Over the past few years, we have seen an explosion in social media usage. There are now more active users of most major platforms than ever before!

The average person has their own profile on at least one platform, if not several. Many people use multiple accounts to express themselves, share information, connect with others, or all of the above.

This article will talk about some of the trends that you can expect to see for the next couple of years while using social media. We will discuss how technology is changing what types of content matter the most, how business professionals manage their online presence, and what it means for you as a student or professional.

Trend #1: The rise of the narrative

A narrative is defined by Merriam-Webster as “an event or series of events that develops thematic elements into a story”. In other words, it is someone’s personal storyline that contributes to the overall theme of the work.

In today’s society, narratives seem to be everywhere you look. Technology has allowed us to create our own stories through the spread of knowledge, experiences, and observations. These stories influence other people, and sometimes even ourselves.

As individuals, we develop internal storylines based on who we believe we are and what we believe life should be like. As members of society, we develop external storylines based on our beliefs and expectations of other people and things.

YouTube is changing how it presents content

As you read this article, YouTube has modified the way that it displays videos for users. This will be discussed in more detail below, but what these changes indicate are two things: 1) They know there’s value in offering additional features to make producing and sharing video easier, and 2) They want to continue to develop their service so that it can thrive long term.

As we've mentioned before, one of the biggest issues with using YouTube at times was having too much content or no clear guidance as to which videos were good ones. Having a hard time finding engaging videos may have been due to YouTube not clearly labeling them as such or linking them to an outside source, but also because some people feel that they're just not very entertaining.

YouTube now offers three new options when viewing a list of videos. You can choose from “Recommended for you,” “Trending around you,” or “Awful.” These different styles of lists seem intuitive, and anyone can use any of them to find something interesting to watch.

The “Recommended for you” feature seems pretty self-explanatory. It takes information from your profile and past behavior on the site to determine what types of videos you usually enjoy and then suggests those kinds of videos for you to view.

Twitter is changing how it allows users to post

With every new feature, you have people who feel left out or even alienated by the service. This is especially true for those that initial subscribers receive special perks with.

For example, when Facebook opened up “public” profiles back in 2011, some people felt excluded because they wanted their profile to be private. Or what about all of the talk about limiting word count on blogs? Some people were unhappy with this change.

Overall though, these changes seem to push the envelope forward for social media platforms.

Pinterest is changing how it presents content

With its new “Pin It” button, people can easily add your site to their pin boards via a web browser or app. Then they can go back and access your article at any time by navigating to that board, clicking on your pinned item, and reading it!

This is great for two reasons. First, this gives you more exposure since more people will see your content. Second, it helps promote engagement as users have to click through an additional link to view your article.

By adding social media sites such as Pinterest, you are creating opportunities for others to share your content all over the place.

And while most of these services pay per engagement (likes, comments, etc.) or use a metric called reach, which is the total number of people who saw your material, what if we gave you free impressions?

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Facebook is changing how it allows users to post

This past May, Facebook made changes to its platform that shifted the way we interact with content and keep in touch. Now, they’re making more of an effort to prioritize posts from people over brands.

This shift was first noticed last year when Facebook introduced “sponsored stories.” These are like normal stories except the featured images and/or videos are paid for by a business or organization.

The difference is that before, these sponsored messages were displayed at the top of your feed, but now they’re attached to a friend’s profile. In other words, instead of seeing a commercial message you connect with, you’ll see something related to someone you know.

This new feature clearly inspired some controversy as many thought it promoted fake news and skewed perceptions about products and companies. But I think it’s great because it shifts the focus away from the advertiser and onto the person posting the content.

SnapChat is changing how it presents content

Most people use social media to connect with friends, learn about new products, and keep up-to-date on what’s happening in their lives.

But there are some companies that have made it a platform for advertising instead.

Snapchat is one of these companies.

By limiting the amount of time you can view an advertisement before it disappears, they create an environment where your attention is constantly being drawn towards the app instead of the ad.

This creates a sense of urgency when the app wants you to spend money or take action on something.

It also gives you less time to process the information so you feel more inclined to act on things quickly.

Not only does this influence buying, but it impacts how well you enjoy the product yourself. This was seen with YouTube videos back in the day where advertisers would edit their videos to seem as if the person who makes the video loves the product.

Tumblr is changing how it allows users to post

If you are looking for a place to share your love of art, music, fashion, or anything else then look no further than the microblogging website tumblr.com!

Tumblr lets you create an account free with them. You can add as many pictures and videos as you want, and edit them all in-depth!

There are several reasons why this site has such a large community.

First, the platform itself offers very little options when it comes to theme and design. All styles look the same and have similar features.

This lack of variation makes creating blogs more like a creative exercise than a way to advertise. Your blogger can use their creativity to emphasize style over advertising content.

Second, the easy editing feature gives people power. Users can easily remix, rephrase, and redesign their posts using simple tools.

Third, the quick update process helps promote engagement. Since changes do not require much effort, users will feel motivated to keep reading and commenting on posts.

LinkedIn is changing how it presents content

With over 250 million users, professional networking site Linkedln has become one of the biggest players in the social media space. It boasts some impressive features that make it quite popular.

One such feature is ‘sponsored updates’ or sponsored posts. These are similar to advertisements you might see online, but they are not paid for by the seller, but instead funded through advertising on linkedin.com.

Businesses can pay to promote products and services via these updates, which get displayed at the top of your connected lnviters and directly sent to their followers.

Who is changing their logo?

Recent trends in social media include adding new features, rebranding or altering logos, and introducing totally new styles. Companies are overhauling the way they present themselves to the world by creating an online presence that reflects who they are.

Many large corporations have left the classic square profile picture behind for ones with more elaborate designs. Others have added additional feature cards (like “about”, “services”, etc.), special decorations or props, and/or creative captions.

Overall, it seems like companies want to be seen as having personality, which is always a good thing! Logos play a major role in this because they are the first things people see about you, so why not make them interesting?

Logo design has become much more artistic than what we saw years ago when most brands had simple white pictures of their product. People now have greater freedom to express themselves through their logos.