Social media growth strategies to boost DAU

Consumer preferences are shifting with the rise of new content consumption formats and experiences. With 82% of surveyed consumers using social media platforms to discover or research products¹ and 71% saying they would shop more frequently with brands offering augmented reality experiences,² it’s crucial for social platforms to align with users’ desires. Platforms can address user pain points and improve their experiences by setting a clear user content strategy, benchmarking competitors, co-creating data-driven experiences for their users, and gathering real-time feedback.

By personalizing content and building what users seek, platforms can boost conversion rates by 35%, showing the value of delivering content in the right format, at the right time.³ By focusing on building what users are looking for and pioneering innovative content experiences, platforms have the potential to create what comes next after the current trend of short-form video. 

Connecting users to the content they want is essential for elevating their experience and increasing engagement. With over 99% of clicks going to the first page of search results⁴ and 77% of surveyed consumers disengaging with brands if they don’t feel they’re genuine,⁵ making the right content visible is more important than ever. Platforms can address this growth opportunity by grounding content strategy in research—using user insights to identify content gaps and bringing in creators to fill those verticals.

Improving content discovery and personalizing recommendations can boost engagement rates and time spent on the platform. As new content creation tools like multimodal generative artificial intelligence redefine localization and accessibility,⁶ platforms have the opportunity to harness these technologies to make content more relevant and inclusive for every user.

Users join social platforms for different reasons, but all seek a sense of community and connection around their passions. Sprout Social found that “I’m interested in niche communities or content topics” was a top reason for what motivates social media users to try new platforms.⁷ For platforms, encouraging and supporting these communities can improve user experiences and drive more informed purchasing decisions.

Platforms should start by understanding barriers and motivators to build connection, using research and social listening to set a baseline. Community-focused studies like surveys and focus groups can further reveal how to enhance community connections. Additionally, platforms can invite users to participate in facilitated co-creation sessions to build platform concepts that have community insight and buy-in.

As some platforms are seemingly changing their focus from connecting users-to-users to users-to-brands, some users are seeking out smaller social networks and platforms for a sense of community.⁸  By fostering authentic, connected experiences, platforms can provide a sense of belonging that users seek, reinforcing engagement and loyalty over time.

Building user trust is more critical for social platforms than ever before. Consumers are 1.7 times more likely to purchase from brands they trust.⁹ Concerns like catfishing; mis-, dis-, and mal-information; and bot spamming can easily erode this trust, so platforms must prioritize addressing these issues.

Effective strategies to bolster trust include fact-checking, content moderation, and digital verification. Setting key performance indicators, such as content removal or user reporting rates, can help platforms track progress. While many platforms have introduced content moderation and fact-checking policies, the trust gap remains wide. Innovating in these areas could position your platform as more trusted among users.