Social Media Fest 2025 Day One – The Summary
At this year's Social Media Fest, industry leaders shared valuable insights into the ever-evolving landscape of social media marketing. From platform trends to data-backed strategies, here's a quick summary of day one’s presentation. Stay tuned for more jam-packed articles where we get deeper into the insights, plus summaries of day two and three.
Social Media Updates
With Luan Wise – Social Media Marketing Consultant & PhD student and Andy Lambert – Social Media Product Leader at Adobe.
Luan and Andy presented seven major trends shaping social media in 2025. Drawing on their monthly online sessions and years of analysis, they emphasised that while the digital world is constantly changing, a few macro-trends remain central to strategy.
A few of the key trends:
Social search goes mainstream: Users are shifting from Google and AI to social platforms like TikTok for search, including product discovery. Brands must optimise content for social search.
Influencers in B2B: Not just celebrities - micro and nano influencers have high trust and engagement within niche communities, especially in B2B sectors.
Video dominates: Social video consumption continues to grow, with platforms emphasising longer watch time.
Private engagement: Engagement is increasingly happening in private spaces (e.g. DMs, WhatsApp), not just public likes or comments.
Session takeaway
Success in social media today requires a multi-platform, format-aware strategy that prioritises watch time, private engagement, and quality over quantity.
Strategically Cutting Through the Noise on Social Media
With Erifili Gounari – Founder of Z Link, Author, and Research Partner with Metricool.
Erifili explored how brands can overcome growth plateaus on social media using data-driven, human-centric strategies. Drawing on research from over 1.3 million accounts and 21 million posts, she distilled what separates high-growth brands from the rest.
Several of her key insights:
Data-driven consistency - High-performing brands analyse content every two weeks (not monthly) and use insights to refine and repeat successful tactics.
Leverage all formats - Successful brands don’t rely on a single channel. They use the strengths of each format to build a more holistic presence.
Cross-industry benchmarking - Don’t just watch your competitors. Look across industries for creative inspiration.
Session takeaway
Breakthrough growth comes from being human, strategic, and relentlessly analytical. Success isn’t about viral one-offs — it’s about intentional iteration.
AI in Social Media: Panel Discussion
Nicole Mezzasalma led a dynamic panel on AI in social media, joined by James Armstrong (Social Firefly), Tina Thompson (Sweet Spot), and Lea Rhys-Moir (Independent Expert).
Key stats set the stage:
48% of businesses expect AI to handle social content by next year.
61% of Brits feel uneasy about AI-generated social content.
Only 2% of Boomers say they’d engage with AI influencers.
How AI is used now
The panel agreed: AI is great for idea generation, competitor research, and breaking creative blocks, but not for replacing human strategy or creativity.
James uses it for analysis and scripting but warns against over-reliance.
Tina highlighted the importance of giving AI a clear brief.
Lea uses it to overcome “blank page” moments, but always human-edits.
Strategy, tools & ethics
AI can streamline workflows, but human input remains critical.
Tina advised choosing tools based on real problems, not hype.
James flagged the ethical and environmental impact of AI.
Nicole reminded everyone to check what’s already available in existing tools like Copilot or Gemini.
Brand authenticity
Authenticity was a recurring theme.
Don’t use AI for ad creative or engagement – audiences notice.
Tone and punctuation matter – AI still struggles with nuance.
The Return of Joy: Revolutionising Social Commerce
With Heather Bowen, Head of Content Partnerships at Pinterest.
Heather explored how the joy of shopping is returning, driven by Gen Z and reshaped by platforms like Pinterest.
Key takeaways:
Shopping isn’t just buying: While online shopping brought speed and convenience, it lost the magic of discovery. Pinterest aims to restore that joy by making online shopping more inspiring and personalised.
Intentional use: Pinterest users come with purpose— 50% use it to shop, saving over 1.5 billion items weekly. Exploration, not just transactions, is key.
Visual search powered by AI: Pinterest’s advanced visual search allows users to zoom into specific materials or styles. Personalised results based on body types increase engagement.
