Social Media Marketing: Top Tips, Challenges, and Trends to Look for in 2024

ABSTRACT: 

Back in 1997, when Andrew Weinreich launched the first social media platform, little did we know that social networking, branding, and marketing would reach this level as we see today. Social media marketing has surpassed traditional media marketing in this interconnected world, presenting businesses with unlimited possibilities to stand ahead and drive growth. It enables brands to reach a more extensive and better audience in just a few seconds. Social media marketing is quick, cost-effective, engaging with customer-focused content, and is measurable. These benefits make social media marketing the most practiced approach in this digital age.

The introduction of technologies like AI and AR/VR to social media platforms has led to the creation of diverse and immersive content, improving customer engagement and increasing sales.

However, as more and more businesses are using different social media platforms to promote their brand and connect with their users, it equally challenges digital marketers to be more consistent and avoid flat falling. To solve this, we need to remember that brands should break through the standard culture and generate innovative relevancy as per the demand.

Here, GoodFirms has attempted a new survey, “Social Media Marketing - Top Tips, Challenges, and Trends to Look for in 2024,” to understand how leading companies strategize their social media marketing. We have tried to gather some tips from top executives to help our readers and partners repackage their social media marketing approach for 2024.

 

With the growing penetration of the internet and handheld devices, the prominence of social media marketing (SMM) is at an all-time high. Reid Hoffman - the founder of LinkedIn said, “The ability to leverage relationships online will be one of the most transformative uses of the internet.” Social media marketing is the best way to have a positive online presence.

Social media techniques are prone to change with the ever-changing social media trends. However, by adopting the right strategies, businesses can leverage the widest reach possible through social media.

With the rising popularity of short-form videos and influencer collaborations, brands can improve sales to a great extent. 

Although the fierce competition and coping with the changing trends pose challenges for social media marketers, SMM is still a must for brands to improve their visibility.

GoodFirms’ survey titled ‘Social Media Marketing: Top Tips, Challenges, and Trends to Look for in 2024’ aims to predict the trends that will be prevalent in the year 2024. The survey is also an attempt to present top tips from business owners and marketers while also understanding their challenges.

Connecting with customers, analyzing online conversations, and building customer communities can boost a business in this day and age. This is social media marketing. Businesses from almost all industries are leveraging social media platforms to promote their brand and improve sales.

Social media platforms allow brands and customers to share their experiences, opinions, and observations as freely as possible, facilitating a true connection and organic marketing, a trend that will not slow down in the near future. Yes, there can be fluctuations; new platforms will come and go, and the campaigns can be different, but social media marketing is here to stay and offer great marketing value for your business.

Ad spending in the social media advertising market is projected to reach USD 219.8 billion in the year 2024 and is estimated to show a growth at a CAGR of 3.86% between the years 2024 and 2028.(1)

The growth in ad spending can be attributed to the rising penetration of the internet and handheld devices globally.

Larger Audience: Over 4.59 billion people were using social media in the year 2022. The number is expected to increase to almost 6 billion by the year 2027. (2)

The number indicates the larger audience that a business can reach through social media platforms. 

Cost-effective Marketing: Social media marketing is one of the most cost-effective marketing strategies. Although there is no clear-cut formula for the success of your social media campaign, being true, authentic, and transparent; experimenting; and learning from your past mistakes can bring success. With genuine and original content on social media, brands can leverage all the attention of the users at a minimal cost.

Improved Brand Awareness: Social media marketing is an effective way to introduce a brand to a whole new customer base. Social media can help improve a brand's visibility, leading to an increase in the conversion rate.

Increased Customer Engagement: Social media platforms offer a medium for businesses to communicate directly with their customers. It is also a great way to engage customers through options like commenting, messaging, and sharing.

Enhanced Customer Experience:  The direct line of communication that social media platforms offer is an effective tool for solving potential problems. SMM can serve the purpose of enhancing customer experience.

Reflecting on the social media marketing that was practiced by many in 2023 allows us to predict what strategies will prove beneficial in 2024. So, let us analyze the survey data that we gathered and discover the trends that will help marketers plan their social media marketing activities in 2024 and stay ahead.

