13 predictions for the future of social media

There have been many changes and additions to the world of social media since the digital era took hold of our lives. The social sphere can and does change rapidly, making it hard to plan for the future.

The best way to be prepared is to look at predictions, so we’ve gathered some of the predicted trends and changes we think are likely to play a part in the future of social media.

• Shopping - Social commerce will continue to expand as more consumers shop online and particularly via social media.                                                                                                                                                                                                                            
• Authenticity and relevancy - Emphasis on content that serves a purpose and a use for the consumer, both in terms of paid-for promoted content and organic.                                                                                                                                                        
• Tech - Wearable tech and more connected devices will only add to increasingly connected audiences and make it easy to share and consume content.                                                                                                                                                                       
• Blockchain and cryptocurrency - A blockchain-based social media platform would give users total control over their content including where and how it can be used and platforms will experiment with accepting cryptocurrencies as a form of payment.                                                                                                                                       
• Traditional platforms will stay - While it’s realistic that a decentralised blockchain-based social media platform may arise, the traditional platforms will continue to thrive.                                                                                                                    
• Video content - Video format will be favoured and will dominate, evolving into augmented and virtual reality.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             
• Influencer marketing - While influencers will remain an important part of the social realm, authenticity and honesty become increasingly important.                                                                                                                                                                      
• Customer service - Businesses will rely on social media to deliver most of their inbound customer services and will utilise chatbots to aid this.                                                                                                                                                                                     
• Increased responsibility - Platforms will reconsider vanity metrics such as ‘likes’ and the role these play in terms of value, as well as more scrutiny over accounts, applications and sponsored adds.                                                                                        
• Mobile first - Unsurprisingly the majority of social media visits will be via mobile app and other, smaller smart devices.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                
• Consumer control - Reputation and recommendations will live and die on social media, putting more importance on customer service, crisis management and online communities.                                                                                                               
• Data and privacy - Users will continue to increasingly value their privacy and how data is used, choosing to share less and holding platforms more culpable.                                                                                                                                                                
• Metaverse - The ‘metaverse’ is being touted as the new iteration of the internet and while that’s broader than just social media, it will without doubt be impacted. Mark Zuckerberg has already announced that Facebook is preparing for the time when digital will meet virtual reality.