Social media and marketing trends for 2023
Which social media trends to pay attention to
Social media is always changing.
If you’re wondering what’s worth it, what’s not, and how to include new social media trends into your strategy… you are not alone.
Don’t worry, we have answers!
According to Trends 2023 report, along with a data survey of over 10,000 marketers: we bring you this breakdown social media marketing trends that will absolutely dominate in 2023! We bring you this recap of Social media, website, and marketing trends for 2023:
Like it or not: TikTok will take over the world!
TikTok: TikTok will continue to rise and aim to become a super app, introducing new features and partnerships with other platforms and services. It has over 1 billion active users and is the top app for time spent.
Overall, these trends suggest a shift towards more engaging and authentic content, as well as the importance of optimizing for search and incorporating e-commerce capabilities within social media platforms s. In studies of social media trends for 2022, they predicted TikTok would become the most important social network for marketing… and it was completely accurate.
With a host of new features in 2022, it suggests that TikTok doesn’t just want to be the number one social network for marketers, it wants to be the number one social network of all!
They released at features in 2022 that inspired other social media channels:
9/22: TikTok Now (BeReal Clone).
10/22: Photo Mode (Carousels Clone).
7/22: TikTok Stories (IG Stories Clone).
3/22: Search Ads (Google Search Ads Clone; beta testing).
10/22: TikTok Music (Spotify Competitor; teased only)
2/22: 10-minute videos (YouTube Competitor).
Users spend 95 min. per day on TikTok (#1).
Users spend over 23 hrs. per month on TikTok (#1).
78% of internet users use TikTok to look for funny and entertaining content (#1).
The world’s most used social platforms (as of July 2022):
FACEBOOK: 2.9 BILLION
YOUTUBE: 2.4 BILLION
WHATSAPP: 2.0 BILLION
INSTAGRAM: 1.4 BILLION
WECHAT: 1.3 BILLION
TIKTOK: 1.0 BILLION
FB MESSINGER: 1.0 BILLION
TELEGRAM: 700 MILLION
SNAPCHAT: 617 MILLION
TWITTER: 486 MILLION
PINTEREST: 433 MILLION
REDDIT: 430 MILLION
Also, according to Google Trends, interest in TikTok Ads has increased by 1,125% since 2020.
All this interest in TikTok ads revenue is growing so fast, it’s set to match YouTube’s ad revenue by 2024. For an internationally owned social media company, that’s no joke!
So, budget speaking; if your business isn’t on TikTok yet, it’s time to get on, now!
2. The only new app that will matter is; "BeReal"
BeReal: BeReal, a photo-sharing app, gained popularity in 2022 and is expected to be significant in 2023, especially among the younger demographic. It does not have ad features for businesses yet.
The network launched in late 2019, but its popularity exploded in 2022. As of October 2022, it’s the top social networking app on the App Store and has been installed roughly 29.5 million times.
Users skew female and young. The majority are below 25.
People are limited to 500 friends, so your brand’s usual marketing strategy won’t work here.
Therefore, we’re making a big bet on BeReal’s importance in 2023
Even if the app doesn’t survive the year, its impact is undeniable.
Gen Z wants uncultured and unique content that doesn’t ask you to buy, or make you feel bad about your life....It’s all about fun!
BeReal To-do list:
Time will tell if BeReal caves into the pressure to monetize for business.
But for now, we should just pay attention.
~Make a profile and get familiar with the platform.
~Experiment with the dual camera feature on a platform your brand already has a presence on (Instagram or TikTok) to see if it gets any traction with your audience.
3. You will still have to make Instagram Reels
Instagram is still the reigning platform for brands…. Why?
Instagram Reels: Instagram remains a leading platform for brands with 1.5 billion daily active users. Reels, short-form videos, have grown significantly and posting Reels is the best way to stay relevant on the platform.
Reels grew by 220 million users between July and October 2022.
62% of Instagram users use it to research brands & products (Facebook is 2nd w 55%).
It’s the preferred app among 16- to 24-year-olds (yes, beating TikTok).
Ad platform & in-app shopping tools have been around for years, you’re not gambling ROI
Instagram is still pushing video hard: All Instagram videos are Reels. Reels are heavily prioritized by the recommendation algorithm. Posting Reels are the best way to on top.
