Facebook trends 2024: Predictions for the year ahead
What are the Facebook trends for 2024? Let’s look at the biggest Facebook trends today, including privacy, AI technology, user-generated content, and more.
Facebook's always making bold moves, but how does 2024 look? Let's dissect the top trends for the year ahead, and consider what they mean for brands and creators alike.
We'll cover:
- Privacy and security
- More focus on groups and communities
- Virtual reality
- Meta Verified
- Small-scale influencer marketing
- User-generated content
- Reels will drum up real business
- New digital experiences led by AI
- Businesses will slide boldly into DMs
- Exploratory identities
- Refined relationships
- Assertive aspirations
- Lived values
What are the new Facebook trends in 2024?
Before we dig into what Facebook and their parent company, Meta, think the next big thing will be, let's look at the wider platform trends for Facebook in 2024.
Privacy and security
Misinformation. Hacking. General unpleasantness. It's a downer to think about, but online security's never been more important. Whether you're a regular browser or a business, someone's always trying to hunt down your details — that's why Meta launched its new and improved Privacy Center in mid-2022.
So, if you want to make customers of your followers, they'll need to believe that your offering is genuine and any third-party sites you use are secure. Think about how you communicate this, in everything from your day-to-day content to your marketing and advertising. What else can you do to make your audience safe? Perhaps it's a little dull and even corny to say, but one of the biggest Facebook trends of 2024 could be good old-fashioned security.
More focus on groups and communities
Some of Meta's most successful features from recent years, like Reels and Stories, are now available to publish in groups. It's a move that shows Facebook wants to focus on communities, whether they're groups about reading, exercising, or dogspotting.
This more personal approach gives brands the chance to approach potential customers in these spaces — but how? Think about the kind of content posted in the groups you'd like to target, how it's framed, and what the replies are like. Unless a group's rules explicitly state that commercial posts aren't allowed, it's worth investigating.
Virtual reality
Meta's been heavily associated with virtual reality for some time, mainly due to the company's Meta Quest headset range — that's before you even consider mountainous projects like the Metaverse.
Last year, Meta launched a VR gaming subscription service, giving users access to two new VR games every month. With Mark Zuckerberg determined to crack VR and make it accessible for everyone, we imagine there'll be more virtual reality-focused innovations, services, and tweaks around Facebook in 2024.
Meta Verified
Meta Verified rolled out early last year, and was initially available for personal use. However, later in 2023, businesses were granted access.
This helps with the security point we raised earlier — regular folks will feel more comfortable interacting with a business if the latter is verified. Now that the Meta Verified badge is available to anyone who meets the criteria, we can see it snowballing into a new Facebook trend in 2024.
Small-scale influencer marketing
Perception of the word 'influencer' has changed of late — few people still believe that they're all super-famous socialites. Rather, influencers have spread out into their respective niches, and with that comes scale.
Some interest topics are just too broad to gain a foothold, whereas others are too small to build a million-plus following. Somewhere between these two worlds sit micro- and nano-influencers, who enjoy a smaller but dedicated following.
It pays to invest in these moderately-sized influencers — 82% of people say they'd follow recommendations from a micro-influencer. Traditionally, big-name influencer marketing has had the price tag to match, but in 2024, that's changing.
User-generated content
Thanks to buzzy, fast-paced social media platforms like TikTok, user-generated content (UGC) has established itself as a content style. That said, 2024 might be the year when it becomes a bona fide Facebook trend. In fact, some people think it's going to drive engagement and click-throughs on Facebook ads.
And it makes sense. After all, UGC has improved click-through rates by 300% in some instances — they're not small numbers by any metric. If you're running paid UGC campaigns, tapping into trending hashtags and competitions will help you understand what works and what doesn't when encouraging others to engage with your ads.
What does Facebook say the new trends will be in 2024?
Now that we've gone through the wider trends, what do the folks at Facebook and Meta think the hot topics will be? Let's take a look, via Meta's latest Performance Talks roundup and Culture Rising Trends Report.
