The Decline of the Social Media Hype

It had to happen sometime.

The giant, all-consuming bubble of social media and the internet in our pockets has finally swelled. But it hasn't just affected day-to-day, personal social media use -- it's affecting businesses and their marketing strategies too.

Consumers are beginning to move away from the instant gratification of social media. They're becoming tired of the fast-paced, attention-grabbing videos.

In the travel sector? There's stunning footage, but it's becoming much the same. Audiences have seen the couple in the infinity pool with the floating breakfast. They've seen slow zoom, drone footage of the sun-kissed tropical islands. They've seen the gorgeous, glinting blue waters, the corners of hotel rooms, and the fab plates of food.

In fact, many people have become so aware of 'hooks' that compete for attention and videos that have overtaken Instagram, Tiktok and Facebook, that social media companies have actually been reporting a decline in their usage.

A late 2025 study for the Financial Times showed that social media use, based on the online habits of 250,000 adults across more than 50 countries, has fallen by almost 10%. What's more striking is that young people are leading that decline, changing the course of how they engage online and stepping away from how they consume media overall. In fact, many users are scaling back their apps, deleting socials, and actively spending less time on their phones in general.

How It's Affecting Online Marketing

What that means is, there's now an unreachable chunk of audience that are missing your social media marketing -- creating a more competitive environment toward those that still engage. Users are not being funnelled towards your content in the same ways anymore, and you're not showing up as easily on their feeds or in their algorithms via Instagram, Facebook, or Tiktok for views.

Even the use of adverts warrants considering ways to appeal differently, and find ways to stand out.

The online sphere is becoming a climate where browsers (whether that's strangers, warm leads as potential buyers, or already loyal customers) are still realising their attention is valuable -- patterns indicate they are both doom-scrolling and impulse-buying less.

It also indicates that people, especially potential buyers, may be looking for more. The era of show-stopping aesthetics, hooking videos, and perfect visuals to drive sales is important, but it's also eroding like cliff edges against a sharp sea.

Audiences are beginning to pivot from 'hollow' content and looking for SUBSTANCE.

Depth.

Uniqueness.

Justification.

Something that lasts longer than trending audio and the three-seconds of repetitive video from an Instagram reel, and social media data patterns are still continuing to prove it.

It's why Threads (the short-text written platform, Meta's version of Twitter/ X) and Substack (newsletters, blogposts, and paid writing subscriptions) have boomed in usage the past year, while Instagram suffers a mass exodus from the platform.

Content fatigue and attention farming have taken their toll.

And long-form writing can be the solution to the climate. Better still, it's housed on your own website, guides people right over your business threshold, adds directly to your own traffic, and can even be found browsing the regular internet -- without any social media use whatsoever.

Why is Long-form Content So Important?

Brands often have their social media strategy locked in: jaw-dropping photography, a detailed website, fantastic brand aesthetics, videography, show-stopping reviews.

But while these things are important, many brands overlook that one of the main, key marketing strategies that they're missing (that also catapults them above and beyond their competitors) can be found in simple, detailed, writing.

Yes, copywriting is incredibly important on a website and you likely have that already -- alongside factual information that sounds intriguing, if not enticing.

But more often than not, the information is simply factual -- nothing more.

Nowadays, many potential clients want and need more than glitsy social media or website aesthetics, and long-form content can provide a way to give it to them.

Long-form writing allows you to explore topics with much more depth, exploring greater detail and providing substance.

It also allows a blank canvas of creativity that is in your complete control: anything from wanting to weave compelling stories, tease emotion or reaction from narratives, underline facts or information, provide updates or specific coverage, give insight, offer inclusion...

The Solution to Fast-Paced, Instant Gratification Media

Writing can be the expression to offer clients a look inside your business, products, experiences, or offerings, and give them as close a taste as possible without purchasing. While the aesthetics of photography and videography are important, they mostly last a few seconds, and address one sense -- writing can fully immerse, provide a longer nurturing sequence and a more lasting impact, plus address the spectrum of senses.

It's an important layer that can be added (or equipped) easily to your current marketing strategy, no big changes necessary, and can be the key to driving potential buyers from 'I'm thinking about this' to 'this is exactly what I need, now".

If you're thinking of elevating your marketing and offering more to your audiences, especially in a travel niche -- take a look at my services, I'd love to work together.

Keep carving your pathway,

-fe