Social Media Trends that will dominate the future

If we say that people spend a huge part of their daily time on social, it won’t even be an exaggeration. Whether entertainment, education, fashion, or business, social media plays a critical role in our lives and impacts our everyday decisions (both in good and bad ways).

Given the importance of social media in people’s everyday lives, businesses and brands across industries rush to social media platforms in the hope of connecting with their target audience.

However, social media is evolving fast, and marketers must follow the changing trends on social media to be relevant in the race. That said, staying ahead of the trends can make them fuel their strategy to stand out in the crowd. For this to happen, all they need to do is combine performance and consumer preference data to create a picture of emerging social media trends.

In this blog, we’ll cover some latest emerging social media trends that will dominate the future.

Sustainability and the Environment will become a priority.
The human touch will dominate the game.
Localized networks will emerge as an alternative to mainstream platforms.
Metaverse activation of brands will grow popular.
The gaming industry will continue to blossom.
The creator economy will grow even more
Employee advocacy will experience a rise.
Bite-sized content will dominate social media

1. Sustainability and the environment will become a priority.

With rising awareness of global warming and the consumers facing direct repercussions of climate change, the environment is not an afterthought anymore.

According to the Carbon Majors Report, Just 100 corporations are responsible for more than 71% of Carbon emissions, which puts a heavy responsibility on them to act consciously.

Although businesses and brands have been vocal about sustainable and eco-friendly materials, ever-growing conscious consumers want them to be more practical in their approach. Some non-profit watchdogs are also committed to calling out businesses and brands for their faux sustainability claims.

It has led brands to adopt a more proactive approach to cutting their Carbon footprints. With 60% of CEOs implementing strategies for sustainability, it will undoubtedly be a priority for businesses in the future.

2. The human touch will dominate the game.

User-generated content has gained a lot of streams in social media lately. About 90% of consumers say that UGC impacts their buying decisions.

Although the bands can get results from studio content, they can’t create the authenticity user-generated content generates. This trend is highly likely to grow even bigger In the future as it creates trust between the customers and the brands.

After all, the audiences trust a happy customer more than they trust you (it is that it is).

Here are some examples of how brands like Starbucks, Wayfair, and Aerie encouraged and featured the UGC on their social media channels.

3. Localized apps will become an alternative to mainstream social media platforms.

Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Whatsapp have remained mainstream social media platforms for decades. But now, the momentum seems to shift around lesser-known and decentralized social networks.

This is partially due to the data privacy concerns of users. Signal, Telegram, Tumblr, and Mastodon are rising stars in this shifting social media landscape.

As users demand more privacy and control over their data, the spike in the usage of emerging networks as an alternative to mainstream platforms is inevitable.

That said, keep a tab on Mastodon (an alternative to Twitter), Signal (an alternative to Whatsapp), Diaspora (a Facebook alternative), and LBRY (a Youtube alternative). As users keep experimenting with these networks, the brands must look for what platform to stick on to.

4. Metaverse brand activations will spike.

Metaverse isn’t a new name in the tech world; Marketers and business leaders are already planning to leverage this evolving technology. 2022 has seen some exciting metaverse activations from famous brands.

Metaverse gives a phygital marketing opportunity for customers, combining physical and digital tactics to curate a unique customer experience.

The brands’ activations involve creating an immersive environment using AR/VR technology through the metaverse platform. Some companies also use VR technologies for employee engagement and meetings with remort workers.

Companies like PacSun, American Eagle, and Klarna have already given a taste of what’s possible with metaverse.

Their learning experiences will provide more business insights into how they can leverage this virtual reality world.

The global metaverse market, across all sectors, is projected to grow to $678.80 billion by 2030. We can say that the future is a multiverse of metaverses.

5. The gaming industry will continue to blossom.

With a net worth of $300 billion, the gaming industry is on a winning streak and is projected to reach $321 billion by 2026. The data shows a daunting number of 3 billion people play games worldwide.

This exponential growth in the gaming industry is attributed to the introduction of AR and VR games. Global pandemic-induced lockdowns are another driving force behind the gaming sector’s growth.

The industry’s sheer size attracts marketers to capitalize on the potential it provides. With its help, brands can boost brand awareness and affinity while nurturing social interactions on social media.

Wendy’s, Red Bull, Bounty, and Bumble have already proved that gaming is the next big marketing opportunity.

6. The creator economy will gain traction.

The creator economy is here only to grow. Influencer marketing is not just about the big names; micro and nano-influencers have been reported to have a higher engagement rate.

According to Tubular Labs, the viewership of the small creator’s content was 13.2 times more than the mainstream media.

These content creators have a more loyal audience simply because they create original content. So if your brand hasn’t benefited from it yet, you are certainly missing out on a major marketing opportunity.

With influencer viewership projected to reach 10 trillion views monthly in 2023, we can say that creator marketing is the way to go.

7. Bite-sized content will dominate social media.

Oberlo Video consumption statistics show that 92.7% of internet users worldwide watch video content weekly. The users spend an average of 100 minutes watching videos online.

With the rise of short-form video content in the form of TikTok, Youtube shorts, and Instagram reels, it is safe to maintain that bite-sized content is not going anywhere.

However, the focus will shift to short-form and bite-sized content. 86% of businesses are already using videos as a marketing tool. This trend is likely to continue to the extent that businesses will need editors and directors in their social media teams for video production.

8. Employee advocacy will see a rise.

Employee advocacy has recently gained popularity. Thanks to the expensive ad campaigns, brands have come up with the idea to turn their workforce into creators.

Companies must find a way to stand out in the market in today’s packed environment.

Undoubtedly, the best people to represent the company on its behalf are its employees. The brands using employee advocacy as an image-building tool have seen increased sales and a spark in the number of qualified applicants.

The main advantage for large companies is that they can benefit from their employees having large social media followings.

Case Study: Read how Dell benefits from having social champions worldwide who help Dell spread its passion internally and externally.