~Hire Amyzingweb & keep relevant in all your social media & website endeavors!
4. LinkedIn will be about much more than jobs
LinkedIn: LinkedIn has become more personal, blurring the boundaries between personal and professional content. The platform has seen increased engagement rates, and brands should consider adapting their posting strategy accordingly.
Have you noticed your LinkedIn feed filling up with more and more personal posts?
Or the kind of content you would normally expect to see on your Facebook feed. You’re not alone. The platform is remarkably more personal than it used to be.
Some people are even using the platform to find dates. Why? A viral post about a CEO’s difficulty with breastfeeding sparks a debate in the comments about whether it would be better suited to Facebook.
Has the LinkedIn algorithm changed to favor more personal posts? Or has the pandemic erased the boundaries between our personal and professional lives?
Could it be that trust in Facebook, where we would normally post this kind of content, is at an all-time low, while trust in LinkedIn remains high–along with engagement rates? Perhaps it is just because of oversaturation on the other social media platforms?
Whatever the reason, it doesn’t seem like this markedly less “professional” trend is going anywhere soon. LinkedIn spent $25 million in a Creator Fund, paying 100 creators $15,000 each to “share content, spark conversations, and build community.
It also launched LinkedIn Audio Events (a Clubhouse clone) and a podcast network.
~Use Amyzingweb to cross-post content you might typically post to Instagram and Facebook. We can write posts that avoid jargon. Track if it performs well on LinkedIn.
5. Gen Z will redefine UGC
UGC (User-Generated Content): UGC is evolving, with Gen Z understanding it as content created by freelance marketers or micro-influencers for businesses. Brands are increasingly outsourcing their social media labor to creators, both influencers and freelance content creators.
For example, instead of posting a product shot by a professional photographer, Adidas might repost a photo from a happy customer wearing their new shoes.
UGC is great for brands who care about increasing awareness & deepening relationship with their customers. It’s authentic "social proof",
In Gen Z terms, brands pay UGC creators to produce content that looks like organic UGC.
Here’s an example: Unlike traditional in influencers, who promote brands using their own channels, UGC creators sell the content they make for distribution on the brands’ channel. They are "paid content creators".
This all points to a larger social media trend: brands outsourcing their social media labor to the creator economy, like Amyzing web.
A 2023 Trends survey found that 42% of large businesses work with UGC creators now.
This makes sense. Reels and TikToks are growing more popular. They require a special mix of skills: technical acuity & professional-entertainer-level charisma. Not just anyone can make a watchable Reel or TikTok.
Further, traditional UGC isn’t as valuable as it once was on social media. Sure, social proof is still important to potential customers, but with the social algorithms pushing videos over photos, not likely that a photo of a shoe I bought will make it to many people’s feeds.
With budgets for marketing campaigns at risk of cuts, businesses are turning to cheaper content creation, using freelance creators for one-off videos. We see this trend increasing into 2023 & beyond.
~Hire Amyzingweb, LLC or a freelance UGC content creator (particularly if you need help creating Reels or TikToks) or post on your social media feeds.
~We will also schedule these Reels and TikToks to go live at the best times.
6. Social SEO will replace hashtags
Social SEO: Social media is being used as a primary search engine, especially among younger age groups. Optimizing captions with keywords can increase reach and engagement, making keyword research essential for content creation.
Globally, people of every age group use social media to research brands.
Meanwhile, it was found that using keyword-optimized captions instead of hashtags increased reach by 30% double engagement.
On top of that, a 2023 Trends report found that more internet users aged 16-24 use social media for researching brands they want to buy,
Add some keyword research to your social strategy, rather than slapping hashtags into your copy after a post is finished, use keyword research to inspire you to make content that people are already searching for.
SEO To-do list:
~Read social SEO blogs, to get the basics of keyword research understood.
~Start incorporating SEO into all you’re doing on social: add keywords to your bio, add alt-text to images, and sprinkle in relevant keywords as you write your captions.
~With Amyzingweb’s help, we can add SEO to your content strategy and help you choose relevant keywords. Help you make content that targets those keywords.
We also track your progress!