GoodFirms conducted a survey titled “Social Media Marketing: Top Tips, Challenges, and Trends to Look out for in 2024.” The survey aims to predict the social media marketing trends that are expected to be evident in the year 2024. The survey also discusses the challenges that social media marketers face while curating a social media strategy. It also collates some useful social media tips shared by experts to help businesses create an effective social media marketing campaign.

The survey queried a total of 650 businesses for their insights on the topic.

GoodFirms survey ‘Social Media Marketing: Top Tips, Challenges, and Trends to Look out for in 2024’ reveals that all the businesses that participated in the survey spent on social media marketing.

When queried about the percentage of marketing budget spent on social media marketing, 11.6% of the surveyed businesses mentioned that they allocate more than 75% of their marketing budget to SMM.

While 15.8% of the survey respondents spend 50% to 75% of their marketing budget on leveraging social media platforms, around 32.9% of the businesses surveyed spend 25% to 50% of their marketing budget on social media marketing.

Roughly 40% of the survey participants spend less than 25% of their marketing budget on social media campaigns. The figure might improve in the future as businesses see the increasing benefits of taking to social media platforms to promote their products and services.

Social media algorithms are pre-determined instructions or rules that channel the content on social media for a user. These algorithms can be powerful tools for building an audience and engaging with them. Algorithms search for the relevant content based on the user preferences and priorities. 

Although social media algorithms are meant to facilitate user access to relevant results, these algorithms can become challenging for social media marketers as they keep evolving. However, this change in algorithms impacts the marketing strategies of businesses and their outcomes for marketers.

The CEO of Halo Lab shared that “we study each social network's algorithms and work within their rules. We've seen success on Dribbble and Pinterest, and we're working on improving our presence on LinkedIn. Keep in mind that platforms change their algorithms, so being flexible and quick is key.” 

Frequently changing social media algorithms can result in reduced customer reach, changes to the metrics that measure the effectiveness of social media campaigns, and the need to cope with the changing algorithms.

With the rising number of social media platforms, businesses often need to decide on the one platform that can reap benefits for them. The most popular social media platforms are not always the best social media platforms for businesses from all industries.

Most marketers find it difficult to find the platform that they should invest their time and money in. Resorting to the most popular platforms can not be the right step for every business. It is necessary to research where the audience for a business is most active.

Choosing the right channels for social media strategies begins with deciding the goals of the marketing campaign and understanding the target audience for the business. Marketers need to consider social media management when dealing with multiple social media channels. 

“Social networks are changing their policies and features too often. We've had issues with different clients. For example, when X (Twitter) decided to stop profiles without the blue or golden badge from advertising, all ads stopped without any prior notice,” said the CEO of Presitely.

Access to detailed demographics for certain social media channels can give the marketer an idea about their choice. For instance, the monthly active Facebook users in 2023 were roughly 3 billion, with the largest age group between 25 and 34.(3)

By researching competitors and deciding based on the type of industry, marketers can select the most suitable platforms for their social media advertising. It is also crucial for brands to work on social media management efficiently so as to focus on the multiple social media platforms and create content that is suitable for all the platforms.

Choosing a platform based on the type of content and your target audience can be the right move. 

Here, GoodFirms tried to gather input from the survey participants about their preferred social media platform and the type of content they generally prefer to post. The survey results are as follows;.

LinkedIn was a clear winner, with around 93.5% of participants voting for this platform. 

While Instagram is considered for executing marketing strategies by 71.4% of businesses, 68.3% of businesses leverage Facebook as a part of their marketing efforts.

61.9% of the businesses took to Twitter as an efficient social media marketing tool, YouTube was the platform leveraged by 42.8% of the businesses.

While the target audience is a crucial factor in deciding the right platform for the social media campaign, the type of content used is also necessary for a successful social media strategy.  

When asked about the type of content that businesses post on social media, blog posts turned out to be an absolute favorite, with around 92.6% of businesses admitting to having them as a part of their marketing strategy.

