If you're a business or brand owner, you need to be aware of these 5 top 2022 social media trends that may change how you approach your marketing this year.

Social network can be a hard nut to crack for brands. There's a myriad of networks each with their own set of marketing tools and products. Businesses can't take a one-size-fits-all approach to their online marketing campaigns.

The challenges are further exacerbated by the rapid rate at which social media evolves. Trends come and go more quickly than most brands can jump on them. Social media networks routinely tweak their algorithms and that means a strategy that may have formerly been working for a business may no longer work in the future.

In spite of the rapid pace at which the social media landscape can change, trends continue to arise. They may be short-lived, spurred by a meme or event, or they might last for months. On a wider scale, trends may also emerge from changes that these social media networks introduce to their product or services.

Therefore, it's vital for marketers to stay on top of these changes. Each year certainly presents a need to revamp strategies so that businesses are able to extract the most value out of their campaigns. In our view, these are the 5 top 2022 social media trends to jump on this year.

Top 5 2022 Social Media Trends

1. Increase In Shopping On Social Media Platforms

A lot has changed in how people shop for goods and services online over the past decade. Gone are the days when an online store used to be the only channel to sell your products online. The improvement of social networks has actually unlocked new opportunities for businesses to sell directly to their desired demographic.

Leading networks like Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest have actually established robust features that allow organizations to easily sell their products online.

People have responded positively to the ability of looking for products and services directly through a social media network. This is one trend that's most likely going to surge a lot more in 2022.

The pandemic has also played a role in the rise of this trend. Shopping progressively was being done more online as the world was locked indoors. Social network networks facilitated this need with new tools that made the shopping experience much easier. People could now purchase their favorite items without even having to leave their social networks.

In the United States alone, the number of social commerce buyers crossed 80 million last year. The younger demographic in particular is more inclined to buy things through social networks. Instagram remains one of the most highly utilized platforms for social commerce.

If you sell items online, consider the shopping tools that these social media networks have developed. This offers you an incredible opportunity to reach a broader demographic for your products.

2. Augmented Reality Goes Mainstream

Augmented reality projects have actually existed for a number of years now but they haven't truly progressed beyond being a niche product. It was mostly the early adopters who bought into the augmented reality craze when it first emerged.

In 2022, both enhanced and virtual reality are likely to go mainstream, and a lot of it will have to do with the metaverse. The metaverse seems to be the buzzword that will define 2022. The public's understanding of the idea is still in its early stages but the extraordinary buzz around it is driving a growing number of people to get interested in the metaverse.

Augmented Reality (AR) and Virtual Reality (VR) both tie into the metaverse as significant companies like Facebook are developing experiences that will assist people to connect with the people they normally enjoy but in an entirely virtual setting.

As such, you also find brands lining up to grab their spot in the metaverse as more people flock to the virtual world.

Brands, especially those that are tech-savvy, should definitely take advantage of this trend to put them in a position to get the first mover advantage. The AR and VR experiences around the metaverse are still being established and this provides businesses with the chance to become leaders in this space.

3. Influencer Marketing Will Continue to Grow

People love to follow content developers online that produce content that resonates with them. This has resulted in the creation of the multi-billion dollar industry known as influencer marketing. It didn't exist prior to social networks being a thing, however has grown considerably over the past decade or so.

It won't be surprising to see influencer marketing go from strength to strength in 2022.

The number of content creators has grown considerably and now they have a variety of tools and networks at their disposal to grow their following.

The large influencers will continue to charge top dollar for campaigns, providing brand names with access to a highly qualified demographic that's responsive to recommendations from the creators that they like to follow.

Brands must expand on their influencer marketing efforts in 2022 to take full advantage of this surging trend. Their strategy shouldn't depend on top influencers only. There's extraordinary value to be had by collaborating with micro-influencers as well.

Frequently, influencers with small but incredibly engaged followers can help deliver better outcomes on campaigns than those who might have a large following but not a lot of engagement on their content.

4. Short-form Video Content Reigns Supreme

By now, everyone knows that video content tends to perform much better online compared to anything else.

People just love consuming video on their mobile devices and businesses have responded effectively to this change in consumer behavior.

Nevertheless, over the previous couple of years, there has been a surge in the appeal of short-type video content. So it remains a top 2022 social media trend to enjoy. The explosive growth of TikTok is one of the reasons why short-form video content will end up being even more powerful this year.

Lots of companies have attempted to reproduce TikTok's success. Instagram wants more short-form content on its app despite the fact that Instagram Stories has actually been around for longer and is proven to be effective.

You'll find short-form video support on a lot of major social networks. Make use of that as much as possible to expand your reach not only with people who are already connected to your brand but also with those who may never have heard about it.

5. Share More User-Generated Content (UGC)

You might not know it, but your followers will most likely jump at the opportunity to promote unique content about your product or service that you can then share on your social media channels. User Created Content is increasingly ending up being popular and brand names have now begun making it a central pillar of their online marketing strategy.

Studies have revealed brands that include UGC tends to see a 20% boost in return visitors in addition to a staggering 90% increase in time spent by customers on their website. These stats alone explain why UGC might be among the most important 2022 social media trends.

Brands can gain a great advantage with UGC. First of all, it tends to be a lot cheaper than conventional advertising. It also appears more relatable by followers. Any new consumers who see content from existing users who have actually paid money for your product or service and are promoting it are likely to take a chance on your product. UGC includes an element of authenticity to your item that's totally unique.

Fill your social media feeds with more UGC. Offer your customers a reward to share it with you and see how it leads to a boost in engagement.

"Trends will re-occur - be prepared to pounce."

This list is clearly not exhaustive and it doesn't cover all of the 2022 social media trends that may emerge. There might be others, some totally unknown yet, but businesses should remember that they need to be prepared to jump on them.

With some trends, there might be a really short window of opportunity to get the maximum advantage out of it. Frequently, these opportunities lead to content going viral and generating a lot of positive buzz, which is always a fantastic outcome for brands. In any event, be sure to consider these 2022 social media trends when you're planning your social media digital marketing strategy this year and leverage them to your benefit.