Social Media Marketing Predictions for 2023
Social networks have been very active this year, with Meta continuing its gradual decline, TikTok continuing its rise and Twitter in a delicate position.
No one knows what will happen, but we can see the potential for real and viable changes next year.
Top social networks
Facebook has been the biggest loser because it is the network least engaged with young people, but Zuckerberg says he has plans to get things back on track.
More ads and people are recommended by algorithms.
This trend originates from TikTok. Instead of forcing you to create your social graph, TikTok focuses on showing the best content of all.
Therefore, 40% of the content in your main Facebook feed will come from pages you don’t follow, as Facebook will try to promote content appropriately, giving brands more opportunities to buy ads.
Family and friends
This could lead Facebook to find other ways to better highlight posts from family and friends.
Facebook’s main differentiator, TikTok, calls itself an “entertainment platform” rather than a social networking app. The reason Facebook has lost its popularity is that people no longer use these applications and, therefore, have moved away from the social element.
Avatar integration
Meta wants people to get excited about the Metaverse. One way they are doing this is by integrating digital avatars in more places within their app.
By promoting the use of avatars as a form of digital identity, we can encourage more people to participate through digital personas, which are an important part of participation in the Metaverse.
Ads in DMS
As mentioned above, with increasing participation in DMs, Meta will place more emphasis on tools to help brands embrace this shift.
Meta recently highlighted the growth of click-to-message ads on both Messenger and WhatsApp to encourage this behavior, and marketers are pushing for even more advertising options to appear to match this overall shift.
Virtual reality.
Another way Meta is facilitating changes in the metaverse is through VR posts, including the already announced option to share from VR to Reels.
We expect Meta to offer new VR-sharing options, such as video chat and direct publishing options, to help show people what they are doing and what they are missing in their VR space.
Augmented reality experience
With many already in Metaverse, Meta is looking to promote another stage of development: augmented reality glasses and publications. This will bring many new features and experiences within the app.
If Meta can jump in soon and take this space, it could be a big boost to their plans for the broader Metaverse, and we can also expect Meta to start encouraging more AR tools on Facebook and Instagram.
Instagram is eager to fend off competition, and it seems to have succeeded so far, as the app recently reported that it now has 2 billion monthly active users.
However, it will continue to operate by copying all the trending features from all the trending apps to ensure that Instagram maintains its position as a major social app.
Here’s what could be coming to the app:
More content is recommended by the algorithm.
Like Facebook, Instagram is also leaning toward AI content recommendations to maximize user engagement, though it’s still not exactly a welcome addition.
Right now, it doesn’t seem to be working, but Instagram wants to show people more of the best content from across the app, with a particular focus on highlighting creators, which is also seen as an important driver moving forward.
Next-level integration.
Instagram is expected to incorporate new ways to create content in 2023, including AR publishing, 3D, and further integration of NFT art.
By providing creators with more ways to create and perform this next-level art, Meta can help guide them as they create in the metaverse.
AR and more interactive ads
This is where new opportunities arise for brands, such as augmented reality advertising and interactive ad formats, which will engage users in entirely new ways.
Direct buying
While not yet launched, Instagram is still experimenting with in-person shopping, which has been hugely successful in other markets.
If this gains more traction, it could become a big source of revenue for the app, in addition to increasing its in-stream commerce capabilities.
Musk has laid out some vague plans, none of which appear to be finalized, but which also appear to replace entire app management and engineering teams. This means anything is possible and unprecedented in Twitter’s past.
Here’s what you can expect from Twitter:
A new push for subscriptions.
Musk has repeatedly said he wants to use subscriptions as a way to increase Twitter’s revenue, but he also wants to provide another layer to keep bots out of the app.
Variable Algorithm
This is one of Musk’s pet projects, implementing ways to help users better understand how algorithms determine their Twitter experience and choose the algorithmic elements that influence their tweet feeds. It gives users the option to control their experience. To the point.
Freedom of expression.
Another factor Musk repeatedly points out is the commitment to “freedom of expression” in apps, allowing any kind of free speech within the law, rather than applying limits or restrictions based on internal parameters.
Payment opportunity.
Musk is exploring the possibility of using his platform as a means to facilitate payments, possibly through cryptocurrencies.
Cryptocurrency could have great potential to launch Twitter as a new banking service, which could facilitate all new types of money transfers, commerce, product advertising, and more.
Longer Tweets
Musk plans to integrate longer Tweet options to allow more types of posts to be shared within the app. Longer videos as well.
The professional social network continued to post “record levels” of engagement throughout the year.
LinkedIn is poised for continued growth, and in 2023, you can expect the platform to provide more data and more links to LinkedIn learning courses to enhance its offerings.
More data to guide job seekers.
LinkedIn has the largest database of career and professional information ever created, and we are slowly adding more ways to use it to help people make the most of their opportunities.
This can be supplemented with more links to LinkedIn Learning, where you can get the exact skills you need to increase your chances of getting the advertised position.
Better video connection tools.
Like all platforms, LinkedIn has seen more and more people consuming more video content on the app.
If LinkedIn could add more tools to facilitate live virtual meetings, it could become a more important business tool.
The growing interest in audio
Similarly, LinkedIn looks like a great place to host professional audio events and put more emphasis on professional engagement.
LinkedIn has been developing Audio Rooms over the past year and will be looking to encourage this option to provide more continuous, accessible, professional, and niche content within the app.
TikTok
The popular app at the moment is also arguably the most controversial, not because of the content it amplifies, but because of its assignment with the Chinese government, which, whether it knows it or not, continues to maintain political control over the app.
Live trading and store
Live commerce is a major source of revenue in the Chinese version of the app and as such, it makes sense for TikTok to give it a big boost in other regions as well.
Content creators earn from their views just like on YouTube, this way they can have more opportunities to generate revenue, even bring in big brands, and can sell through the app.
New payments for creators
Creator Fund doesn’t provide the boost needed for big content creators to continue posting TikTok clips.
TikTok is testing a new model for its top stars, in particular, to receive payments. But with YouTube launching a new way to monetize short videos, it will have to try other methods to keep the cash flowing or risk losing its talent and content altogether.
Snapchat
Even as Instagram took over Stories, Snapchat continued to build its niche, establishing itself as the primary platform for millions of users.
If Snap can expand its usability and continue to lead the augmented reality market, it will be well-positioned to maximize its presence, but the possibilities still stack up, even today.
Augmented reality glasses
While Apple and Meta are also developing augmented reality glasses, Snap may be the first to market, which could be a big advantage for the app.
Snap continues to lead AR development, despite having fewer resources. And while it seems unlikely that Snap will eventually launch its first consumer wearable AR device, it’s a long-term goal and they may be closer than many think.
Fashion for avatars and digital wearables.
With an eye on the next stage, Snap is also focusing more on its Bitmoji avatar, with a new fashion partnership to help people customize their Bitmoji character.
Their role in Snap is also important, as people use their Bitmoji characters in text messages, on Snap’s map, in their profiles, and more. This continued association with these characters as representations of their own could lead to more and more people adopting Bitmoji representations as avatars in the metaverse.
Video chat/Bitmoji
Snap already has a group video chat option, but it could expand to a live chat that anyone can join, or perhaps a video chat that appears on the Snap Map to help you participate in the local community.
Snap is focused on friends, not broadcasting, so it could be a game changer for the app.
Conclusion
A lot happened in the social media world this year, and the Elon Musk/Twitter affair shook things up and added a new level of uncertainty to the space.
But while metaverse connections and virtual reality may be the future, the biggest changes are still happening as technology continues to advance.
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