Looking into the Future – 2011 Trend Predictions by Nicole Ferreira

Before I begin with my predictions for the year to come, I thought I would start with a quick discussion of the past year.2010 was a pretty pivotal year in social media, as more and more people began to embrace it. At the end of 2009, there were still quite a few people who were skeptical of Twitter and the power of social media. Now that we are at the end of 2010, I’ve found it a rarity to find a business that is NOT on Twitter and/or Facebook.In 2010, we saw the iPhone 4 enter the market with a bang. People lined up for hours on end to try to get one of the few iPhones that each store would have available. I still have my 3G, but do plan on upgrading in 2011. I was at the local Best Buy store a few weeks ago, buying accessories for my iPad, and decided to get a new case for my phone. I found one - yes, only ONE - kind of case that fit my 3G. The iPhone 4 has pretty much rendered my phone obsolete.And then there was the iPad. The marvel that is the iPad. I was sitting on a plane this morning, listening to a guy explain to the passenger beside him why the iPad is an amazing product. Since it was first introduced, iPads have been popping up everywhere. I too have recently acquired an iPad, and I must admit that I am quite smitten with it.Now onto my predictions for 2011. I was speaking with a friend of mine last week, and he mentioned that he believes that Twitter is on the way out, and there is going to be “a new fad” entering the market in 2011. I challenged that. I don’t believe that to be the case at all. I think that Twitter is here to stay for a while. As mentioned above, Twitter has become more of a standard in people’s lives and was more widely used and accepted in 2010. Now that it’s established, I only see it getting bigger and better in the year to come. My friend may be half right – I can definitely see someone trying to start the “next big thing” but I’m not sure it will do as well as what has gone before. And if it does, it will be more of a supplement to what we currently use rather than a substitution.I do believe we are going to keep seeing the market flooded with apps for the iPad and iPhone in 2011. The next-generation iPad will come with a camera, as that is currently the main thing that the iPad is REALLY missing. Be sure to check out our review page – I will continue to be on the lookout for great iPhone and iPad apps coming out.Location-based social media will continue to get stronger, in my opinion. Now that Facebook Places has entered the market, more and more people have jumped on the location-based fun that we’ve been enjoying since Foursquare and Gowalla first entered our worlds. I do have a feeling that Facebook Places may take over as the leader in location-based social media, but I don’t actually see that happening in 2011. Maybe 2012, but for this coming year, I can see most people staying loyal to their current preferred application.And, finally, QR codes.  I am currently working on a post on discussing QR codes in detail, but I will say that I believe that 2011 is going to be the year for implementing these codes into your marketing strategy.Get ready.