Reels will drum up real business
Facebook Reels have the potential to whip up impressive numbers in 2024, given they're totaling 200 million views per day across Facebook and Instagram. That's an almost unbelievable figure — with that in mind, brands and creators can use Reels to reach customers current and new this year.
New digital experiences led by AI
Artificial intelligence was beyond hyped in 2023, but it was so much more than just a buzzword. Generative AI has helped businesses create and scale ads more effectively, and will save time and energy going forward.
It makes sense that Meta believes AI will be one of 2024's biggest Facebook trends — we're interested to see how the platform implements AI going forward, and to what extent.
Businesses will slide boldly into DMs
People want to deal with businesses like they do their friends and family: with a DM. Facebook thinks that 2024 is the year when businesses lean into this practice, running with a more personal, accessible approach to customer service and engagement.
Exploratory identities
Anyone can be anyone online, but in 2024, Facebook users feel empowered to be themselves. That's why trending conversation topics like body modification and underarm hair have grown year-over-year across the platform.
It's why more than one quarter (28%) of Gen Z Facebook users feel that a person's virtual avatar should reflect their real-life features — they view it as an extension of oneself, rather than a fantasy.
As for your content connecting with people, it's all about authentic representation across diverse audiences. Sure, if you're promoting a product or service, it has a target demographic — but think outside the box. If you cater solely to a niche, you'll likely exclude a chunk of potential customers.
Refined relationships
Relationships drive social media — without them, we'd just be posting content to no-one. In particular, conversations around blind dates and intimate relationships have grown as trends on Facebook, the latter skyrocketing by more than 4,000% year-over-year.
This isn't a new Facebook trend, but the openness to explore is certainly more recent. For example, conversations around Chinese astrology have grown by 631% year-over-year — people are using Facebook to understand their relationships not just with humans but the planet, the stars, the universe.
What does this mean for brands and full-time creators, though? Well, it couldn't hurt for big names to expand their circles: work with like-minded influencers, partners, and brands who can help you deliver authentic, relationship-binding content. It doesn't have to reinvent the wheel or cost a million bucks — it's just got to be real.
Assertive aspirations
Social media is often used to inspire, to motivate. Over the past few years, people have started prioritizing their mental health, both online and off. Conversation topics like dance therapy and color psychology have grown year-over-year, alongside general subjects like self-care and mindfulness.
This extends beyond the home and into the workplace, too. As a conversation topic, deindustrialization has seen 600% year-over-year growth, and 41% of people believe that doing meaningful work is more important than ever before.
On top of more positive lifestyle switcheroos like good sleep, DIY, and financial savviness, this focus on wellness is a Facebook trend creators and brands can use to thrive. To connect with people. To put their best foot forward and offer something beneficial, something positive, to their audiences.
Lived values
Time spent on social media has also resulted in a values shake-up. What do people enjoy doing, really? For many, hobbies and general activities fall under the same camp nowadays, with nearly half of users claiming to find comfort in retro trends — it's not so much the activity itself but the feeling.
In more serious territory, strong-held values like allyship and the defense of human rights have become more popular Facebook trends. This extends to areas like climate change, where 73% of people describe the issue as being personally important to them.
When you create content, how does it demonstrate your values, and how does it tie into your audience's? Are there any other brands, influencers, or creators you can team up with to hammer home a particular message? In 2024, faking these values won't cut the mustard — be the real deal and your audience will follow.
Wrapping up the Facebook trends for 2024
So, those were the latest Facebook trends for 2024, both content-based and platform-specific. We'll have to wait until the end of the year to see which predictions hit the spot, but in the meantime, we're sure Facebook will keep us on our toes.
Interested in more trend-spotting? Check out our deep-dives into the latest trends across music, Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube in 2024.
Want to take your Facebook content to the next level? Learn more about Facebook music and how Epidemic Sound can help soundtrack your content like a pro.
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