2024年社交趋势报告（英）

TRENDS

2024

AlleyesonROI

Thegoodolddaysofjumpingonbandwagonsanddesperatelytryingtooutruntrendsonsocialmediaarenumbered.

Socialmarketershavecomeofage—andwiththeirhard-wonwisdomcomesarenewedfocusonperformanceandlesspatienceforfolly.Asplatformscontinuerainingnewtools,features,andalgorithmupdatesonusall,socialmarketersarelearningtotakeadeepbreathandignorethenoise.

In2024,ROIwilltakecenterstageonsocialassmartorganizationsfinallycloseinontheirtop-performingtactics.Fromsinglingoutheroplatformsandperfectingtheircontentmixtoboostingtheirteam’scapabilitieswithAI,themarketersandbrandswhosetthepacethisyearwilldosowithanewlevelofprecisionandefficiency.There’snotimetowasteoneffortsthatyieldnoresults—nomatterhowsentimentalwemightfeellookingbehindus.(Loveyouforever,bluebird.)

Fromhereon,it’sfullspeedahead—andthat’swhywemaybelookingatsocialmedia’smostpivotalyearyet.

Let’sgo.

TheAI ThePlatform TheROI

Trend Trend Trend

Contents

WithgenerativeAIontherise,

Strappedfortimeand

InthequestforsocialROI,

financialorganizationstoethe

resources,organizationsstop

brandsmustturnto

linebetweenefficiencyand

stretchingthemselvesthin

entertainmenttoboost

authenticityonsocialmedia.

anddoubledownonthe

thebottomline.

platformsthatgetresults.

Page5 Page18 Page29

AITrend PlatformTrend ROITrend

ResearchMethods

Thisreportisbasedonacommercialsurvey

of4,281marketersandaconsumersurveyof

4,508consumers,conductedinAugust2023.

Weconductedprimaryinterviewswithsocial

marketingpractitioners,leaders,observers,

Methodology

andpartners.

Andwerananewsanalysisof15,557articles

frommajorsocialmediareportingorganiza-

tions,aswellasacontentanalysisof1million

anonymizedsocialpostsfromaccounts

connectedtoHootsuite.

Ourprimarydatahasbeensupplementedby

secondaryresearchfromPewResearchCenter,

Statista,Deloitte,Forbes,InsiderIntelligence,

Forrester,LinkedIn,GlobalWebIndex,TheCMO

Survey,andothers.

OverviewofHootsuite’sglobal

SocialTrends2024CommercialSurvey

4,281respondents

countries

industries

28%directorsandabove

62%managersandpractitioners

OverviewofHootsuite’sglobalSocialMedia2024ConsumerSurvey

4,508respondents

countries

65%GenZandmillennials

26%GenXandbabyboomers

Note:Commercialsurveyrespondentswerefrom118countries,withthemostcommonbeingtheUS(n=2,709),Canada(n=377),theUK(n=267),India(n=114),andAustralia(n=67).

TREND

1

TREND

1

AIforcesbrandstoredefineauthenticity

WithgenerativeAIontherise,brands

toethelinebetweenefficiencyand

authenticityonsocialmedia.

TREND

1

TREND

AITrend PlatformTrend ROITrend

Socialmarketerswarmly

welcomeanewteammate

GenerativeAIcreatedaseismicshiftwhenitbrokeintothe

mainstreamin2022andsparkedawholerangeofemotions

typicallyreservedforfellowhumans.

Interestwassohighthatfrom2022to2023,topicsonlearning

aboutAIincreasedby550%,accordingtoananalysiswe

conductedofover15,500newsarticlesandblogs.

Andsocialmarketershavejumpedonthebandwagon.

6

AITrend PlatformTrend ROITrend

Sincesocialmediamanagersaretypicallya

teamofone

andoftenstrappedfortime,it’snosurprisethetopmotivationtouseAIistoreducestaffworkload,with61%ofoursurveyrespondentsselectingthisoption.

Organizationsalsoreportthatthey’replanningtodoubletheiruseofAIacrossvariousactivities—eventriplingorquadruplingitinsomecases.Inthecomingyear,wecanexpecttoseethebiggestincreaseinAIuseforrevisingtext,editingimages,andprovidingcustomerservice.

