According to a study conducted in April 2022, there 4.65 billion social media users worldwide.
This means that 58.7% of people around the world are social media users.
Moreover, new applications and social media platforms are constantly appearing, trying to capture a share of users around the world.
As a social media manager or content marketer, it can be hard to keep up – and it can be a little overwhelming.
That’s why we’ve put together this guide to help you keep track of the key social media trends of the year, and the important new platforms and apps on the horizon.
Social media trends in 2022
With top social media platforms such as Facebook, YouTube, WhatsApp, and Instagram ranking high in monthly users, shifting your focus to new social media platforms can be challenging.
The rise of live streaming services such as Facebook Watch and YouTube Live has fueled the growth of major apps and platforms.
Voice-based social networking is another social media trend that is becoming more popular and is being added to both established and modern applications.
Audio-based communities allow users to share music, discuss various topics, and create playlists.
These communities are built around specific artists or artists and encourage interaction among their users.
We’ll talk more about the new apps that use this new feature in a moment.
The SEO strategies that the top platforms use to create organic growth are useful to keep in mind when growing your audience on those same platforms.
Since social media is a key tool for businesses to connect with customers, it is crucial to create dynamic and informed strategies.
Every platform and app offers something different, and it’s worth checking out if you’re looking to be ahead of the curve when it comes to brand awareness and increased customer engagement.
To help you stay on top of what’s happening on social media, we’ve put together a shortlist of 10 platforms and apps you might want to keep an eye on in the coming months.
10 new apps and social media platforms
1. TikTok
Tik Tok It quickly became a major player with its detailed algorithms and unique content creation capabilities. In 2020 and 2021, TikTok was it The fastest growing US social media app
Although it was initially released in 2016, the stable release or production version (where most of the bugs were eventually fixed) was in October of 2021.
Within months, the app exploded.
By the end of 2021, this new app had 1 billion monthly users around the world.
If you’re not familiar with it, TikTok is a short video platform where people can create and share video content anywhere from 15 seconds to 10 minutes in length.
These days, it’s not uncommon to hear someone say, “Hey, did you see TikTok where…”
It has become an easily relatable platform where content often goes viral.
For this reason, brands and influencers have taken advantage of TikTok to market products and build brand followings.
This has also given rise to TikTok Shopping, which enables users to purchase products without having to leave the app.
2. Discord
When it comes to community management and engagement, disagreement It is the latest platform to catch people’s attention.
Discord already has 150 million monthly active users.
Similar to Zoom, users can communicate through voice chat or messages and screen sharing.
This platform is a community supported VoIP application where users can create their own server to connect with others and send their invite links to the chat.
Discord also allows you to better control notification functions for people in your group, assigning roles to people so no one gets overwhelmed with notifications.
Some people say it provides better chat functionality than Skype or Slack.
Discord is slowly moving from a gamer-centric platform to integrating opportunities for businesses.
One important thing to note for marketers and brands is that Discord allows first party data tracking.
These are also many features for collaboration and the ability to tag clients for events and during conversations.
3. Twitch
Twitch is a live streaming service that originally specialized in video games and esports. It has since expanded to provide creative content of all kinds.
Owned by Amazon, many of the top web influencers rely on Twitch as their primary source of income. It has many monetization opportunities, such as ads and monthly subscription revenue.
With 140 million monthly active users, twitch is another platform that brands should pay attention to for marketing opportunities.
To compete with Twitch, YouTube has added new features similar to Twitch, such as membership milestones that create incentives for users.
Content on Twitch spans many industries and topics such as gaming, music, sports, travel, food and beverage, and special events – creating a variety of ways for marketers to reach their target market.
Brands have started collaborating with Twitch streamers to help promote products and share tips on live streaming.
Another marketing strategy that brands use on this platform is to run banner ads and video ads to help increase their brand awareness.
4. Instagram Reels
Instagram is already an incredibly popular social media platform with over 100,000,000 monthly active users.
But inside the platform there is a newer feature, Instagram reelswhich allows users to share multi-clip videos from 15 to 60 seconds long with different sound and effects – similar to TikTok.
Brands and social media managers can easily share reels with followers on their profiles.
These reels can be permanently displayed on their Instagram profile.
