Social Media Trends 2024: A Comprehensive Guide to Strengthening Your Brand
Step into 2024 with a cutting-edge approach to social media branding. In this guide, we delve into the latest trends and strategies that are shaping the digital world. Learn how to leverage new platforms, optimise content, and engage with your audience in meaningful ways. Whether you’re a startup or an established brand, these insights will help you stand out and thrive in the dynamic landscape of social media in 2024.
Table of Contents
As we hit marketing in 2024 at full force, it’s important to analyse the social media trends that can help businesses take their social media platforms to the next level. From building a strong social community to selling the experience rather than the product, in this blog post, we will discuss the top social media trends for 2024 and how you can use these to strengthen your brand.
Social Communities
If you’ve been following our blog or social media for a while, you’ll know that one of our biggest trend predictions for 2024 is the building of social communities – especially due to new platform features such as Instagram Broadcasts which launched last year.
The key is helping your audience feel part of something bigger than themselves, and that’s where building a digital community comes in. This further helps to increase your overall engagement, customer advocacy/loyalty and can increase retention rates.
This year, the focus is not just on attracting followers, but on fostering an environment where they can connect and interact with each other. Using tactics such as hosting live Q&A sessions, showcasing behind-the-scenes content, and creating exclusive events, you can transform passive viewers into active community members.
Engaging your audience in these interactive experiences not only boosts your brand’s visibility but also cultivates a sense of belonging among your followers. This, in turn, not only enhances brand loyalty but also turns your followers into brand ambassadors who actively share and promote your content, further amplifying your reach and impact in the digital space.
Selling The Feeling
Another thing we have spoken about a lot is that no one cares about your product. And what we mean by this is that people buy into the feeling and the emotion that your product serves them with. For example, car manufacturers don’t just sell a car, they sell the feeling of driving that car and the status of owning the car.
Now adapt this analogy to your service offering and ensure that you’re selling the feeling rather than the product. How you do this is up to you and your marketing teams – but normally we include this in all social post copy and imagery.
By selling a feeling, you’re not just selling a product; you’re offering an experience, a transformation, a new way of living. This shift from product-centric to emotion-centric marketing can significantly enhance how your brand resonates with your audience, making your product an integral part of their emotional landscape.
Long-Form Video Takes A New Definition
Since the launch of TikTok, the short-form video seems to have dominated the marketing landscape, but this doesn’t mean long-form video is dead. Rather, long-form video does have a space in marketing if it’s providing value.
If your longer-form video is engaging and provides your audience with valuable information, they are more likely to watch a larger portion of your video. In fact, 24% of social media users find long-form videos the most engaging.
However, this doesn’t mean you count out short-form video. By blending short and long-form, you can utilise both to improve your video marketing efforts. After all, 58% of viewers will watch the entirety of a business video if it’s less than 60 seconds long.
Appearances Matter, But Value Matters More
One key trend throughout this blog post has been value – and this goes for your social media branding. In a world of marketing where Instagram feeds and Pinterest boards are visual, it can often be easy to get caught up in the aesthetics of marketing.
While a strong brand is important and has its place in marketing, value matters more. With 55% of brand first impressions being visual, a key trend for marketers in 2024 will be balancing a strong brand, but also not losing the strong messaging.
Instead of feed planning in isolation, ensure that the visual media you’re posting offers value to your audience (such as providing a solution to their pain points and ensuring it’s aligned with your value proposition). This will instil trust in your brand and help to increase customer loyalty.
Final Thoughts
Authenticity and value will be two of the biggest factors when building a strong brand via social media. With loyalists making purchases 90% more than brand newbies, it’s important to use social media as a way to increase customer loyalty and nurture existing customers.
In 2024, the digital landscape continues to evolve rapidly, making it more crucial than ever for brands to stay ahead of the curve. As we’ve explored in this blog post, the key to thriving on social media lies in understanding and leveraging current trends to your advantage. From fostering vibrant social communities that engage and inspire, to selling not just a product but an emotion and an experience, these strategies are essential for any brand looking to make a significant impact online.
Additionally, the intelligent use of video content, balancing both short-form and long-form, can dramatically enhance your brand’s reach and engagement. It’s about creating content that resonates, informs, and entertains, all while keeping your audience’s preferences in mind.
Remember, in the world of social media, appearances do matter, but they should never overshadow the value your brand provides. Your content should not only be visually appealing but should also offer real, tangible benefits to your audience. This focus on delivering value will help in building trust, fostering loyalty, and ultimately, in creating an audience that’s also your brand community.