While 87.1% of surveyed businesses said they post images on social media, 79.2% of businesses use articles for their social media platforms. About 74.7% of survey respondents primarily invest in short-form videos, whereas 62.3% of them post infographic content on social media.

Podcast is the preferred content for around 38.4% of surveyed businesses, while 31.7% of the survey participants leverage product/service launch events. Around 29.9% of surveyees have influencer marketing as a part of their SMM strategy, whereas 25.4% post polls on their social media accounts.

21.% of the survey respondents invest in webinars to engage their customers, 19.8% of businesses invest in Ebooks to keep their customers informed, and around 12.5% of businesses include live videos as a part of their social campaigns.

One of the major challenges that marketers face while implementing a social media strategy is the evolving social media trends. While there are many SMM trends that have a longer lifespan, the trends with a shorter lifespan often help a brand go viral.  

With the fast-growing competition among brands, it is necessary for marketers to keep up with the changing marketing trends. Failure to adapt to newer trends can result in reduced brand relevance among customers. 

“Trends in recent years suggest that video content, influencer partnerships and personalized user experiences are likely to continue dominating social media marketing strategies in 2024. Staying adaptable to emerging platforms and technologies will also be crucial.” says CEO of  Adroit Group Kft.

Having an eye on the changing market shifts and analyzing the marketing campaigns of competitors can help businesses stay updated with the latest trends. Having a dedicated social media team or a social media agency can be of great help for brands to stay relevant,

To create a successful social media marketing strategy, businesses need to understand the requirements of their target audience. Changes in trends, market scenarios, and cultural differences lead to shifting customer preferences. 

“Our content strategy has helped in creating a niche for us and engaging our audience. We create a blend of content that is targeted to our audience as well as our employees. With employee-engaging posts, they become our Brand ambassadors, and the posts get a wider reach without spending money.” said the CEO of ImpactQA. 

Businesses are bound to understand these changing customer behavior and preferences to make changes to their marketing strategies. To have a high engagement rate and eventually obtain conversions, informed decisions should be made based on the target audience. It is crucial to know the audience preferences and generate content tailored to the customers’ expectations and interests.

Competition is constant. The effort that a business puts to outgrow the competition proves success and its credibility. The true validation lies not just in building products and services but in gaining trust in the increasingly fragmented markets. Social media marketing can make a huge difference for a business, helping it build trust and gain a position in the market. 

The CEO of SEO Vendor stated, “There's a lot of competition in our industry. It takes extra attention to create meaningful content and topics that resonate with the audience.” 

Having a clear understanding of the target market and working to build a brand voice can help businesses have a successful strategy for SMM.

Data security is a riding concern when it comes to social media marketing. Collecting customer data is the need of the hour for providing personalized experiences to customers. However, this leads to privacy concerns.

It is necessary for businesses to understand these concerns and find solutions to minimize any data security or privacy risks. Social media platforms can pose a threat to crucial information, which can tarnish the brand image and lead to serious financial losses. 

“With increased awareness of data privacy, users are more cautious about sharing personal information. Marketers should be careful and tell people how they use data and ensure they do things ethically.” said the Marketing Manager at Reenbit.

Implementing proper social media policies, restricting access to business accounts, and segregating personal, financial, and demographic data can help ensure data privacy and security.

Following the current trends and building a marketing strategy can do wonders for a business. However, having social media tips for small businesses can help new business owners plan on creating a successful SMM plan.  This GoodFirms survey queried the business experts to bring to light a few tips for a successful social marketing campaign.

“My advice is to establish clear goals, deeply understand the target audience, and carefully choose platforms aligned with business objectives. Consistency in branding across channels, active engagement with the audience, and a focus on quality content rather than quantity are pivotal,” said the CEO of Rankwatch.

Understanding the target audience is the first step in creating a marketing campaign. Brands need to make attempts to gather data like the gender, age group, location, and behavioral patterns of the potential customers. Access to these details can help marketers understand the platforms suitable to launch their social media campaigns.

