2026 social media trends that actually matter for SMEs

In 2025, AI has removed most friction from content creation so just showing up regularly is no longer a competitive advantage. At the same time, we notice that algorithms are becoming far more selective about what content they distribute. For SMEs, this means that growing on social media will still require some effort, but current trends might prove to be very beneficial for niche companies who do social media right in 2026.

Below are the six trends that matter most for small and medium-sized businesses in 2026. Step by step, will explain how they will impact you and what you should do to be successful this year.

1. Followers matter less than relevance

Most social feeds are now driven by interests and behaviour, rather than the people one follows. This means your posts will increasingly be shown to people who have never heard of your or your business before.

For SMEs, this is both a risk and an opportunity. You can no longer rely on familiarity to carry weak content. But you also no longer need a large following to be discovered by people in your target audience.

What matters now is topical clarity. Platforms need to understand what you stand for, and people need to understand it within seconds.

What works for SMEs

• Post around clear topics. Make it obvious what you’re about.
• Tie content to current conversations in your industry.
• Assume every post is shown to strangers.

This means defining your target audience and niche becomes essential for your social media distribution as well.

2. Creating becomes easier, reaching more people doesn’t

AI tools made it easier to create content, which means that more people are creating more content more often. 

When the number of posts increases significantly but the number of people using social media only grows slowly, then logically, fewer people will see your posts. There’s just too much competition. 

To keep your total impressions high, you can create more content. Five posts with 200 impressions beat one post with 600 impressions. But the questions are…

• Are your posts reaching the right people?
• Are you reaching different people? Or roughly the same 200?
• Are your posts good enough to keep those people entertained?

The better option is to focus on creating quality content for the people you want to reach. One targeted post about a relevant topic might not lead to huge numbers but it’s much more likely to reach a few dozen of the people you want to reach.

But if impressions alone aren’t that important, what should you measure instead?

• Saves and meaningful comments.
• Profile visits and direct messages.
• Follow-on engagement across multiple posts.

3. AI increases the need of authentic content

As AI content keeps improving, it will become harder to tell what was written by a person and what was not. For SMEs, that means that plain educational content likely won’t be enough anymore.

What’s going to work still are posts with a touch of personality: a story, a personal learning, real faces… 

That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t use AI, though. The best approach is using AI tools to increase speed and structure, while keeping judgement, experience, and opinion human. Use your voice to share your side of the story and let AI tools do the writing.

So how do you deal with this?

• Not everything has to be perfect. Dare to share a look behind the scenes.
• Don’t just share summaries. Add your thoughts and opinions.
• Keep your branding consistent and avoid random images.
• Talk about real experiences, failures, wins, decisions…

And remember: If a post could have been written by anyone, it will be ignored by everyone.

4. Long-form content is working again

Because of AI, and easy access to phones for videos, short-form content is everywhere. The number of posts only gets bigger and bigger but it also means it gets harder to find content worth reading or watching.

That’s exactly why long-form is regaining value.

When feeds are full of shallow posts, depth becomes a filter. For SMEs, this is a chance to demonstrate expertise without chasing trends. It doesn’t mean you should be writing essays every week, but publishing more structured content from time to time will help your business.

Effective long-form for SMEs

• Publish structured long posts (as LinkedIn articles/newsletters).
• Create and share original research (if you have the means).
• Get your audience involved with webinars and interviews

5. More video, but don’t rush to jump on the bandwagon

Yes, most platforms are video-first now: YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, and even Facebook. Perhaps not X (but what’s going on there anyway?) but also LinkedIn is paying a lot of LinkedIn creators to promote video content.

The thing is… many people aren’t waiting for LinkedIn to turn into another video platform. And we also notice from our data that video content isn’t getting significantly more reach than other types of content. 

Our advice for SMEs

• Video is a tool, not a requirement. So don’t hop on the trend if you don’t have the time and/or budget.
• If you want to create videos, focus on creating authentic videos, not cheap AI videos or highly-edited content.
• Only create video if it’s real added value compared to other formats: more clarity or personality, for example.

6. Social media now feeds search and AI

Social posts increasingly influence search results and AI-generated answers. Reddit posts and YouTube videos are already widely cited by ChatGPT, Perplexity and the like. Even LinkedIn articles show up sometimes and we only expect this to increase.

How do you deal with this as a company?

• Make sure your brand stays consistent across different platforms.
• Don’t exaggerate with links in posts. Naming your brand is enough.
• Getting mentioned by others may be the biggest growth lever of 2026.

What’s the conclusion of these 2026 social media trends?

Consistency is still the most important asset you hold as a company; but that consistency goes way beyond showing up every week. It also means being consistent in how you show up: the language you use, how you describe your company, the visuals and the topics you talk about.

The caveat?

It shouldn’t look too polished. Don’t be afraid to add personality, give a look behind the scenes, post a video that’s far from perfect … 

Consistency is the minimum expectation, authenticity is how you’ll grow. 

PS: If you want help turning these trends into a practical system, Willow is built to help SMEs take control of their social media with an intuitive platform, AI content systems and dedicated social media coaches.