2013 Social Media Year in Review

It’s that time again – time to say goodbye to the old year and ring in the new.

What I love about social media is that it’s always changing and 2013 was no different. What stood out for you in 2013?

Here’s a look at the top stories and changes to Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Google Plus. Hey – did you hear about Snapchat? The app that snubbed Facebook’s $3 billion offer.

For comparison purposes, here’s my 2012 social media year in review post. And, here’s where to find the Top 2014 PR, Marketing, Mobile, Tech, Life Trends Guide.

2013 Social Media Year in Review

In 2013, everyone became better friends with their mobile device than their computer. More and more social interaction takes place on phones and tablets.

That’s why every social platform rushed to upgrade, seemingly continually, their mobile interface. Which social mobile apps do you like best?

Isn’t this an awesome infographic? Click here to see it in full view on the Infographic Promotions site.

Facebook Year in Review

In 2013, teens found a reason to break up with Facebook. Why it’s not like they’re never, ever getting back together, it’s that teens are just not that into FB.

Many brands saw a big drop in Facebook fan reach as the social network made it clear that buying ads was the only sure way to communicate with your community. Ads showed up in newsfeeds and in auto-play videos.

Released this week, Facebook’s annual report revealed that it is successfully making the shift to mobile with almost 50 percent of users accessing the social networking site on their mobiles worldwide.

To see what was hot on Facebook in 2013, check out Facebook Year in Review.

Twitter Year in Review

Flying high after a successful IPO, twitter launched Vine, a six second video app, in January, which gave users plenty of time to think up cool ways to capture SXSW.

Still, Twitter is not the first place every business flocks to to grow communities. It’s not as personal and interactive as it was in the beginning. But, partnering with Neilsen gives brands big numbers to crunch that show how people tweet about TV shows. And, now there’s tweetcommerce.

TweetACoffee, powered by Starbucks, launched this year showing us the first signs of e-commerce integrating with social media. Just one tweet allows any individual to instantly gift a friend with a cup of coffee. This exciting launch has gotten everyone excited for what’s to come in 2014. Source

Want more of an overview? Check out the #2013YearonTwitter.

Yahoo and Apple Apps Year in Review

To get into the social race, Yahoo snapped up Tumblr for $1.1 billion.

But, none of Yahoo’s apps made into Apple’s top 100 apps. For comparison Google has five apps (Google Search, Google Maps, Gmail, YouTube and Chrome). Facebook has three (Facebook, Facebook Messenger, Instagram). Twitter has two (Twitter and Vine). And a number of companies like Microsoft (Skype), Netflix, Amazon, eBay, Pinterest, Snapchat, Uber — “even _____ Groupon”, as one observer noted to us — have one apiece. Source

LinkedIn Year in Review

Over and over and over again, LinkedIn introduced refinements – some subtle and some major, like the Influencers network. Here’s LinkedIn’s look at their 2013 accomplishments.

Chip Cutter, editor at LinkedIn, reported on stories that mattered the most to professionals in 2013.

The Most-Engaging Influencer Posts of the Year

1. Bruce Kasanoff: The Best Talent Is Bringing Out Talent in Others
2. Naomi Simson: Four Business Rules I Learned in Kindergarten
3. Adam Bryant: Google Changes How It Hires, Calls GPAs ‘Worthless’
4. Richard Branson: Yes Men? No Thanks!
5. Deepak Chopra: The Conscious Lifestyle: A Leader Must Look and Listen

YouTube Year in Review

Here are the top 40 most viral videos in 2013 and the top 2013 YouTube news viral videos.

Ylvis’ “What Does the Fox Say?” was number one.

By the way, here’s the scientific answer to what does the fox say?

Google Plus Year in Review

Google Plus is on a growth spurt.

Google is uploading 1.5 billion photos per week and has seen a 20-fold surge in videos uploaded to Google+ Vic Gundotra, head of social at Google, said Google+ has 300 million monthly active users, up from 190 million in May. In October Google+ members who have interacted socially with any of Google’s services in the past 30 days total 540 million, up from 390 million in May, he added. Source

Could photos be fueling the surge in Google+ interaction?

As a year-end gift to users, Google’s Auto Awesome photo feature created personalized Google+ year-in-review videos. Mine was pretty accurate, but I wish I could edit out a few of the conference moment images.

Google Zeitgeist Video Here’s to 2013

I like the framework and the focus . . . and the ending call to action . . . Search on . . .