The Best Social Media Trends To Try In 2024

TikTok and Instagram Reels and Stories feeds were flooded with fun filters in 2024. Lots of brands saw the opportunity to improve engagement and increase their visibility through gamified experiences.

These are just a few types of filters users had fun with in 2024:

Precision challenge: Users engaged in this filter by carefully placing virtual objects, such as aligning a pizza slice perfectly, to test their steadiness and accuracy.
100 tap challenge: This filter challenged users to tap their screens as quickly as possible within a set time, making for a simple yet addictive game.
Road colors: In this fast-paced game, users matched colors on a moving path, requiring quick reflexes and attention to detail.
Scream chicken: A unique and humorous filter where users controlled a virtual chicken by varying the volume of their screams, adding a vocal twist to gameplay.
Ranking filters: From movies and music to books and pop culture moments, people had fun doing blind rankings if their favorites.
“This or That” aesthetic filters: Lots of filters had users choosing between different things in order to determine their aesthetic. Based on their selections of colors, clothing, make-up, they were deemed as “clean girls” or “messy girls”, “light academia” or “dark academia”, and more.

Filters are here to stay in 2025, but that seems to mainly be the case on TikTok, where you can continue to create them with Effects House. Meta’s counterpart, Spark Studio, shut down this year, as the company seems to want to stick to first-party filters only.

4. Meme templates reshape how funny videos are made

A meme template is a replicable and adaptable format that typically includes a specific combination of audio, visual elements, and actions, allowing users to create their own versions while maintaining the core structure of the meme.

Using meme templates to create funny videos on various platforms became a viral social media trend in 2024, sparking humor and creativity among users and content creators.

This is because meme templates, often rooted in popular culture or current events, have a built-in virality factor. They offer a level of flexibility that allows users to create a diverse range of humorous content, from satirical sketches to witty commentary.

A great example is this storytime slideshow template from TikTok that has people sharing their wildest and funniest experiences. It’s been around since the end of 2024 and is still heavily featured on For You pages in 2025:

As we look ahead to 2025, expect to see an expansion of meme templates, including new formats and variations, as they’ll likely become more tailored to specific niches and subcultures.

The integration of trending sounds on online platforms became a significant driving force behind social media content creation and engagement.

In 2024, users and content creators alike continued to tap into the power of popular audio clips, music, and sound bites to enhance their posts and connect with their audiences.

As we look ahead to 2025, social media platforms will likely further enhance their sound integration capabilities. Additionally, AI algorithms will play a more prominent role in suggesting relevant sounds to users.

6. Brands are in their self-aware era

In 2024, a fascinating trend emerged as social media platforms became a melting pot of voices and perspectives, encouraging brands to step off their pedestals and engage in more genuine conversations with their audiences.

This newfound self-awareness marked a significant departure from traditional marketing approaches and contributed to a more authentic and relatable brand-consumer relationship. Here’s how @Ryanair incorporated this trend:

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As we transition into 2025, brands should tailor their content and messaging to focus on honesty and transparency in nurturing niche communities of like-minded consumers.

7. AI takes creativity to new heights

Last year, AI images and videos captivated audiences with its ability to push the boundaries of creativity and blur the lines between reality and fantasy. We witnessed artists, designers, and brands embracing AI for various purposes, including product promotions, digital storytelling, and artistic expression.

Coca-Cola created their famous Christmas video using AI this year:

In 2025, expect to see more AI created or enhanced videos and images as the technology advances and it opens up more opportunities for creators. While straying too far from human content isn’t a good idea, using artificial intelligence to give your posts an extra oomph can prove successful

8. TikTok images are on a roll

In 2024, TikTok Carousels became a prominent trend in social media marketing, offering increased engagement, versatile visual storytelling, and opportunities for various industries.

Take for example Duolingo’s humorous approach to an end-of-year slideshow review:

This year, social media platforms might prioritize image carousels algorithmically, increasing visibility. A lot of meme templates continue to appear in the form of image slideshows, which will further boost their popularity.

