Stay ahead of the curve and future-proof your business with Mintel’s UK Social Media: Engaging with Brands Market Report 2024. Our full report is packed with consumer-led market intelligence, the latest UK social media market research, trends and consumer behaviours affecting your business.
Topics Analysed in this Report
- Trends in the use of the major social media platforms.
- Key launches by the major social media platforms.
- Exploration of who follows brands on major social media platforms.
- Types of social media adverts people are most likely to click on.
- Interest in using the major social media platforms for researching purchases.
- Interest in using AI on social media during the purchase journey.
- Attitudes towards AI use in advertising.
UK Social Media Market Overview
Improving financial confidence has created better conditions for advertising and social commerce, with people more likely to make purchases from social media. The spread of AI misinformation on social media has been particularly challenging for smaller brands, with consumers doubtful over whether to believe what they are see.
- Consumer attitudes: 38% of consumers believe that AI will have a positive impact on their lives.
Opportunities for Brands in the UK Social Media Market
Be upfront about AI advertising
It will be crucial for brands to be upfront about the use of AI and fully labelling an AI advert. The best way to avoid criticism will be to provide reasoning behind the purpose of using AI, such as creativity, storytelling, and imagery that wouldn’t be possible without the technology.
- UK social media market consumer behaviour: 53% of social media users are worried about brands/companies using AI in social media advertising
Personalised and controlled adverts
Some platforms offer quite a lot of control over adverts. YouTube, for example, enables people to select which topics they want to see more of, as well as the brands they want to block. Social media can captialise on this trend by offering consumers the chance to select topics they want more of and connecting appropriate brands to consumers.
- UK social media market statistics: 50% of social media users want to select the advert topics they are shown on social media.
Purchase our UK Social Media: Engaging with Brands Report to receive a five-year forecast, consumer behaviour analysis, and recommendations for market opportunities. Readers of this report may also be interested in our UK Social Media: Influencers Market Report 2024, or our range of Social Media Market Research.
Brands Featured in the Full Report
TikTok, YouTube, Instagram, Pintrest, Netflix, Snapchat, Threads, Twitch, and many more.
Additional Features Included with Your Purchase
- Interactive Databook: Each Databook is provided as an interactive website where you can deep dive into our consumer research data on your chosen topic so you can draw your own conclusions.
- Consumer Confidence Tracker: Our Trackers paint the picture of the economic confidence and major concerns of up to 40 different demographics, tracking changes in attitudes over time.
- Custom PowerPoints: Incorporate our consumer research data into your own work so you can win over your clients and stakeholders. Select insights from your report to create a custom presentation that is ready to download in minutes.
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- Mintel’s Clients Portal: Our portal provides instant access to actionable analysis, podcasts, and trend pieces relevant to your industry that are published almost daily, as well as our annual Global Consumer Trends. You can also browse our extensive catalogue of market research reports.
Expert Insights from a Media Analyst
This report, written by Rebecca McGrath, a leading research analyst, delivers in-depth commentary and analysis to highlight trends in the online grocery market and add expert context to the numbers.
The development of AI will breed more mistrust online, something brands need to account for in their approach towards social media advertising.
