Big Changes Seen for Social Media in 2023, Say Experts

Social media, both the savior and bete noire of consumer marketing, is due for some big changes in 2023, according to a group of experts interviewed for a recent article in Forbes magazine. Below are some highlights of the experts’ forecasts for 2023, with brief excerpts from the article. Click here for the full article.

1) New services could emerge. “Gen Z will continue to heavily influence the social media landscape, and their desire for authenticity will lead to major transformational changes in the industry,” said Wendy Mei, head of product and strategy at social media app Playsee.

2) Twitter’s downward spiral will continue. “The downward spiral of Twitter will continue so long as Elon Musk insists on staying in the public eye and engaging with critics like a third-grade playground bully,” said technology analyst Charles King of Pund-IT.

3) Meta problems? “The Metaverse social network experiment will continue to fail until the technology meets expectations, likely toward the end of the decade,” said Rob Enderle, technology analyst at the Enderle Group.

4) Will TikTok actually be banned? “The banning of TikTok on U.S. and some state government-owned phones and other devices is unlikely to stem its popularity among young people and the advertisers focusing on those audiences,” said King.

5) Influence could wane. “Influencer marketing has become more difficult throughout 2022 with the glut of people trying to become that next influencer,” said Lon Safko, author of the Social Media Bible. “Their interest in promoting other products by successful influencers has waned to near zero.”

6) Old problems will remain. “Platforms will remain an easy and somewhat safe political target as we enter the next election cycle. AI will emerge more actively in the segment; sadly, most will be focused on scamming users, but some will improve moderation and increase engagement,” said Enderle.