Social media has experienced explosive growth over the past few years. As of July 2015, there are 2.3 billion active social media users. With 1 million new mobile users joining social networks every day, it’s hard to ignore the boom and impact of people-based media.

Due to the widespread adoption of mobile smart devices and the increase in the number of businesses that offer Wi-Fi hotspots at their brick and mortar stores and other public locations, consumers are now more digitally connected than ever before.

In a world where everyone is constantly connected to each other, the demand for instant communication has never been greater. As video content becomes king, more and more Millennials and Gen Zers are ditching their old school social networks for new school video platforms. To compete with short-form video and ephemeral publishing platforms like Instagram, Vine and Snapchat, first-generation social networks such as Facebook and Twitter had to find new ways to innovate and jump on the live-video trend to keep their younger demographics from disappearing.

As the competition heats up between Facebook and Twitter in the realm of online video marketing, it’s important for social media experts to learn when and how to use live streaming technologies like Facebook Live and Periscope to authentically connect with consumers.

Video ads have certainly proven their power on Instagram according to a report released by Brand Networks from a study done on more than 2 billion Instagram advertising impressions.

The fashion industry especially has fared well with its use of video ads. According to BN Video, ads account for 71% of the fashion industry’s ad spend, driving 90% of its impressions during the first three months of 2016.

Social listening is the process of using digital tools to monitor what people are saying about brands online.

Marketers who perform social listening are able to gather key insights about their target audiences, competitors, and any potential issues coming their way.

From Facebook to Twitter to Snapchat, brands now have more ways than ever before to connect with their target audiences. With hundreds of apps being launched everyday, determining the inherent business value of emergent social media platforms is not only difficult, but can also be time consuming for marketers.

However, before marketers begin to jump to the next new social media platform, they should do their research and have a clear understanding of their target audiences’ wants, needs, and preferred modes of communication to determine if the platform they want to adopt is the right fit for their business objectives. Given consumers’ growing demand for personal interaction with brands and influencers; and increased interest in real-time promotions and offers, marketers must look for new social apps that encourage consumers’ always connected lifestyles.

Today, many forward-looking marketers are shifting their focus from millennials to Generation Z. While experts disagree on what defines this next wave of young adult spenders, it’s easy to see how this “always connected” generation will have a huge influence on the market as it becomes increasingly digitized.

As technology continues to advance, more and more people around the world are becoming connected. Thanks to the widespread adoption of social media, apps and mobile technology, brands now have even greater opportunities to reach and engage their target audiences.

Making an impact on social media is harder for brands now than it ever has been before. Every social media channel is filled with people trying to make an impact and resonate with potential clients. A recent study from the Journal of Consumer Research has found that people who are active in social media are likely to be influenced by the opinions of those they follow on those social media channels. For marketers and business owners, this means that connecting with trend setters who have a large amount of followers is more important than ever.

These connections and the resulting endorsements can be much more profitable than conventional methods of advertising, which typically cost much more than advertising online. The potential reach of social media trend setters can also be much farther than a television commercial or newspaper ad. The right social media post can go viral, resulting in invaluable exposure for the brand.

Many public relations specialists are realizing that they need to update their skill set and services to remain competitive in an intense, crowded market. Here at 5WPR, we recognize the importance of maintaining a cutting edge, contemporary outlook towards the world of public relations. As a result, we’ve integrated numerous new strategies and techniques to ensure that we can offer our clients the most current, relevant services available on the market.

Here are just a few of the skills we’ve successfully integrated into our praxis and implore all PR Professional’s to think outside the traditional PR box to generate results for their clients!