In addition, marketers can use Instagram Reels algorithms to improve their Instagram content strategy.
If you want to know the best ways to use Instagram Reels for business, check out this how-to guide.
5. Patreon
There are more than 8 million monthly active users Patreon.
And while Patreon has been around since 2013, it has risen to prominence in the past couple of years.
This platform allows brands and creators to produce exclusive content for their followers.
Through Patreon, creators offer monthly subscriptions that give people access to different types of content and rewards, broken down into different monthly membership levels.
Many freelancers and brands use Patreon to promote and manage their subscriptions to their podcasts and other content.
This is a great platform for creating a steady income stream from subscribers and a simple way to monetize content.
With straightforward navigation across the platform, content creators can easily manage content and subscriptions.
6. Twitter Spaces
As most people know, Twitter is a widely used social media platform with more than 229 million daily active users.
But Twitter Spaceslaunched in 2020, is a new feature of the already popular app that allows users to have live voice chats on Twitter.
For those brands and influencers who have an active following on Twitter, it’s a great way to interact with followers, share live updates, and create a broader discussion area.
In-brand teams can co-host a live event and add up to 10 additional speakers to create more engaging events.
For Twitter Spaces, users can contribute by entering messages or sending emojis, creating a more inclusive sense of community.
Additionally, Twitter Spaces are a great place to educate your followers about upcoming promotions or products.
7. Spotify Greenroom
Spotify Greenroom It was introduced back in 2021, adding a unique feature to the popular Spotify platform.
Spotify has a huge active monthly user base 422 millionWhich makes it a strong competitor among the emerging platforms.
Spotify Greenroom creates a space where followers can listen to music and podcasts live.
It also creates an area for listeners to connect and chat.
Spotify is an excellent, streamlined platform for brands to integrate ads.
Plus, Spotify Greenroom caters to listeners with different interests, which means there are opportunities for a wide variety of brands.
For example, Neutrogena, Pizza Hut, Samsung, and LinkedIn (to name a few) use Spotify for ads.
But it’s not just for the big brands.
A mixture of small and large Trademarks They use Spotify to market their services and products.
8. Caffeine
caffeine It is a live streaming service for fans of games, sports, entertainment and brands.
Founded in 2016, it grew slowly before its beta release in 2018.
Caffeine has gained popularity among artists such as Offset, NFL player, and JuJu Smith-Schuster.
This is an easy to use platform where users can watch programs live and chat about what’s going on. In addition, users can watch major programs such as FOX Sports, ESPN, and college sports live on the platform.
Since he received caffeine $294 million In finance, it’s worth keeping the app on your radar while it develops further.
As the platform evolves, marketers will have more opportunities to grow their audience and promote their products.
9. Supernova
Supernova It is a charitable social media platform.
It gives 60% of its advertising revenue to charities of users’ choice with the goal of creating an inclusive community.
Supernova is one of the newer apps on the horizon, and it was launched in December 2021.
Marketed as the ethical alternative to Facebook and Instagram, it uses human moderators to maintain a positive and inclusive environment.
On this platform, users can select charitable causes to support, such as mental health reform and climate change.
When a user’s post receives a “like” on the platform, a portion of the “Supernova Action Fund” (which is funded by Supernova Advertising Partners) is donated to a charity of their choice.
If giving back is vital to your brand, you might consider how you can get involved with this new form of social media charity.
10. The club
Another new platform to watch out for is Club Housea social video chat application where you can meet new people and discuss your favorite topics.
The club has $10 million Weekly Active Users Worldwide.
Users can follow celebrities and artists such as Malcolm Gladwell, Oprah, Ashton Kutcher, and Drake.
This platform is an excellent place for marketers to learn about social media and marketing tips and trends, and find new communities to connect with on the platform.
Takeaway
Staying on top of these promising platforms and apps can help your brand better connect with your existing communities, and find new ones.
It’s also a great way to market your brand and build brand awareness.
Make sure to keep SEJ on your radar to stay up to date with the latest marketing trends, useful apps, and platforms in the market.
More resources:
- Top 10 Social Networking Websites and Platforms for 2022
- Social media usage statistics for digital marketers in 2022
- Social Media Marketing: A Complete Strategy Guide
Featured image: cla78/Shutterstock
