Social Media Updates and Trends to Watch Out for in 2025

Instagram (and by extension, Meta) is always adding new features into their beta program, meaning that some accounts will get access to features months before others do (with seemingly no rhyme or reason as to who gets access at what time.) Due to this, a feature that might be old news to you might be brand new (or not yet available) for someone else, leading to very different capabilities and experiences using the app - putting some at a disadvantage, and others at more of an advantage.

20 Photo Limit Increase to Carousels

Instagram’s extended limitation of how many photos you can post in a carousel has been increased from 10 to 20 for quite some time, but it’s a feature that some accounts are still just gaining access to. (Some accounts can only do it if they collaborate with another account that has that option available.) Expect this to become more widespread throughout the year, and become the norm. (That’s not to say that posting a 20 long photo dump is what your business needs to be doing with every Instagram post, but that’s another conversation!)

Ability to Add Collaborators

Instagram is finally rolling out their “add collaborators” feature for more than just Reels. While accounts have been able to invite other accounts to collaborate for some time now on both Reels and regular Feed posts, the option to add a collaborator after posting has been reserved for Reels, and select accounts that Instagram allowed to use the feature in its beta form. This is now being rolled out to more accounts, which is good news for you! You can even go back and add collaborators to posts that you made prior to gaining access to this feature as well.

How you can utilize this: This is an opportunity for you to cross-post to your partner accounts without having to create a brand new post. It also allows you to lighten the load of another social media team (and to have control over the content that would go on another account that’s attached to your brand) by making their job easier, and gives you access to a new audience without having to do extra work.

Instagram Broadcast Channels

You may already be familiar with broadcast channels, as they started rolling out last year - however, many accounts still don’t have access to them. A broadcast channel is a one-way messaging system that allows your account to send direct messages to your audience. Users can opt-in to your broadcast channel to receive your messages, and can react to them with emojis and participate in polls. You need to have your account set up as a professional account to be eligible for one.

How you can utilize this: This can be a great way to preview upcoming projects, reach your most loyal audience, or get more engagement on your posts if you send it to your channel.

Instagram Story Fonts and Text Animations

Another feature that has been steadily rolled out are new fonts and text animation on Instagram Stories. For many accounts, there are now a wider range of font options, as well as the introduction of animation options, such as sparkle, neon, shimmer, and pixel.

How you can utilize this: The new fonts and animations give a newer, sleeker feel to your Story posts. The old fonts have been around for so long, they look static. These updated fonts give a fresher, professional look, and the visual difference can have people paying more attention than they otherwise would have.

Ability to Follow Instagram Hashtags

The option to follow Instagram hashtags is being left in 2024. Back when Instagram first started, hashtags were a great way for your account to gain visibility and impressions. This is not to say that the hashtags are useless now, but Instagram’s goal is to limit hashtag spammers - those who target trending hashtags with irrelevant posts.

Your Explore page and search results will still be afflicted with this hashtag pollution, so depending on your viewpoint (or the hashtags you were following), this change might not be beneficial to you at all.

If a user followed a hashtag, they would see the posts that used that hashtag show up in their feed, in the same way that posts from another user they follow show up in their feed.

The official explanation for the decision to take this away is to combat spam and improve content relevance. However, by taking away the ability to follow hashtags, Instagram is eliminating a feature that many used to tailor their feed to see the content that they wanted already - and arguably isn’t doing anything to prevent people (or bot accounts) from spamming hashtags. If a hashtag would get spammed with irrelevant content, users could always just unfollow the hashtag, at least until Instagram made the decision to take that option away. Which begs the question: Is Meta's priority to eliminate spam, or to have more control over which content you see in your feed?

Our suggestion: Users should view new “features” with a bit of skepticism, whether it be on a Meta app or elsewhere. Maybe Meta does know what you want better than you do yourself, and you enjoy the convenience of getting sent content, ad or otherwise, that aligns with your interests. Maybe it’s just a way to continue serving you more ads and prioritizing the content they want you to see. Personally, we don’t think Meta has earned the benefit of the doubt there.

