When you talk to any content creator about their thoughts about social media, you find a lot of angst. The ‘algorithm’ comes up as the reason in many of those conversations. What does it want? What is the algorithm currently pushing? What is out? Is it just me or is it the algorithm? So what did the content landscape look like in 2024, and which formats worked best and on what platforms? Here is a look. ‘Story Time’ One of the most popular content formats in 2024. Think of a heart-to-heart conversation you normally have with a friend but instead, you share it with the internet. The tone remains the same: “So I was at this party and guess who was there?” The internet becomes your bestie. By telling the internet this story, you ignite a larger discussion on a broader level. Is it right for someone to ask you out on a date and not include food in the plan? Is it okay for a brand to use your content without paying usage rights? Is it normal for friends to expect a financial contribution at their wedding? Platforms: X, Threads, TikTok and Instagram. ‘Personal Chef’ Videos In 2024, it was not enough to cook a recipe in your kitchen. You had to give it the ‘personal chef’ angle to be engaging. The format gained popularity when real-life personal chefs began to document how they executed elaborate meals for their affluent clients. This content has an aspirational value attached to it; people watch it to see how complicated the meals get. They watch pasta made from scratch or freshly picked plums from a home garden turned into a fresh pie. The format quickly caught on with people who used the hook: “Watch me prepare my meals as a personal chef for my parents.” Suddenly, everyone became a personal chef to just about anyone. Friends, husbands and even people living on their own. The format allowed the content creators to showcase more of their lives, their thought process behind deciding on a menu, cooking mishaps and a commentary about their day. Platforms: Instagram and TikTok. 5 p.m. to 9 a.m. Vlogs People-watching is not just an internet thing. However, social media, with its edits, narrative building and stylising, has taken it to a different level. This is why daily vlogs by people like Casey Niestat, Lilly Singh and others have garnered an enthusiastic following. However, rather than talk about their 9-to-5 lives, vloggers now talk about what happens after they come home. Do they go to the gym? Cook a meal? Do a skincare regime? Read? Platforms: Instagram, YouTube and TikTok. ‘Booktoks’ When Instagram started to make frequent algorithmic changes, posts about books (or ‘bookstagrams’) were the first content format sacrificed, and content creators who had garnered a following because of their book reviews found themselves scrambling to save their engagement levels. However, TikTok brought the interest back to book reviews, with content creators holding up books and talking about how they impacted them. There were memes of wives ignoring their husbands because they were so engrossed in reading. This format quickly had people talking about books again. Hence ‘booktoks’. Platforms: TikTok (mainly) and Instagram. Content ‘Inspo’ Social media content is work. It used to be fun, but now there are so many factors to consider. The format, the time, the caption, the lighting, the equipment… Where do you find the resources to do all this? On Instagram, ‘inspo’ (short for inspiration) content tells you how to do it, with videos explaining what hooks to use, how to film yourself using just a phone, how to film yourself while on vacation or how to pose with your partner. Then there are social media strategists explaining the kind of editing tools to use and photographers providing colour-grading tips. Platforms: Instagram and TikTok. Unedited BTS and Memes An emphasis on how to make content look as real and unedited as possible. This year, we saw unedited behind-the-scenes (BTS) videos performing well in terms of social media numbers. Ultimately, it merged with the concept of memes – content that is relatable and humorous. This format saw the fastest growth for any social media account. Platforms:Y ouTube Shorts, Instagram and TikTok. Podcasts 2024 was the year of the podcast for both existing and new content creators. Although earlier, we thought that only short and snappy content got people hooked, podcasts proved that there is a huge number of people who prefer deeper conversations. This format gained substantial ad-sharing revenue on YouTube because of the platform’s ability to handle long-duration formats. Platforms: YouTube (primarily) and Instagram/TikTok for short snippets. In previous years, content was mainly geared towards food and fashion. In 2024, the topics included sustainable consumption, career advice and navigating life’s challenges. In terms of platforms, although Instagram, TikTok and YouTube will continue to take the lead – LinkedIn and Threads are finding their own crowd. Coincidentally, both platforms draw in people interested in talking about their professional achievements, industry best practices, tips and case studies. LinkedIn still has a more formal outlook and Threads emulates the vibe of a conversation you have with your peers. It is worth mentioning that Facebook is slowly returning to the organic traction it had before it sacrificed this in favour of pushing paid ads. It will be interesting to see what content formats and platforms will dominate in 2025 and if Instagram will finally give its algorithms a rest or continue to shake things up. One thing is clear: content creators are invested and so are audiences. What happens next? Subscribe to find out. Riffat Rashid is a content creator for digital food content platforms, GirlGottaEat and Hungry in Karachi. She runs Hot Beverage, a marketing and content creation company. girlgottaeat17@gmail.com