Welcome to the latest edition of Social Commotion, Motion’s roundup of social media updates and news. Check out our top social media updates from December 2025.
3 Social Media Stats to Take with You Into 2026
Meltwater just released their 2026 Global Digital Report: 600-plus pages on digital trends marketers can use to inform their 2026 strategies. If you don’t have time to dig in, and here’s the top three stats for easy reading.
1. 72.3% of online audiences use social media for brand research.
In 2026, social monitoring isn’t optional. Nearly three-quarters of internet users aged 16-plus use social media to research products before purchasing, with Instagram leading the way and LinkedIn gaining traction. Consumers are forming opinions long before visiting a website. Brands that track sentiment, identify key voices and shape their own social narrative will have a clearer path to trust and conversion.
2. 80.7% of Snapchat users are also on Facebook.
The average user engages on 6.75 platforms each month, leading to major audience overlap. For example, 81.8% of TikTok users also use Facebook, but only 34.8% overlap between TikTok and Snapchat. Understanding where audiences intersect, and why, helps brands decide where each dollar (and piece of content) works hardest.
3. 96% of online audiences access the internet via their phones.
Mobile-first creative is no longer a nice-to-have; it’s non-negotiable. Most users are experiencing brands through a small screen, not a big one. This means their audience is engaging with content on-the-go—be it during their commute or waiting in line—and brands must resonate in those mobile moments.
Meta Announces Updates for the Instagram Marketing API
Meta introduced several updates to the Instagram Marketing API aimed at giving developers and third-party platforms deeper access to engagement data. These changes include four new metrics—Reels Skip Rate, Media Repost Counts, Account-Level Repost Counts and Instagram Profile Visits—along with enhancements to views reporting for cross-posted Reels. Together, these additions provide richer insight into how content performs and how ads influence user behavior.
Beyond analytics, Meta is also improving publishing and content-management capabilities within the API. New features include support for Trial Reels, options to delete media and two new endpoints designed to streamline partnerships and co-creation workflows. These updates expand what developers can build into third-party social management tools.
For everyday marketers, these changes won’t be immediately noticeable within Instagram itself, but they will enhance the analytics and insights available in centralized CRM or social management platforms. Essentially, if you use third-party tools to manage your social presence, expect more robust Instagram data and functionality to start appearing soon.
Reels Tips for Marketers
Meta updated its guidance on how brands can get the most out of Instagram and Facebook Reels. Based on recent research, Meta highlights five best-practice tactics for brand-building Reels to significantly increase purchase intent, including:
- Show up early: Showing your brand and core message within the first five seconds makes it 1.7 times more likely to rank in the top 20% for purchase intent.
- Use dynamic branding: Creatives that display the brand more than once are 1.8 times more likely to rank in the top 20% for purchase intent .
- Combine speech and music: Using both together doubles the likelihood of ranking in the top 20% for brand.
- Deliver messaging through audio and visuals: This increases the likelihood of ranking in the top 20% for brand interest by 1.8 times.
- Feature a “slice-of-life”: Scenes of people engaging in everyday activities increases the likelihood of ranking in the top 20% for purchase intent by 1.5 times.
For campaigns focused on direct response or conversions, Meta also recommends six strategies:
- Show the product multiple times.
- Support it with brand context (while keeping brand exposure below 25% of the creative).
- Clearly communicate product benefits or unique selling points.
- Include a call-to-action.
- Combine speech and music.
- Experiment with native elements like emojis.
These optimizations dramatically improve the odds of your content landing among the top-performing videos for purchase intent.
Stay up to date on the latest in social media with Social Commotion, The Motion Agency’s monthly roundup of social media updates, or contact us today to help your brand navigate the ever-changing landscape of social media.