Instagram’s Grid Feed Dimensions Have Changed

Square posts on Instagram are so 2024. Instagram’s new update has changed the normal square grid feed to a more vertical image (4:5 aspect ratio). It’s important to know that the image that people will see in their feed is a bit narrower than the image itself, so make sure that you aren’t putting text or any other information too close to the sides. If a user’s feed is not updated, they’ll still see the old square dimensions, so to be safe, it’s best practice to put your information in the center of the image.

The size for Reel covers (1080x1920) has stayed the same, and will show up the same in your Reels tab. However, if you’re sharing your Reel to your main feed, it will be in the new ratio when viewed there. Previous posts on your feed will also be adjusted accordingly. Most should still look okay, except for if you have any banners that you spread out over multiple posts to create a larger image when someone is looking at your overall profile grid.

How you can utilize this: Depending on who you ask, this change is more of a hindrance than an asset. We recommend making sure that moving forward, all of your static posts should now be 1080x1350.

Meta’s Fact Checking System Restructuring

Mark Zuckerberg has also announced that Meta (which includes Instagram, Facebook, and Threads) will be getting rid of their fact checkers and will instead be mostly relying on a system similar to X’s community notes, which require users to add context to the posts of other users.

Zuckerberg also cites issues with too much censorship as a reason for this switch. It’s understandable that no system can be perfect in filtering out information, however by his own admission, Zuckerberg added the caveat that this new system will mean they will not be able to catch as much ‘bad stuff’ as the previous fact checking system - how that will impact the way that users navigate the platforms moving forward remains to be seen.

From our perspective, this new and “improved” way of managing user generated content on Instagram (and Facebook) leaves the door open for more harmful and damaging content on the platform. Zuckerberg’s new approach appears to be prioritizing ‘freedom of speech’ over the safety of its users, which calls Meta’s priorities into question. Does this new approach provide a better “free-er” user experience, or will it fill the site with even more junk and turn away users? Maybe objectionable content drives engagement, and dollars are more of a priority to Meta, and that’s all there is to it. Time will tell.

What do these changes to Meta mean for me and my business?

At best, Instagram is just trying – and quite often, failing – to improve their app in the way that users actually want. At worst, they’re trying to slowly give you the least amount of control over your feed as possible, and distract you with cosmetic changes. Advertisers - you can decide with your dollars which one it is.

If your business has a hashtag that you use to see posts all in one place (and track UGC), you’ll need to go through a few extra steps to monitor it.

LinkedIn is rolling out new features as well, including AI-powered profile suggestions (rolled out last fall) and personalized cover stories. These cover stories are short videos (maximum of 30 seconds) that can only be made on the mobile app. When users click on your profile, they will see a three second preview - this will be available to your connections only, or all users, depending on how you have your privacy settings adjusted. (For more tips on how to create a great personalized profile video, check out this guide from Sky Society.)

How you can utilize this: Even if you aren’t making a cover video to appeal to potential employers, this can be a great way for potential clients or customers to get to know more about you when they’re doing research on your company.

X has recently added a feature on their platform that allows their AI to use everyone’s content to train their AI, Grok. This feature is turned on for all accounts unless you (and your business) choose to opt-out in settings and privacy.

In the interest of full transparency, Lightswitch Video has made the switch from X (formerly Twitter) to BlueSky. After weighing the risks and benefits of remaining active on the platform, we’ve decided to remove ourselves from the toxic online environment that has begun to thrive on X.

With the constant rumors of X (formerly Twitter) shutting down, or the addition of features that users think hinder the app instead of improve it, the last quarter of 2024 saw many people migrating to BlueSky, an app similar to X (the interface is very intuitive for those familiar with X).

So, which is a better choice for you and your business? Nothing is stopping you from continuing to post on both, but we thought it would be worth highlighting a few reasons some people prefer BlueSky. At the very least, it’s a good idea to claim your preferred username now while it’s still available, in case you ever decide to make the switch at a later time.

