Social media trends in 2023 are going to be different. This time last year, we were in a very different position globally. Restrictions from the pandemic were being removed, markets were opening up, and the economy was looking positive.
Now, we find ourselves in a more tentative position. An impending recession, lower consumer spending and rising inflation have made things a little more difficult for everyone. So what does this mean for social media?
For many businesses, social media could be the make or break. When used properly, social media marketing is one of the most powerful tools a business can use. We’re thinking along the lines of the famous quote from Henry Ford:
A man who stops advertising to save money is like a man who stops a clock to save time.
So, with this in mind, social media is going to be a little more volatile in 2023. But not to worry: we’ve rounded down the trends you need to keep on top of to stay afloat.
Authenticity is key
We absolutely cannot stress this enough. We all know that it’s time to BeReal – but the shift into authenticity stretches beyond the BeReal app. This is showing no sign of slowing down, so we’re expecting this to continue into 2023.
In fact, 86% believe that transparency from businesses is more important than ever before. However, just 15% of users think that brands are ‘very transparent’ on social media at the moment. It’s no secret that transparency goes hand-in-hand with authenticity. But how do you create brand transparency on social media?
The best way is to make and nurture authentic human connections and interactions on your brand’s social media accounts. When done right, this results in followers developing more of an emotional attachment to your brand.
One way to create authentic human connections online is to create content with more of a personal tone. Not everything has to be a sales pitch. Simply introducing your different team members, sharing what your team are up to in the office, or even what your staff did over the weekend can demonstrate a much more human side to your brand.
Social commerce will continue to grow
During 2022, we’ve seen a rise in social commerce. This is where customers are able to buy products directly from social media platforms. You might have noticed this on Instagram, where products can be tagged in posts in the same way that people can be.
In fact, according to research conducted by the platform itself, more than 130 million Instagram users tap on shopping posts every month. We only expect to see these figures grow in 2023.
To capitalise on this trend going into the new year, follow our top tips:
- Make the most of product tags in posts, stories and reels.
- Add URL and product stickers to your stories.
- Import your product catalogue into your very own Facebook Shop.
- Experiment with influencer marketing- especially for Instagram Reels and TikTok.
Consumers will demand action on climate change and the environment
Consumers will want to see real change and real action from the brands they follow on social media. Buzzwords like ‘net zero’ and ‘carbon neutral’ aren’t going to cut it anymore.
Social media users will want brands to be putting people and the planet before profit. Brands are businesses; however, there is no business without customers. As such, brands will be forced to react to this growing concern.
Brands will need to be really thinking about how they’re going to make the substantial reductions to their carbon footprint that consumers are demanding – and how they are going to demonstrate this to consumers in a meaningful way on social media.
The growth of short-form content will accelerate
It’s a shocking fact that the average human attention span is now shorter than that of a goldfish. The average human has an attention span of just 8.25 seconds. A goldfish has an attention span of 9 seconds.
This is continuing to decrease further. Whatever your thoughts on this, your content needs to remain agile enough to be able to react this these changes. This means that to maintain good engagement, you’ll need to be producing more bite-sized video content in 2023.
That means shorter stories and snappier Reels and TikToks. Short-form text-based content will be important as well (although the irony of writing this in a blog post is not lost on us here). This doesn’t mean a reduction in quality. It just means that you’ll need to find creative ways of compressing your usual high-quality content into shorter forms.
This might mean writing shorter and snappier captions or compressing your Twitter threads into fewer characters. These are the best ways to hold your audience’s attention for longer.
Smaller influencers will become the biggest players
Influencer marketing is a proven and effective way of advertising on social media. But it’s also very expensive. The biggest influencers have thousands or millions of followers. Putting your brand in front of that many people comes with a hefty price tag.
That’s why our final top social media trend in 2023 is that smaller influencers will become more important. This goes hand-in-hand with the rise in the use of communities and groups tools on social media. These include tools like Facebook Groups and Twitter Communities.
In 2023, smaller influencers will be used by brands to fulfil a smaller, more ‘community-led’ approach to drive higher engagement, despite their lower number of followers.
2023 is going to be an exciting year
Whilst we’re aware of the ongoing economic challenges that many businesses will be facing going into 2023, we’re still optimistic. In times of uncertainty, people are often at their most creative. We’re excited to see all the new content that’s going to be produced.
Brands are going to have to think outside of the box for ways to keep users engaged – and we can’t wait to see the different ways that content creators will approach this. And, of course, social media platforms bring out new features all the time – we’ll always have the latest updates for you here on our blog and on our social media channels.
All that’s left for us to say is Happy New Year, and the very best of luck for 2023!
