Social media is mutating. We scroll with more suspicion now. We know when a post is bait. We recognise an AI caption from ten miles off. We’ve seen enough Threads to knit a jumper.
But we’re still here – still scrolling, still posting, still playing the game. The vibe in 2025? A bit more jaded, a bit more clever, a bit more intentional.
These are the shifts we’re actually seeing – not just what’s trending on marketing LinkedIn, but what people are feeling when they use social media this year.
The algorithm is not your mate anymore
Gone are the days of platforms pretending to care about creators. Engagement’s harder to earn, reach is throttled, and TikTok seems to change its mind every Tuesday. So creators and brands are finally asking: what do we actually get out of this?
In response, we’re seeing:
- A return to owned channels (email, Discord, Substack)
- People screenshotting newsletters and putting them on socials instead
- More “here’s the full thing” carousels and captions – because clicks are dead
- A refusal to play the content farm game
Social media is still a great playground. But it’s no longer home base. That shift matters.
Your move: Don’t just create for the algorithm. Create for the archive. Think long-term value, not likes.
Less polish, more personal
We’ve been here before. But it keeps getting truer. The perfect grid is giving way to blurry photos, voice notes, and videos filmed in the back of an Uber.
Users don’t just want authenticity – they want personality. They want to hear your voice, not your content strategy.
Expect to see:
- Managing Directors on camera, even if they hate it (we’re looking at you, Jake!)
- Team members doing Q&As in stories
- Unscripted captions that actually sound like how people speak
- TikToks that feel like FaceTimes
The days of pretending to be Vogue on a £500/month budget are over. Be human, be weird, be honest.
Your move: Stop sounding like a brand. Start sounding like a person people might go for a coffee with.
AI content is boring now
We get it. It can write a caption. It can “ideate.” It can churn out carousels like a possessed Canva intern. But here’s the thing: people can feel it. AI content often has all the right words and none of the soul.
In 2025, AI isn’t impressive. It’s expected. So if you’re using it, the real creativity lies in what you do next.
We’re seeing:
- People proudly showing the unedited AI output as part of the joke
- Creators writing ‘this post was written by a robot’ to reset expectations
- Posts about the AI process, not hiding it
Your move: Don’t rely on AI to say something interesting. Rely on it to get the boring bits out of the way so you can.
Feed fatigue is real
We’re not just burned out – we’re oversaturated. Every scroll, another drop, another ‘this thing changed my life’, or ‘run, don’t walk to [insert whatever online store you’re thinking of’. The dopamine hits aren’t quite hitting. Scrollers are starting to tap out.
So what’s working in 2025? Quiet value. Clear emotion. Calm storytelling.
Things that are cutting through:
- Single, unfiltered photos with honest captions
- Soft, slow, sensory videos with no voiceover
- Creators saying “I don’t know what to post”… and posting anyway
- Brands leaving space – not every moment needs a meme
Your move: Treat your feed like a breath out, not a pitch deck. If you don’t have something useful, honest or valuable to say, say nothing.
Micro is the new macro (again)
This has been said for years, but now it’s more evident than ever. Social in 2025 is about small, loyal audiences who actually care – not inflated follow counts or viral roulette.
More creators are:
- Starting private communities
- Monetising with 1,000 true fans, not 100,000 silent ones
- Saying “no” to brand deals that don’t feel aligned
And more brands are:
- Building in public with 500 engaged people rather than 5,000 ghosts
- Collaborating with micro-influencers who actually use the product
- Thinking in depth, not reach
Your move: Don’t chase ‘growth’. Chase resonance. You don’t need everyone – just the right ones.
Final thoughts: Social is still fun (if you let it be)
Yes, the platforms are trickier. The algorithm’s fickle. AI’s flattening everything. But 2025 isn’t the death of social – it’s a return to why we used it in the first place.
To talk, to laugh, to share weird little thoughts and to build something real.
If you’re tired of shouting into the void, we get it. We’ve been there. But if you’re ready to find your voice again – and actually enjoy the process – we’d love to help.
Fancy a BeyondHorizon audit on your socials? They help. And they’re not written by robots.