BlueSky is still new - while that can be a detriment in some ways, it also can be an advantage. For example, in recent years, there have been a lot of bot accounts added to X, as well as a lot of people leaving the platform. While it can be scary to start from scratch at zero followers (and therefore, zero engagement) on a new platform, you need to weigh the pros and cons for yourself. You might gain a lower follower number overall on BlueSky, but your engagement and interactions might be more meaningful and create more business opportunities. X’s algorithm suppresses outside links, which BlueSky does not do. This may make BlueSky a better platform for linking out to your other social accounts, YouTube videos, website, etc. BlueSky - for the time being - has fewer bots than X, meaning more of your followers will be real people who are (hopefully) excited about using a new app and haven’t let their accounts become inactive.

Unless you’re a brand new business, you’ve probably had an account on Twitter for years. Starting over on a brand new platform can allow you to get in on the ground level, so to speak, and grow and learn alongside a platform that we really haven’t seen in a big way since TikTok, which already rose to prominence over half a decade ago. Migrating some users from other platforms can help as well, but building a new (and hopefully improved) community on a new platform is not only a challenge, but can be a great opportunity – and you just might connect with your target audience quicker than you did on the other platforms.

(You can find us on BlueSky at lightswitchvideo.bskysocial - we’d love to connect on there!)

How you can utilize this: You can build your community from the ground up, and have more control over crafting your audience than you have on competitors’ platforms.

TikTok was set to be banned beginning on January 19th, barring a ruling in the opposite direction from the U.S. Supreme Court. As we all found out, everyone in the U.S. was unable to use the app at all when the ban began - but that’s where it got interesting.

The ban was set to go into effect on Sunday, January 19th, the final full day of the Biden Administration. Biden’s Administration made it clear that they would not be enforcing the ban. As TikTok users around the country counted down the hours until midnight, TikTok made the decision to lock all U.S. users out of the app – on Saturday night, hours before the 19th - the original deadline of the ban - took place.

Users attempting to use the app were presented with a popup first explaining the ban and later crediting the Trump Administration with its return.

In the week prior to the ban, a Chinese-language social media app called RedNote reached #1 on the US Apple app store. The app is essentially a carbon copy of TikTok (with the primary language being Mandarin), with its rise similar to how BlueSky skyrocketed in popularity in 2024. Since TikTok has unbanned itself, the hype around RedNote has waned, so the future of that migration remains to be seen.

If your business relies heavily on TikTok, we think it would be wise to hedge your bets and migrate as many followers from TikTok to your other social media channels, such as Instagram and YouTube. Instagram Reels are the most similar to TikTok, along with YouTube Shorts. Regardless of what continues to happen with it, both this year and beyond, it’s going to be interesting. We recommend making sure you have as many options when it comes to reaching your target audience as possible, and try to avoid solely relying on one platform. As we’ve seen, all of that hard work can be taken away (and then given back) whenever forces outside of your control decide to, so it’s smart to have safety nets in place.

What do these changes mean for me and my business?

Social media platforms are always making changes – some of those changes will improve their user experience, and others will damage it - the difficult decision is ultimately up to you how you want to navigate their offerings and ecosystems. At the end of the day, you need to figure out what works for you. Ask yourself questions like where is your audience, does this platform reach them, and does it align with your values? If it’s too much to decide on your own there are a multitude of expert marketing agencies who can guide you.

We wish we knew! Staying up to date is becoming a full time job, and it can feel impossible to keep track of the rapidly changing landscape, regardless of if you’re coming at it from the perspective of an advertiser, or simply as someone who uses social media. We’ve had to make multiple updates as we’ve been writing this - for example, the AI industry may have just entered into its next chapter where a new Chinese AI Deepseek might be toppling OpenAI’s dominance, so a shakeup may be coming with AI sooner than expected.

There are a wide variety of factors to consider, and only time will truly tell how all of these changes will have a ripple effect throughout the industry, and the impact they’ll have on your business (and personal) decisions. The only thing we can say for certain is that we should all prepare for a wild ride.