8 consumer and social media trends for 2023

1. Consumers are looking for online inspiration
2. Shopping is local 
3. Shopping is becoming increasingly omnichannel
4. Consumers are looking for added value
5. Social commerce is here to stay
6. Short videos are popular
7. Micro-influencers, a marketing strategy worth investing in
8. Position zero, the holy grail of local SEO

The digital world is constantly evolving, but certain trends are here to stay. Discover the 8 trends of 2022 not to be missed to prepare your 2023 local marketing strategy. Our angle? Consumer trends and social networks.
Improve the online visibility of your points of sale and generate more traffic, online and offline! 🚀

4 consumer trends 2022

1. Consumers are looking for online inspiration:
   According to a recent Google study, more than 48% of consumers around the world say they look for inspiration online for their purchases. This trend is confirmed when it comes to making their purchasing decision: 91% of consumers conduct an online search before going to a physical store (Ifop, 2020).
   
   Our advice: Develop the online visibility of your establishments through the creation of local pages on key media (Google, Facebook/Instagram, Store locator, etc.). Develop a local content strategy, specific to the news of your various points of sale, in order to attract customers to your locations.
   

2. Shopping is local :
   The "open now near me" type queries have jumped more than +400% in one year worldwide.
   
   These figures reflect a growing trend of researching online before moving around, and indicate that when searching for businesses, consumers are increasingly looking for immediate solutions. For example, in the early evening, a person is more likely to search on Google (Maps) for nearby open restaurants.
   
   Our advice: Invest in the natural referencing of your points of sale on different GPS tools (Google Maps, Apple Maps, Bing Maps, Waze, …)
   
   
3. Shopping is becoming increasingly omnichannel :
   Who today uses only one information channel? Today, beyond traditional channels (TV, radio, press,...), brands are in contact with consumers through multiple digital channels:
   
   • Website
   • Social networks (Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Pinterest,...)
   • Search engines (Google, Bing, …)
   • E-commerce platforms (Amazon, Bol, …)
   • Apps
   • Newsletters and emailing
   • …

Marketing strategies (online and offline) should be designed as a fluid experience across these different channels, and above all be adapted : each platform and media has its own codes, we don't communicate in the same way depending on the age of the audience and the supported formats.

Our advice: take the time to design omnichannel communication strategies, while ensuring that your brand image is respected from a local point of view.

4. Consumers are looking for added value:
   In a climate of economic uncertainty with post-covid inflation, consumers are waiting for added value, in terms of company values (positioning, inclusivity, environmental commitment, ...) but also and especially in terms of direct added value for them: offers and promotions.
   
   According to a study on French consumption trends, 52% of them see their non-food budget stagnate and 22% plan to reduce their non-food spending. (source: Into the Minds, 2022)
   
   Our advice: amplify the actions and promotions of your points of sale via various channels (Facebook, Google, newsletter, ...)

Social media and Google

5. Social commerce is here to stay
   
   First of all, what is social commerce?
   
   Social commerce is about promoting and selling products and services through social networks like Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest.
   
   According to an eMarketer study on the number of consumers who have shopped online through social networks, there is a +10% annual increase.
   
   Why?
   
   Social commerce enables a 'frictionless' shopping experience: on a social network, a consumer sees a product they're interested in, clicks on it, is redirected to an e-commerce site, and if they wish, proceeds to purchase and is delivered (if everything goes smoothly and there are no bugs!).
   
   Example of social commerce:
   
   Instagram Shopping: allows placing product tags on post images, videos/reels, and in stories.
   
   Facebook Shops: is a new interface that allows users to discover brands and purchase their products within the Facebook app.
   
   

6. Short videos are all the rage
   
   Do you know the average attention span of a person?
   
   According to recent studies, it is gradually decreasing and has recently reached 8 seconds on average. This, among other things, explains the success of platforms offering short video formats, such as TikTok or Instagram.
   
   Instagram has around 1.4 billion users worldwide, TikTok follows with 1.02 billion. This makes them extremely popular platforms centered around short videos (or Reels on Instagram).
   
   TikTok offers formats from 3 to 60 seconds (from the app) and also recently offers “long” formats from 3 to 10 minutes. Instagram offers a Reels format of 90 seconds maximum, but also videos that can range from 3 seconds to 10 minutes.
   
   Why use these formats?
   
   These formats (both on TikTok and Instagram) allow for an organic reach that can be exponential, depending on user interactions (number of views, clicks, likes, comments, shares,...).
   
   Moreover, these platforms automatically present in the feed (stream) content similar to what the user likes. This means that the videos are shown to an audience already qualified by their interest in similar topics, and who will be more likely to react to it.

Videos under 15 seconds already represent 45% of the videos posted in the image feed.Guillaume Thévenin, head of partnerships with content creators at Instagram for Southern Europe, via France Inter

7. Micro-influencers, a marketing strategy worth investing in
   
   Micro-influencers (this includes influencers with an audience between 1,000 and 100,000 people, depending on the industry) have, on average, a much higher engagement rate than influencers with larger audiences. We're talking aboutan audience engagement rate of up to 20% (that's a lot!).
   
   Why do micro-influencers have such high engagement rates? It's very simple: their audience is smaller and therefore more targeted around a specific interest or niche. They find it easier to maintain a connection (through messages, comments, etc.) with their followers.
   They appear more authentic and therefore inspire more trust.
   
   Additionally, a campaign or product placement with a micro-influencer is less expensive. This allows businesses with more limited budgets to diversify their digital acquisition strategies.
   
   

8. Zero position, the Holy Grail of local SEO
   What is zero position?
   
   

Zero Position corresponds, in Google search results, to any information located above the first position in natural results (SEO) or "blue links", except Adwords links.

Definitions SEO, 2018

In short, it is the immediate response proposed by Google to the search terms used. The goal is to directly propose a response to the user, via knowledge graph, featured snippets (optimized excerpts from web pages), and structured data.

In the case of physical points of sale, one of the best ways to achieve this is to have complete Google establishment listings (description, services, hours, products,...), up-to-date and responding to reviews, in order to encourage users to click (and potentially move around).

Why carry out these actions?

Because Google takes into account during indirect searches (search for products or services, without mention of brand) and Google highlights product descriptions as well as customer reviews (and responses).

Conclusion

Consumer trends and social networks of 2022 (and 2023 predictions) are centered on consumer habits: a majority of internet users look for inspiration online before making a purchase, use their smartphone to search for businesses/products, are looking for added value (actions and ecology) and use many channels (social networks, search engines, GPS, TV, radio,...).

Preparing your 2023 local marketing strategy involves an omnichannel approach, coordinated between national and local levels, to highlight these updates and generate online and offline traffic.