They say ‘follow the money’ and that certainly applies to understanding the strength of various social media platforms regarding where advertisers spend their money.
Social media spend investment last year overtook Search for the first time to become the largest channel worldwide by advertising investment according to information and data analytics company, WARC.
Meta Ads is enjoying a bumper year according to smk and WARC, with advertising money flowing across Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and Messenger.
According to WARC both Facebook and Instagram grew by more than 20% year on year in Q1 2024. It estimates that Meta now holds 63% market share of global social spend.
“Much of social media’s success has been driven by Meta’s remarkable renaissance. However, social’s stronghold on budgets can also be seen in TikTok’s rise, and a return to double-digit ad revenue growth at Snapchat and Pinterest.” Alex Brownsell, WARC Media, May 2024
Some other key takeaways:
- Despite geopolitical concerns, marketers are forecast to spend US$23.1 billion on TikTok this year
- Pinterest is forecast to grow 17.3% year-on-year in ad revenue
- Snapchat is forecast to grow 13.7%
- Elon Musk’s X (formerly Twitter) will see ad revenue decline by 6.4% globally.
With social media investment firmly establishing itself as the number one channel across the world, marketers need to understand some of the leading trends to optimise their spend.
The AI Trend:
Companies that prioritise AI for customer service can expect 25% higher revenue compared to those that focus only on AI for productivity, according to a recent study by Accenture (via Hootsuite).
The Platform Trend:
With a potential TikTok ban looming over the U.S., eMarketer predicts a possible decline as focus shifts to other platforms particularly if you have a strong focus on TikTok consumers. Be adaptable with your spend and be ready to go on other platforms like Instagram.
The ROI Trend:
Hootsuite delved into what consumers really want from brands on social. They found their three favourite types of content: something new, something funny, and something inspiring. Are these in your content mix?
With a finding of consumers’ patience for brands on social media being on thin ice, you need to become celebrated – not tolerated with your social media marketing.