Social Media Trends to Know for 2026

The social media landscape in 2025 shifted rapidly, keeping brands on their toes and requiring constant pivots and adjustments. As we look ahead to 2026, we’re carrying on what truly worked in social media marketing in 2025 while paying close attention to the behaviors, formats, and strategies that have naturally embedded themselves into our feeds and will shape the year ahead.

Across millions of impressions and engagements that we analyzed in 2025, distinct performance patterns emerged revealing not only what worked, but what will continue shaping social success in 2026.

Here are our top 5 social media predictions for 2026:

Video Is Still King (But It’s Evolved)
Community & Authenticity over Virality First
SEO & GEO Will Supercharge Social Search
Series-Based Content Takes the Lead
EGC (Employee-Generated Content) Gains Major Influence
Hot Mention: AI as a Creative + Strategic Tool

Top 5 Social Media Trends for 2026

1. Video Is Still King (But It’s Evolved)

Video continues to lead social media in 2026, but the way audiences consume it has fundamentally changed. With shorter attention spans and increasingly crowded feeds, users decide within seconds whether content is worth their time. As a result, video success is no longer about length or high production value. It is about capturing attention immediately and delivering value fast.

According to the 2025 State of Video report created by Wistia, video content that is under 1 minute long has an average engagement rate of 50%.

This shift has fueled the rise of micro clips.

Micro clips are short, impactful moments are designed to hook viewers within the first few seconds and keep them watching. Brands are breaking longer videos into snackable clips that highlight key moments, insights, or emotions, making content easier to consume and more likely to be watched through.

In many cases, these micro clips act as the entry point that pulls audiences into longer form content, series, or deeper brand storytelling.

2. Community & Authenticity Over Virality First

Going viral is no longer the ultimate goal. In 2026, we will have a shift towards creating community and authenticity first. With the intent to connect and reach audiences, the “virality” will come hand in hand but it is not how we are leading our content creation concepts and goals. Platforms are prioritizing and focusing on metrics that give us more information than views. They are pushing content that drives conversation, saves, and shares.

Given this new focus on connection, brands that participate in two-way engagement and communication will ultimately be winners in the social space.

Social media community engagement entails:

Responding to comments
Encouraging dialogue
Creating content that feels inclusive rather than promotional

Just like in real life, social relationships are still built on loyalty and trust. The time for active followers outweighs the passive ones and social strategies should be catering to this for the foreseeable future.

3. SEO & GEO Will Supercharge Social Search

In a space where AI is increasingly integrated into social platforms and audiences expect to find answers with just a click, SEO (Search Engine Optimization) and GEO (Generative Engine Optimization) are becoming important partners. Social platforms are no longer just places to scroll. They are now powerful search engines where users actively look for information, recommendations, and solutions.

Because of this shift, content in 2026 needs to be created with discoverability in mind.

To strengthen your discoverability across search and AI platforms, here’s how to optimize your social content for social search and GEO (Generative Engine Optimization):

Writing intentional, audience‑first captions that clarify context.
Using clear, natural language that matches how people actually search and speak.
Lead with expertise in the opening sentence.
Keep visuals and text aligned, since AI increasingly scans on-screen text and thumbnails for context.
Incorporating relevant keywords and key phrases without sounding forced or robotic.
Being mindful of spoken phrases within videos, since AI search listens and indexes audio for context.

Brands that understand how their audiences search on social media will have a significant advantage when it comes to long term visibility, engagement, and growth.

4. Series-Based Content Takes the Lead

Constant change and unpredictability have become part of the everyday reality in the social media space. Algorithms shift, trends move fast, and what works one month may look completely different the next. To create more consistency and a sense of stability, brands are increasingly leaning into series content.

Recurring content formats gives audiences something familiar to come back to, while also helping brands build momentum over time. It is a more sustainable approach than relying on one off viral posts that may spark short bursts of attention but are hard to replicate.

By focusing on repeatable formats and ongoing storytelling, brands can stay present, relevant, and connected even as the social landscape continues to evolve.

Take quick-service restaurant Skyline’s “Guess That Skyline” series. The brand shares a restaurant exterior and asks fans to identify the location. It’s simple but highly effective at driving participation, tapping into fan culture, and sparking comments filled with personal stories. One quick post becomes a shared community moment.

Bilt, a rewards program that lets renters earn points for paying rent, provides another great example with Roomies, a short film series about the chaos and emotion of finding roommates in New York City. It’s not directly tied to Bilt’s core offering, but that’s what makes it work. By focusing on relatable, entertaining storytelling instead of promotion, the series feels authentic, connects naturally to their audience’s real experiences, and keeps people coming back.

5. EGC (Employee-Generated Content) Gains Major Influence

Employee-generated (EGC) content continues to gain momentum in both B2B and B2C spaces as audiences increasingly value authenticity and transparency from every part of a brand.

EGC (Employee-Generated Content) can take many forms such as:

Day-in-the-life videos
Behind-the-scenes moments
Personal perspectives/career journeys

Why is EGC effective? In short, employee-generated content gives audiences an insider view they can’t get from polished brand channels alone. These employee stories add a layer of humanity that brand accounts alone cannot replicate, helping brands feel more relatable, credible, and trustworthy. Consistent employee content also helps platforms classify and surface your brand more accurately.

Hot Mention: AI as a Creative + Strategic Tool

AI is reshaping both the creative and operational sides of social media marketing: how content is created, distributed, and experienced on social media.

AI is increasingly helping platforms customize individual user feeds based on behavior, interests, and engagement, making it more important than ever for brands to create content that feels relevant and intentional.

From a brand perspective, AI is also becoming a powerful tool to streamline social processes, improve efficiency, and reduce time spent on manual or repetitive tasks. By supporting areas like content planning, optimization, and performance insights, AI for content tools allow teams to spend less time on technical execution and more time focused on creativity, storytelling, and building meaningful connections with their audiences.

What’s Next for Social Media Strategy in 2026

As we continue to move into 2026, social media success will be defined by adaptability, intention, and connection. While platforms and formats will continue to evolve, brands that win will focus less on chasing viral moments and more on showing up consistently with content that feels human and meaningful. By prioritizing trust, creativity, and an audience first approach, brands can build social strategies that not only stay relevant but continue to grow and evolve in the year ahead.

At Brandience, we're a nimble advertising agency and prepared to adapt so our clients can make a meaningful impact on social. Whether you are strengthening your 2026 strategy or starting fresh, we partner with you to build thoughtful, effective social media strategies designed to grow with your brand.