What will the future of social media marketing look like as we head into 2025? With trends, algorithms and platforms evolving all the time, effective social media marketing should be at the forefront of these changes.
Being proactive can help businesses stay relevant and achieve maximum reach and engagement from their followers. While we are still a few months away from next year, what indicators are we seeing for what’s coming next?
Indications Of What’s Next
Many of the social media marketing trends that will take prominence in 2025 are already being shaped in 2024. For example, the use of artificial intelligence (AI), influencer marketing, short-form video and social media as a search engine.
The future of platforms such as X and TikTok are uncertain which also makes for interesting speculation. After a period of flat growth, and Elon taking over in November 2022, X users accounted for over 368 million monthly active users. In 2023 this dropped to 353 million and again to 335 million in 2024, a decline of around 5%. In comparison, other social media sites like TikTok have grown by 200 million monthly active users since 2022 and Instagram by 120 million.
Despite healthy growth, TikTok is currently facing uncertainty around a ban in the USA. As of April 2024, the USA had the second-highest number of users on the platform at around 120 million. Meanwhile over in the UK, at the end of 2023, TikTok revealed that almost 1.5 million UK firms from start-ups to corporations use the platform to boost their business.
While the USA’s ban has no direct effect on users in the UK, losing the second highest amount of users on the platform could change the influx of trends, the amount of content on the platform and engagement levels. The loss of these users will no doubt inform the social media marketing trends we begin to see in 2025.
Future Predictions
Artificial Intelligence
AI leads nicely on from the previous point surrounding users’ reasoning for leaving social media or using it less. A lack of quality content, misinformation and automated bots powered by AI are prevalent on social media sites in 2024.
Some brands are currently leveraging AI to create a larger output of more personalised content. Whether it’s for writing blogs, social copy or even making graphics and generating images. For some, this works well in their marketing strategies. For others, they try to stay as far away from AI as possible.
It is predicted that a dislike of AI will see 20% of brands differentiate themselves from others based on the absence of AI in their social media marketing by 2027. Therefore, a trend we may see next year is a move back towards the ‘authentic’.
Problems occur where the use of AI creates confusion and distrust among users. It can add to the spread of misinformation, whether purposely or not, and a decrease in quality content.
It is certain that AI will continue to learn and grow in popularity. How people who oppose the use of AI in social media marketing will respond to that, we don’t know just yet.
Social Media Shopping
Social commerce is expanding. If you’ve successfully funnelled a follower through the customer journey, they no longer have to even leave the platform to buy. From built-in shops to live-stream shopping, it’s easier than ever to shop on social media.
This has already been a popular feature for users in 2024, and it is predicted to expand next year. However, a study found that 4 in 10 customers don’t like to shop on social media for fear of data privacy concerns. If these concerns can be addressed, then we may see a boom in social media shopping.
The Rise of Micro-Influencers
More and more brands are starting to understand the benefits of bringing micro-influencers into the mix. We have now seen a shift to a greater reliance on the use of influencers over celebrities. This could also be linked to predictions of a rise in ‘hyper-personalisation’ which will allow marketers to deliver messages more accurately and successfully.
With micro-influencers especially, more businesses are realising the power of working together. A micro-influencer will have between 5 and 50,000 followers. While this is certainly less than bigger influencers and celebrities, it doesn’t mean a lesser result. In fact, the engagement rates for micro-influencers are better and more cost-effective.
These smaller creators have a sense of authenticity and trustworthiness over the bigger influencers. They typically exist within a niche, such as fashion or fitness, and as such it’s easier to know which micro-influencers would be:
· More likely to want to promote your brand
· More likely to have an audience that resonates with your product or service
Social Media Marketing in 2025
Staying on top of social media marketing trends is crucial. While we can’t know exactly what everyone will be talking about in 2025—we can look at the trends to inform some idea. As we head into Q4, certain indicators are already prevalent.
While we’re a few months away, it’s always good to be aware of what trends and techniques could be on the horizon. This will help you to organise and deliver the most effective, proactive social media marketing campaigns.
At DCA, we stay on top of trends and aim to be ahead of the curve for our clients. If you’d like assistance managing your social media marketing, we can help. Get in touch today.
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