Who Dares to Take On the Big 6? Emerging Social Advertising Platforms in 2023

11 October 2022 | Gina McGurk – Paid Social Executive at Tag Digital

If you’re a millennial, you’ll probably remember platforms like Bebo and MySpace. Then somewhere along the lines, we all switched over to Facebook and Twitter. Suddenly, Bebo and MySpace became nostalgic memories of the early 2000s.

Between 2010 to 2012, Instagram and Snapchat emerged, becoming the new hype and inventing the concept of the “selfie”. What are the emerging platforms in 2023?

In-between and not long after these established platforms emerged, we saw many rise and flop. Fast forward to 2016, TikTok emerges and it’s written off by many as an app for 18-24s.

2022 statistics show that 42% of TikTok’s audience is 30+. Millennials are 2.3x more likely to create a post and tag a brand, and 79% are likely to follow (TikTok for Business Insights). Showing the importance of looking for potential opportunities to stay ahead of the game with emerging platforms. 

Top 6 Most Used Social Media Platforms Worldwide:

Let’s take a look at which emerging platforms are potentially ones to watch for new ways of marketing in 2023. 

BeReal

Debuting in 2020 as a response to overly curated content capitalising on the desire for authenticity. Differing from existing platforms, BeReal chooses when you post by notifying users every day at a different time. Prompting users to capture a photo with both front and back cameras and share the photo within a two-minute window.

The concept is that you have to post before viewing anyone else’s photos makes the app unique and creates a sense of FOMO. There is a “my friends” and a “discovery” tab allowing users to explore everyone using the app and keep their posts to their select group.

BeReal is a combination between Snapchat and Instagram, with no filters or edits. The app does not (yet) offer advertising options but its popularity is rapidly increasing, with a 315% increase in downloads since the start of the year.

Brands have already started to show interest with fast-casual Mexican chain, Chipotle, joining in April this year and posting daily exclusive offers and discounts. It could become the new way to share behind-the-scenes content or promote early bird tickets and last-chance discounts. 

Supernova Social Network

Hitting the market in 2021 with a similar look and feel to Instagram but branded as the “ethical alternative”. With a unique selling point of no hate speech or politics, and 3 strikes and you’re out rules. Supernova claims to donate 60% of advertising revenue to charity with users being able to regularly check the amount raised.

Users can post both photo and video content, join or create interest groups and explore other user’s content on the “explorer” page. Although there isn’t an advertising dashboard yet, there are ads on the app.

However, in their app guidelines, it appears they have a team of account managers who would suggest advertising requests be submitted manually via phone or email – but it’s not entirely clear.

With continued app development, it could potentially take off and be a great platform for those looking to target ethical and environmentally conscious consumers. For charity event marketers, this app has the potential to promote your charity whilst in turn helping raise money for other charities and causes. 

Polywork

Dubbed the app trying to take on LinkedIn and is being heavily backed by investors with a $28 million investment just last month. Polywork is essentially the freelancer marketplace Fiverr meets LinkedIn.

The concept is to become a network for collaboration opportunities rather than full-time opportunities. Capitalising on the emerging “side-hustle” culture and becoming the new professional networking platform.

Similar to Clubhouse, it’s currently an invite-only platform with its existing audience being made up of tech and marketing professionals. Currently, there aren’t any paid advertising options but users are using the platform to network.

Promoting webinars and podcasts is a great use for this platform and posting job opportunities. 35.74% of users are millennials and the majority are working in tech and marketing (SimilarWeb). From a marketing perspective, it could become a B2B channel for tech events advertisers.

With established platforms having the resources to rapidly introduce new tech features, will these emerging platforms succeed? 

If you are interested in learning more about the latest digital innovations, get in touch today.