As this year comes to a close, we reflect on the good, bad, and the ugly of social media content. Because we are feeling a bit nostalgic, we took a look at the social media trends of 2017 to see what worked, what didn’t, and what to expect from 2018. Below is a breakdown of social media trends as told by classic high school superlatives.

The Prom King: Video Content

• Spending on social media video grew 130 percent in 2017 and does not show signs of stopping. Telling a compelling story is extremely important on social, and is the perfect way to stand out and increase engagement. As platforms optimize for video performance (looking at you Instagram Stories), brands built campaigns around engaging video. Video ads proved worthwhile, as they generate higher engagement and more click-throughs than traditional static advertisements.

The New, Mysterious, Cool Kid On The Block: Augmented Reality

• You don’t know much about them, but the more you learn, the more you’re intrigued. Augmented reality is rolling out on gaming and social media experiences, and is a key technology to look out for next year. Snapchat and Instagram are working on filters that bring products to life, and Google Pixel recently released a video where users are a part of their very own Star Wars by using AR stickers. Keep an eye out, you never know what the next move will be with AR.

The Class President With The Winning Resume: Influencers

• The cool girls and boys that are the envy of the entire class. If they have it, we want it. This is why influencer marketing is proven statistically to work. They build trust with their engaged audience through high-quality content and messaging that resonates. Because of their loyal fan base, sponsored posts are beneficial for both the brand and the influencer.

The Freshman Being Scouted for A Scholarship: Gen Z

• Studies show that Gen Z is more important than millennials when it comes to purchasing power and value to organizations. Brands are taking these findings and changing their social strategies to focus on Snapchat and Instagram, the #1 picks in this crowd.

The Tech Nerd: Mobile Optimization

• Connecting to 10 devices at once is the new normal. Now, phone calls are one small capability of smartphones. If your company is not optimizing websites and social media strategies for mobile, you won’t see the results and sales goals you want to achieve.

The Yearbook Committee: Personalized and Thoughtful Content

• Simply producing beautiful content does not cut it anymore. Now, brands are focused on personalized strategies and look at purchasing behaviors and interests to target users.

The Struggling C Student: Twitter

• 2017 was rough for the platform, and if they want to get back in the game, they have to innovative.

Class Clowns: Moon Pies Twitter Account

• The quirky ones who you feel uneasy about, but you can always rely on them for a good laugh. Twitter might be a C student, but Moon Pies gave us faith in their next semester.
  

The High School Dropouts

• There were a few social media fails this year to say the least. Check some of them out here.