The top 10 social media trends.

Posted by Anya Sleezer << back to blog

Last Updated on July 29, 2022

When it comes to marketing, the best part about social media is also the worst part — Anybody can use it.

Because anybody can use social media, your brand has to up its social media game in order to thrive. It’s not enough to have a Facebook page you rarely update or an Instagram account you post stories to once a quarter. Social media isn’t rocket science or brain surgery, but staying ahead of the crowd can be a challenge, especially when it seems like Best Practices change all of the time.

Just starting out? Or are you a pro looking to up your game? Wherever you are, here are the top ten social media trends!

Evolve to fit each channel – Not every channel is the same. Simply copying and pasting your content from one channel to the next isn’t the right strategy for engagement. After all, why would someone follow you on Twitter if they’re getting the same content on Facebook? Social media is no longer one-size-fits-all. Brands must present the right voice/vibe on each channel to effectively engage their target audience.
Remember why people are on social media – Hint: It’s not to be bombarded with your ads. People get on social media to connect with friends and family, to learn new information, and to be entertained. You shouldn’t try to replicate the friend/family experience (that’s just creepy), but you can create a social media experience that is informative and entertaining with relatable, relevant, and timely content. Surprise, delight and engage your audience. They’ll reward you for it.
Say “aye” to AI – AI gets a bad rap, but it’s not just bots or sci-fi supervillains. AI can help you understand who your customers are, what they what, and how to build a stronger relationship with them. Use AI to learn your audiences’ preferences, what content resonates with them, and what tone/voice would help them relate to your brand better. You can also use AI to monitor and track ad performance, user engagement on individual posts, audience reach, and the actions people take after viewing your content to improve your existing campaigns, and get insights to develop future campaigns.
Exploring the new frontier of the Metaverse – Facebook changed the company name to “Meta” for a reason; they see the Metaverse as the future of their company. It should play a part in the future of yours as well. The Metaverse is social media, the internet, video games, and online shopping all rolled into one. What can you do in the metaverse? Network, invest and do business, and shop. Time will tell whether the Metaverse will be the game-changer Facebook (er, Meta) thinks it will be. But given its tremendous potential, it should play a part in your social media strategy going forward. Here’s a good article to take a deeper dive on the subject.
Adapt to changing consumer habits – Consumers are fickle. We can say that, because we’re consumers too. Everybody is. Habits are rapidly changing, making it crucial to adjust your media mix to adapt to your audience’s preference. Your audience may not be on Twitter anymore, they’ve moved to Instagram. Or they may have ditched Instagram for TikTok. Don’t hang out at the party for too long if your customers have already gone to a different one.
Personalize according to customer behaviors – If social media helps you unlock a competitive advantage, personalization is the key. Brands need to analyze the factors that drive their customers’ behavior, and most importantly, see their target audience as people, not percentages. The best way to thrive on social media is to create relationships, not databases, and turn prospects into customers into advocates.
Do your homework before following a trend – Like your grandma said: “If all of your friends jumped off a bridge, would you too?” She might as well have been talking about blindly following social media trends. Yes, social media is 110% about knowing new trends (that’s what this article is about, after all). However, every brand needs to do their homework to determine if the latest trend is right for their business, brand, and audience. Just because “everybody” is on TikTok doesn’t mean your target audience is. Focus on where your audience is, not on where somebody else’s audience is.
Don’t be afraid to advertise – Yes, the primary purpose of social media is to create engagement, but let’s not take our eyes off the prize; selling products or services. It is predicted that social commerce will be an $80 billion industry by 2025. So don’t be afraid to sell to your customers. Just don’t inundate them with ads. The rule-of-thumb is 80% engaging content, 20% sales-related content. Keep following that tried-and-true rule and you’ll do fine.
Spend big on smaller networks – According to research, consumers may be more receptive to advertising on smaller channels like Pinterest, Snapchat, and TikTok than on the bigger, mainstream social networks. Because smaller networks aren’t bombarded with ads like on Instagram and Facebook, users may suffer less from the ad fatigue, and thus be more receptive to your brand. However, let’s not ruin a good thing. Don’t spam users on smaller platforms with ads, but focus on creating quality content they find engaging.
Build networks and connections through short-form video – We could complain about the decline of the American attention-span, or we could help you take advantage of it. Between YouTube Shorts, Instagram Reels and TikTok, short-form video is one of the best ways to connect with your followers and reach a wider audience. With an increasing number of companies creating their own short-video content, we recommend doing the same to better connect with your audiences.

Don’t just learn about these social media trends — use them to your advantage with us. We are a leading branding and social media marketing agency in Tulsa, with the experience in digital and social marketing to keep you on top of your game this year, and every year.

Level up with Levo and reach out to us today for your free 30-minute consultation!

Anya Sleezer

Anya Sleezer is the owner of Levo, a full–service marketing agency, focused on helping companies from all industries who are concerned with their marketing results, traffic, branding, advertising, or websites.

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