SoisgenerativeAIasourceofhopeforbusyprofessionalslikeyou?Thenumbersseemtosayso.Butinthenoblequesttoreduceyourworkload,areyouatriskofalienatingyouraudience?

61%

oforganizations

saythe#1reason

theyuseAIfor

socialmedia

istoreduce

staffworkload

Source:HootsuiteSocialTrends2024Survey

7

AITrend PlatformTrend ROITrend

AIusewillskyrocketin2024

Inthelast12/next12months,howhas/willyourorganizationuse(d)AItoassistwithsocialmediaactivities?

+28%

+29%

+44%

86%

85%

+103%

82%

75%

+195%

67%

66%

+260%

59%

57%

54%

37%

20%

15%

%change%

Thisyear

Lastyear

+136%

52%

+318%

46%

22%

11%

Editand

Producead

Develop

Completely

Produce

Edit

Generate

Useachatbot

refinetext

textfrom

newideas

reviseand

customer

images

images

torespondto

scratch

rewritetext

supporttext

messages

Sample:4,278respondents

fromscratch

8

Source:HootsuiteSocialTrends2024Survey

AITrend PlatformTrend

AudiencesgreetAIwithhesitation

There’sgoodnews,andthere’sbadnews.

First,thebadnews.(BettertoripofftheBand-Aid,right?)AI-generatedsocialpostsgetalotofbuzz,butthequestionoftruststillcastsabigshadow.

Noone’sastrangertofakenewsanymore.Andtheideaofamachinestringingwordsormashingimagestogethertobesharedonlinemakessomepeopleuneasy,especiallywhentryingtogaugewhat’srealandwhat’snotonsocial.

Thesesentimentslineupwitha2022

study

bythePewResearchCenterontheincreaseduseofAIindailylife.Thestudyfoundthat45%ofUSadultsareequallyconcernedandexcitedaboutthis,while37%aremoreconcernedthanexcited,andonly18%aremoreexcitedthanconcerned.

ROITrend

62%

ofconsumerssaytheyarelesslikelytoengagewithandtrustcontentiftheyknowitwascreatedbyanAIapplication

Source:HootsuiteSocialTrends2024ConsumerSurvey

9

AITrend

Inotherwords,audiencesarenotnecessarilyembracingAIandAI-generatedcontentasmuchassocialmarketersareflockingtouseit.

Thegoodnews?NoteveryonedistrustsAIequally.

DifferentagegroupsareformingdifferentrelationshipswithAI-generatedcontent.KnowingexactlywhoyouraudienceisonsocialwillhelpyoudevelopanAIstrategythat’sinlinewiththeirvaluesandpreferences.

PlatformTrend ROITrend

ConcernsoverAIare

highamongconsumers

ThinkingaboutsocialmediacontentgeneratedbyAI,

rateyouragreementwiththefollowingstatements

AgreeNeitheragreenordisagreeDisagree

66%

22%

12%

It’shardtotellwhat

informationisrealorfake

67%

20%

13%

It’shardtotellwhatimagesare

realorfake/createdusingAI

Sample:4,499respondents

Source:HootsuiteSocialTrends2024ConsumerSurvey

10

AITrend

PlatformTrend ROITrend

TakeGenZ,forexample.They’remorelikelytoclaimtheyknowwhat’srealandwhat’screatedbyAIthanothergenerations.They’realsomorelikelytotrustandengagewithAIcontent.Ontheotherhand,babyboomersaretheoppositeonallaccounts:lessconfidentintheirabilitytotellifsomethingiscreatedbyAI,andlesslikelytotrustandengagewithitifitis.

Soifyouhaveayoungercommunityonsocial,youmayhaveaneasiertimeexperimentingwithAI.Butifyouraudienceisolder,it’sbesttotreadcarefullyfornow.