With the rise of TikTok Shop, one trend that grew in 2024 and isn’t slowing down in 2025 is live shopping. Just a few scrolls on the Live page will show you numerous brands presenting their products, doing try-ons, and offering special deals to those those who make a purchase.

This interactive experience combines the comfort of online shopping with the more social nature of going in-store. You can see the products at work, ask questions like you would a sales person in a brick-and-mortar, and benefit from dynamic offers.

10. Pop culture references are engagement boosters

Social media is experiencing an upsurge in pop culture references, a trend that resonates deeply with audiences across various platforms. From iconic movie quotes to trending TV show moments, brands and influencers alike used these cultural touchstones to create relatable and engaging content.

For instance, you’re probably familiar with Stanley cups by now, as they are a trend of their own. However, incorporating ‘Twilight’ references proved to be a surefire way to skyrocket engagement:

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Even @NSWPoliceForce managed to replicate the success of this trend by referencing an iconic ‘Mean Girls’ scene in their video:

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As we usher in 2025, the momentum gained from incorporating pop culture references is going to continue and evolve.

Additionally, expect to see more interactive campaigns that encourage user participation. These could take the form of challenges, quizzes, or user-generated content inspired by current pop culture phenomena.

Modern social media users are increasingly gravitating towards content that caters directly to their interests, rather than settling for the broad spectrum of content typically suggested by social media algorithms. This shift in user preference is behind the growing popularity of gated content.

Gated content is material available only to users who fulfill certain conditions, such as following an account, subscribing to a channel, or joining a private group. Access may require actions like sharing contact information or engaging with a post. Its purpose is to build a dedicated audience, gather marketing data, or create a sense of exclusivity.

In 2024, gated content emerged as a significant trend in social media, offering a more exclusive experience. In 2025, it’s set to become integral to brand strategies, with businesses using features like Instagram Subscribers and Facebook Top Fan badges to deepen the connection between brands and their most loyal followers.

Numerous brands have already tapped into the potential of social media platforms like TikTok, Instagram, and Facebook, not just for promotion but also as marketplaces to sell their products and drive revenue growth.

Interestingly, social commerce is on an upward trajectory, with projections suggesting it could exceed one trillion dollars by 2028. This year, we’re likely to witness a surge in retail businesses using features like Instagram shoppable posts to amplify their sales and enhance profit margins, as seen in this example from @diorbeauty:

For those planning to capitalize on social commerce this year, focus on creating an enjoyable shopping experience to convert casual browsers into loyal customers.

13. Conversation and engagement shift to DMs

Nowadays, feeds are cluttered with news, memes, creator content, ads, and even debates. However, one notable absence is the organic, unfiltered posts from friends and family.

This shift has various underlying reasons, but it doesn’t imply that personal updates have vanished entirely from the social media scene.

Beyond ‘Close Friends’ Stories and ‘finsta’ accounts, Instagram users are increasingly turning to DMs for more private interactions.

This trend likely influenced Instagram’s recent development of DM-centric features, such as notes, which are text-only status updates within DMs, broadcast channels for one-to-many messaging in private communities, and enhanced measures to prevent unwanted messages.

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For social media marketers, this evolution presents both challenges and opportunities. Tracking brand engagement becomes trickier when it’s confined to the private realm of DMs, a space where traditional social listening tools and analytics tools don’t reach.

However, the importance of DMs as a means to provide customer service can be a huge advantage for businesses. With SocialBee’s Engage Module, direct messages, alongside comments and replies, are easy to manage, so you never miss an opportunity to create a positive client experience.

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14. TikTok doubles down on Gen Z

Initially gaining fame as a platform where primarily young users showed off their dance routines and artistic skills, TikTok has evolved significantly.

In 2025, it’s projected that 48.8 million TikTok users will be Gen Z. As of 2024, 60% of TikTok users were Gen Z, and this number will continue to grow.

