And so another year of digital marketing comes to a close! As we enter 2023 and put more distance between ourselves and the primary pandemic years, we’re left asking ourselves what the new year holds for brands and digital platforms. Will Twitter still be a valid platform to use with all of the ongoing changes and instability? Will TikTok-style videos continue to reign supreme? No one can know for sure, but we at ChatterBlast feel pretty confident to make some guesses. Let’s take a look at some of our predictions for the upcoming year…
Less Is More When It Comes to Social Media Presence
Now that we’ve put some distance between ourselves and the heaviest pandemic years that rocked everyone’s content strategy, a lot of folks have finally had a minute to step back and consider their social media presence. More and more we’re seeing a desire to tighten up brand presence, especially when it comes to the number of accounts a brand or organization has on social media.
We know that if social media audiences are searching for something specific, they want to find it fast. If they don’t, there’s a good chance they’ll move on to something else. If a brand has multiple accounts on each social media platform, it can not only split up your audience for lower impact on content, but also make it more difficult for audiences to discern which account is official to the brand or most related to the sector they’re looking for.
From the brand perspective, more accounts on social media equals a more complex, and sometimes less cohesive content strategy and brand manifestation. These are a few reasons why we expect to see brands continue minimizing the number of social media accounts they have per platform. A consolidated presence is a positive presence!
Short-Form Video’s Reign Continues
TikTok has been taking digital audiences by storm since 2018 and hasn’t seemed to slow down. Instagram Reels came on the scene in 2020 (leaning into more video-based content on the originally photo-focused platform), Youtube Shorts was introduced in 2021, and Facebook joined the trend as well in 2022. What trend are we talking about exactly? Short-form video.
Platforms, brands, and influencers have been catering to the shorter attention span of their audiences and opting for short-form video content, whether that’s in the form of homegrown TikToks….
or highly-produced thirty-second reels.
According to a 2022 report by Mediaocean, 63% of marketing professionals are ready to prioritize ad spending on this type of content, especially on TikTok. It’s safe to say that short-form video is sticking around in 2023, now we just have to wait and see if brands can master this form of campaign.
Augmented Reality
Augmented reality sounds like something from your favorite future sci-fi, but its become part of our day-to-day lives—in many ways we don’t even necessarily realize. For example, filters are a form of AI that we use on social media regularly. We all remember the beloved “dog face” filter on Snapchat, and ChatterBlast even made its own for the holidays!
Now, filters are a critical component of many viral TikTok trends.
Aside from fun, entertaining applications as such, AI has grown into a digital tool for the masses beyond social media. Many retail brands have incorporated AI into product consideration by allowing customers to “try before they buy” online using an AI filter.
Now that AI is something users are becoming more familiar with, there’s even more potential for brands to harness this technology in digital marketing. Unique audience segments specifically rooted in the AI space will inevitably emerge. For example, as smart glasses make their way onto the scene, users will become a brand new group ripe for targeted brand awareness efforts. Getting in front of these audiences sooner rather than later could be hugely beneficial down the road when this technology is commonly used.
Granted, this all depends on how quickly and widely AI is adopted, but this is definitely a space to watch in 2023. The ones who do may end up being some of those who master digital marketing there ahead of the curve!
The Twitter Danger Zone: Brand Safety Matters Most
Time for the question that everyone is trying to answer: Where is Twitter headed? Leadership has people’s heads spinning with the rapid-fire changes being made to the platform and the company as a whole. But the way we see it, the root of the issue comes down to one feature: brand safety.
Brand safety is akin to reputation, essentially having a level of certainty that their name won’t be associated with the “wrong” ideas or opinions. But within that, brands also want as much reach as possible. According to our in-house wizard and Associate Director of Ads and Analytics, Joe Mineo, “Twitter had enough volume, placement choices, and content moderation to make advertisers comfortable.”
Until they started removing some of that moderation.
We’ve already seen folks pull back from advertising, and even organic publishing on the platform due to the lack of content moderation. People feel that with its new policies, Twitter has allowed more misinformation and hate speech to circulate—and brands obviously don’t want their messaging popping up alongside something inflammatory.
Brands that have pulled back from advertising on the platform are generally uncomfortable and distrustful of where the platform is headed. Twitter’s top 100 advertisers have halted spending since leadership shifted at the end of October 2022.
As of now, it’s safe to predict that more and more people will be pulling away from Twitter, especially when it comes to advertising, until brand safety is a priority for the platform once again.
*Bonus Tip: It’s unlikely that your audiences only exist on Twitter, and those that do are likely to leave soon anyhow. Take this time to evaluate your presence there until the platform has stabilized, and consider how you can strengthen your content strategy on other platforms for those audiences!
If the last few years have taught us anything, it’s that we can always expect a couple of curveballs, but these are at least a few things to keep your eye on in the upcoming foray into the digital landscape. It’s also the perfect time to think of working one or two of them into your content strategy as we enter the new year. Let us know your digital marketing plans going into 2023!
