5 Social Media Trends to Watch in 2022

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With a brand new year upon us, you’re probably thinking ahead to what your social media strategy will look like. Which platforms are worth investing time and energy into? What kind of content is going to produce the best results? Well, that depends on the hot social media trends!

In this post, you’ll learn five trends for 2022 that will play a big role in shaping your overall strategy for the year ahead.

5 Social Media Trends to Watch in 2022

When it comes to these social media trends, it’s smart to know which ones will be most aligned with your brand and your audience. But don’t forget to be willing to experiment with new things! You never know what might take off and produce amazing results.

1. Quality Over Quantity Reigns Supreme

We all know how crucial it is to post regularly on social media. The last thing you want is to give the appearance of an inactive account. It’ll scare away potential followers and decrease your chances of making new connections. However, there’s no need to flood your social media feed with new content either. One of the social media trends we should all implement in 2022 is to post with purpose instead of posting for the sake of posting.

In the summer of 2021, Instagram chief Adam Mosseri suggested that two feed posts per week and two Stories per day was an ideal formula. My friends at Hootsuite have also shared some helpful advice for coming up with your posting frequency. Experiment with these suggestions and see what works best for you.

  • Post 3-7 times per week on Instagram.
  • Post 1-2 times per day on Facebook.
  • Post 1-5 tweets per day on Twitter.
  • And post 1-5 times per day on LinkedIn.

2. Brands Will Create More Audio Content

Audio content is truly a powerful way to connect with your audience. After all, there’s something special about people being able to hear your voice as opposed to reading a written post. It feels almost as though you’re having a conversation with one another. And it can be great for building that important Know, Like, and Trust Factor.

Luckily, there are a few different ways to develop audio content for social media. With the introduction of Clubhouse and Twitter Spaces, you can host live audio-only conversations. It’s perfect for hosting mini masterclasses, conducting interviews, or having a Q&A session. The best part is that you really don’t need anything to get started except your phone and some good ideas for what to talk about. It doesn’t require any kind of fancy equipment. And it’s even better because your listeners can multitask while tuning in.

But if you’re looking for something a little different, you may want to post some voice tweets. They’re great for sharing quick tips or inspirational messages with those on Twitter.

3. Reels Will be Key to Gaining Traction on Instagram

Initially launched in August 2020, this past year has seen many turning to Instagram Reels for brand-building. While it seemed to be a mere copy of TikTok in the beginning, Reels have proven to be an effective way to expand your reach on Instagram’s platform. By pairing trending audios with creative ideas, brands are beating the algorithm by gaining thousands of views and tons of new followers.

Both Reels and TikTok are proving that people love short-form video content. It’s a fantastic way to share quick tips, tutorials, or even mini vlogs of your day. And since you can use your phone to film everything, there’s no need to invest in a fancy camera.

If Reels will be one of the social media trends you finally get on board with in 2022, you may want some tips on getting discovered. To help, Instagram has shared tips on what you should and shouldn’t do when creating Reels.

4. Similarly, TikTok Will Continue to Dominate

Gone are the days of TikTok being filled with just dance videos. The platform has become so much more, particularly after its users skyrocketed during the pandemic. Its monthly active users went from 39,897,768 in October 2019 to 91,937,040 in June 2020. Now, it’s a hub for entertaining and educational content, plus plenty of irresistible videos of cute pets.

It’s worthwhile for brands to begin posting here because you never know when a video you share will go viral. That could result in tons of views and followers practically overnight. And if you’re questioning whether or not your audience is there, well, they probably are. Post a poll (Twitter or Instagram Stories is great for this) to see just how much time your audience spends on TikTok. You might be surprised to see they’re rather addicted to scrolling their For You Page.

5. Twitter’s Popularity and Usage Will Rise

As someone who loves Twitter, I’m excited to see that their daily active users has steadily increased this past year. That’s why it’s one of the 2022 social media trends to be on the lookout for. With more brands signing up for Twitter or rediscovering the platform, now is the perfect time to do the same. Otherwise, you might miss out on opportunities to connect with your target audience.

Plus, Twitter offers so many incredible features. On your main feed, you can share written, video, or voice tweets. There’s also the ability to host audio conversations via Twitter Spaces (which can be monetized with Ticketed Spaces). You’ll be able to create so much valuable content in a variety of formats, depending on what best suits you and your audience.

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