5 Social Media Trends to Look Out for in 2022
Digital marketing and brand expansion are only as effective as one’s social media strategies are. Different platforms require a different focus and understanding the top trends helps to curate your content and make the most out of your social media accounts. Below are 8 new social media trends to keep an eye out for this year:
1. Audio-only Content is on the Rise
2022 is the year for podcasts, Twitter spaces, and other social-audio platforms to become even more popular. Following Facebook’s Live Audio Rooms, brands and companies are beginning to notice the value of audio content and specifically social audio. According to Hootsuite’s 2022 Social Media Trends survey, 74% of businesses are set to invest in audio content this year. It is expected that there will be a large focus on garnering audiences through podcasting and other speaker-host platforms to expand customer bases and increase brand reputation. There are also several Instagram Growth Services that can be utilized in 2022 including Buzzoid.
2. Social Commerce
Selling products exclusively through social media platforms, as social commerce suggests, will become even more widespread this year. Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook, and more have already been in use for product selling but in 2022 it is expected that such direct purchasing through social media will become more and more normalized. Therefore, it is in a brand’s best interest to take advantage of its rise and it is especially useful for small businesses to expand their customer experience. In Hootsuite’s Digital 2021 Report, it is concluded that 53.2% of the younger generation uses social media to research brands rather than traditional search engines. As in previous years, brands and influencers are continuing to use an Instagram hashtag (and other popular social media hashtags) to improve visibility and expand their viewership.
3. TikTok’s Continuing Popularity
It’s no surprise that the viral, user-curated nature of TikTok will continue to rise in 2022 and be utilized for brand marketing and advertising at an even higher volume. Businesses using the sponsored post feature and following viral trends to boost product visibility will continue to be a valuable avenue for customer-base expansion especially because of the over one billion users, live-streaming capabilities, and social commerce features.
4. Influencer Marketing
As TikTok continues to be increasingly popular, so will influencer marketing. Social media is only becoming more and more infused with viral creators with large follower counts and loyal fan bases and businesses should take advantage of it and can be even more effective, and cheaper, than paid advertisements and campaigns. By working with many small, niche influencers that have audiences interested in your product, you will see more effective results as opposed to traditional advertising. Figuring out whose audience will respond the most to your product will make influencer marketing one of the most successful strategies.
5. The Prevalence of Social Media for Customer Service
As social media continues to be utilized for more than connecting with friends and family and many individuals are moving away from researching on search engines to using public social platforms to learn new information, customer service via social media will become more and more important. Using personalized direct messaging and replying features on all social media accounts will be very important in reinforcing business success in 2022.
6. Social Media Recruiting
Using social media to reach out to prospective interns and employees is the new wave. Most E-commerce companies are in need of younger and more tech-savvy employees that know the ins and out of social media platforms such as TikTok, Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. Recruiting individuals through those same platforms is sure to attract users who understand how social media works and the necessary tools to make your content accessible and interesting to followers and potential costumers.
7. Short-Video Content
Aside from TikTok, short-video content on every platform will see an increase. As the attention spans of the younger generation become shorter and shorter, adapting to clips of intriguing content to entice an audience becomes increasingly important. For Facebook, the average desktop user spends about 2.5 seconds on any content while mobile users spend about 1.7 seconds, and these numbers are even shorter among younger people. Quick and funny videos on Instagram, Facebook, and even Twitter perform very well, and using the time limit of a few seconds to a minute can seem to constrain but if done correctly, will be a surefire way of gaining the attention of new customers and users of your product or service.
8. LinkedIn Becomes Even More Popular Platform
As remote work takes over and dominates many industries, LinkedIn is a necessary tool to use to bolster your professional personality and find like-minded people, jobs, and opportunities. As a business, using the platform to make informative posts and keep up with talent acquisition will be especially useful. Furthermore, there is even a possibility for virality and popularity as an influencer or brand on the platform as it continues to grow. Starting early in the process of LinkedIn’s rise to increased popularity will be vital.
Conclusion
The 8 trends discussed are the future of social media moving forward and it can be in any business or brands’ best interest to become accustomed to them to solidify their reputation and stay up-to-date with what is popular and generate the most audience traction and revenue!