The social media platforms where the target audience spends most of their time can help the marketers decide on the social media marketing platforms, the frequency of posting, and the trends that are required to be embraced. 

Understanding the interests and behaviors of potential consumers can also be beneficial for finalizing the content that should be curated to resonate with them. 

“We researched our audience thoroughly to indicate their preferences, behaviors, and pain points. Developed a content plan with content that presumably was engaging for our audience. Studied analytics, analyzed data, and optimized our content strategy.” mentioned the CEO of A-team Global.

There are a number of social media channels available for businesses to choose from. While it is not possible and also not necessary for brands to use all the available platforms, businesses need to be available on a maximum number of platforms that can reap benefits for their business. 

Creating engaging content is a tough job. And when it comes to being active on multiple platforms, the job gets even more difficult. Marketers must, however, find ways to create content that can be used on multiple channels while being fruitful.

“You must learn how to repurpose content quickly and effectively. When we create one piece of content it is essentially eight pieces since we then edit it for use on other platforms. The best strategy is to find ways in which you can maximize the use of social media content.” says the CEO of Flying V Group Digital Marketing. 

A large number of businesses are now looking to encash marketing through various media and spend on marketing through various platforms. The most popular platforms leveraged for social media marketing include Facebook, Instagram, Linkedin, Twitter, YouTube, TikTok, and Pinterest.

“Keep an eye on the changing landscape of social media and styles of narratives being used,” suggested the CEO of Koda.

Businesses that were queried in the GoodFirms survey revealed the social media platforms they spend most of their social marketing budget on.

While 82.5% of the businesses opted for LinkedIn marketing, 49.3% of businesses spend most of their budget on Facebook marketing.

While Instagram marketing and Twitter marketing were given more preference when budgeting by 39.8% of businesses and 37.2% of businesses, respectively, YouTube marketing was opted for by 29.4% of the survey respondents.

Reddit was considered a social media marketing tool by 21.3% of respondents, and 17.5% of businesses took to WhatsApp to promote their business.

17.1% of surveyed businesses took to TikTok marketing to spend most of their marketing budget, and roughly 15% of businesses spent most of their budget on Pinterest marketing.

Monitoring the effectiveness of social media campaigns and tracking the progress is of utmost importance to understand if the money and time invested are in the right direction. Social media analytics has gained a lot of attention from brands for executing their SMM strategies.

“Always try multiple contents and properly evaluate the performance to make changes in the campaign.” mentioned the CMO of Codment.

Tracking the engagement rate of social media posts can be a great way to measure the social media efforts of a business. Monitoring the engagements of particular social media platforms can provide businesses with an opportunity to invest in the right platform and the right content.

When queried about the social media platforms that offer the highest engagement rates for them, around 92.8% of businesses found LinkedIn to be the most engaging platform for them.

While 55.2% of the businesses found the highest engagement rate for Facebook, 52.9% of the businesses' customers were engaged with Instagram posts. For 39.1% of the surveyed businesses, the most engaging platform was Twitter, whereas 26.4% of survey respondents found the highest engagement rate on YouTube. 

While Whatsapp provided higher engagement rates for 23.5% of businesses, TikTok proved to be engaging for 21.4% of businesses. 15.9% of surveyees said they found a higher engagement rate for Reddit, and 7.2% of survey respondents said most of their customers were engaged with Pinterest content.

The CEO of Aveshost said, “Tracking our social media marketing efforts is key to ensure our efforts aren't just vanishing into thin air.” 

The use of analytics tools helps to track the engagement and reach of a particular strategy to analyze its effectiveness. With most social media apps coming with built-in analytics tools, it has become easier to track the metrics for businesses. 

“We keep a close eye on likes, shares, and comments, but it's the deeper stats like click-throughs and conversions that really tell us what's working. Watching how our follower numbers grow and how far our posts reach gives us a real sense of our growing impact.” said the CEO of Tomedes Translation Company.

Monitoring the KPIs and measuring metrics like impressions, comments, and CTRs are all essential tools to see if the social campaign is meeting its goals and deciding if changes are needed to the existing strategy.