IfIknowsomethingiscreatedbyanAIapplication,Iamlesslikelytoengagewithit

IfIknowsomething

iswrittenbyanAI

application,Iamless

likelytotrustit

It’shardtotellwhat

imagesarerealor

fake/createdusingAI

It’shardtotell

whatinformation

isrealorfake

AIfortheages

ThinkingaboutsocialmediacontentgeneratedbyAI,rateyouragreementwiththefollowingstatements

GenerationZMillennialsGenerationXBabyboomers

20%

22%

28%

33%

21%

22%

27%

33%

17%

19%

22%

21%

14%

15%

20%

19%

Response=Stronglyagree

Sample:4,420respondents(filteredtothosewhostronglyagree)

Source:HootsuiteSocialTrends2024ConsumerSurvey

11

AITrend PlatformTrend ROITrend

Authenticity AI

It’sinevitable:AIwillbecomeubiquitousonsocial.Andit’scompletelyfairforsocialmarketerstouseatoolthatmakestheirlifeeasier.Scalingbackonitsusenowwouldbelikerevertingfromcomputerstotypewriters.

Tothriveinthisnewenvironment,marketersandbrandsneedtomovebeyonddefining“real”and“authentic”basedonwhethersomethingwascreatedexclusivelybyahuman.Likeitornotwe’reallcyborgsnow,atleastatwork.Whetherwe’reusingAIasabrainstorm-ingpartner,lettingitfinishoursentencesforus,pretendingitdoesn’texist,or(morelikely)

amixoftheabove,thisgenieisoutofthebottle.

In2024,themostsuccessfulbrandswill

redefine“authenticity.”It’snotaboutwho

(orwhat)createsyourcontentanymore;

it’saboutthebrandexperienceyourcontent

createsforthecustomer.

Doesitfeelright?Doesitreinforcethebrand?Doesitwork?Getthoserightandyoucandismissquestionsaboutwhetherabotmadeitwithashrug.

12

AITrend PlatformTrend ROITrend

Thetrend

inaction

CrodadiscoverstheartandscienceofAI

Drivenbyitspurposetouse“Smartsciencetoimprovelives,™”

Croda

combinesitsknowledge,passion,andentrepreneurialspirittocreate,make,andsellspecialtyingredientsthatarereliedonbyindustriesandconsumersaroundtheworld.Itssocialmediaaudienceismostlyscientistsandchemists—acommunitythatvaluesinnovationandisopentoexploringemergingtechnologieslikeAI.

SowhenChatGPTbecamewidelyavailablein2022,AshleySidi,digitalmarketingleadatCroda,immediatelysawanopportunity.

“Ifwe’renotusingAI,othercompanieswill,”saysSidi.“Thisisgoingtobethenextbigthing—andwehavetoevolvewiththistransformativetechnologytostaycompetitiveintheevolvingbusinesslandscape.”

SidisetouttochampionAIwithinthecompany.It’snowusednotonlyforsocialmediaandmarketing,butalsoforsales,productdevelopment,andmore.

Withmarketerswhoareprimarilychemistsandnointernaldesignteam,creatingprofessional-lookingsocialimageshasbeenachallengeforCroda.ThisisoneaspectofthejobSidiplanstodelegatetoAI.

13

AITrend PlatformTrend ROITrend

“Basicdesignelements,likemakingsurethattextisn’trunningofftothecorner,resizingimages,colorconsistency:Itsoundslikelittlethings,butitreallydoesmakeyourbrandlookprofessional,”shesays.“IthinkAIisgoingtohelpquiteabitinthedesignspace.”

Inadditiontocreatingconsistencyandimprov-ingthequalityofsocialmediaimages,Croda’smarketingteamalsousesAIforbrainstormingcontentideasanddraftingsocialmediacaptions.

TomakesureCrodaissetupforsuccess,Sidi

collaboratedwithITandotherteamswithinthe

organizationtoputAIpoliciesinplace.Nowthe

companyhasclearguidelinesforsecurelyusing

AIacrossdifferentdepartments.

Themarketingteamalsohasanapprovals

processinplacesoeverybitofAIcontentis

fact-checkedandgreenlitbeforeit’sposted

onsocial—apriorityamongtheirfact-loving,

data-drivencommunity.

Thinkofitashavingapersonalvirtualassistant.Ifyouuseitinthismanner,itwillbeeffective.However,it’simportanttosprinkleintherealstuff.Maintainingahealthybalancebetweentechnologyandauthenticityiskey.

