Each day new sites are popping up across the Web and new strategies are being devised to take advantage of the ever-evolving opportunities in the online landscape. In 2014, along with the customary gym-joining and gluten-avoiding and compulsive budgeting that takes place, you should strive to keep your thumb on the pulse of Internet trends, and use them to your benefit. Here are some places to start:

1.      Video on Facebook. If you haven’t noticed by now, Facebook’s video incorporation has now been designed to auto-play across newsfeeds. While some may find this new feature aggravating, when utilized correctly it can be wildly valuable – especially to businesses. Professionally produced video-spots can immediately grab the eye of potential consumers or clients, and showcase your ability to market a successful product or service.

2.      Mobility. Society is trending even further toward the ‘have to do this on the run’ narrative. This doesn’t exclude social media, where developers are continuing to focus their efforts on mobility incorporation to accommodate a culture on the go. Just because the clock strikes 5:00 pm does not mean you should mentally abandon your professional social media cache. Respond to inquiries, comments and friend requests in a timely manner to demonstrate availability and expedience.

3.      Focus on turning ‘likes’ into conversions. A potential customer has connected with you online, and seems to be fairly interactive with your profiles? Great – but that doesn’t help your bottom line. Engage them and begin an online dialogue, and work to bring them aboard your operation. As the analytics and SEO functionality of social media platforms continues to grow, 2014 will allow for far greater monitoring of leads and traffic.

4.      Instagram is essential. Image-centric social media will be the story of 2014, and with photo-sharing sites and apps continuing to crop up, there is no reason you shouldn’t be participating. Instagram allows for the softer-side of business, showcasing in-house projects and happenings, and injects a bit of lightheartedness into the world of online commerce. Even if your feed is comprised of mainly photos of staff or events, connecting with others is just another opportunity to get your name out there.

Keeping abreast of trends is imperative to growing your business and name recognition. Make this another entry onto the litany of resolutions you’ve made this year.