Nearly 80% of respondents indicated that they use the best analytics tools, like Google Looker Studio and Google Analytics 4 or GA4, for tracking traffic, conversions, impressions, engagement, SSI, and much more. 

Engaging and ephemeral content is a crucial part of improving brand loyalty and brand awareness. When brands post content that consumers find interesting, there is a high possibility of gaining new followers for the brands. Focusing on the authenticity and quality of the content is critical to staying relevant among the audience.

“I can share a general social media marketing strategy that has been effective for my business. One effective strategy is to focus our team on creating valuable and engaging content. That involves understanding the target audience, identifying needs and preferences, and delivering content that resonates with them,” shared the CEO of Softpulse Infotech.

The authenticity of the content is being emphasized by various social media platforms. With the algorithms of social media channels prioritizing the quality of the content, brands need to be very careful about the content they are posting.

It is necessary for brands to check the effectiveness of the content they are presenting to the users. One way to be sure about the content copies being posted is to perform A/B testing and finalize the one that works better.

“Have copies that address the customer's needs. It needs to be crisp yet deliver the right message. Do A/B testing before finalizing on one result,” suggested the CEO of Saffron Edge.

The CEO of Museum Hack suggests, “Posting blatantly about products only is not the best strategy for social growth, but don't go too far in the other direction and focus only on entertainment! “

The trend of creating memes is an effective way to promote products. Instagram reels are one example of products being promoted through the mode of entertainment. Social media marketing for e-commerce businesses often includes memes posted on social media platforms.

Social media marketing for startups can comprise of entertaining content to create brand awareness with a cost-effective option. 

It is not just posting content that audiences can engage with, brands also need to be attentive to what their audience wants to say. Implementing social listening empowers brands to actively interact with their customers and pitch in wherever required to solve their queries while promoting business.

A prompt and meaningful reply to a customer query is critical for building trust and improving brand loyalty. 

The CEO of Content Whale said, “Engagement, real one, responding to the comments, commenting as an unbiased non-promotional entity - that will really help to stay ahead of all, on top because no one is doing it, everyone is busy doing their self-promotional and all.” 

Social listening can also help in getting access to what the competitors are up to and assist in planning further strategies. It also gives marketers access to demographics that are helpful in determining the most powerful social media platforms for their business.

While content creators have been using AI tools to improve their content pieces with respect to grammar for a long time now, the use of several modern AI tools to create personalized content for effective marketing has increased. ChatGPT has emerged as a favorite choice among brands for creating content, as around 51.7% of GoodFirms’ survey participants admitted that they use ChatGPT for content creation. 

The use of AI is not just limited to creating content but also to scheduling posts for wider reach, improving SEO, social listening, and improving analytics.  

Not just the quality of content but the frequency of taking to social media platforms for posting content is also crucial for the success of a marketing campaign. 

“Continuity in content marketing that educates the clients how to improve their business or life is important,” said the CEO of XApps Solutions.

It is necessary for brands to be consistent with the content they post. Having a pre-decided schedule for posting content regularly and at the same time can help in getting maximum visibility, ensuring more engagement and the most conversions. Here is the survey that GoodFirms conducted to find out the frequency of social media marketing campaigns.

According to the Social media marketing survey conducted by GoodFirms, around 27.1% of businesses post content on a daily basis. While 29.3% of marketers find posting content on alternate days beneficial, 23.7% of marketers find it suitable to post twice a week.

Only 19.9% of marketers follow a frequency of posting once a week to run their social media campaigns.

“They should invest in basic Social Media management software that allows you to front-load posts and schedule them. It can also provide standard reporting to help you unearth which days and hours are the best times for engagement with your target audience as well as the best hashtags to use, etc.” said the CEO of Odyssey New Media Ltd.

Automating the process of posting content can be a great solution for being consistent on social media which can be achieved by social media tools and dedicated social media management software solutions.

When queried with our survey participants, this is what they say about automation and how it has helped them in carrying out their social media marketing activities.

Nearly 60% of the survey respondents said that automation has helped them in enhancing their SSM efforts. 