Let us translate these numbers for you: business owners now have the perfect opportunity to harness TikTok’s potential by creating short, creative videos that capture the attention of their Gen Z audience.

These concise videos are particularly effective for businesses to quickly and succinctly pitch their services, which will likely make TikTok an invaluable tool in 2025’s digital marketing arsenal.

15. Text-only posts are becoming a thing again

Text-only posts have a surprisingly high engagement rate, receiving surprising amounts of shares, likes, and comments.

One of the key advantages of text-only posts is their simplicity and ease of consumption for followers. There’s no need for users to click on links or watch videos to grasp the message, making the content more accessible and straightforward, which is exactly what makes them likely to impact the social media scene in 2025.

With X still maintaining a significant amount of users and the rise of platforms like Threads and Bluesky, we think text-only content is here to stay, and it’s a great idea for businesses to incorporate it in their strategy.

16. Influencers embrace organic product placement

A significant 71% of consumers trust recommendations from bloggers, vloggers, or social media influencers. Notably, user-generated content (UGC) is found to be nearly ten times more influential than content from influencers when it comes to purchasing decisions.

What this means is that the trend is moving away from influencers with massive followings to those with strong, engaged communities. In 2025, influencers are expected to skillfully include products into their content amidst various engaging topics, keeping things organic.

For example, @demetradias didn’t simply rave about Shark Beauty’s features. Instead, she used it in her date night routine, giving a more organic review of the product:

This approach to influencer marketing leads to deeper trust, tapping into the preference of modern consumers for content that informs subtly, rather than overtly advertises.

More than half of Gen Z is turning to TikTok and Instagram for their search needs, which shows the increasing importance of keyword optimization in your social media posts for better discoverability.

To make the most of this opportunity in your 2025 social media strategy, compile a list of keywords relevant to your brand that you want to rank for. Then, ensure you’re consistently crafting and sharing social media captions and content that contain these keywords to boost your brand’s visibility and relevance.

TikTok’s 2024 Trend Report highlights an increasingly unconventional approach to storytelling: stories are beginning at their ends, multiple narratives are unfolding simultaneously, and bold statements are used to capture attention.

These storytelling techniques encourage audiences to engage more actively and stay tuned as the stories unravel. It’s an effective way to capture attention and create a sense of FOMO, and brands like @ellore.com have already jumped on this bandwagon:

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To incorporate this storytelling style into your video captions, mention an event or a highlight that occurs midway through your video. This can pique viewers’ curiosity and keep them watching longer as they look for the moment you referenced.

19. Shares outweigh likes, comments, and followers

Every social media marketer aims to broaden their reach, but as many have discovered, simply looking to grow followers and likes isn’t enough.

While comments, likes, followers, views, and impressions can be artificially boosted, there’s one metric that remains a more genuine indicator of engagement: shares. When someone shares your content, whether in Stories, DMs, or off-platform, they’re effectively endorsing you to their network.

It’s not to say that comments and likes aren’t important. Focusing on creating content that is shareable naturally leads to an increase in likes and comments, which is why shares are so valuable in a social media strategy.

To enhance your content’s shareability in 2025, begin by analyzing what has worked in the past. SocialBee’s Analytics can simplify this process, helping you and your social media team identify top-performing posts through a variety of metrics, including audience demographics, real-time page analytics, and comprehensive post analytics.

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A PWC study highlights that targeted social media advertising and promotions have garnered the attention of 31% of consumers, with the figure rising to 43% among Gen Z.

However, social media advertising continues to present its unique set of challenges. With increasing restrictions and ongoing changes, a critical aspect of successful social media ads in 2025 will be highly specific targeting.

While broad targeting can enhance brand awareness, you must consider your clients’ budgets, market saturation, and the current economic climate. A strategic focus on retargeting prospects and identifying a lookalike audience can be an effective starting point.

The Best Social Media Trends to Try in 2024