7. Closed captioning will be the default on social video
Closed Captioning: With the majority of social media videos watched without sound, captions have become crucial! They improve accessibility, engagement, and discoverability, making them a default feature for all video content.
As many as 85% of social media videos are watched without sound, especially in public places, according to multiple studies.
Interestingly, viewers are 80% more likely to watch a video to completion if it has captions.
Now that short-form video (ok, TikTok) has swallowed the internet; in 2023 we predict that captions will be the default for all published video content. For three reasons:
Accessibility: not just for people watching on the bus, but for people with hearing impairments.
Engagement: captions keep people watching to the end.
Discoverability: using keywords in captions is a crucial step in optimizing videos for search, increasing the number of people likely to see it.
Closed Captioning To-do list:
~Learn how to add closed captioning to your short-form AND long-form video.
~Make sure you say keywords out loud in videos so that they show up in the captions, too.
~If you're on TikTok and pressed for time, try the auto-captioning feature.
~Hire Amyzingweb; get you up to speed with this trend & much needed feature!
8. Social commerce continues to grow, despite
confusing signals from networks
Last year, social commerce was one of the biggest social media trends.
As sales blasted past $350 billion in China, North American and European marketers scrambled to position themselves to take advantage of a new way to make money directly on social.
But despite its success in China, North American and European consumers have been slower to catch up. Some social networks scaled back on shopping features (particularly ones to do with “live” shopping, which is a less common phenomenon in Western markets).
Meta shut down its live commerce functionality on Facebook.
Instagram shut down its affiliate product tagging option.
Instagram also removed its Shop tab.
TikTok delayed the launch of live shopping in Europe and the US after a test in the UK failed to meet targets.
Does this mean the future of social shopping is further off than anticipated…Maybe?
According to a survey of 10K global consumers, many shoppers still don’t trust the process of buying products through social media.
Concern that their purchases won’t be protected or refunded.
They are worried about quality & authenticity of products & sellers on social media.
Not wanting to share financial information with social networks.
By the end of 2022, existing consumers will have spent $110 more on purchases made on social in 2022 than in 2021, with most new buyer growth coming from TikTok.
This suggests that, despite trust issues, audiences are starting to get used to social media as a shopping channel, using it more than ever before.
While the live shopping experience may not have been a hit with Western audiences, it’s not necessarily a signal that social commerce is over.
Many believe that Instagram’s removal of its Shop Tab (along with other shopping features, like live shopping & affiliate links), is an effort to tie social commerce revenue more directly to ads.
Especially now that “recommended posts” are included in the feed algorithm. That means they want people to buy stuff on their platform, but through paid advertising, because they make more money that way.
Social Commerce To-do list:
~Retail and ecommerce businesses should pay close attention to social commerce and Western-focused businesses should be proactive about getting good at it before their competitors do.
~Turn skeptical shoppers into buyers by offering easy returns/refunds, displaying ratings & reviews from other buyers, & keeping buyers notified of the status of their purchases.
~Don’t invest in live shopping yet, if your audience is based in North America or Europe.
~If you’ve got budget, spend it on shoppable Instagram and Facebook Ads.
~If your budget is tight, the biggest opportunities for organic growth in social shopping are on TikTok. Post with the hashtag# TikTokmademebuyit, or wait for the TikTok Shop tab to come to the US.
~Hire Amyzingweb, LLC to help save time on customer service, reviews, & comments.
9. More billionaires will buy more social networks
~Keep an eye on the news. New ownership could mean changes for ad revenues, network policies, & algorithms.
~Continue creating content that resonates with your audience. No algorithm change can change that.
~Have followers follow you everywhere (including having someone create your own, anchor website, in case a platform tanks, due to decisions of a new owner).
~Keep educating “everyone & their uncle” (as Mom would say), about misinformation & critical thinking.
~Instagram marketing is competitive, but not impossible. You can succeed in 2023 and beyond.
~Own your main website too, separate from social media. You'll have the power to do much more there: track your traffic and where its coming from and have a place to welcome your customers "home"...
Also, in case things go weird on social media platforms.
~Hire Amyzingweb, LLC, to keep relevant in all your social media
& website marketing or commerce endeavors!
BE AMYZING!
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