As the year kicks off already the following trends show promise for the upcoming year.
According to the Later blog, these trends include:
· Creators are collaborating more with brands
· Shopping through social media “Social Commerce”
· Short videos
· The importance of mental health and burnt-out prevention
· Accountability and Diversity
· Using social media posts as currency
· Memes
· LinkedIn influencers
· No filter posts
· Brands Using TikTok
!Disclaimer: Brands and trends are likely to change; this is not a set list of treads!
Creators are Collaborating more with Brands
The trend of creators and creation is on the rise. In the blog Later Blog, they go on to explain how the age of creators is growing rapidly and is an estimated 100-billion-dollar industry. With how the pandemic has changed the eCommerce world more people are switching to online shopping through social media. With this on the rise, brands are collaborating more with influencers through social media to gain more engagement and trust for their company and drive sales.
My take: Personally, this is a very smart move for brands as influencers help to build trust and engagement for brands. Ever since the lockdowns and the unknown of what’s to come post-pandemic more people are turning to social media for a sense of community and normalcy. More and more people are becoming creators and building their own brands as a way to reclaim their own normal.
Social Commerce
E-commerce through social media is on the rise as companies are experimenting and implementing ways for followers to purchase products through social media profiles and posts.
Almost all product and brand discoveries happen through social media. According to Hubspot, the number of eCommerce shoppers was 80,1 million in 2020 and is expected to grow to 96.1 million in 2022 (Hubspot 2021). 54% of gen Z and 58% of millennials both agree that buying products and discovering new products and brands is better through social platforms (HubStop 2021).
With the increase of shopping with social media Instagram, Pinterest, and TikTok have rolled out their own shopping methods for users. Instagram introduced Instagram Shops and Instagram checkout.
Pinterest included a shop section that allows users to shop via product pins.
TikTok is experimenting with TikTok shops following their partnership with Shopify.
My take: As a frequent user of social media, I can completely agree that a lot of the brands and products that I have discovered came from social media. Social media blends with e-commerce perfectly as brands are going through the buyer’s journey along with customers. Through the buyer’s journey, the brands create a story through social media to delight and engage followers to make purchases and also feel a part of the brand’s story.
Short Videos
Videos are still the main source to gain the most engagement on social media. With Apps like TikTok and Instagram, reels feature the age of video is only going to get bigger. Apps like TikTok have exploded in engagement, brand recognition, and creativity. Engagement through video is one of the highest forms of growth on social media. Based on Imagen over 82% of online users gain traffic towards video in 2022 (Imagen 2022).
Videos are a great way to drive sales, increase engagement, gain attention, and provide a unique style and message towards your brand.
My Take: videos have sound and involve movement and action, so it’s very likely to grab someone’s attention. Videos are also a great way to get your message across to an audience on a deep level vs just a text or image post. Companies can use videos for product demonstrations, promotional events, and user-generated content.
Mental Health and Burnout Prevention
Due to the last two years burnout has been rising. According to Forbes 59% of millennials, 58% of gen Z, and 54 percent of gen X are all experiencing burnout during the Covid-19 pandemic. Among everyone, creators are under stress trying to pump out loads of content for their audience since lockdowns have permeated everyone to stay home as a result of people turning to online entertainment. Instagram has begun a campaign of taking a break from online social media and just all media in general. To help reduce anxiety and stress of creating content.
My Take: My own take is that burnout is very real and the number of people and especially online personalities and influencers. Knowing when to create boundaries and take breaks will help prevent burnout and help in creating new ideas for the continent once recharged.
Accountability and Diversity
Brands are wanting to pay more attention to including more people of color in their marketing efforts to increase inclusion and diversity. In recent years like 2020 racial justice has gained even more attention. There is a 35% pay gap between white and black influencers for brands. Despite the increased attention and advocacy for black and marginalized people brands must put in more effort to create equal pay for all people.
My take: It’s not simply enough to say that you as a company support the black community and want racial equality Businesses also need to put it into action by not only paying influencers the same wage but also being more inclusive with their marketing.
