​Now there’s talk of BeReal, an app that forces you to show yourself as you are in real time. They talk about the rise of TikTok and how all other social networks have fallen behind and how they are making great efforts to catch up with this social media wonder child. It talks about the importance of YouTube, Instagram and Facebook for business and their role in informing. All this was discussed this year at Webstock 2022, the biggest social media conference in Romania, and 8 specialists invited to the event stage share the social media trends at the end of the year.

Brands see YouTube as a cost-effective channel that drives awareness and reach

“Many times in digital marketing, we talk about trends long before they emerge and capture the audience. As a result, we’re often surprised that the buzzwords of the moment don’t actually prove effective in terms of results. From this point of view, YouTube is a social network that we have been talking about for a long time, but which is only now proving its effectiveness in digital marketing strategies. During the pandemic, YouTube in Romania grew in terms of both the number of visitors and the average time they spent on the platform, with more than 13 million monthly visitors spending an average of more than 90 minutes on the platform every day. As a result, brands began investing more of their digital marketing budgets in campaigns targeting this segment of YouTube users. When it comes to YouTube’s role in the marketing mix, most brands see YouTube as a channel that can drive their awareness and reach cost-effectively, and the audience targeting methods are precise enough for the most granular targeting possible. However, YouTube’s efforts to automate conversion campaigns have paid off, and YouTube’s conversion campaigns are also being tested at a larger scale.” – Raluka Radu, Managing Partner, MTH Digital

TikTok won the bet on the new format and is the star of recent years

“There are several ways to look at what’s happening in social networks right now. But if we give a very simple answer, then it is clear that the elephant in the room is short, funny and full of life. And for many of us who use digital communication, it’s a headache. This elephant is called TikTok, and I think it’s become a star in recent years thanks to a combination of factors that have given them a dominant position in what social media means (and I think they’ll keep it that way for a long time). We’ve been saying for a long time that video is king, but only now does it seem to me that the prophecy has come true. TikTok won the bet on a new format, developed appropriate tools for content creation, and became a very fertile ground for the creativity of people regardless of background, social position or voice. TikTok has a place for everyone, but for brands, the platform also contains the most difficult challenges: how to be authentic and not funny, how to build a brand and not dilute it, how to be efficient in terms of resources. If here the answer to the question “why” is simple and obvious, then in the part of implementation there is a real complexity, which, from my point of view, if done incorrectly, brings more harm.” – Cinciana Stoicescu, Senior Digital Channel Manager, BAT Romania

A newsletter is a good fallback option for social media restrictions

“Newsletter. This is one of the winning options I recommend for brands in the medium to long term. I strongly believe this because of what is happening, and especially what will happen (soon, I say) with social media platforms. Which will have many restrictions (especially legal ones) and will require more and more money from brands to be able to give them benefits. Also, it will get more and more difficult with proper targeting. Let’s look back at what it meant for Facebook when Apple gave consumers the option to stop tracking. Who knows how much and with what budgets we can still rely on social media? Let’s do it as much as we can. But let’s also have backup options. And for me, such an option, if not the best, is a mailing. Spoiler alert: this is also one of the hardest parts of content marketing to create.” – Christian China Birta, co-founder of Kooperativa 2.0

The content you see and post on TikTok, you won’t see anywhere else

“There is nothing surprising here, the first thought was TikTok. It’s a network that has grown impressively in recent years, and that appetite for raw content doesn’t seem to be abating anytime soon. Especially now that he is going to integrate the quintessence of BeReal. Even though Meta tries to incorporate as much of what makes TikTok special/cool as possible, they always seem a step behind. The content you see and post on TikTok, you won’t see anywhere else. This is why brands tend to struggle to have a real presence on this platform. This naturalness I talked about earlier is usually difficult to achieve or simply too expensive for many brands. But the second thought surprised me: Facebook. What’s happening on the platform right now is the Golden Age (in the original version) for brands. The platform has (again) become the place where you search for information and discuss the news of the day. It’s not for content creators, it’s for those who just want to communicate and get information. Even about brands that include their core audience. The next communications crisis for brands will come from Facebook, not TikTok/Instagram.” – Bohdan Epure, Head of Social Media, Oxygen

The BeReal application is becoming more and more popular

“We are betting not so much on social networks as on what they represent: first for users who adopt certain trends, and then for the future of advertising, which we can believe in and which we are trying to shape together with our consumers. . An example worth mentioning is the increasingly popular BeReal app. The reason why Pepsi became the first brand from Romania to join BeReal is related to the values ​​of the brand, on the one hand, and on the other hand, to the fact that we want a future where brands create real experiences for consumers.” – Laurenciu Ion, Head of Digital and Media, Pepsico Romania

Instagram is a relevant platform in Romania

“From my point of view, Instagram is a relevant platform in Romania. Especially when we’re talking about the intent of an online audience to buy. The visual structure of the platform makes it extremely attractive for e-commerce brands, especially when we talk about industries that accept products such as fashion, beauty, home decor, etc. Even if the organic reach is low, users spend a lot of time on the platform. In the events we do with our partners, live shopping, we interact a lot with Instagram’s live video feature. And we see that the audience is very active and ready to act – either users who want to learn more about the brand or its products, or users who actually want to buy these products. So, I would nominate Instagram here, especially when it comes to e-commerce. And at the same time, I would also be very cautious about TikTok – the platform’s recent moves have made it clear that its next step is e-commerce.” – Mihai Manescu, Account Manager, Streams.live

TikTok has radically changed the way content is consumed online

“2022 was the year that TikTok radically changed the way we consume content online, both in terms of format and quality. Users are looking less for pixel-perfect branding and more for videos that tell a real story or point of view, especially if that content is tailored to the context. 2022 was the year of the end of the pandemic, but we entered an uncertain economic situation, marked by a war on the borders of Romania. And then people took a closer look at how brands, local contributors and influencers can really intervene in our lives, whether it’s a campaign that actually helps or advice on how to make smart financial choices that benefit us”. – Andrea Bledzhan, Head of Social Media Center, BCR

Brands around the world are already posting on TikTok every other day

“TikTok is a modern social media platform where short videos are at home and captivate the entire community of 1 billion users. TikTok and Reels are in fierce competition. In Romania, of the two types of social networks, TikTok is gaining more and more popularity. The engagement rate for TikTok videos is 7.44% and for Reels it is 1.92%. In terms of the age group that uses the two types of social networks, TikTok again leads all age groups, from 18-24 to 55. TikTok favors early-stage brands and can be a suitable channel for increasing brand awareness at low costs. The frequency of posting on TikTok is much higher than on Reels. Brands around the world are already posting on TikTok every other day. Short videos on TikTok drive engagement, with audiences engaging with 44% more comments on the platform compared to the Reels content type. Currently, TikTok has 5.6 million users, which is 15% more than Instagram (4.8 million). “- Adina Jipa, founder and marketing director, Socialinsider