When queried about the best social media marketing strategies that worked for our participants in the year 2023, we got several of them indicating various tactics. A few are as indicated below:

‘Short Reels worked the best,’ said the marketing manager at OpenXcell.

 

‘Interactive content proved to be the most favorable strategy’ - said the participant from Cizonet Solutions.

 

‘Influencer marketing worked for us’ - mentioned the participant from Lighthouse Advisory.

 

“Constant optimization of user experience, a connection of online and offline strategies,  prioritization of authenticity in produced content, building partnerships, making performance analysis an ongoing strategy.” - stated the representative from OKQA

 

“Comedy worked for us - even if some content is not breakthrough, if it is funny it will get traction,” said the participant from Bespoke Design.

 

“Connecting with commenters, i.e., other people active on social media, to increase reach worked for us,” mentioned the participant from Titoma Design for Asian Manufacturing.

 

“Increasing the posting frequency helped us in 2023,” said the representative of Hikesiya USA Inc.

 

“Enhancing Personal Branding on LinkedIn for employees. It led to more engagement, traffic, and reach”, said the participant from WPRiders.

While there are numerous trends that will dominate the social media marketing industry in the year 2024, the use of social media marketing is estimated to rise even further in the coming years. 

“Video content evolution, ephemeral content and stories, influencer marketing refinement, personalization and community building, social commerce expansion, AI and data-driven strategies are the trends that will dominate in 2024,” said the CEO of DigiTrends.

GoodFirms survey reveals that a whopping 64.2% of the surveyed businesses will allocate a higher budget for social media marketing than what was allocated in the previous year. 

23.9% of the survey participants plan to allocate the same budget for social media marketing as they did last year, while only 11.9% of businesses will reduce their SMM budget compared to what they allocated the previous year.

While most businesses are readily investing in social media campaigns, there are some businesses that are hesitant to invest in social media strategies. The primary reasons for this hesitation include the challenges associated with creating engaging and authentic content. 

The major concerns of data privacy and security also lead to obstacles in adopting social media strategies for promotion. The future of social media, therefore, needs to address the data security issues and prioritize user data security. Social media crisis management is another area where marketers need to focus while creating a social media marketing strategy.

The introduction of technologies like artificial intelligence and machine learning is also expected to revolutionize social marketing campaigns due to the amount of personalization they offer. 

The future of social media marketing is predicted to be highly influenced by technologies like AR/VR and artificial intelligence. Although the dominance of video content is here to stay in the future, text-only content is also expected to gain traction in the coming years.

Artificial intelligence has touched every industry. From chatbots to offering recommendations to social media users, AI has gained significance in the social media marketing industry.

With the launch of advanced AI tools like ChatGPT in the mainstream, marketers began utilizing artificial intelligence to provide personalized experiences to their customers. 

“Personalization is one of the greatest strategies that worked for us in 2023,” says the CEO of IdeaSoft.

The use of artificial intelligence is not just limited to the introduction of chatbots anymore. It is a great aid for marketers to create unique content, including text, images, and videos. The capability of generative AI tools to curate unique content in a short time has made the process of content creation easy and fast. 

CEO of Vipra Business Consulting Services Pvt. Ltd said, “I believe that AI is a powerful tool that can be used to improve social media marketing in a number of ways. I am excited to see how AI continues to develop and evolve, and I am committed to using it to improve my social media marketing efforts.” 

Although human intervention is advisable for maintaining the authenticity of the content, generative AI has proved to be a boon for content creators when launching their social media campaigns.

Influencer marketing has seen an expansion in recent years, and this trend is expected to continue growing in the coming year as well.  Social media influencer marketing has been an essential part of marketing campaigns for various brands. 

With dedicated followers, influencers can help brands get a considerable amount of potential customers. With the rising popularity of influencer marketing, the costs of hiring influencers have soared. This has given rise to the trend of hiring nano influencers and macro influencers, which is relatively cost-efficient.

