If there’s one thing that holds true for social media, it’s that no trend lasts forever. In 2013, we saw the decline of Facebook amongst teens and the rise of alternate networks like SnapChat. Twitter’s IPO signaled a shift towards the rising prominence of paid advertising campaigns, echoing Facebook’s increased push towards pay-per-use advanced audience segmentation tools. And most of us regretted the rise of the selfie, especially Miley Cyrus’s obsession with it.

While Snapchats and selfies may have little place in B2B social media marketing, they reflect a growing trend towards the importance of visuals and interactive content. Today’s B2B social media marketing must be as mature and sophisticated as its professional audience, but not be afraid to reach this audience in new, creative ways.

Here are four social media trends to stay on top of in 2014.

1. Visuals matter in social media marketing

Posts on Facebook with photos generate 104% more comments, 84% more click-throughs and 53% more likes than text-based posts, according to Kissmetrics. From Instagram to Pinterest, today’s hottest social networks are visual.

Sure, it may not make sense for your healthcare company or professional services firm to be active on these networks, but that doesn’t mean your business should shy away from visuals. Free your data from Excel chart oblivion with creative infographics. Overlay text on images or create a unique picture by combining different stock photos to accompany your latest blog post and increase the likelihood that your content will be re-shared on social media.

2. LinkedIn is the new destination for industry news

Imagine a network with over 238 million captive professional readers, including the likes of Bill Gates and Richard Branson. That’s LinkedIn, which in 2014 will become a premium destination for industry news and peer-to-peer sharing.

Don’t let your company’s content linger on its blog. Get in early on this trend by cross-publishing on LinkedIn and establishing your business as an industry thought leader.

3. Interactivity stumps static content

Top 10 lists, frequently asked questions, and simple messaging had its place in past years; 2014, however, is the year of deep connection and engagement. From short videos to infographics, every piece of content needs to engage with target customers on a deep level. Content must not only be smart and informative, but also engaging and interactive.

Before posting anything on social media, ask yourself, “Would I share this if I had not written it myself?” If the answer is no, ask yourself what “hook” your content is missing to engage more deeply with the audience. The same goes for content marketing; businesses with blogs generate 67% more leads each month than companies without blogs.

That doesn’t mean you can simply slap up a few “how to” blog posts and call it a day. If your content does not bring real value to your audience – whether this content is being tweeted or posted to the company blog – it’s effectively worthless.

4. Google+ is back

Remember when Google+ launched to much fanfare a few years ago, only to fade away as quickly as it came? Thanks to the rise of Google Authorship, the network is back in a whole new way. As Google+ moves towards even greater integration with other aspects of Google, including search results, we’re poised to see Google+ usage skyrocket both personally and professionally.

Is your business on Google+? Be sure to link this account with your Google Authorship account and tag all blog posts with the relevant “?rel=author” at the end. While Google does not officially use Google Authorship to determine search results, many industry analysts predict that it’s only a matter of when – not if – Google Authorship will become a factor.

Summary

In 2014, LinkedIn and Google+ are the networks that matter most for businesses. If you are not doing so already, get active on these networks to establish your business as an industry thought leader. And remember, the most shareable content is visual and interactive. The extra five minutes you spend finding a creative image to accompany a blog post will pay off ten-fold in likes, tweets and shares.