Memes
Memes you got to love them. A current trend for 2022 is that memes are still going strong and helping brands to connect with followers with funny related able memes. Memes though simple is a great and simple way to show that a brand is in the know with current trends and show that a band is in tune with how their audience is and what the buzz is about. Memes can be simple and also edited to fit your brand’s style.
My take: I personally love memes. Who doesn’t love a good laugh? When your favorite brands can show that they can have a good laugh it makes the company more human and gives off a light heartiness we can enjoy.
Using Posts as Currency
Interestingly enough companies and startups are giving away free products with the exchange of a social media post or story. This works as companies and brands will give away free products or services in exchange for the customer to create a social media post and tag the business in the post. As noted in the LaterBlog, not only does having customers receive product interchange for a social post great for brand awareness but this also creates free user-generated content.
My Take: Having customers use social media posts as currency is an ingenious idea. Not only is this free advertising and brand awareness, user-generated content services as the most genuine form of content that builds the most trust with a brand to others vs company-generated content.
Linkedin and influencers
Another trend that is gaining traction is on the business social media platform Linkedin, According to the Later blog, Linkedin has begun to invest more in creators and influencers on the platform to build followers. Danica S Nelson quotes “The shift to work from home culture made many people realize the importance of creating a memorable personal brand outside of the one you have with your company”. In other words, individuals are realizing that they have their own personal brand that isn’t just attached to their place of work but to their own skills and interests. When this personal brand is harassed new opportunities can open up. The Later blog states that Linkedin has a lot of potential for high engagement rates to show off your knowledge and skills.
My Take: Linkedin is a wonderful platform that is sadly not always remembered to incorporate in a lot of marketing plans. Linkedin is only seen as a work platform but it is much more than that it is a platform that allows you to showcase your knowledge and passion for your career and to allow new opportunities such as new jobs to happen. With more creators on Linkedin, more talent is sure to be discovered.
#NoFilter
Brands are beginning to use a no-filter approach in their fields shifting away from the filtered and edited look to achieve a more authentic image. By not including filters and spending time to achieve a perfect post brands would be more inclined to achieve a more personal connection with their followers and build on these relationships.
My take: I believe that it’s a good thing that brands spend less time on trying to achieve every little detail and spend more time focusing on their customers and followers. A lot of the time it just seems like brands only care about superficial things and not the deeper meaning of a post and how it affects followers. I see this as helping brands to build trust with their followers and grow their engagement rates.
TikTok and Brands
As TikTok grows rapidly in 2020 brands are jumping on the train of Tiktok to build their brands and delight their followers. According to the Later blog, over 65% of TikTok users are generation Z. With such a large market brands are coming up with new ways to engage in conversation and come up with creative posts.
My Take: TikTok is a gold mine for creating content that is separate from other social media platforms. This is due to the fact that TikTok allows brands to be free and have an essence of humor with their content. TikTok has the potential to grow your audience and provide user-generated content.
References
Msl. (2021, December 6). MSL study reveals the racial pay gap in influencer marketing. MSL Study Reveals Racial Pay Gap in Influencer Marketing. Retrieved March 16, 2022, from https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/msl-study-reveals-racial-pay-gap-in-influencer-marketing-301437451.html
Thomas, M. (2022, January 7). 10 social media trends that’ll be huge in 2022. Later. Retrieved March 16, 2022, from https://later.com/blog/social-media-trends/#:~:text=10%20Social%20Media%20Trends%20to%20Watch%20in%202022,-Here%20are%20the&text=Streamlined%20Social%20Commerce-,Short%2Dform%20Vertical%20Video%20Is%20Here%20to%20Stay,Memes%2C%20Memes%2C%20Memes
Bird, L. (2021, April 30). 10 reasons why you should be using video in your social media. Imagen. Retrieved March 16, 2022, from https://imagen.io/blog/social-media-video/
Kelly, J. (2021, December 10). Indeed study shows that worker burnout is at frighteningly high levels: Here is what you need to do now. Forbes. Retrieved March 16, 2022, from https://www.forbes.com/sites/jackkelly/2021/04/05/indeed-study-shows-that-worker-burnout-is-at-frighteningly-high-levels-here-is-what-you-need-to-do-now/?sh=33210b323bb1
Social and Caffeinated 