Our Social Media Predictions

Social media’s expansion will inevitably be tied with the growth of technological innovation. Microsoft has already predicted this with its Lightspace concept. It uses an interactive version of Skype called a Magic Window (View the video) that uses computer body trackers to create the illusion that you’re talking face to face, even if the person you’re speaking with is halfway across the globe.

There are a lot of predictions being made by industry experts about where social media could be headed. ComScore VP of Marketing and Industry Analysis Andrew Lipsman and Erik Qualman, author of Socialnomics: How Social Media Transforms the Way We Live and Do Business, gave their thoughts to YouTube on what they think social networking and social media will look like between now and 2020. Here are their top five predictions:

1. Facebook IPOs: A world where social platforms begin selling stock to the public. Facebook will be going public in May 2012.
2. The Interest Graph: This is an evolution of the social graph which consolidates people’s interests, rather than the people that they know. Pinterest is the biggest social media platforms doing this.
3. Social Media Presidential Elections: From online crowd funding to presidential social media campaigns, social media will define future presidential elections, influence how people will vote and influence how online fundraising occurs.
4. Educational Innovation: Social media has great potential to give students access to the best instructors, no matter where they may be located. Khan Academy is already doing this. Also, eReaders offer new potential to get notes from anyone around the world.
5. Social Commerce: Everything will be rated. Things like restaurants and businesses are already ranked across sites like Yelp: this will increase to include almost every aspect of life. You might even be able to see this through augmented reality.