AshleySidi

DigitalMarketingLead,Croda

14

AITrend

Recommendations

PlatformTrend ROITrend

1Knowyouraudience

andhowtheyfeelaboutAI

It’stimelessadviceforareason:Knowyouraudience.

AdeepunderstandingofwhoyouraudienceisonsocialwillbeessentialforusingAIintherightwaysthisyear.

Don’tstopatbasicdemographics.Whoarethey?Whatdotheylike?Howdotheyfeelaboutwhattheyseeonsocialmedia?Otherdatapointsyoucanlearnaboutyouraudienceinclude:

LocationInterestsStageoflife

LanguageChallengesBuyinghabits

Thesecanhelpyougatherinsightsonwhetherotherfactorssuchasculture,geography,orinterestshaveinfluenceontheirperceptionofAI.Asabonus,you’llalsobeabletofine-tunetherestofyourcontenttotheirlikesandneeds.

PRO

Masteryourtargetmarketon

TIP

socialmediawithour

in-depthguide

15

AITrend PlatformTrend ROITrend

2Decidewhichtasks

tokeeponyourplatetohelpbuildrelationships

AImakesagreatassistant—butyoustillhavetoruntheshow.It’suptoyoutodelegatewhichaspectsofthejobAIcansupport,andwhichaspectsneedamoredelicatehand(andnuancedbrain,tbh).Afterall,youraudience’strustisontheline.

AsAIgetsmoresophisticated,itmaybecometemptingtopassoffAIworkasyours.Butremember:Socialrelationshipsarebuilt

Delegatetasks

withthischeatsheet

Usethebots Keepithuman

ontrust.Leadingaudiencestobelievethatthecontentthey’reinteractingwithishumanwhenit’snotisaquickwaytobreakthattrust.Nottomention,itcouldcreateseriousdamageforabrandifit’severbroughttolight.

(Andifanyofyouthoughttoyourselvesjustnow,“Butthey’llneverknow,”youjustmadeOwlyreally,reallysad.)

PRO PlayaroundwithsocialmediaAI

TIP that’sseriouslyeasytouse

Instantlygeneratecaptionsandgetpostideas—fast—foreverynetworkwith

OwlyWriterAI

Brainstormingideas

Organizingyour

thoughts

Givingcontent

suggestions

Writingfirstdrafts

forcaptions

Suggestingimages

Creatingacontentstrategyforsocial

Editingandrefiningcaptions

Ensuringimagesandpostsareuptobrandstandards

Interactinginthecommentssection

16

AITrend PlatformTrend ROITrend

3CreateAIpoliciesandbestpracticesforsocialmedia

Nothing’sworsethananemployeegoingrogueandpostingtheirAI-generated“masterpiece”onthecompanyInstagramaccount.OrabefuddledcustomerraginginyourDMsbecauseyourtone-deafchatbot“handled”theissue.

Butifyouhaverulesandregulationsinplacetoguideyourorganization’suseofAI,thesepotentialnightmarescanbeavoided.

MakingsureyourteamandorganizationarealignedwillhelpyouuseAIsafelyandeffectively.

Step-by-stepguide

tocreatinganAIpolicy

Step1:Loopinthewiderorganization

GetIT’sinputtoidentifysecurityissues

AskforLegal’sadviceontheuseofimagesonvariousplatforms

Determinewhetheryou’reallowedtofeedproprietarydataintotheprogramoruseAI’shelpwithconfidentialinformation

Step2:DefineAI’sscopeinyourwork

Willyoulimititsroletoideagenerationandbrainstormingfornow?

Willyouuseitforwritingandgeneratingimages?

Willyouuseittointeractwithcustomers?

Step3:CreateanAIstyleguideforsocial

IncludenotesfortoneofvoiceandphotographyorillustrationstylesAddtipsforeffectiveprompts

Sharewithallinternalandexternalcontentcreatorssoyoursocialcontentisconsistentacrossallchannels

17

TREND

2

TREND

2

Strategic

brands

committotheir

championplatforms

Strappedfortimeandresources,organizationsstopstretchingthemselvesthinanddoubledownonthesocialplatformsthatgetresults.

TREND

2

TREND

AITrend

Themulti-platformpredicament

Bewhereyouraudienceis,theysaid.

