We are close to the end of the year and we must plan our 2022, or at least the first quarter. If your business has a presence on social networks or you plan to build a profile on a platform, you must have a strategy. We know, surely you have read the word “strategy” thousands of times; but we cannot overemphasize that if you want to highlight your content from the 79 zettabytes of data that were consumed in 2021 (according to Statista ), you must establish a series of thoughtful actions, aimed at a specific goal. That is why in this article we present you ten trends in social networks for 2022.
We have established that the important thing is to change the mindset, to turn towards a customer-centric culture. You can no longer work based on intuition, now consumers have control. A few years ago we have been going through the Age of the Consumer, but the pandemic accelerated this control, and 2022 will be a turning point. Brands that do not accept it will not have the expected success. Consumers demand more personalized content, faster services, and better experiences; and they want it all right away. Platforms like Bunker Listening will help you quickly understand people’s interests so you can tailor your messages to them.
Let’s list the trends in social networks for 2022
Your social ads should improve, as cookies disappear
Next year will be the time to build your database if you don’t already have one. Google cookies will be eliminated by 2023 and you should start collecting information from your consumers, with their consent and in a secure way. This will allow you to develop a more effective paid media strategy since you will be able to communicate with your consumers in a more direct and personalized way.
According to GWI, 49% of internet users say they are likely to buy from brands that they see ads on their social networks, but you have to make sure you understand the results of the campaigns and be creative with the content.
The user-generated content (UGC) will be vital. Many Internet users use ad blockers and rely on the recommendations of other users to make their purchase decision. Product or service reviews will be your allies.
For the content of your ads, an effective way to deliver the message is to combine different types of information in the same content: something commercial, something fun, and something educational.
Lastly, make sure your decisions are data-driven. Monitor your metrics constantly, through our paid media module, and find out if your campaigns are delivering the results you want.
A study by GlobalWebIndex showed that 57.6% of the world’s population uses social networks (+9.9% vs. the previous year). The average daily use is 2 hours and 27 minutes. Also, each user uses up to 7 platforms per month. Of these 4.55 billion social network users, 82% use it to access news. It can be an opportunity to provide information that consumers want, but you have to be very careful with fake news. If you’re not telling the right story, your audience will find it somewhere else and it will hurt your business.
It is estimated that more than 8 million disinformation results have been generated in online conversations since the beginning of 2021. To eradicate them, Twitter and Reuters announced an alliance to ensure that high-quality content is disseminated around a trending topic. By working more directly with AP and Reuters, which also partners with Facebook on fact-checking, Twitter says it will be able to increase the speed and scale at which it can add this additional information to tweets and elsewhere on its platform.
You should keep in mind that as consumers have more and more stimulation through more and more channels, it is logical that there is a lack of attention. 57% of false content disclosed on social networks is due to this. Therefore, we must commit to disclosing factual information to build the trust of our audience.
Sales through social networks will simplify the customer journey
Social networks are no longer used solely to discover new products or services, more and more platforms introduce their own sales channel to make it easier and faster for consumers to buy. In this article, we already tell you what social commerce is and some tips to make this channel a success.
By 2022, you will need to re-evaluate your sales funnel taking into account the functions of each social network. And, of course, rely on reputable influencers who generate content related to your service or product, and recommend it to their followers. One of the most promising trends is live shopping.
To highlight your content and attract more consumers, your creatives must perform at their best. You must be creative and attractive in the eyes of your audience and personalize the experience as much as possible. Our A/B Testing module will facilitate decision-making based on the collection and crossing of data between contents. A measure not only at the level of posts and ads, but also ad groups, campaigns, and more. This means that you can face up to 26 different contents. Additionally, you can customize the metrics with which you want to analyze said content. In this article, we tell you how A/B Testing works.
Influence marketing will position itself even more
If we need UGC; take down fake news and ad blockers; In addition to completely personalizing the shopping experience of your consumers, it is logical that we need more and more content from influencers.
TikTok has been one of the platforms that took off the numbers of people, who are not necessarily celebrities, for the simple fact that the audience seeks genuine content that is closer to their reality. People who simply started with a trending dance video, a challenge, a food recipe, or other situations of daily life, today are influencers with exorbitant numbers. These profiles reach their followers in a way that no brand can. The majority of these followers will buy a product or service from an influencer who advises them, and will even turn to the influencer for a recommendation before finalizing your purchase. If this influencer does not recognize the product or service, they will check with their community.
It is important to understand what consumers are talking about and establish strategic alliances with influencers to be present in their conversations. With our Listening platform, you will be able to track more than 10 million sources on the internet and in any language.
Consider influencers of many audience sizes, from micro to celebrity; define your KPIs; create authentic content and pay for your content, as it is a job like any other.
