Social Media Trends and Predictions From Industry Experts for 2024

A digital marketer’s life is never boring. After all, how could it be given the plethora of changes happening in the social media marketing scene?

However, we all know that is not as horrifying as it sounds, all the shifts also coming with a feeling of curiosity and the opportunity to let your creativity come out and play and experiment with a bunch of interesting concepts, features, and platforms.

Adapting the social media best practices can indeed be overwhelming but also incredibly exciting. And speaking of those, what exactly are the social media trends dominating 2024? Let’s find out!

1. Why do you need to integrate the latest social media trends into your strategy?

Adapting to the latest social media trends is a way of making sure you keep your brand fresh and your customers hooked.

Meeting your audiences on the platforms they are spending time on nowadays or leveraging the content formats they like to consume are the strategies that will put your brand on the social media users’ radar and inspire engagement.

More than a channel that generates sales, social media should be about creating a relationship with your audiences, which can only happen if you “speak their language”, which means adjusting to their navigational patterns. Aka leveraging the latest trends in social media.

Getting feedback and learning about your customers’ needs is the secret to creating interest in your brand and fostering brand loyalty.

2. Social media trends you need to take into account when creating your marketing plan

Thinking about what the future may hold in the world of social media may be scary. But it can’t be scarier than having no clue when it comes to social media trends.

Here are a few of the 2024 predictions for social media trends hat you can rely on when adjusting your social media strategy.

2.1. Enhanced content personalization through AI-powered tools

We simply could not talk about social media trends without mentioning what everyone is talking about - AI.

According to Alex Khan - Social Media Expert : "all major social media platforms are already working on artificial intelligence, which will enable us to create personalized content and advertisements in terms of language, demography, and interests."

Mari Smith - Facebook marketing expert also emphasized the rise of AI among the most popular social media trends of 2024, by telling us that: "Meta will roll out significant AI-powered updates throughout 2024. Along with more refined use of its AI-powered discovery engine to recommend content, especially reels and ads, Meta will unveil impressive developments with generative AI to rival ChatGPT".

At Socialinsider we have also started to leverage the power of AI for our Instagram listening feature that gives you in-depth insights about the sentiment and emotions correlated with your brand, altogether with related topics.

2.2. Social means relationships

As Ann Handley - a digital marketer & content expert, said: "in 2024, it's all about recognizing that social media's superpower is its ability to help us build more sustainable relationships more slowly."

The number of platforms has increased, along with customer expectations. Customers now demand an all-encompassing, seamless omnichannel experience, as well as genuine engagement and prompt responses from companies.

According to Brooke B. Sellas, Digital Customer Experience Consultant, "social media customer care is becoming even more multifaceted, offering immense opportunities for brands ready to seize them. Response times, once a mere indicator of efficiency, have now become integral benchmarks of a brand's commitment to its audience."

2.3. TikTok will grow even more popular

We already sensed this. TikTok is here to stay. Already being the platform with the highest adoption rate, it will continue to grow as more and more users lock their eyes to their screens for even more hours.

Launching a TikTok account might be challenging, but truth be told, that's the place where all the cool kids are, following viral TikTok trends. There's some good news, though, those being that through different TikTok analytics tools, marketers can gain powerful insights through which they can create an effective TikTok strategy. By using these insights, you can develop TikTok ideas that resonate with your audience, from participating in viral challenges to sharing behind-the-scenes content. Moreover, you can follow some TikTok SEO tips to optimize your content for discoverability, such as incorporating trending hashtags, using relevant keywords in captions, and engaging with popular sounds to increase your chances of appearing on the 'For You' page

All in all, putting your brand in front of the new generation of consumers is what will ensure your brand's legacy, enabling growth.

According to Neal Schaffer, the trend of social media users seeking unfiltered and genuine content is continuing, with TikTok leading the way in setting the tone for what other social media users will see in their feeds. "This is an important trend for businesses to understand and tap into, especially as more emotionless AI-generated content begins to increasingly appear online."

Given that nowadays, TikTok is turning more and more into a search engine, becoming a preferred source for research when it comes to a variety of topics, TikTok trends and a trusted source for brand reviews and feedback, it is certainly the place to be.

On top of that, it is also the highest engaging social media platform, allowing brands to get a deeper understanding of their customers' needs.

2.4. Private spaces will rule

Private spaces like groupes and communities on social media will continue to appear and connect even more people interested in the same topics.

When we asked The Two Lauras their predictions for 2024 social media trends, they revealed us this insight: "we'll see even more of a shift towards private conversations and communities on social media.

Engagement metrics will appear to drop when people are sharing more privately so social media marketers may need to find other ways to both get their content shared/seen and measure the reach of privately shared content."

Groups are already popular and important for boosting engagement on Facebook and in 2023 Instagram implemented the use of channels. All these get people closer and helps them create a safe space to discuss their common interests. Now we're waiting to see the next big thing.

As Mark Schaefer, Social Media Marketing Expert, said, "Gen Alpha will have their own space this year on a new social media platform. I think the emphasis will be on video and community."

Also emphasizing the growth of this trend on social media, Sophie Miller - Director at PrettyLittleMarketer told us: "we’ll be seeing a lot more creators and brands moving their engaged social media followers to nurture and communicate with them in “closed” spaces next year - forum communities like Sephora, or more specifically any type of mailing list/newsletter."

2.5. Authenticity is what will put you on the map

We all know that brands can no longer reinvent the wheel to be considered original. However, not being a copycat is good enough.

As long as you tell your brand's and your products' stories and you manage to build a whole experience for your customers, you are on the safe side.

Your audience will be thrilled to see how you interact with them on social media and how you show them empathy in the way you care about their pains.