PlatformTrend ROITrend

OrgsfeartheROIimpact

ofbeingonsomanyplatforms

Whichofthefollowingissuesdoyouthinkcontributetoyourorganization’sconcernaboutreturnoninvestmentforsocialmediaactivities?

Butwhenyouraudienceiseverywhere,that’satallorder—andtheaveragesocialmediauserlogsintoabout

seven

platforms

eachmonth.Seven.

Forbrands,maintainingapresenceonjustonesocialnetworkishardenough,letalonemany.Andmaintainingisthebaseline.Doingitwellisawholeotherstory.

Infact,thisissuchachallengefororganizations,it’semergedasthetopROIconcernforsocialmedia—eventrumpingissuesthathavetodowithmeasuringsuccess(someofsocial’smosttalked-aboutstruggles).

Timeorbudgetinvestmenttomaintainapresenceonmultiplesocialplatforms

Uncertaintyabouttheaccuracyofcampaignsuccessmetrics

Uncertaintyabout

theattributionof

campaignsuccess

Unsatisfactoryconnectionbetweensocialmetricsandbusinessmetrics

Uncertaintyaboutthesocialmediastrategy

Risingcosts

Highcosts

Unsatisfactoryshort-termimpactforcampaigns

Unsatisfactorylonger-termimpactforcampaigns

52%

35%

34%

33%

31%

25%

19%

18%

14%

Sample:4,281respondents

Source:HootsuiteSocialTrends2024Survey

19

AITrend PlatformTrend ROITrend

Mostsocialmarketerscouldtalkyourearoffaboutwhyittakessomuchtimeandenergytobeactive—andthrive—onseveralsocialmedianetworks.

Oneofthebiggestfactors:Howimportantit’sbecometotailorsocialcontenttoeachnetwork.(Cross-postingjustdoesn’tcutitanymore,sadly.)Differentchannelshavedifferentaudiences,lingo,trends,andhashtags,nottomentionwordcountsandimagespecs.Brandpoststhatmimicthecontentandformatsofindividualplatformsmakeforabetteruserexperience—andlessannoyedcustomers.

Usersalsohavedifferentreasonsforbeingoneachplatform—Facebookforconnectingwithfriendsandfamily,TikTokforbeingentertained,Instagramforexploringinterests,andTwitter/Xforgettingnewsandeventupdates,forexample.

Thedifferencesbetweenplatforms—andtheamountofworkittakestocatertothemall—

areenoughtomakesocialmarketers’headsspin.Nowonder66%ofthemsaytheyhavetoomuchtodo,accordingtoour

2023SocialMedia

ManagementCareerSurvey

.

Socialmarketersareresponsiblefordevelopingstrategies,creatingcontent,trackinganalytics,executingads,respondingtocomments,schedulingposts,andsooooooomuchmore—andthat’sbeforeconsideringthateachofthosetaskshavetogetdoneformultiplechannels.

It’salsobeforetakingintoaccounttheconstantplatformchangesthatsocialprosareexpectedtostayontopof.Today,networksreleasenewuserandadvertisingfeaturessooftenthatmorethanhalf(58%)ofmarketerssayit’sdifficulttokeepup.

Thegoodnews?Socialmarketersaren’ttheonlyoneswhofeelthepressuresofhavingtodealwithmultipleplatforms.Companyleadersarefinallystartingtocluein,recognizingtheimpactthisishavingontheirbusiness.

58%

ofmarketerssaythepaceatwhichnetworksreleasenewuserandadvertisingfeaturesmakesithardtokeepup

Source:HootsuiteSocialTrends2024Survey

20

AITrend

PlatformTrend ROITrend

Platformprioritiesareshifting

Historically,whenorganizationsfeltiffyabouthowaplatformwascontributingtotheirsocialandbusinessgoals,theydidn’tdomuchaboutit.

Socialmarketerswouldoverextendthemselvestryingtodoeverything,everywhere,allatonce,anddraintime,money,andresourceswhiletheywereatit.Thiswasalltoocommon,andyet,nothingwouldeverchange.(Redflagalert!)Eventhoughthisresultedinlousycontent,poorsocialmediaperformance,andburntoutstaff,itwasstillconsideredlessofariskthanscalingbackonplatformefforts.Sothey(foolishly)stuckitout.