The CEO of Events Ticket Center says, “Whether it's the visual appeal of Instagram, the chatty feel of Twitter, or the immersive storytelling potential of TikTok, a well-thought-out influencer plan with a knowledge to use all of these platforms and keep the brand message relevant and interesting will prove success.”

Hiring small influencers of a particular niche can help brands accomplish their marketing goals. With the combination of quality content and a loyal group of followers, brands can leverage influencer marketing to convey their message in a simple and influential manner. The cost-effective nature of SMM is beneficial for improving a brand’s social media ROI.

Video content has emerged as a dominant form of marketing content. The popularity of Instagram reels in recent years has shown a rise in the consumption of video content among users. 

Video content results in a higher engagement rate, and an average user stays on the page a little longer. Around 91% of marketers admitted to using video content as a part of their social media campaigns.(4)

“Videos will continue to bring higher success for brands,” mentioned the CEO of Percepto.

The consumption of video content has been rising exponentially, with about 80% of the internet traffic coming from videos.(5) The shifting preference of consumers toward video content leads to the growing inclination of marketers toward video marketing. Brands have also witnessed the popularity of short-form videos through Instagram reels, TikTok videos, YouTube Shorts, and more. All these factors indicate the continued dominance of video content in the coming times.

“Short-form video content will dominate social media feeds in 2024.” says the CEO of Designs Guru Studio.

The incorporation of AR/VR is not new to brands' social media strategies. However, with the advancement in technology and decreasing prices of consumer-oriented equipment, brands can further leverage AR and VR applications on social media platforms. 

Augmented reality is a technology that can provide an immersive experience to the customer, improving the engagement rate. With the boost provided by artificial intelligence, AR and VR can personalize the customer experience, therefore increasing sales.

Several giants like Sephora and Expedia have already implemented AR/VR in their social media campaigns and have witnessed an increase in customer engagement and conversion rates. (6) The effectiveness of these technologies in improving the success rates of a marketing campaign can help in the rise of their use. It is, however, advised to analyze the use of AR.VR is accessible and significant to the target audience of the business.

“I think Augmented Reality (AR) will dominate in 2024. AR filters and features are expected to become more integrated into social media marketing, offering interactive and engaging experiences for users.” points out SmartSites.

Live streaming is an interactive way to communicate and build a relationship with customers. Several brands host live stream sessions with their customers to understand their perspective about the brand and also gain insights about their expectations.

With social media giants introducing platforms like Facebook Live, Instagram Live, and Youtube Live, brands are recognizing the potential of this trend to interact with their audience in novel ways.

A survey by GoodFirms about Livestream Ecommerce revealed that 75% of marketers find live-streaming sessions beneficial for improving customer engagement and increasing sales.(7)

“In-stream and live-streaming shopping will be a hit, as more platforms will enable users to buy products directly from videos and live broadcasts,” states the CEO of Stanoz Designs.

Live streaming practices like Q&A sessions and conducting polls help brands clear any queries that consumers have and instill trust among them.

Social commerce is another strategy that is bound to be widely implemented in 2024. The facility to shop from social media platforms directly has benefited businesses in recent times. While most social media users opt for social media platforms for product research, the availability of the convenience of buying from there directly is a great idea.

CEO at Addlium believes “Implementing social selling strategy through content marketing is a trend to look out for.” 

Easy checkout process, seamless browsing of products, and access to consumer reviews aid in faster decision-making for customers. The introduction of shoppable ads on social media platforms is also a great way to boost social commerce.

Social commerce can also benefit businesses to improve their social media engagement.

As consumers become aware of social issues and sustainability, purpose-driven content and brands making efforts to improve sustainability gain more importance. Brands embracing social responsibility have a high chance of becoming popular and creating a loyal customer base.

Adopting socially responsible and sustainable practices can help a brand stand out in the fierce competition. Adopting sustainable practices also contributes to reducing certain production costs. 

User-generated content(UGC) is a powerful marketing tool. Brands have started leveraging UGC for higher engagement rates and building trust among customers. It can be in the form of images, videos, testimonials, and reviews. 

