Social media advertising trends for 2021

2021 has forged a unique customer base with special requirements – and the social media advertising trends follow suit.  As people have adapted to virtual living, technology has advanced in numerous ways, and consumers are pushing hard to bring societal change along with it. From rising platforms to worthy causes, utilizing social media for shopping, live events, or forming relationships, it’s time to dive into the 2021 social media trends.

The power of story format on social media

Brands are increasingly turning to Instagram Stories to add variety to their content and keep things fresh. Instagram Stories and Snapchat have become so popular that Facebook even snapped up the Stories format for their homepage feed.

Stories offer a rich resource for brand marketing that you’d be silly to overlook. Another way brands can effectively use these formats is by posting engaging story content to bring followers back day after day. This will, in turn, increase your regular social advertising media following and increase the number of eyes on your ads when you share them.

Live streams and video content

If there is anything that the global crisis has changed in the world its that many businesses are going digital, this way they can maintain social distancing and prevent the spread of COVID-19. Face-to-face meetings turned into Zoom conferences and live concerts turned into live streams of artists playing from their homes. Video content is the undisputed king of social media advertising content that dominates all the social media advertising trends, and that’s not changing anytime soon. 

Augmented reality for social advertising media

Augmented reality experiences are inherently interactive and highly effective for engagement. Virtual reality kicks up your brand messaging to a whole new level. Forward-thinking brands are already using this social advertising media trend to put AR into their marketing mix, and it’s worth taking a look to see if it’s a good fit for your brand.

For instance, Converse has an app that allows users to pick a shoe style and then superimposes it on them by pointing their tablet or smartphone at their feet. It’s forward-thinking marketing for sure – and there’s bound to be much more on the horizon. 

Shopping experiences through social media

As the social media advertising industry constantly adapts to enhance the user experience, we’re seeing more features and tools that support quick and easy shopping. Instagram, for instance, allows you to add product tags and enable easy checkout without ever leaving the platform. On Facebook, you can set up a Shop where people can browse and buy right on the platform.

The ASOS exit key on Instagram led to its decision to allow users to interact on its ASOS, As Seen On Me platform.

Created a unique brand combination and content generated by the user. ASOS allows its public users to take photographs of some of their products on their official Instagram account.

Supporting good causes

While social media advertising has always driven engagement with causes, the global pandemic shined an even brighter spotlight on these causes. People want to help more than ever and they expect brands to pitch in.

As brands have navigated multiple crises in 2020, it also highlighted the importance of authenticity and backing up their marketing actions.

Like Michael Kors that released a special edition of its LOVE T-shirt to help the World Food Programme (WFP) respond to the global COVID-19 pandemic. All profits from the T-shirt will support relief efforts directed at providing vital nutrition to help keep kids healthy, whether in school or at home as a result of the crisis.

Anticipating the latest social media advertising trends today could help you build a stronger presence for the future. We hope we helped with his post to adapt your social strategy according to the current social trends. If you want to know how to make money with social media, don’t miss our last post!

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