Rebecca McGrath
Associate Director for Media and Technology
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Executive Summary
- Opportunities for brands on social media
- Be upfront about AI advertising and emphasise authenticity
- Tailor the conversational aspect of AI chatbots to the individual
- Give users more control over social media advertising
- Market dynamics and outlook
- Market predictions
- People are mixed on AI
- Graph 1: think AI will have a positive impact on their life, by generation, 2024
- What consumers want and why
- Recognise the value of YouTube Shorts
- Social media chatbots can be a key purchase research tool
- Benefit from being an early brand on Threads
- Capitalise on TikTok Shop
- Intrigue for VR/AR social media is there
- Click to message ads offer growing opportunity
- Graph 2: clicked on a click to message ad on social media, 2024
- Innovation
- Prepare for Sora: the next stage of GenAI
- Gen AI will offer new element to product search on social media
- TikTok Notes offers new advertising opportunities
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Market Dynamics
- Macroeconomic factors
- Consumer sentiment: the recovery is continuing…
- Graph 3: the financial wellbeing index, 2016-23
- …and people feel more confident about their financial prospects
- Graph 4: the financial confidence index, 2016-23
- Growing financial confidence will boost social commerce opportunities
- Social, environmental and legal factors
- People are mixed on AI
- Graph 5: think AI will have a positive impact on their life, 2024
- Implications of a potential US TikTok ban
- Online Safety Bill becomes law potentially making social media more brand safe
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What Consumers Want and Why
- Use of social media
- Instagram’s growth continues
- Graph 6: usage of top social media platforms in the last three months, 2019-24
- Instagram’s value to brands still growing
- Threads popularity reaches Twitch levels
- Graph 7: use of social media platforms in the last three months, by 16-34s, 2024
- Threads needs to commit to real-time
- X’s new paywall will be a barrier to growth but could get people accustomed to paying via the app
- Recognise the value of YouTube Shorts
- Snapchat’s move to permanence could broaden its appeal
- Follow brand on social media
- Consumers are becoming more inclined to follow brands on social media
- Graph 8: follow brand on social media platform, 2023-24
- Smaller brands should utilise Meta verified
- Benefit from being an early brand on Threads
- Social media advertising
- Adopt a diversified approach to advertising on social media
- Graph 9: type of advert clicked on the most when using social media in the last three months, 2024
- Posts are the most important way to reach young people
- Graph 10: type of advert clicked on the most when using social media in the last three months, by age, 2024
- Longer TikTok videos will provide more opportunities for mid-roll ads
- Social media for purchasing research
- Most people are using social media to research potential purchases
- Graph 11: social media platform most likely to be used to research a potential purchase, by 16-24s, 2024
- Getting creators to try products is crucial
- Instagram is popular platform for product research among young women
- Gen AI will offer new element to product search on social media
- Social media chatbots can be a key purchase research tool
- Graph 12: functions would use generative AI chatbot for on social media, 2024
- Target Younger Millennials with AI-powered shopping features
- Graph 13: would use generative AI chatbot for on social media, 2024
- X and Snapchat need to assert their place in the purchase journey
- Attitudes towards AI and social media
- Transparency is crucial with AI advertising
- Graph 14: attitudes towards AI on social media, 2024
- Be upfront about when AI was used and prepare for pushback
- Trivago uses AI to improve campaign efficiency
- Coca-Cola uses AI to engage users
- Putting authenticity front and centre
- Young adults are wary of AI advertising
- Using AI to highlight authenticity of the product
- Established brands will be able to capitalise on an erosion of trust
- Tailor conversational aspects of chatbots for different users
- Graph 15: want AI chatbots on social media to be more conversational (ie imitate a chat with a real person), by gender and age, 2024
- Alternate realities and social media
- There is a market for VR/AR social media
- Graph 16: attitudes towards alternative reality features on social media, 2024
- Intrigue for VR/AR social media is there ahead of Vision Pro UK launch but old barriers remain
- Branded AR filters popular among Threads, Snapchat and Twitch user
- Brands should be using AR filters
- Impact of social media advertising
- Social media advertising needs to be priority for TV show/film promotion
- Graph 17: impact of adverts on social media, 2024
- Utilising UGC helps make shows/films must watch and engages fans
- Netflix ad for Wednesday goes viral
- AI character chatbots can boost fan investment
- Social media adverts most likely to inspire young men to make spontaneous purchase
- Capitalise on TikTok Shop
- Click to message ads offer growing opportunity
- Give users more control over social media advertising
- Graph 18: advertising preferences on social media, 2024
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Innovation And Marketing Trends
- Competitive strategies
- Ad-free social media to be greater part of landscape
- Meta’s shift away from politics could makes its platforms more brandsafe
- Platforms step up efforts to label AI
- Launch activity and innovation
- Sora shows platforms and advertisers need to be ready for the next stage of gen AI
- OpenAI unveils text-to-video tool Sora
- Bluesky goes public, offering a potential new advertising opportunity
- YouTube steps up efforts to tackle ad blockers
- New advertising opportunity to be offered by TikTok Notes
- TikTok Shop adds new elements as focus on shopping ramps up
- Pinterest launches shoppable streaming series
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Appendix
- Report scope and definitions
- Market definition
- Abbreviations and terms
- Methodology
- Consumer research methodology
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