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We’ve been talking a lot at feedly about how trends are coming and going at what feels like a faster rate than ever. That made us think: What can we do to help you stay on top of these new ideas? So today we introduce a new series on Trendspotting—one look at something new that is changing the way we work. Are you spotting a trend that you want to know more about? Please leave us a note in the comments below!

Live Video Streaming

In our increasingly digital and visual world, businesses across industries are fighting attention amidst the noise. Video as a medium has become one of the most effective ways to stand out and connect with an audience. Video quickly conveys meaning and emotion. It’s memorable, and it catches the eye in a sea of text and static images.

To hit home the growing popularity of video: Over one billion people use Youtube (that’s almost one third of all people on the internet), and the number of daily Youtube viewers has increased 40 percent since March 2014.

Accordingly, many social media sites like Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook have integrated some form of video content on their platforms. Additionally, new social media platforms have recently emerged that feature video as the central medium for interaction.

More and more, brands are recognizing the value of video as an online marketing strategy. Demand Metric completed a survey of 398 marketing, sales, and business professionals which revealed that 69 percent have used video marketing and another 31 percent are planning to. A recent study of 200 executives by Brandlive found that 44 percent held a live streaming event in 2015 and 39 percent believe live streaming video will be important to their marketing efforts going forward.

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The video trend is growing alongside the surging smartphone use trend, as more and more people use phone cameras. Daily mobile internet usage continues to grow year by year, on a global scale. Of all mobile traffic, online video now accounts for upwards of 50 percent.

The prevalence of both video and smartphones have paved the way for newer social platforms centered around live streaming video, like Periscope, Meerkat, and now Blab.
Blab.im (which is still in beta) is quickly growing in popularity. As a platform that is truly social, interactive, informational, and fun, Blab is certainly worth getting acquainted with for its many potential uses as a tool for business and marketing.

Since Blab is one of the newest of the live video trend, let’s take a closer look.

Nearly 50% of UK internet users surveyed in May 2016 by my clever Agency say they would use a chatbot—a sort of virtual assistant—to obtain quick emergency answers if the option were available. About 4 in 10 also said they would use a chatbot to forward a question or request to an appropriate human.

While the leading activities may be simple and focused on resolving problems, 33% of those surveyed also said that if a chatbot were available, they would use it to buy basic items, like clothes and food.

But UK internet users still want a more personal experience when making expensive purchases—only 5% said they would use a chatbot to buy things like cars.

That the leading expected benefit of a chatbot is that one has access to 24-hour service—not exactly a surprise, and suggesting consumers are valuing chatbots for their obvious differences from humans. Nearly 70% named such access as an expected benefit, while about 65% also said one benefit would be getting quick answers to expected questions. And instant responses and convenience are also expected to benefit UK internet users.

However, it’s yet to be seen if chatbots will indeed be used by internet users. Internet users in the US overwhelmingly agreed that phone calls resolved customer service issues fastest, according to research from The Northridge Group (NRG) survey. About one-fifth (18%) said digital chat resolved issues fastest, so there is some space for chatbots. But it’s clear that for companies wanting to employ chatbots, they ought to focus on resolving basic issues, quickly and around the clock.