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Social and Digital Media · Published December 29, 2021

Lauren McGuire
Executive Vice President, Digital & Social

2022 Social Media Trend Report

social media public relations trend analysis
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In the last year, over 70% of the US population was actively using social media platforms, and spent between seven minutes and two hours on average on their platforms of choice.

With new platforms and features being announced practically every week, brands have to stay on top of the most popular and useful ones for their audiences.

Fortunately, most of the trends regarding social media that we’re going to be seeing in the new year have already arrived before 2021 has even ended. That means right now is the best time for companies to start utilizing these trends in order to achieve success in the new year.

TikTok Marketing

In the last few years, many companies have focused all of their PR and marketing efforts on Instagram because of the platform’s fast rate of growth. Additionally, companies also benefited from a high return on investment (ROI) from Instagram.

However, this trend has been changing in the last few months, with TikTok surpassing 1 billion active users this year. It has turned into one of the most popular social media platforms in the world, and the number of users managed to increase by nearly 50% in only a year.

That’s why one of the biggest trends in 2022 is going to be brands focusing their PR and marketing efforts on TikTok.

Social Media E-Commerce

Another big trend in the coming year is going to be social media E-commerce, which has been greatly popularized during the pandemic. Companies can create entertaining and engaging video content across most social media platforms, including Instagram and Facebook, to allow consumers to make purchases directly on those platforms.

That’s why companies should be shifting to the latest video trends, and focusing on Instagram’s latest short video feature: Reels. Reels have proven to be incredibly beneficial in terms of marketing success for many brands as of late.

Micro-Influencers

While this isn’t the newest trend to emerge on social media platforms, using micro-influencers have remained an important marketing strategy for companies on social media platforms.

Businesses should recognize the power that comes with creators that have a smaller number of followers compared to big celebrities. Instead of creating a big influencer marketing budget to work with the biggest celebrities, businesses should focus on micro-influencers instead.

That’s because many people prefer to respond and engage with the influencers they can relate to most. Micro-influencers also have the strongest relationships with their followers compared to any other type of influencer.

Paid Ads

Companies that haven’t utilized the power of paid ads should learn how to do so as soon as possible, because according to research, the organic reach of social media posts has greatly decreased as of late.

That’s why companies will have to increase their paid ads budgets for social media platforms. The decline of organic reach has been well-documented by many companies in the last few years.

This is especially true of those companies that focus their promotional efforts on platforms like Facebook and Instagram. This trend is going to continue in the coming year, which is why companies should start running paid social media ads and level up their branding.

Lauren McGuire

Written by

Lauren McGuire

Lauren McGuire is a seasoned digital marketing and operations leader with over a decade of experience driving growth, innovation, and integration across diverse industries. She's had great success leading national digital operations spanning Paid Media, Influencer, and Social channels to deliver scalable, high-impact solutions. Known for her ability to design and implement systems that streamline workflows, foster cross-functional collaboration, and enhance performance, Lauren has played a pivotal role in shaping digital strategy for major brands in corporate, consumer, travel, healthcare, and lifestyle sectors. She is a trusted partner to senior leadership, guiding new business development, integrating emerging technologies like AI, and ensuring readiness for rapid market shifts. Lauren's career includes leadership roles in the agency world where she consistently delivered measurable results in media performance, team development, and revenue growth. With expertise in digital strategy, operational excellence, and advanced marketing techniques, she thrives on turning complex challenges into clear, actionable plans that drive sustainable success. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Communication with a specialization in Public Relations/Advertising from Loyola University Maryland, along with a Business Administration minor from the AACSB-accredited Sellinger School of Business.

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