What is the future of Social Media Marketing?

(Unsplash via Prateek Katyal)

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This is an OP-ED perspective. I am sharing my own insight on the current market as well as making my own predictions regarding the world of Social Media Marketing.

With that being said, let’s get started.

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I’ve been heavily reflecting on my journey through the social media marketing world. Here is a brief timeline of what’s happened:

• March 2020: Laid off during COVID from my events/hospitality role. My brother offered me a part-time community management role with his agency.

• July 2021: Promoted to Sr. Social Strategist. I gained more responsibility and grew confident in my skill set and client interactions.

• April 2022: Left the agency for some major “soul searching.” Briefly jumped back into hospitality only to find I had simply outgrown that industry. I knew there had to be “more.”

• December 2022: I was offered an event management role at my old hotel job for the holidays. It was great fun (and great money).

• January 2023: Laid off from said events job. Once again, I knew there had to be something more for me.

• February 2023: Launched “HB Marketing & Consulting” to provide creative insight and strategy knowledge for social media clients.

And the rest is history. It’s been one hell of a roller coaster, and I wouldn’t have it any other way. I am grateful I took a leap of faith by becoming self employed. It’s by no means an “easy” way out, but it’s incredibly rewarding.

As valuable of an experience it’s been, part of me is concerned for the future of social media marketing. With an increase of heavy AI usage and rising competition in the social media management sector, I fear that many roles will soon become obsolete.

I’m not saying this to spark fear in anyone. As long as we have social media platforms, there will be opportunities for work. However, expectations in these roles are starting to shift. Gone are the days of wearing multiple hats trying to make ends meet: As more social media managers work “smarter” by utilising AI for copywriting, newsletters, and captions, it buys more time for other pressing matters. The major downside of this is the lack of originality and personality in these writing styles, simply because AI can do it for us.

The biggest questions are: What will happen when we hand over too much responsibility? When do the lines begin to blur between organic versus AI generated? Moving forward, how are social media marketers going to stand out from the crowd?

On top of this, there is far more competition in this particular field ever since COVID hit. The flexibility of working anywhere in the world for this industry is a huge attraction, and if you like a good challenge, it’s not a bad gig.

Whether it’s through LinkedIn or other platforms, I’ve found that many companies and agencies still rely on one person to wear 10 different hats, which isn’t sustainable. And contrary to popular belief, it is not a bragging right to multi-task, nor is it possible. Not to mention the demand for social media “rockstars” and “all-stars” to wear themselves thin, burning the wick at both ends.

And don’t get me started on the companies who deem themselves as “family.”

It’s a job, not your entire life.

Can I speak for everyone out there? No. I am confident there are amazing companies around the world that value and support their employees. However, my intuition knows that things are shifting at a rapid rate. AI will continue to be a prominent force in our daily lives, if we allow it. More and more social media managers will claim their way is the best way for success, sparking analysis paralysis and continued overstimulation for users on various platforms.

In my honest opinion, we have to pivot from our current situation before it’s too late.

Change is nothing to fear. There are always significant shifts before the “birth” of something new. It may feel uncomfortable and frustrating at times, but I am confident that we will see more inspiration and creative outlooks as the industry evolves.

So, what’s the solution?

Can we maintain a healthy balance of human-created, knowledgeable content without AI completely taking over? The answer lies within our own unique approach. We don’t need to follow suit on every single trend that’s sweeping the industry just to appear knowledgeable.

Again, this is just my hot take.

What does the future of social media marketing look like to you? I would love to hear from those as curious as me. Let me know what you think.

That’s all for now.