2022 Social Media Trends in PR
By: Katherine White
2022 has been a year of change and innovation across social media platforms. Public relations is an ever-changing industry due to its close relationship with technology and marketing. The industry has had to adapt as social media has become increasingly influential in businesses strategies. This has caused PR to become more creative and adopt many new platforms and methods.
PR professionals follow and use social media trends to target their audience and spread their message. Let’s take a look at some of the top 2022 social media trends that PR professionals are popularizing in the field:
Instagram’s explore page is a collection of content based on your preferences and other posts you view. This is another example of a strategic way that PR professionals can target a specific audience based on their interests.
1. Micro influencers
A micro influencer is a social media figure that has a larger following than a normal person, but not as large of a platform as a celebrity. Micro influencers tend to promote products and brands that they are genuinely interested in. PR professionals have started to use micro influencers to increase engagement and reach their target audience, as audiences often view micro influencers as more genuine because their platform is not as expansive as other influencers. To be considered a micro influencer, it varies based on where you live and what your “brand” focuses on. You’ll notice micro influencers have taken over TikTok, Instagram and YouTube.
2. TikTok and Instagram Reels
PR professionals have finally discovered that short videos are an effective way of catching the attention of their audience. TikTok has become extremely popular in 2022 and is a platform focused on sharing short videos that are usually between 1-3 minutes long. Instagram has adopted a similar feature called Instagram Reels, which can run up to 90 seconds. Audiences often mindlessly scroll through these platforms, which requires PR professionals to create engaging and creative videos to encourage their target audience to stop scrolling and focus on their product or brand.
3. Podcasts
A podcast is a digital audio file that is available on social media platforms and the Internet. Podcasts became especially popular during the Covid-19 pandemic, as the public began to rely more on virtual and digital media options. Podcasts are often produced by an individual or group about a specific topic in which they produce episodes within a series. Common podcast subjects are true crime, sports, a day in the life of the producer, recommendations, advice and more. PR professionals have used podcasts as another unique outlet to communicate to the public and partner with key influencers.
4. Promoting Diversity and Inclusion Awareness
Diversity and inclusion has become a major focus for PR firms. Many PR firms are using all sorts of social media platforms to promote these ideals and take a stance on social and political issues as part of corporate social responsibility and a recent push for companies and agencies to express their values. Diversity, equity and inclusion have become values that many companies prioritize in their workplace and employment. This concept has become a recurring theme in PR campaigns across all social media platforms. Diversity in content has been on the rise too.
2022 has proven how valuable PR can be for certain companies. Using social media correctly and strategically reaches a wide audience and has a broad impact on the public. What trends do you think will become popular in 2023?
