A brand new Instagram app. So many (too many?) AI-generated motion figures. Le Poisson Steve.

Not even midway by means of 2025, we’ve endured sufficient platform information and sudden content material developments to fill a minimum of three full 12 months calendars. Which is why at Sprout we’re consistently checking in with audiences and social entrepreneurs to know what’s touchdown in at the moment’s social panorama, what’s falling flat and whether or not manufacturers actually need to concern themselves with the newest type of mind rot.

Our current Q2 2025 Pulse Survey of over 2,000 social media customers throughout the US, UK and Australia dug into an array of points—from which rising platforms are piquing audiences consideration (and why) to what individuals actually suppose it means for manufacturers to be daring on social. Here’s what we discovered.

The rising platforms customers flip to and why

Between boycotts, bans and new entrants, the final couple years have created unprecedented ranges of community fragmentation. Greater than ever, social groups (and their leaders) are asking questions on which rising platforms they should prioritize and how you can allocate already restricted inside assets.

Sprout’s newest knowledge reveals that social customers are most keen to extend their time on community-based platforms like Reddit within the close to time period, extra so than nascent areas like Bluesky or Mastodon. No matter platform kind, Gen Z and Millennials are almost certainly to drive adoption. Male customers are additionally extra possible than feminine customers to wish to check these platforms.

However what’s pushing individuals into new territory? Throughout demographics, customers’ major motivation for attempting new platforms is after they already know individuals utilizing them—signaling a possible need to get away from sponsored content material and again to the essence of OG, human-to-human social. Gen Z is barely extra more likely to be swayed if influencers they like have already got a presence on these platforms.

A stunning twist on the non-public impacts of social media

Debates about social media’s affect on our wellbeing return so far as the unique networks themselves. Extra just lately, they’ve served as the premise for proposed social media age limits in sure areas. However throughout the board, our Pulse Survey respondents really feel the professionals of social far outweigh the cons.

Most customers (60%) say social has had a optimistic impact on their psychological well being over the past six months, in comparison with solely 18% who report a detrimental impact. Greater than half (53%) say it’s positively impacted their social lives, and 47% really feel it’s improved their monetary selections. There’s a motive “edutainment” continues to high the checklist of content material varieties audiences hunt down on social. Individuals wish to be taught one thing new, and so they need it delivered in a compelling method.

Throughout every of those areas, youthful generations are essentially the most optimistic. Slightly than understand social as a time suck, a magnet for impulse purchases or a solo exercise, Gen Z and Millennials are curating their feeds to develop into a welcome reprieve from troubling present occasions and mining platforms for a lot wanted monetary training (e.g., FinTok) and neighborhood bonding that’s additive to their in-person social circles.

How customers need manufacturers to point out up proper now

No day passes on this planet of social with out a new instance of manufacturers striving to be unhinged, or a marketer waxing poetic in regards to the significance of authenticity. However how does this line up with viewers expectations?

Our analysis reveals that customers understand “daring” manufacturers to be sincere and inspirational—extra so than fashionable, humorous or unfiltered.

Reinforcing our findings from The 2025 Sprout Social Index™, the businesses that stand out on social are these which might be upfront about their merchandise, companies and what they stand for. So it’s unsurprising that the #1 factor audiences would name out manufacturers for is being unethical—extra so than their pricing, or the stances they tackle public points.

Rising demand for serialized content material

On this context, it’s clear individuals aren’t opening up their social apps simply to see a stream of manufacturers leaping on the newest AI-generated content material pattern. When requested what manufacturers ought to prioritize most on social proper now, customers put equal weight on viewers interactions and publishing unique, recurring content material sequence.

 

Like The 2025 Content material Benchmarks Report highlights, making an affect on social isn’t essentially about posting extra—it’s about creating precious content material and connections. Serialized content material provides manufacturers the room to inform richer tales and make their clients really feel seen.

Respondents informed us that they’re most compelled to have interaction with model sequence after they inform full tales inside every put up or episode, and after they function a forged of characters they get to know over time. One of the best half? These constraints are community and format agnostic.

eBay Motors’ just lately went all-in on an Instagram sequence the place they despatched two auto influencers to the 2025 Miami Grand Prix (the primary two episodes alone earned practically 5 million views). Taking video utterly out of the equation, relationship app Hinge introduced the second “season” of its No Atypical Love Substack sequence, the place writers inform the true love tales of {couples} who met by means of the platform.

Social media and the client journey

We’ve mentioned it earlier than however it bears repeating: All enterprise is social. Our newest knowledge confirms that manufacturers should be investing in social as a full-funnel channel (not only a peripheral tactic)—or threat dropping market share to opponents that do.

Exhibit A: the rise of social search. Whereas most individuals’s major intuition when searching for data remains to be to show to conventional engines like google—Gen Z ranks social because the #1 place they flip to. Whether or not they’re searching for product critiques, restaurant suggestions or how-to tutorials, audiences more and more need solutions from actual individuals (and infrequently, in video type). Social networks ship on each.

As customers dedicate extra consideration to their feeds, the potential for social to drive real-world monetary implications grows. Regardless of the way you take a look at it, the actions manufacturers take—or fail to—on social affect audiences’ choice to purchase or defect.

Greater than three-quarters (76%) of Pulse Survey respondents say social (be it adverts, influencer or model content material) has impacted their purchases over the past six months. And nearly as many (64%) say when a model companions with considered one of their favourite influencers, they’re extra keen to purchase.

 

Even in a tough financial local weather, youthful generations usually tend to purchase issues they uncover on social. Between the downstream impacts of tariffs and continued company layoffs, solely 28% of all customers say they’re extra possible to purchase one thing they discovered by means of social within the coming months. This rises to 43% for Gen Z and 36% for Millennials—proving that audiences are nonetheless keen to pay for the proper services or products.

Middle your technique across the (present) state of social media

The neatest adjustments to any social technique are pushed by actual viewers insights, not random stakeholder requests. Whether or not you’re debating a shift to a brand new platform or constructing out your content material plans for the months forward, let these Pulse Survey findings function a precious intestine test.

In some methods, the state of social media proper now’s extra difficult than ever. However our knowledge hints at a number of methods manufacturers can begin to simplify: Discover alternatives to revive the 1:1 nature that so many customers miss in regards to the early days of social. Free your group from chasing questionable developments and as an alternative give attention to unique content material sequence solely your model can personal. Most significantly, don’t underestimate the enterprise outcomes social can drive—once you make investments correctly.

For extra insights round how entrepreneurs can adapt to the present state of social media, obtain The 2025 Sprout Social Index™.