According to Chris Kubbernus, CEO of Kubbco, a social media agency, in 2024 ''we'll see even more pushback on the commodification of social media. [...] People don't want to be <<influenced>>. People want to discover products from trusted people and friends."

Originality doesn't always mean revolutionary products (although it's also that). Originality lies also in the way you approach a customer service issue or how you respond to comments.

Annie - Mai Hodge, Founder at Girl Power Marketing consider that "authenticity shouldn't be a focal of any social media manager's strategy, it should be something brands and influencers just are."

2.6. Social commerce will increase

Social commerce will play an important role in the marketing world in 2024.

This is another social media trend that is bound to rise, thinking consumers have already got used to social platforms’ shopping features.

With TikTok's already spread popularity, this new feature enables businesses a tremendous growth pottential.

According to Matt Navarra, Social Media Consultant, "TikTok Shops will finally begin to get traction as social shopping momentum grows. But it will face stiff competition with Amazon as it ramps up its efforts to better integrate with social platforms. And TikTok users will get sick of seeing Shops posts as ByteDance pushes it hard into their FYP."

2.7. SEO on social media will be even more powerful than hashtags

Search Engine Optimization is like the Holy Grail when you want Google to love your content. This research shows that 40% of young adults (18 - 24 year-olds) are using social media like a search engine.

This led to the growing importance of social media SEO. Most likely you have also used TikTok as a search engine, “abusing” the power of that little search button.

SEO will continue to play a big part in the virality recipe of posts compared to hashtags.

The next post you’ll see in your “For you” tab will not be there because of hashtags, but because of the right keywords.

A research from Hootsuite showed that the social media posts which relied heavily on great SEO manage to have a higher engagement rate (30% increase).

This social media trend will continue to make a difference in 2024 and map out those brands who really put their sweat into their copy.

Social SEO practices will set the distinction between brands that put in extra effort when it comes to their posts on social.

That’s why your social media strategy for next year should also feature “keyword research”.

2.8. LinkedIn will no longer be just about jobs and professional content

LinkedIn has gradually grown out of its black suits and it’s now a rebellious Millennial. Just kidding.

This platform is no longer only about posting jobs, finding jobs, or complaining about jobs. Users started posting more raw content inspired from their experiences.

And that’s the quality content everyone was looking for. Everyone on LinkedIn is now showing their true colours about juggling with tasks, taking mental health time and finding it difficult to get inspired.

This social media platform is growing into a more personal one, with posts where you can find advice about, well, almost anything.

The take on more personal posts on LinkedIn started during the pandemic and it will keep on going. However, it’s not yet clear whether the algorithm favours this type of posts than the professional ones.

How personal can you be when writing a post in such a way that you also keep your distance and remain professional?

That’s still a topic to be debated.

Another social media trend that started on Instagram back in the day, and rapidly spread onto other platforms as well, such as TikTok and apparently lately on LinkedIn as well is influencer marketing trends.

According to Trisha B. - digital creator "engagements of LinkedIn thought-leaders are high now, and probably more SAAS and consumer brands will increasingly utilize them in 2024."

2.9. Instagram Reels will introduce new video lengths

When introducing its short-form video content, TikTok revolutionized the social media scene.

The funny thing is that while all the other platforms rushed to find an alternative for that by launching their own version of short-form videos, TikTok is now testing longer video formats.

Given that nothing is impossible in the social media world, longer videos may make a comeback, pretty much like the '90 fashion style that's trending again.

Will something old that's dressed like something new be something with which the nowadays online audience will resonate? One can never know.

According to Jenn Hermann - Instagram marketing expert foresees that "while we'll continue to see the prevalence of short-form vertical video in 2024 (TikTok and Reels), we're going to see the shift back to longer form videos, but staying in the vertical format. The short 15-30 second videos are great, but they aren't viable long term for content - either as consumers or creators. So, we'll see those platforms extending for longer video lengths now."

2.10. Video is the perfect way to connect with audiences

Video remains the most effective way to connect with viewers, especially through short-form videos.

According to Dorien Morin-van Dam, Social Media Strategist, "with the help of AI, it's now effortless to convert long-form videos into shorter clips. As a result, we can expect to see more short-form videos in our feeds everywhere!"

2.11. Co-marketing will drive huge results

According to Andy Crestodina, CEO at Orbit Media, marketers who collaborate on content see better results than those who work alone: "Marketers who use co-created / co-promoted content will drive huge results. Marketers who go it alone will not."

2.12. Entertainment helps you win social

Finding a balance between entertainment and education is crucial for serious brands. Even if they can't be playful or fun, they need to provide value on social media beyond just their products.

Adina Jipa, Founder & CMO at Socialinsider, said that "Promotions are no longer effective on social media. Instead, focus on building brand awareness, affinity, and long-term relationships with your audience by creating engaging and entertaining social content."

3. How to use Socialinsider to keep up with social media trends?

Through a series of micro and macro performance data, Socialinsider can help you discover social media trends within your niche by offering you competitive and industry insights.

But let’s take it step by step, starting with the post-level analysis. Through the exploration of their best-performing posts, brands can identify content trends in their posts, such as the most engaging content format and copy lengths.

For example, for both L’Oreal Paris and Maybelline, their best-performing content is Reels, which can indicate within the beauty industry the most engaging post format.

To access the stats for each of these accounts, I added the profiles' URLs in Socialinsider and went to the Content section and scrolled down to the Top 3 posts. Easy as that!

Final thoughts

Keeping up with all the emerging social media trends can be easy if you use the right tools. Using social listening tools and social media analytics tools can ease your work, helping you discover emerging trends.

Make sure you plan your social media strategy ahead, but be flexible when it comes to rethinking or introducing the latest trends into your calendar.

Your audience will be ready to engage more and turn into a loyal community.

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