As the year draws to a close, it is obvious that the internet shows no signs of slowing down in its growth into everyone’s daily lives. The internet is becoming a fundamental component of more and more areas of human life, interaction and technology. With this in mind, what were some of the big trends online in 2015?
Facebook Takes Over the World
Social media platforms have become a key part of modern society’s identity with people relying on them to communicate, share ideas and keep track of other people’s lives whilst filling their timeline with their own success and struggles. Facebook has reached over one billion users and has unlimited potential from a marketing angle but the way it has become a multi-platform social media giant with its ownership of Instagram, WhatsApp and Oculus VR is a more interesting story. Mark Zuckerberg has set Facebook on a path where it will aim to dominate social media for years to come, and 2015 only served to underline this. On a personal level Zuckerberg is on a one man crusade to give the internet to the world.
Internet as a Marketplace
Over the last decade the internet has joined, in some instances replaced, the high-street as somewhere people do their shopping. Facebook, again, has fueled the growth in niche product selling and one search on Facebook can turn up a number of pages selling the most obscure items. With more people turning to the internet to sell their skills part-time to earn some extra money or share their skills, it has become important for individuals to make their business visible online. With most people turning to search engines to find things online it is important to be top of the list. For example, if your business was based in Sioux Falls, it would be vital to perform Sioux Falls SEO (Search Engine Optimization) to ensure you are top of the list people look for. Appearing at the top of search engine searches will generate more traffic to your website therefore making it easier for the money in a customer’s wallet to move into your account.
Apps Can Do Everything
With the growth in Apple and Android services, mobile phones are becoming more and more integrated due to the internet and apps are becoming more functional and are now being incorporated into everyday life. Apps can now be downloaded to do anything from watching television, managing your energy usage to even turning on your central heating. With the growth in smartphone ownership and the development in connectivity, apps will continue to be used for more and more daily tasks as illustrated by the development of Apple Pay which will now allow people to use their phone as a bank card.
These three things are only some examples of the online trends in 2015 and there are dozens of others worth looking at. With these three things in mind, it leaves the question; what will the trends of 2016 be?
