The future of Social Media in Marketing

Abstract

Social media allows people to freely interact with others and offers multiple ways for marketers to
reach and engage with consumers. Considering the numerous ways social media affects individuals
and businesses alike, in this article, the authors focus on where they believe the future of social media
lies when considering marketing-related topics and issues. Drawing on academic research,
discussions with industry leaders, and popular discourse, the authors identify nine themes, organized
by predicted imminence (i.e., the immediate, near, and far futures), that they believe will meaningfully
shape the future of social media through three lenses: consumer, industry, and public policy. Within
each theme, the authors describe the digital landscape, present and discuss their predictions, and
identify relevant future research directions for academics and practitioners.

Keywords : Digital marketing, Future of marketing.