2021 brought us more TikTok trends to try at home, Hinge audios to spice up our dating profiles, and another year of pandemic memes to send via Slack. As we say goodbye to 2020 V2, here are some changes and new trendy features coming to your favorite social media channels to look out for in 2022 — quick fire round edition!
Long-form video is here to stay
Instagram Stories is joining the group in extending video length to allow for 60-second clips. They are testing the feature now, but given the rapid move to Reels and video content in the last year, we expect this to hit shelves in 2022. Instagram has been working to keep up with TikTok all year, and will have to continue to do so into 2022.
Head of #Instagram Adam @Mosseri recently announced the platform is "no longer a photo-sharing app."
Get ready to step in front of the camera — #videocontent is now the name of the game. 🎬 https://t.co/s1hJ0iiR2E pic.twitter.com/ir4BSgOoav
— ChatterBlast Media (@ChatterBlast) July 15, 2021
TikTok has also been testing longer form videos over the last year and is expected to surpass 1.5 billion active users in 2022.
Messenger apps are diversifying and expanding
Facebook has made several updates to its Messenger app this year and is now testing a split payment feature in which users can bill friends for shared dinners and experiences without leaving the platform.
Twitter is not to be outdone, though. Its recent acquisition of Quill (a would-be Slack competitor) signals a move to rethink DMs on its own platform. With the app’s new CEO, we are expecting to see several fast and ambitious changes come to the Twitter-verse in 2022.
Metaverse
Speaking of the -verse, Facebook’s newest identity crisis comes with a new name: Meta. It’s a strategic shift for the brand to explore augmented and virtual reality projects.
#ICYMI, we recently launched our very first #ARfilter on #Instagram! Our designer reflected on what she learned — and the future of #AR — on our blog.
➡️ https://t.co/aynkyJSfvx #augmentedreality pic.twitter.com/WCck88lrzN
— ChatterBlast Media (@ChatterBlast) December 16, 2021
Whether Meta is meant to tap into a younger demographic again or steer focus away from Facebook’s not-so-great reputation, we expect to see Meta expand its payment feature to avoid revenue share
Social audio: fad or the future?
Clubhouse went viral earlier in 2021, but over the last few months the app has seen a lot of competition from established platforms like Twitter, Meta/Facebook, Spotify, Amazon — and more successfully and virally — Hinge.
The dating app’s integration of audio recording feature as an option for prompt responses quickly became a memetic star on TikTok, with users sharing some of the funniest and weirdest recordings they’ve seen from people with whom they matched:
@salty_caroline_reads It truly never disappoints #hinge#hingevoicememo#hingevoiceprompts#voiceprompt
@dylanmcdanger Still no matches from this one yet. Weird lol. This one’s for you @donmarshall72 #hinge #voiceprompt #lotr #impressions
Most platforms are struggling for a foothold in this audio-only, social experience. In 2022, we expect to see more testing in this area (and more Hinge viral audios on our TikTok pages).
What social media features are you looking for in 2022?
