The social media industry could face even greater disruptions in 2023.
One year ago it was hard to imagine that Elon Musk would be the sole owner of Twitter. He then sought out another person to lead the company. It was a great year for social media in 2022. Donald Trump launched Truth Social and there were new calls to ban TikTok. A Twitter alternative wasn’t yet available.
Social media could experience even greater disruptions in 2023. But, the one thing that is certain is that these platforms will be continued to be used daily by young people.
Wendy Mei from Playsee, Head of Product and Strategy at the social media platform Playsee said that Gen Z would continue to influence the social media landscape. “Their desire for authenticity and authenticity will drive major transformative changes in the industry,” she added.
The Future of Services
Gen Z social media users are likely to continue their desire for authentic representations of themselves, others, and the world around them. They will gravitate towards genuine, less curated content.
“Old platforms that are so entrenched with unrealistically perfect ideologies will be unable to satisfy this generation; the measurable shift in preferences has and will continue to lead to a significant discontent among some of the major players in the space – creating room for new platforms that promote authenticity,” added Mei. There will be platforms that fail, as with all industries. We must create the desire and staying power to sustain long-term usage.
Mei suggests that users could find ways to incorporate social media in their daily lives, to fulfill their desire to be connected and feel part of their community.
Twitter’s downward spiral will not stop
Elon Musk appears to already feel a touch of “buyer’s remorse” about his $44 million acquisition of Twitter. The social media platform’s policies are not likely to benefit it. At least, not for the near term.
Charles King, technology analyst with Pund-IT stated that Twitter’s downswing will be continued as long Elon Musk keeps his public image and engages with critics like third-grade playground bullies. Twitter is likely to try and engage well-known partners in order for its troubled business areas, such as its advertising company, to be rehabilitated.
Twitter could be overthrown.
Rob Enderle (technology analyst, Enderle Group) stated that “the growing number of viable competitors, Musk’s mismanagement and employee litigation should see it solidly within the MySpace category by the year-end.”
Meta Problems
Twitter is not the only social media platform that wants to overcome the challenges it encountered in 2022. Many at Facebook parent Meta want to get past the problems of last year. However, it is still unclear how that will be achieved.
Enderle stated that the Metaverse social network experiment would continue to fail “until the technology meets our expectations”, likely toward the end of this decade.
King stated that “rumours that Meta would split into two organisations, one on Facebook and the second on the metaverse” was likely to be true. While this should please large institutional investors and shareholders, it will not help Mark Z’s vision for the commercial metaverse get traction.
TikTok to Be Banned in the Real World?
At this point, it is more likely a matter of when – not if – the Chinese-owned TikTok will see a widespread ban in the United States. Already, many states have already banned video-sharing apps on their government devices. And just last week the House of Representatives also ban it from its employees’ phones.
The company might still be able to perform well for the short-term.
Lon Safko a tech entrepreneur and author of The TikTok, said “TikTok will continue to see growth in membership.” Social Media Bible. It’s amazing to me how Vine fell, but TikTok took off like wildfire. The short-form video is a great way to communicate. This is despite the fact that our attention spans are now much shorter than those of a goldfish. YouTube has their own TikTok style short-form video.
TikTok may therefore continue to tick.
King said that TikTok’s ban from the U.S., and certain state-owned smartphones and devices was unlikely to stop its popularity among youth and advertisers targeting those audience. King stated that the dangers associated with other social media platforms such as spreading fake information or providing conduits to extremist rhetoric have not significantly affected their users.
Influence could be lost
2022 may have been the last big year for influencers – even as nearly a quarter of Gen-Z said in a survey last year that their ideal job would be an influencer. It is unlikely that the market will support this, so those who don’t succeed are more likely to be distracted by those who do.
Safko said, “Influencer marketing is becoming more difficult through 2022 because of the glut people trying to be that next influencer.” “They have lost interest in the promotion of other products through successful influencers.
Additionally, as we move into 2023, most social networks have reached saturation. This means that they will require shareholder support to keep their shareholders happy.
Safko stated that all of them are under constant threat from their Board of Director to increase membership while revenue is falling. While social media will be used, it will require a tremendous amount of money and effort to achieve marginal results. The bluebirds are still there, and people who become influential more naturally than they plan will be.
The Old Problems will Remain
It is generally agreed that 2023 will see a lot of changes, even though the country continues to be divided.
“Platforms will be an easy, somewhat secure political target when we get into the next round of elections. AI will appear more frequently in the segment. Unfortunately most of them will focus on scamming customers, but there will be some that improve moderation or increase engagement,” Enderle stated.
This doesn’t mean that everything is going to change in the coming year. It is likely that some of the things that worked in the past will continue to work.
Safko stated that “Hookup app popularity continues to rise in activity and popularity.” Apps such as OkCupid and Tinder are becoming more common than ever.
