Social Media Predictions For 2022

The Covid-19 pandemic has meant that it's been a strange few years for everyone around the world. It has almost forced social media to evolve rapidly.

Since we're getting to the end of 2021, it's time to start making our predictions for next year. And it's time to adapt our marketing strategy to line up with the next set of trends.

Here are my top 5 predictions for social media in 2022:

Video content is king

If your business is still putting off using video content by 2022, you will continue to lose out on its benefits. Consumers love video because it's easy to digest, entertaining and engaging. It allows you to connect with your target audience on an emotional level. Creating an emotional bond is what makes customers want to do business with you.

Video content is also good for your SEO and websites that include video are 53 times more likely to end up on the 1st page of Google.

According to Lemonlight March 2021 survey data from 538 marketers:

• 76% of marketing teams invested in video production in the last three years.
• 94% of respondents shared that watching a video has helped them make a purchase decision at least once.
• 98% of marketers believe that video will play an important role in marketing over the coming years.
• 81% of marketers plan to include video content in their marketing strategy over the next several years.
• 99% of respondents say they enjoy watching video content from brands online.

Long-form video is dying

You may have noticed that the videos popping up on your social feeds are getting smaller and smaller. Consumers are looking for short-term gratification on social media. They want short snippets of interesting and compelling content. Everyone's attention span is shortening and therefore, consumers are no longer interested in watching long videos.

With the exception of YouTube, which was ranked the 2nd most used social media platform in the world, Long-form video is dying. With the rise of TikTok and Instagram reels, Long-form videos will no longer be favoured. Long-form videos still have a place for now, but that place is on YouTube or on a website, where users may turn for in-depth content.

TikTok will continue to grow

Despite restrictions in some regions and ongoing challenges from competitors, TikTok will continue to go from strength to strength in 2022. According to App Annie, TikTok is set to gain over 1.5 billion users in the next year, which will put them well ahead of Instagram.

TikTok is so addictive due to its machine learning algorithm, that provides users with a constant flow of content that they're going to be interested in. It gives users exactly what they're looking for from a social platform, short-term gratification.

Uprising in podcasts

According to AI Technology Insights, the podcast market size is set to double in 2022. Podcasts saw a huge usage growth during lockdown, due to people having more free time and wanting to learn more about topics they're interested in. Now, many businesses are including podcasts in their marketing strategies, and it doesn't look like they're going away any time soon.

Podcasts are so popular because they are almost meant to be listened to while you do something else. They give people the ability to put on something informative or entertaining while they do other tasks, like driving or cleaning.

eCommerce focus

Instream shopping has become a key element on many social platforms. In fact, we can expect many social platforms to start using this more. Live-stream shopping has become a key trend in China, so we will probably start to see more of this in the UK.

The way we use social media changes rapidly. So fast, it may actually be hard to keep up. Businesses that are stuck in their ways and refuse to try new trends will miss out on the huge benefits that social media can bring them. 2022 is approaching fast and it's the perfect time to set ourselves some new challenges. Good luck!