lure the interest of influencers. I also think shopping via social media will grow, as it seems a natural fit for platforms that basically sell you things anyway, and I think jewelers should do what they can to get involved in that. But these are fairly generic predictions, so I refer you to this article from Social Media Today, in which three social media experts offer input on what will be huge in 2020. Read through the article for more detail on the predictions, but here they are, with a take on what they mean for the jewelry industry.

1. IGTV will be the next TV.

I don’t know how much I agree with this—I’ve watched a few things on IGTV, but only by default (like when a video found on my feed runs too long and I can only watch the rest by going there). But what harm can it do to begin creating some original content for the platform, particularly with a big focus on educational content? This is a great place to share with your customers everything they need to know about topics such as buying diamonds, shopping small, seeking sustainable goods, and more. There’s a lot to learn about jewelry, and we as an industry can do more to educate consumers with what we feel is most vital for them to know. IGTV may just be the ideal place to do that.

2. Subscribe, rate, and download (more) podcasts.

Now here’s a trend the team at JCK can get behind! Podcasts have been big for quite a few years now, and they certainly don’t seem to be waning in popularity. Should you start your own podcast? Well, the answer to that would depend on your resources, but if you aren’t prepared to record your own content (it’s nerve-racking, as may be surmised from my speed-talking appearance on JCK’s own), look at other ways to get involved. See if you can take part in an interview on an industry podcast, look into advertising on or sponsoring one, and above all, listen! You never know what you may end up learning.

3. TikTok will be the next big social media platform.

Our own Emili Vesilind wrote an excellent article on why the young platform might offer beneficial marketing opportunities and whether it has potential. I agree that it has potential—with skepticism. Perhaps I’m just getting to that age where I start telling kids to get off my lawn, but I am wary of TikTok’s current controversies, particularly as U.S. and China relations (the app is Chinese-owned) are ever bleaker, and the app maintains a massive audience of underage users (which can pose some tricky situations for marketers regarding data collection). That being said, I also think it has growing pains and could turn into something that completely alters the way we market to prospective consumers on social. Get on TikTok for sure, because early adoption is key (early is a relative term here), but don’t go throwing all your strategy into this one app just yet—just be ready to.

4. Sea changes for influencer partnerships.

We’ve been discussing this for a bit (see my recent article about how some of our industry’s biggest social media users feel about Instagram hiding its like count), but much of that talk has been speculative, because no one is sure how this will effect influencers (or whether Instagram will even make this test permanent). But if you have either a horde of followers of your own or work with influencers, it is a good time to start thinking creatively about other ways to get your message across. The influencer age isn’t over, it may just be turning into something else, and we need to adapt.

What do you think will be the biggest social media changes in 2020?

(Image via: Canva)

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