All too often, trend roundups can be full of dreams that won’t become reality for years.

Of course, virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), artificial intelligence (AI) and voice search will continue to grow this year. But those pie-in-the-sky trends likely won’t impact your business just yet.

Instead, read on for the top three trends that will affect how you market to your customers in 2019.

1. Social networks shift to groups. Instagram remains in the clear.

What’s happened: Facebook remains the biggest player in the social media world with over 2.27 billion monthly active users. But throughout 2018, the company was mired with problem after problem.

After the Cambridge Analytica scandal, people began taking breaks from the platform or deleting the app altogether, which led to a 20 percent decrease in how much Facebook content each person reads. Page admins saw that impact directly after engagement rates dropped more than 50 percent.

Because Facebook is the top dog, other social networks are seeing the trickle-down effects. Nearly 75 percent of Americans believe that the integrity of Facebook and Twitter has diminished, and they’re less likely to find trusted information on those sites.

That lack of trust in how the networks are using private data also means users are sharing privately more than publicly. Social shares are also down 50 percent since 2015.

What’s next for 2019: While skeptical of the information posted publicly on Facebook and Twitter, Eighty percent of people do trust information posted on forums, which could lead to an increase in Group discussions.

Try to pivot to Groups in 2019 to see how it works for your business. Also, Instagram, though owned by Facebook, has mostly avoided the mistrust that plagues other sites, so continue to invest more time there in 2019.

2. Continue chatting, but start marketing in messaging apps.

What’s happened: Over the last few years, people took their conversations to private messaging apps instead of public feeds. As of June of 2017, 65 percent of links were shared privately while only 14 percent were posted publicly. Once people started messaging, they couldn’t stop!

80 percent of adults send at least one message per day, which has led to more than 1 billion people (and businesses) sending more than 8 billion messages per month. That’s more than double the year prior, and the growth shows no signs of stopping in 2019!

What’s next for 2019: If you have not figured out how to effectively handle the influx of messages, you’re missing out on sales and disappointing customers. This must be the year you get a solid system in place.

Start with these tips or look into a chatbot. Then, brainstorm how you can go beyond simply answering questions that you get and start marketing. Forty-six percent of people said they would like to receive deals over messaging apps while 24 percent said they’d received updates on products, too.

3. Have others tell your story (especially in ads).

What’s happened: People are skeptical of information on social media, but they also want brands and companies to tell the trust. Most Americans (86 percent) agree that transparency from companies is more important to them than ever before.

They want businesses to be open, honest, clear and authentic. That, of course, is easy said than done because most people are inherently wary of what brands say about themselves. But 37 percent of people trust influencers more than brands.

Enter influencer marketing. Global spending has more than doubled each year from 2015 to 2018. In 2018, advertisers spent $1.6 billion on Instagram influencer content alone.

What’s next for 2019: In 2019, budgets for influencer marketing are forecasted to grow about 30 percent. But, it’s no longer the smart play to use this content organically.

Instead, you should be paying micro-influencers (often real customers or moderately successful bloggers) to create ads for your business. They’re the ones who make content for a living, so creating a vertical, short video for them will be easy-peasy.

That way, you can easily take hold of two major trends (micro ads and the video-all-the-time phenomenon). Plus, people will trust what they create more.