Check out the social media trends for 2016, then tweak your New Year's social media resolutions if need be. If you still need a bit of guidance writing those SMART goals, read this.

Now brace yourself for your most successful year of social media marketing yet. Often, just a few small tweaks can make all the difference between a flop and a triumph. Stack the deck in your favor this year.

Implement these five tactics to drastically improve the success of your social media marketing in 2016.

1. Forget about "likes" and measure what matters

Yes, it's easy to fixate on how big your following is. But 15,000 likes doesn't translate to 15,000 sales.

Instead, focus on engagement and ROI data. These are the stats that can drastically affect your business in the long run.

This year, spend less time measuring your audience growth and average likes on a post. Focus on the metrics that matter, such as conversions or post-clicks.

2. Start live streaming

2016 will be the year of live streaming. Hands down, this is the biggest social media trend of 2016.

While you do need to prep for a live stream, the fun of them is their spontaneity. Your fans love to see the face behind your brand. They like to watch you laugh, answer their questions in real time and even shake off an awkward moment.

Face-to-face connections like these can do wonders for your social media marketing in 2016.

See the ways your business can use live streaming to market along with tips for a successful first Periscope here.

3. Repurpose top posts as social ads

In 2016, paying for social ad space will no longer be a choice. It will be a necessary tactic to get your message out.

Some social sites will show your posts to an ever-dwindling portion of your audience. Other social sites offer reasonably priced ads that can amplify your message.

Either way, this year you'll need to take the plunge into the world of social ads.

To be the most successful, pinpoint your best-performing posts on each platform, and tweak them slightly to work as ads. When you're paying for space, go with something you know works. Try out risks with your regular posts.

4. Add an emoji or two

Did you hear? The Oxford Dictionary's word of the year for 2015 was an emoji. In 2015, emojis exploded in popularity. In 2013, emoji usage was at 20 percent, and by the end of 2015, emoji usage was close to 40 percent.

Emojis work because they tell a story visually while infusing text with emotion. This way, there's less confusion as to your brand's tone.

On Instagram and Twitter, emojis are most popular. As you may have guessed, emojis work best with a younger audience.

Add one or a few emojis to your social media posts this year to see how this tactic works for your business.

5. Answer customers' questions quickly

Your ultimate goal with social media posts are to inspire followers to buy your product.

Often before they buy, they'll comment a question. The faster your brand answers, the more likely it is the customer will buy. 53 percent of customers expect a response within one hour.

Have your customer service team promptly answer social media posts and questions this year. Quick, authentic answers will have your fans becoming customers in no time.