Butnow,organizationsarestartingtostrayfromthiswayofthinking.Instead,they’reacknowledgingtheproblemsandtakingstepstoturnthingsaround.Ourdatarevealsthatthey’regettingseriousaboutunderstandingwhichplatformsworkforthemandwhichonesdon’t—andROIconfidencehelpsthemdecide.

LinkedIn

Instagram

WhatsApp

Facebook

BeReal

YouTube

TikTok

Snapchat

Reddit

Pinterest

Twitter/X

Threads

BrandsaremostconfidentinLinkedIn,Instagram,andWhatsApp

Howconfidentareyouthateachofthefollowingsocialplatformsdeliversapositivereturnoninvestmentforyourorganization?

Confident

NotConfident

70%

30%

68%

32%

66%

34%

62%

38%

60%

40%

52%

48%

50%

50%

45%

55%

43%

57%

36%

64%

30%

70%

16%

84%

Sample:3,891respondentsSource:HootsuiteSocialTrends2024Survey

21

AITrend PlatformTrend ROITrend

TheplatformsthatdrivethemostROIconfidencearen’tnecessarilythemostwidelyused,andviceversa.TakeWhatsApp,forexample.Only14%oforganizationshaveapresenceontheinstantmessagingapp,butalmosttwo-thirdsofthemfeelstronglythatitbenefitstheirbusiness.Sotherearen’ttoomanywhouseit,butthosewhodo,feeltheygetalotoutofit.

Conversely,themajorityofbrandsareonTwitter/X,butonly30%thinkitdrivesvalue—whichisa23%decreasefromlastyearandmightexplaintheplatform’s7%dropinbranduse.

SowehavesomespeculationsaboutTwitter/X,butwhyarebrandsshiftingtheirstrategiesawayfromPinterest(down11%)andWhatsApp(downaneye-popping18%)?Theydidn’ttellus—and

thesenumbersdon’tdovetailneatlywithoverallROIconfidencefortheseplatforms.Whatwedoknowisthatwhatevertheirreasons,organiza-tionsaremorewillingthanevertosaybuh-byetoplatformsandstrategiesthataren’tmeetingtheirdefinitionofROI.They’refinallyprioritizingtheirownplatform-by-platformROIscoresandmakingbusinessdecisionsaccordingly.

Mostorgshaveapresenceon

Facebook,Instagram,andLinkedIn

Whichsocialmediaplatformsdoesyourorganizationcurrentlyuse?

91% 86% 80% 66% 62% 29% 19% 16% 14% 5% 4% 1%

Sample:4,281respondents

Source:HootsuiteSocialTrends2024Survey

22

AITrend PlatformTrend ROITrend

Novalue,nopoint:Brandsleavesomeofthesocialplatformgiants

Changeinplatformuseforbusinessesfrom2022to2023

Zeroinginontheplatformsthatwork

+16%

+5%

+1%

+0%

+0%

-1%

-7%

-11%

-18%

Samples:3,891respondents(2024),9,422respondents(2023)

Sources:HootsuiteSocialTrends2024Survey,HootsuiteSocialTrends2023Survey

It’seasytofallintoapatternoffollowingsocialmediaindustrynorms.Butindustrynormsdon’tconsidertheuniquegoals,growthstrategies,KPIs,andcustomersofyourorganization.

That’swhyit’ssoimportanttotakeastepback,challengeyourownassumptionsabouttheplatformsyou’reon,andthinkaboutwhat’sbestforyourbusiness.

Thekeyisbeingabletodefydistractionsthatpreventyoufrommakingsmartdecisionsaboutyourchannels.Keepingupwithwhatyourcompetitorsaredoingandexperimentingwithshinynewfeaturesorentirelynewplatformsisanessentialpartofasocialmarketer’sjob,butnotattheexpenseofdrivingrealbusinessvaluefromsocial.

In2024,strategicorganizationswillpushbackagainstunjustifiedexpectationstodoeverythingoneveryplatform.They’llunlocktheirtop-performingchannelsbasedonROI,andfocustheirattentiononthose—andonlythose.Ifthey’rereallyconfident(andbrave),theymightevenabandononeortwoaltogether.

