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TikTok was born 🌟
I know this is before 2019, but it is a very important element to the recent evolution of social media. This "Musically" take over started many of the trends that are currently going on today. TikTok sparked the popularity of becoming an influencer which has become a common source of income for many. -
Amazon Influencer Program Created
The Amazon Influencer Program makes it so people can earn commissions off of promoting amazon products. Participants can post links to products on their social media which will then show up on their storefront resulting in making commissions. This is one of the starting places for social media to become very business and marketing motivated. -
Instagram Reels
Instagram took after TikTok and made it possible to post a video longer than one minute. They opened up a section on Instagram where you can scroll on reels as you would on TikTok. I think this is very important because it gave aspiring influencers a specific platform on many social media sites to reach viewers and make more money. -
COVID-19
During Covid-19 many people faced confusion on how to handle the new quarantined life. Many people spent much time consuming social media and creating posts for social media. Social Media became even more of the main place we receive our news and health information. Many work and school environments also had to learn how to incorporate at-home work and at school options which has indefinitely changed those environments. -
Social Commerce Uproar
Social media launched many platforms to make it easy for users to buy and sell products straight form that platform. We now have FB Marketplace, Instagram Shopping, and Shopify through TikTok to make it easy to buy and sell. Again, this is showing the evolution of making money through social media. -
Stronger AI Integration
AI has been a part of social media for awhile now, but within the last few years, it has become integrated on new levels. On instagram they now have a feature called Meta AI where you can ask it questions and will give you an AI generated response. Features like this are still up and coming but AI is going to become a powerful tool in Social Media.