There have been 182 #SMXChat sessions since the number one took place on March 19, 2013. That’s a tradition that we’re proud of, and we’re happy to have each one of you along with.

As we approach the end of 2016, we acknowledge the busy and, for many of us, family-frenzied time of the year. We wish everyone the best of health, happiness and prosperity during this holiday season and the New Year to come as we launch the last #SMXChat of the year.

We been known to do themed chats around holidays, and this is our end-of-the-year theme! But we resist the urge to rehash events from the year. Or to do a prediction-themed chat. There will be enough of those that we can join anyway. We did make our prediction back in 2015 for 2016, 2017 and 2018, and possibly beyond!

https://twitter.com/eksays/status/755468085642092544

We are grateful for and proud of the discussions that our questions evoke. In every chat, our community approaches our topics with zeal, perspective and professionalism.

https://twitter.com/VinceSkolny/status/804751724581789700

So, for this last chat of 2016, we selected two questions from each topic as a list for our #SMXChat 2016 year in review. Here are two questions from each month of #SMXChat in 2016, from which we’ll select five questions for our final chat of the year:

  • Has video already overcome narrative in delivering brand messages on social media? (from 1/19/16)
  • Mark’s Myth #3 Companies have missed the boat on integrating social media into their culture. Reality: (from 1/25/16)
  • Collaboration among teams is seen as a competitive advantage. Can social collaboration between teams, brands or businesses be equally so? (from 2/2/16)
  • Can we market the ‘character’ of our brand? Or better question: should we? (from 2/23/16)
  • Casual observation: As people gain notoriety on social platforms their individual connections suffer. Agree/Disagree? Why? (from 3/15/16)
  • Is ‘social selling’ in the mainstream of sales processes? (from 3/29/16)
  • What are some benefits/risks of trusting an algorithm to interact with people? Examples? (from 4/19/16)
  • What do you think of people who wander around Twitter, amiably starting conversations? (from 4/26/16)
  • How is Brand You relevant if you’re not a social media ‘celebrity’? (from 5/16/16)
  • Does using personal social media in advocating for your employer complicate your personal brand? (from 5/31/16)
  • Who’s getting rich in the digital age of marketing? Is there a model where all parties benefit? (from 6/14/16)
  • What strategy(ies) do you think are behind the acquisition of social media platforms by companies like Microsoft? Are more to come? (from 6/28/16)
  • What are the dangers/benefits of social media gaining power over news dissemination? (from 7/12/16)
  • Do you think the heightened awareness that social media creates benefits society, on balance? (from 7/19/16)
  • The millennial cohort is a key market, yet it’s so averse to marketing. Can this paradox be resolved? How? (from 8/2/16)
  • Does current technology to keep our data secure enough? (from 8/23/16)
  • Focusing on data distracts us from humanising our marketing efforts. What do you think? (from 9/20/16)
  • Endless comparisons to Facebook keep Twitter on its heels. How might Twitter best distinguish itself? (from 9/27/16)
  • What do successful businesses have in common? (from 10/3/16)
  • In reaching out to each other, we may discover we have more in common than what separates us. Agree or disagree? (from 10/11/16)
  • How do you think using social media affects your interpretation/perception of events? (from 11/8/16)
  • Who do you think is responsible and should be held accountable for disseminating fake news on Social Media? (from 11/21/16)

Some of these questions and topics are timely reflections of that period’s current events in marketing communications. Some are ahead of their time. Some evoked debate, some challenged our perspectives. Today, we ask five of them again. Has your impression and perspectives on these questions changed? Evolved? Or stayed the same?

https://twitter.com/eksays/status/806240370317258753

Here are the final five:

Q1) Has video already overcome narrative in delivering brand messages on social media? (from 1/19/16) #SMXChat

Q2) What are some benefits/risks of trusting an algorithm to interact with people? Examples? (from 4/19/16) #SMXChat

Q3) Who’s getting rich in the digital age of marketing? Is there a model where all parties benefit? (from 6/14/16) #SMXChat

Q4) What are the dangers/benefits of social media gaining power over news dissemination? (from 7/12/16) #SMXChat

Q5) In reaching out to each other, we may discover we have more in common than what separates us. Agree or disagree? (from 10/11/16) #SMXChat