UGC is an authentic content type that can impart confidence for other customers to make their final decisions. Unboxing videos have, therefore, gained popularity among them. Moreover, user-generated content is also time and cost-effective. 

With the customers speaking about a brand, the authenticity of the brand increases, thus, increasing customer engagement and loyalty. The travel operator giant Busabout reported reduced content creation costs and a 350% rise in social audience with the increased use of UGC.(8)
 

“In 2023, one of the most effective social media marketing strategies for me was leveraging user-generated content (UGC). The strategy not only increased engagement but also served as powerful social proof, influencing potential customers and fostering a sense of community around our brand,” mentioned CEO Viabletree.

 

The trend can be a crucial step in social media marketing for restaurants, shopping stores, salons, and wellness centers.

• Social media marketing brings a plethora of benefits for businesses, including a wider customer reach, improved brand awareness, and cost-effective marketing strategies.

• 11.6% of the surveyed businesses spend more than 75% of their marketing budget on social media marketing.

• The use of artificial intelligence in social media marketing has gained a lot of popularity due to the level of personalization it offers to customers.

• Influencer marketing, especially micro and nano influencers, has scope for growth in the coming times.

• The dominance of video content and short reels is here to stay, irrespective of the platforms.

• The rise of technologies like AR and VR will revolutionize social media marketing strategies.

• Frequently changing social media algorithms is a huge challenge for social media marketers.

• Determining the right social media platforms is also challenging when creating a social media marketing strategy.

• LinkedIn turned out to be the absolute favorite among marketers as it is a cost-effective and result-producing channel.

• Knowing the target audience and understanding their preferences are essential in creating a successful social media strategy.

• Creating engaging, ephemeral, and authentic content is of utmost importance for improving social media engagement.

• AI and automation are the future support systems of social media marketing.

Social media marketing is not new. It has become an essential part of businesses' marketing campaigns from all sectors. Whether you are a big, established brand, a small startup, or a freelancing blogger, social media cannot be ignored. With the several benefits it offers, businesses have to constantly invest in creating plans to be relevant on social media platforms. With several social media platforms offering a number of features and capabilities, what makes sense is to evaluate what works for you best on a daily basis. 

The rising competition and ever-evolving trends undoubtedly are keeping social media marketers and agencies on their toes. Although the possible automation and introduction to technologies like AI have made it easy for businesses to improve social media engagement, challenges like changing social media algorithms and managing content for multiple platforms can be tough for marketers. Trying to keep up with all the changes and still learning to win the users’ attention marks a victory.

“Focus on top-quality E.E.A.T equipped content, a lot of personal branding, and putting more effort into building short reels and video content with platforms like YouTube and Instagram and textual content with platforms like LinkedIn is our social media marketing goals for the coming year,” said Content Euphoria.

With the right steps and a well-planned SMM strategy, businesses can benefit hugely from these strategies, have a loyal customer base, and increase ROI on SMM. 

Social media marketing is the easiest way to establish your credibility, generate buzz throughout the years, and increase revenue. 

The social media trends might not last long, but the future of social media marketing still has the potential to grow.

We sincerely thank our Research Partners for their valuable insights.

References:

1. https://www.statista.com/outlook/dmo/digital-advertising/social-media-advertising/worldwide#:~:text=Social%20Media%20Advertising%20%2D%20Worldwide&text=Ad%20spending%20in%20the%20Social,US%24255.8bn%20by%202028.

2. https://www.statista.com/statistics/278414/number-of-worldwide-social-network-users/

3. https://www.statista.com/statistics/264810/number-of-monthly-active-facebook-users-worldwide/ 

4. https://www.wyzowl.com/video-marketing-statistics/ 

5. https://www.cisco.com/c/en/us/solutions/collateral/executive-perspectives/annual-internet-report/white-paper-c11-741490.html 

6. https://wear-studio.com/augmented-and-virtual-reality-in-social-media-marketing/ 

7. https://www.goodfirms.co/resources/livestream-ecommerce-market-future-scope

8. https://www.nosto.com/blog/webinar-bringing-travel-experiences-to-life-with-real-content/#form_section