Five key takeaways from Social Media Week Europe 2023

Social Media Week Europe is a fantastic in person and virtual annual event that we love attending! This year our social team tuned in to learn about the latest trends and campaigns happening in social media. Here are five of our key takeaways to help improve your social strategy:

Create content people care about and want to share both on and offline   

If people don’t care, they won’t share. Creating conversation around organic social media is key to grow your brand and community. When creating content, you should always be thinking about the purpose behind it and why people should care about it. Content should never be posted for the sake of it, and it should always give your audiences a reason to share and have a conversation around the topic.  

Short form video is key, you never know what will go viral

It’s no surprise to see video content on this list, with its continued success. As TikTok’s continues to grow, we also see the rise of YouTube shorts. Tapping into new platforms with short form vertical video is how brands will generate growth in the coming years. Filming the little moments of your business could lead to them becoming big moments and causing you to go viral.  

Creators can enhance B2C marketing campaigns

There was a lot of conversation around the power of influencer marketing to tap into new audiences. Working with creators has become essential to marketing strategies for B2C brands. Brands are being encouraged to search for the creators who are right for their brand, rather than those who have the highest follower count and reach. It's crucial to find those influencers who truly embody your brand, and work with them on a longer term! Your communities will flourish together. Working with influencers/creators should come with giving them creative freedom; they know their audience; they've got that authentic connection that will deliver results.  

Be ready for the speed of today's culture

Discovery is the new currency and social media is being used for search more and more. Within the space of a day an audio track or a new trend could go viral on TikTok, and you’ve got to be ready for it. Your creative team needs to be reactive, ready to embrace new trends. HOWEVER, only do it if it makes sense for your brand, for your image. There’s nothing less sincere than a brand trying to jump on every single trend out there, and your audience will be able to tell.  

Focus on storytelling rather than your products

This one might sound a little backwards, but in the age of de-influencing, your audience could care more about your story than your product. Younger audiences are incredibly savvy and have grown up recognising ads on all platforms, and they want none of it. People will spot an ad from a mile away, and they care more about the person behind the product. We’re all looking for stories and connections on social media, so it's good to make your videos and graphics tell a story.

If you’d like to discuss implementing any of the above strategies, please get in touch to speak to our experts.