Brands will lead the decentralization of social media
The most important thing about social networks is to socialize, create connections and maintain relationships. Due to the elimination of cookies, and the demand for data privacy, many companies began to create their own “social” function to generate a sense of community with their consumers (forums, their social network platforms, or specific functions related to a social network).
Consumers no longer see you as a brand but as a connection. Waiting not only for your service but a way to interact, participate and communicate. For brands, the options are to allow those interactions to happen off-site, through forums and social media, or to keep them within their platform. This allows them to better shape the conversations around them, while also gathering valuable data and insights about their consumer base. A social element within their platforms will be key in the coming years and will help build that feeling of community.
TikTok will continue to set the standard and the rest of the platforms will have to adapt
TikTok has been making huge strides in terms of downloads and uses. It is the first non-Facebook (Meta) platform to reach 3 billion global downloads. Powered by a highly personalized content recommendation system, TikTok can help brands gain exposure and connect with a qualified and engaged audience.
Consumers have fully engaged with TikTok so quickly that other social media platforms had no choice but to adapt to the formats that the Chinese platform put forward. For example, Instagram Reels or Reddit Videos.
If your audience is on TikTok, you should be too. It is a good platform to take advantage of the UGC and participate in the conversations of your consumers.
Post-pandemic content will be tailored to consumer needs
We never tire of telling you that all your content, through all your channels, must be personalized for each of your users. The only way this can be done is with technology at the core of your business. You can’t achieve the best results without automating the processing and analysis of your data. Consumers will leave their information and expect your content to be what matters to them.
Make decisions consciously, taking into account your target audience. Investigate and have access to the insights of your consumers to create specific content, according to each lifestyle. The most popular format is short videos, dive in and invest in this format. You can do it with your social team or by hiring content creators or influencers. If this is beyond your budget, another format that has gained a lot of popularity is audio. Platforms like Clubhouse or Twitter Spaces can be a good option to generate conversation around a topic of interest.
Measuring and listening to your audiences will be vital to have the success you expect.
The metaverse is the amalgamation of the physical world, powered by augmented reality and virtual reality. A few years ago, it was something completely unknown. Now, it is gaining momentum exponentially.
Led by the gaming industry, the use of digital reality exploded thanks to its ability to connect people in a new and limitless way of interacting. The pandemic accelerated this transition to the virtual world, as brands had to reinvent themselves and find new ways to bring their products or services closer to their consumers. Some examples are virtual dressing rooms, digital meetings, or AR-controlled filters and features across all social media channels. Games like Fortnite, Minecraft, or Roblox also represent a form of interaction in the metaverse.
Virtual reality is a trend that will continue to be driven by consumers. Some are creating magical islands with their own rules, others are trying on clothes without entering a store, and some are benefiting from more personalized digital customer service. The things that consumers want and need will be varied and sometimes completely different.
Decentraland DAO may be one of the clearest examples of these “islands with their own rules”. DAO stands for “decentralized autonomous organization”. Decentraland DAO owns the most important smart contracts and assets that make up Decentraland: the LAND Contract, the Estates Contract, Wearables, Content Servers, and Marketplace. It also owns a significant MANA portfolio that allows it to be truly autonomous, as well as subsidize various operations and initiatives throughout Decentraland.
Corporate social responsibility (CSR) was a major talking point in 2020, and even more so in 2021. In 2022, brands need to focus on their commitment to CSR, listening and acting on the social issues that matter most to their audiences. Consumers are no longer interested in empty promises or one-time donations. They have high expectations, preferring brands that take initiative to foster connections with their audience, as well as bring together people with different opinions.
Becoming socially aware and inclusive will not happen overnight; you must put in the research, time, and effort to genuinely engage with your audience on the issues that matter most to them. You must be consistent; It is not enough to communicate that your brand is in a certain way just because now it is what your audience is looking for. Your actions must be aligned with your communication.
Many companies approach social media the wrong way in the hope that something will stick. Brands need to be more strategic, with content designed around the consumer, to establish loyalty and engaged communities.
However, brands are not always in control of these communities. Social media allows them to form outside the brand bubble and 2021 has already shown the power of these communities, with them disrupting various markets. Strategizing digital infrastructures and collective spaces is critical, and strengthening these online communities will remain a priority in 2022.
Every aspect of your platform, brand, and online presence should be as transparent as possible; such as comments, likes, votes, and other ways for your consumers to give you feedback and participate.
You will not be able to form a community overnight, nor will you be able to maintain it if you are not consistent and know your audience. For them to get involved, you’ll need to give them a good reason.
The social media trends for 2022 revolve around the consumer. The pandemic accelerated this process and also made it clear that what people need is to connect and interact with others. As businesses, we will need to find a way to engage in these interactions genuinely and transparently. Having business allies that collaborate with this objective will be key to success. Schedule a brief conversation with us and get ahead of the future.