The Importance of Embracing Social Media Trends

The world of social media is constantly evolving. Content that performed well months ago may not result in the same success today. Maintaining successful content involves staying on top of current trends, but more importantly, understanding how consumer preferences change over time. Years ago, YouTube was one of the most popular social platforms, loved for its quality long-form content. However, today TikTok has taken its crown, and the short-form, less-than-a-minute content is preferred by most. You may be wondering… what has changed? 

The shift from long-form to short-term video content is a result of changing audiences and platforms. Audiences are now looking for bite-sized content that is quick to read and engaging, requiring minimal focus. Shorter video content typically performs better and is better at capturing audiences’ attention. 

Trends evolve as quickly as by the week. Predicting potential trends can help your brand assess what will be popular in the coming month. In terms of audio and micro trends, it is nearly impossible to predict what will come next. However, understanding the appeal of these trends can help you create content that will resonate with the same audience. 

NewGen Marketing is dedicated to working with brands to improve their overall marketing strategy. With the rise of digital marketing, social media trends have become integral to the success of brands’ marketing efforts. Continue reading to learn more about defining your audience, as well as five trends you should be using to get the most out of your social media usage.

How to Identify Trends for Your Audience

Identifying social media trends for your audience can take time, but we promise it pays off. This type of research is layered, and it requires looking back on your successful content and researching trends from other creators. 

The best way to monitor social media trends is to follow similar influencers or brands within your industry. This allows you to keep track of the content they post and predict trends that might become popular. Taking inspiration from creators is very different from directly taking their ideas. Consider the audio they used, the length of the video, the caption, and hashtags, and take time to understand what qualities might have driven the specific post to be successful. 

Understanding trends on different platforms is the best way to catch trends in the early days. Twitter, YouTube, and TikTok make it simple to see what is trending in real-time. With a little research, it is quite simple to stay in the know regarding current trends. 

Five Social Media Trends You Can Utilize Right Now

  1. Influencer Marketing: Brands can leverage influencer marketing as a powerful strategy to enhance engagement with their target audience. By partnering with influencers who have a loyal following and a strong presence on social media platforms, brands can tap into their credibility and influence to promote products or services in an authentic way.
  2. Video Content Marketing: Instagram Reels, TikTok, and YouTube Shorts have quickly become prominent extensions of our favorite social media platforms. Video content is some of the most engaged-with content at the moment, so now is the time to jump into the world of video content creation!
  3. User-Generated Content: By showcasing authentic content created by customers, brands can build trust and credibility among their followers. User-generated content humanizes the brand, making it more relatable and resonant with consumers. 
  4. AI-Generated Content: AI-generated content utilizes machine-learning algorithms to determine what content will be most successful. This tailored approach helps to foster stronger connections with customers and is a time-saving solution for many brands. 
  5. Social Shopping: Approximately 33% of Americans’ screen time is taken up by social media usage. Therefore, shopping on social media has become increasingly common. Since many people now use social media to research products, it only makes sense that these products are more accessible on different platforms. 

Social Media Management with NewGen Marketing

NewGen Marketing is a modern marketing agency working with brands to improve their social media strategies. In recent years, social media as a whole has undergone a significant change and user expectations have shifted. You may be wondering – what can we learn from this?

Everything on social media is only temporary. What is popular one day will pass the next. The most important part of curating content for your brand is only utilizing social media trends that are authentic to your brand and image. Are you looking for social media support? Consider partnering with NewGen to stay on top of trends and increase your engagement.