Talking Shop February 2024

Hootsuite’s Top Social Trends 2024

AI Trend: Organisations plan to increase their use of AI across various activities by at least 50%. However, audience acceptance of AI-generated content varies, with Gen Z more likely to trust and engage with AI content than older generations.

Platform Trend: Brands are expected to focus their efforts on the social platforms that best serve them in 2024. Instead of trying to be present on all platforms, they’ll be choosing platforms that best align with their business goals. For example, X has seen a 7% drop in use by organisations.

ROI Trend: The report suggests that entertainment fuels the social ROI engine. The top reason people use social media is to be entertained and unwind, so when it comes to content, follow your customers’ lead.

Conscious Consumers: Deals or Values? Both!

According to a recent YouGov report, consumers increasingly want to shop ethically and sustainably, balancing “value” with “values.” Environmental impact and ethical sourcing are top concerns, but information remains lacking. Finances are still top of mind, but many would be willing to pay premiums for conscious choices, especially in specific categories like meat. Changing dining habits reflect this, with some reducing frequency and seeking alternatives. Brands need to step up on transparency and information to meet growing ethical expectations.

Boomers Boost TikTok

TikTok shops are becoming a huge opportunity for marketers, as more so-called ‘boomers’ join the platform and get hooked on its personalised content. Social experts predict that this demographic will start buying products on TikTok, driven by its seamless and fun shopping experience. This will challenge other social media giants to innovate and compete in the social commerce arena.

Radio’s Big Revival

The latest RAJAR data released last week showed that commercial radio has seen a significant increase in listenership, with an additional one million weekly listeners, bringing the total to 39.1 million people per week. This is a 10% increase from five years ago, and the length of time people listen has also grown by 19%. Commercial radio now has 7.8 million more listeners than the BBC, and its share of listening hours is at its highest ever level, at 54.8%. Clearly there is life in the old ‘medium’ yet!

Bruce Bounces Back!

Radio presenter Ken Bruce, who left BBC Radio 2 for Greatest Hits Radio, has seen his audience grow from 2.2 million to 3.8 million weekly listeners. This shift is part of a broader trend of audiences moving to commercial outlets. Bruce’s former slot on Radio 2, taken over by Vernon Kay, has lost 1.5m listeners since Bruce’s departure. However, the general decline in listeners at BBC Radio 2 is showing signs of slowing down. 

Meta’s Senate Grilling

Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta, faced a grilling from US senators over Meta’s role in online child exploitation. He apologised to the families of victims and defended Meta’s child protection efforts. CEO’S of TikTok, Snap, X and Discord, also faced tough questions about their moderation policies and practices amidst growing pressure from lawmakers to pass legislation holding social media companies more accountable for their platforms.