Tips for brands:
Upload your product catalogue—it’s free and boosts discoverability.
Make pins shoppable—tag items in images.
Leverage features like Instagram claiming and shoppable collages, which double engagement, especially among Gen Z.
session takeaway
The future of e-commerce is joyful, visual, and personalised. Brands should embrace shopping as an experience, not just a transaction.
Social Media: It’s Not That Deep
With Hannah Anderson, Social Director at NewGen.
Hannah shared her personal journey through the world of social, from running novelty Twitter accounts to co-founding Social Chain and now leading strategy at NewGen.
Several key points:
Great social content doesn’t start in the boardroom—it comes from being human, relatable, and reactive.
Big brands often overcomplicate things. Small, simple ideas can deliver huge results.
The “curiosity gap” is crucial: the first second of a video should make people want to watch more.
Tips for success:
Don’t overthink it – speak like a person, not a brand.
Use real conversations and moments from your world as content.
Humour, relatability and simplicity outperform highly polished strategy decks.
Session takeaway
Social doesn’t have to be deep. Trust your instincts, stay human, and let your content reflect the world people already live in.
Channel 4: Growing YouTube & TikTok Audiences
With Janine Smith, Head of Creative & Culture, 4Studio
Channel 4’s 4Studio launched in 2020 to drive digital-first transformation. Their key lesson? Growth is good, but sustainable growth is better. They shifted focus to one main KPI: watch time, driving quality and engagement.
They built structure fast, supported culture with a clear values framework, and embraced young, diverse talent.
Instead of pushing audiences to TV, they brought the experience to YouTube – meeting Gen Z where they are. Niche channels outperformed broad ones, with a 43 million-view hit on a shame doc.
TikTok is for testing, not revenue (yet). And new platforms matter - 4.0 now launches on Spotify.
Session takeaway
Smash the legacy mindset, stay audience-first, and keep adapting.
Innocent Drinks: Staying Human in a Digital World
With Anni Mueller, Digital and Producer, Innocent Drinks
Innocent’s digital voice is built around being unmistakably human. Before social media, their bottles featured a “banana phone” number – showing early commitment to fun, two-way communication.
Their approach today is split in two:
Be human – empathy comes first.
Be relevant – they lean into timely, culturally aware content. Whether reacting to live TV or weaving themselves into unexpected moments, they stay playful and on-brand.
They keep marketing and community management distinct. A user once tweeted about disliking a smoothie – Innocent turned the conversation into friendly back-and-forth, reinforcing trust and tone.
Everything ties back to brand voice: if Innocent were a person, how would they speak, react, or joke?
Three key takeaways:
Know your community – speak directly and genuinely.
Know your tone – stick to it consistently.
Know your purpose – and show up where it matters.
Building the Future: Skills and Careers in Social Media
Daniel Rae led the panel on skills and careers in social media, joined by Sophie Lee (Electric Peach) and Esme Rice (Vayner Media).
This panel explored how social media careers have evolved from passion projects into specialised professions shaped by rapid tech changes and AI.
From influencers to specialists: Influencer marketing has matured, requiring more strategic content and contract management.
Platform shifts: TikTok has disrupted norms, forcing platforms like Instagram and LinkedIn to adapt.
Essential skills: Creativity, storytelling, emotional intelligence, and adaptability are critical. AI literacy is becoming a must-have.
Personal branding: Building an authentic presence—especially on LinkedIn—helps career growth.
Soft skills as strengths: Curiosity and psychological safety in leadership are key to nurturing talent.
Career advice: Be a “jack of all trades” early on, specialise later, expect constant change, and value your worth.
Storytelling power: Stories cut through noise, creating emotional and lasting connections.
Social media is unpredictable and fast-evolving. Success comes from staying curious, adaptable, and authentic.
An unbelievable first day full of insights, data, current conversation, and more! Did you miss the event and don’t want FOMO next year? Or did you attend the event and can’t wait for more? Grab the best ticket prices by joining our SocialDay 2026 waitlist here.
