If 2015 was the year of the glamorized Instagram travel photo, then 2020 is the year of the hilarious, authentic, and anything-but-edited TikTok video. As we head into 2021, the average social media user is ready for a new kind of content experience, one that doesn’t make the “haves” from the “have-nots” that excruciatingly obvious. People are ready for a more democratic social media content creation process, and frankly, I don’t blame them.
Social media consumption habits are changing, in part due to the recent events and circumstances out of our control in real life, like the pandemic, social distancing, remote work, and separation from family and friends. People aren’t able to travel like they could in previous years, which means they don’t really want to see edited travel photos that glamorize a world that’s long gone due to the pandemic. They’d rather see content that is real, fleeting, and genuine; something they can relate to while they work, live, and sleep, all from home.
How can I claim that social media users are buckling down for imperfect content? Well, one study confirmed that throughout 2020, TikTok has had the biggest app download and user time increases, along with some surprises such as Snapchat and Reddit. Apps like Instagram, on the other hand, have remained stagnant with no evidence increased app downloads. That’s probably why Instagram panicked and released ‘Reels,’ it’s knock-off version of a TikTok, earlier this year.
Additionally, underground social media apps like Rizzle, Rumble, and even the hotly contested Parler, have confirmed the average social media user’s overall unhappiness with the typical apps we’re fed every day: Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. These newer apps are all about video, personalized content, storytelling, and entertainment. Forget the overly edited Instagram photo that is highly evident of distortion and angle warping. People want to feel like they are seeing real, true, and original footage.
I’m Bored in the House, and I’m in the House Bored
Every TikTokker will remember the song about being bored in the house that surfaced at the start of the pandemic. Well, this song was onto something. People are home, in the house, and they’re bored. They want to be entertained – we all do. We can’t go to clubs, bars, or movie theaters anymore. We need some way to feel tangentially entertained and connected, still, which is why content that is made purely to entertain will reign supreme in 2021.
So, whether you’re a content creator, a social media marketer, or just an average social media user, here’s what you need to prioritize in the new age of content development:
· Fleeting, video content of 15 seconds or less
· Reaction videos on Rizzle, Rumble, and YouTube
· Publishing 2-3 TikTok videos per day, related to a niche
· Publishing 1 Reel per day on Instagram, related to a niche
· Managing Reddit threads for brands/businesses
· Creating Snapchats for businesses
The lesser-known social media apps are ready to capitalize from everyone’s Facebook lethargy, and they’re doing it with entertaining concepts that are a total 180 from the stuffiness of Instagram.
Now is the time to benefit from this content shift and position yourself as a content aggregator and 2021 influencer. Market shifts like this don’t come along often!