Thiswillgivesocialmarketersmoretimewiththeplatformsthatmakethecut—timetounderstandtheiraudiences,experimentwithcontenttoseewhatresonates,stayontopoftrendsandalgorithms,andgetuptospeedwithallthefeatures.Becausemasteringafewkeyplatformsissurelybetterthanbeingso-soatmany.

23

AITrend PlatformTrend ROITrend

iSharesbyBlackRockembraces

millennialandGenZplatforms

Thetrend

inaction

Ifyou’retryingtoreachabrandnewaudience,youcanstartbychuckingyourbusiness-as-usualeffortsoutthewindow.

Keentocaptureanewgenerationofpotentialinvestors,exchange-tradedfund(ETF)company

iSharesbyBlackRock

didjustthat—andmaderesearchtheirfirstpriority(asitshouldbe).

Tokickoffthedevelopmentoftheir

newsocial

andcontentstrategies

,theytookadeepdiveintothedemographics,interests,behaviors,andfinancialliteracyofmillennialandGenZinvestors.Andthatanalysishelpedidentifythebestplatformstoreachthem—Instagram,Twitter/X,LinkedIn,Reddit,andTikTok.

Italsogavetheminsightsintowhattypesofcontentwouldresonate.Knowingthateveryday“financialspeak”wouldsoundlikegibberishto(andtotallybore)thisyoungaudience,theylandedonclear,jargon-freemessagingwithboldheadline-drivenvisuals.

Anditworked.Byleaningintotheplatformsthatwererelevanttotheiraudience—andstrategicallydodgingtheonesthatweren’t,likeFacebook—iSharesbyBlackRockmettheirobjectivesofawareness(acquaintingthisnewaudiencewiththeirbrandandproduct)andeducation(sheddinglightonthebenefitsofETFs).TheircontentwassoengagingandimpactfultheyevenreceivedacongratulatorynotefromLinkedIn.#Goals!

24

AITrend PlatformTrend ROITrend

TheHarvardGraduateSchoolofEducationuntanglesThreads

Whenitcomestoenticinguserstojoinanewnetwork,MetacrackedthecodewithThreads.

Theapp’sintegrationwithInstagrammadecreat-inganaccountabsolutelyseamless.It’swhyMayaWesby,socialmediamanagerattheHarvardGraduateSchoolofEducation(HGSE),knewtheplatformwasagoodfitforherorganization.

“Instagramhasbeenastrongchannelforus,so[Threads]wasanaturalwaytoreachacommunitywealreadyhad,”Wesbysays.“Andtheywerealljumpingonboard.”

Atfirst,HGSEwasrelativelyactiveontheplatformandgettinglotsofengagement.Butoncetheinitialexcitementoftheappworeoff,Wesbynoticedaharddipininteractions—whichisn’tsurprisingwhenyouconsiderthe

70%drop

inThreads’dailyactiveusersjustweeksafteritslaunch.

Butthatdidn’tscareWesbyaway.LookingatHGSE’sThreadsmetrics,shenoticedthatalthoughengagementwasn’trising,itwasstillthere.Andnewfollowerswerestilltricklingin.“Forthosereasons,we’restillactiveontheplatformtoday,”shesays.

What’schangedisthestrategy.ShepostscontenttoThreadslessfrequentlythansheusedto—maybeonceortwiceaweek—allowinghertodevotemoretimetotheschool’smorepopularchannels.AndshecontinuestomonitortheplatformtokeeptabsontheHGSEcommu-nityandothereducationalinstitutions,soifanopportunitypopsup,she’llbereadytojointheconversation.

That’sapromove,anditprovesthatyoudon’talwayshavetomakerashdecisionswhenyoursocialmediaoutcomeschange.Youjusthavetopivotwhenandwhereitmakessense.

Threadswas

naturalwaytoreachacommunitywealreadyhad.

Maya

Wesby

SocialMediaManager

HarvardGraduateSchoolofEducation

25

AITrend PlatformTrend ROITrend

1Runasocialmedia

auditforplatformintel

Recommendations

What’shappeningacrossallyoursocialplatforms?Asocialmediaauditwilltellyou.It’lluncoveryourmostengagingposts,yourhighest-performingcontentformats,an