What Social Media Trends Will Emerge in 2022?

2021 was a busy year for social media platforms and 2022 is shaping up to be even more so. Next year, the strategies of company marketers must drive a complete customer experience (CX).

What Social Media Trends Will Emerge in 2022?

Trend 1: The Evolution of the Main Feedback Will Begin

The major algorithmic sources on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, or Twitter have long connected people to the news. But tactics to attract users’ attention have to focus on adding value to people. Several changes aimed at selecting posts with more personalization and privacy in mind are on the way. Therefore, marketers need to plan and leverage more features that enhance customer experiences.

Trend 2: Social Media Will Continue to Place a Lot of Importance on Ad Revenue

The parade of ads displayed alongside the news feeds shows how old they are, however the revenue generated will continue to grow. An eMarketer forecast predicted that Twitter will hit $ 2 billion in US ad revenue and Instagram will account for more than 50% of Facebook’s $ 50 billion in net ad revenue in 2021 for the first time.

Marketers shouldn’t stop learning about new ad features, as digital advertising is likely to deliver effective messages about the customer journey. But an evolution in options will address the mounting pressure to demonstrate return on investment (ROI).

Trend 3: Lean Media Models Will Increase Competitiveness

We all know the firmly established social media platforms with massive audiences. Facebook, for example, indicated in its earnings report a year-over-year increase in daily and monthly active users, despite public criticism of its practices.

In contrast, newer platforms have emerged that offer a lean media model, aimed at making socializing between niche audiences safer as a community. New features include Spotify podcasts, live chat platforms like Clubhouse, newsletter platforms like Substack, and sub-communities on established social media platforms like Twitter Spaces. They all aim to allow people to make meaningful connections with their favorite creators or community rather than relying on algorithmic recommendations for engagement. However, the challenge for these lean business models will be to generate revenue.

Ultimately, these platforms will have marketers cultivate CX options that don’t show up as attention-grabbing content.

Trend 4: As Social Commerce Continues Its Rise, So Will Customer Service

Social commerce features will continue to be implemented to keep up with how people buy products and services. Customers have gotten used to initiating a purchase online, but now they also want quick responses in customer service. Social media channels dedicated to customer service have been around for a long time. The pandemic has only accelerated its adoption.

Trend 5: Social Media Responsibility Will Increase

Public calls to hold social media platforms accountable will increase, driven by the fallout from Facebook docs and findings implicating Instagram as a negative influence on young users. These findings, first brought to light in a Wall Street Journal report, found that 32% of adolescent girls surveyed “indicated that when they had negative thoughts about their appearance, Instagram made those feelings worse.” 14% of male adolescents reported a similar sentiment. In this sense, the big question for 2022 is what kind of legislation will emerge.

Trend 6: The Rise of Creative Influencers

The proliferation of creative tools has allowed a new type of influencer to form: Creators. These differ from traditional influencers, who depend on experiencing the world around them by producing original materials with these tools. The pandemic has changed which influences are valuable on the fly. As a result, the creators have gained a considerable following in a world with limited gathering options during the pandemic.

Therefore, marketers will face two types of influencers to develop the brand and take advantage of the engagement. Creators offer a way to demonstrate the benefit of a solution, creating an additional micro-influencer opportunity.

Trend 7: Adoption of Short Videos Will Shape Video Metrics

TikTok dominates the social media environment today, sparking great competition to feature short videos and live streaming capabilities, such as the introduction of YouTube Shorts and Instagram stating its emphasis on video over images.

For this reason, marketers must analyze whether link replication leads to conversion activity. This means correlating data from social media with data from sales or conversions.

Trend 8: Choosing Where to Make Better Connections with Customers

There are currently a wide variety of social media options, but brands are recognizing that they may have to be selective with which platforms best connect them to their intended audience. As such, marketers will need to evaluate the metrics that show where engagement with conversions aligns when making important decisions.