Social Media Landscape: 2024 Update
As the new school year begins, the landscape for 2024-25 presents both fresh challenges and exciting opportunities for school marketers. With evolving platforms, shifting user demographics, and the rise of new platforms, staying ahead of the curve is crucial to delivering effective content to your audience.
In this blog, we’ll examine updates across key channels and make predictions for the upcoming school year.
X (formerly Twitter)
Despite its recent rebranding, X remains an important player in the social media landscape. According to Elon Musk, the platform boasts 600 million monthly active users, with half using it daily.
Notable new features include making "likes" private, providing users with more privacy regarding their interests. Additionally, X has introduced “Ads Academy”, a platform designed to help users create effective ad campaigns. However, despite this new feature, X is not recommended as a primary advertising platform compared to Facebook and LinkedIn.
X has also updated its policies on adult content, explicitly allowing sexual content, which has led several brands, including Disney, to pull their advertising due to concerns over hate speech. With these new policies, more advertisers are expected to follow suit. For schools, this poses a risk as your content may appear alongside NSFW content. We recommend using other platforms, such as Instagram or Facebook, as your primary network over X. While X has 600 million monthly active users (according to Musk), these users may no longer align with your audience.
Threads
X’s direct competitor, Threads, has been actively working to grow its user base and now boasts over 200 million active users. A significant new addition is the long-awaited API, which allows for website integration, scheduling, and reporting. We expect this to be a valuable feature for third-party tools.
Another useful update is the ability to cross-post on Threads via Facebook and Instagram, which can save a lot of time. Threads is also releasing features similar to X, such as "Columns" (similar to X’s TweetDeck, now called X Pro), which allows users to view multiple feeds simultaneously. Importantly, Threads' version is free.
As the year progresses, we anticipate Threads will continue adding features similar to those on X and Instagram. They are already testing disappearing posts, a function similar to Instagram Stories.
Instagram remains a crucial platform for schools, with an audience of 2 billion users. A key update this year is the expansion of Instagram carousels. Previously limited to 10 images and videos, users can now add up to 20, making Instagram more comparable to platforms like Flickr and SmugMug for album-length posts. However, Flickr and SmugMug remain better choices for sharing large volumes of images due to their embedding functionalities.
Another new feature on Instagram is the ability to leave notes directly on posts. Only followers you follow back can see these notes, which are visible for up to three days and only accessible through the app. Instagram is also gradually introducing several AI-powered features, including chatbots and backdrop stickers in Stories.
TikTok
TikTok’s major news involves its ongoing legal battle with the United States. A new law, signed by President Biden, gives ByteDance, TikTok's parent company, until April 24, 2025, to sell the platform or face a complete ban in the U.S. ByteDance has filed a lawsuit to overturn this decision, and the outcome remains uncertain.
Despite its uncertain future, TikTok continues to release new features. These include longer videos, now up to 60 minutes, and the option to watch videos in landscape mode, no longer limiting users to portrait view. TikTok has also introduced custom thumbnails for videos. These updates signal TikTok's plan to become more multi-dimensional, beyond its reputation for short-form videos. Like Instagram, TikTok is also experimenting with AI, introducing a chatbot called “Genie”.
Relevant Blog: How Should I Use TikTok for School Marketing Communications?
YouTube
YouTube has not seen many major updates this year, though it has followed the trend of adding AI features. One notable update is the introduction of an AI-powered tool to remove copyrighted music easily. Additionally, YouTube plans to roll out A/B testing for thumbnails, a useful feature for content creators.
Issuu
The big update for Issuu is the introduction of a new API, although it's only available through their Premium plan, which costs £31/$44 per month. This API allows schools to integrate flipbooks into their websites. While this doesn’t affect the embedding of publications, the Starter plan is required for embedding flipbooks on a website.
Relevant Blog: How Should I Use Issuu for School Marketing Communications?
Facebook, the last platform in the Meta ecosystem, hasn’t had many updates this year, but it remains the most used platform with over 3 billion users. As mentioned earlier, Facebook now allows cross-posting to Threads. A key change to note is the additional 30% Apple service fee when boosting posts via the Instagram or Facebook app on an iOS device. To avoid this fee, boost posts through a desktop or mobile web browser.
LinkedIn has made a few notable changes, including a shortcut to access collaborative articles. They are also testing a Premium Company Page subscription, which will include AI tools for writing content and more.
Relevant Blog: How Should I Use LinkedIn for School Marketing Communications?
Emerging Platforms
Several new platforms have emerged this year, capturing users' attention.
BlueSky, a text-based storytelling platform created by one of Twitter’s founders, could become a key competitor as X allows more uncensored content. Similar to Threads, Mastodon is a platform that links to the Fediverse, with community-driven content and the ability to create your own servers.
CoverStar has gained popularity, branding itself as “The Safe TikTok Alternative”. The platform emphasizes creating a positive environment and highlights its status as a U.S.-based company focused on data protection. While still new, it’s worth keeping an eye on, especially for schools in the U.S. if TikTok is banned.
More niche platforms which may also pay a role in your social strategy:
Telegram
TenTen
AirChat
YikYak
Summary
As the 2024-25 school year begins, the digital marketing landscape presents both challenges and opportunities for school marketers. Major social media platforms like X, Instagram, and TikTok are evolving with new features and shifting user behaviour. While X remains a key player with 600 million monthly users, concerns over adult content and hate speech have led many advertisers to pull out.
Social platforms continue to evolve, and the key trend is the increasing integration of AI features. Although AI is still in its early stages, it will continue to shape how users and creators interact with these platforms as it becomes more refined.
If you'd like to learn more about the storytelling support we offer at Interactive Schools, feel free to reach out and book a demo.
Additionally, if you missed our recent webinar on the Social Media Landscape for 2024, you can request a recording. We’d love to help your school stay ahead in this rapidly changing digital environment!