I’ve been reading a lot of the predicted social media trends for next year. Some are the same as ever, some are perhaps not relevant to my clients or target audience so, I’ve listed below some of the ones I feel we should be aware of and bear in mind.
TikTok
Across all of the sites I’ve read, TikTok becoming a dominant platform is the top listed trend. It is already moving slowly up the tables, but the predictions are that it will soon dominate, especially as we continue to move towards short-form video content. Will you be adding TikTok to your digital marketing strategy?
Social ‘Commerce’ will continue to grow
We’ve already seen a bit of a shift to this with Instagram and Facebook Shops of course, but the prediction is that more and more, customers will expect to be able to purchase direct off social media platforms (and essentially, not have to go to your online shop to purchase). My recommendation is, if you are using Shops online already, continue to put your energy into that, and make sure you measure your success.
Video
I can’t really write a post about next years trends without mentioning video. It comes up every year, but every year it comes up again. Is 2022 the year we really push into video much more? It’s been a growing form of media over the past few years, and with that we’ve learned what customers consume. Short form, personable videos. Videos help us create better connections and relationships with our audience, and once again, is being pushed for 2022.
Social Media Goals
Another predication for 2022 is that many businesses and organisations will list “reaching new audiences” as a primary reason for being on social media. And we quite agree! Social media has so much potential for us to do this, both organically and via paid ads.
Social Media Specific Jobs
With the increase in social media for reaching new customers, for connecting with audiences, for customer service – we will see a huge increase in social media marketing specific jobs. From what I’ve seen over 2021, there are already specific jobs in this field, and it’s basically just proving how important social media is for any business.
Businesses will forget the basics
This was an interesting read actually, because we’ve come across a few businesses over the past year who we’ve recommended need to get the basics right before jumping ahead. Basics including posting organically, making use of the features available and knowing your target audience. Some predictions for next year suggest this is a growing ‘trend’, but that we should always remember the basics.
Audio will grow
Audio social media really took off in 2021 with Clubhouse, and Twitter introduced Spaces too. Predictions are that Twitter Spaces will continue to grow, and a shift to audio social media within certain sectors will happen. Don’t forget podcasting too!