Social teams enter 2026 with a workload that keeps rising faster than their resources. The latest data from Photoshelter shows how much they lean on social platforms to drive marketing outcomes. Ninety-five percent of marketers in the survey call social important, and nearly two thirds say it is the primary channel that delivers results for their organization. That reliance shows up in posting habits, budget decisions, and the technology they pull in to stay ahead.
The pressure to keep content flowing is intense. More than 70 percent of organizations post every day, and one in three push out multiple posts across their platforms daily. Only a small share post on a monthly rhythm. The behavior holds steady across company size and industry, which signals that teams of all shapes feel the same need to stay visible in crowded feeds.
A gap still sits between the importance of social and how teams judge their own work. Most give themselves a B. Nearly a third feel their content strategy needs to mature. Another 19 percent point to staffing limits and bandwidth shortfalls that slow them down. They want tighter planning, more hands, and stronger execution, but they also try to keep pace with platforms that change their rules often.
The shift in goals over the last year stands out. In 2024, 76 percent of marketers saw brand awareness as the top goal for social. That dropped to 22 percent in 2025. Teams now focus on engagement, reach, leads, and sales. The numbers paint a story of a channel that moved deeper into the funnel and picked up more responsibility for measurable outcomes.
Budgets follow these expectations. Marketers plan to increase spending on Instagram at 46 percent, YouTube at 39 percent, and LinkedIn at 36 percent over the next 12 to 18 months. Confidence in X continues to slide, with nearly one in five cutting spend. TikTok picks up interest with 20 percent planning to grow their investment, while new platforms like Threads and Snapchat remain smaller bets.
Challenges remain heavy across the board. Bandwidth sits at the top with 46 percent saying they feel stretched. Engagement issues follow at 37 percent as teams struggle to understand what their audiences want at any given moment. Another 36 percent say their content needs more variation and stronger ties to organizational goals. Algorithm changes affect 26 percent of respondents, yet the impact rises among heavy posters. For teams already pressed for time, each shift in ranking logic makes results unpredictable.
Even with those challenges, certain practices consistently deliver better outcomes. Authentic content carries weight. Seventy-eight percent call user generated content important to their strategy. Human stories, real voices, and visuals created by actual users draw stronger reactions than branded content. Community engagement helps as well. Twenty-seven percent say it plays a major role in their success. Teams that build conversations see steadier growth. Consistency is another factor. Forty-one percent say it strengthens their performance and helps them hold attention in busy feeds.
AI enters the picture as one of the main tools teams use to keep up with the workload. Forty-five percent of marketers report using AI to support their social efforts. Among organizations that post multiple times a day, usage rises to 53 percent. The contrast between users and non users is sharp. Those who avoid AI report higher expenses at 32 percent, bandwidth constraints at 32 percent, and performance challenges at 29 percent. Social media roles feel these issues more strongly than other functions.
The study shows how AI is used in day-to-day work. Teams rely on it to accelerate content tagging, organize visual libraries, trim routine tasks, and keep production moving when deadlines stack up. Findings from related research add more context. Nearly four in ten marketing and creative professionals use generative AI for both written and visual content. Many report time savings that reach about 24 hours a month for content generation alone.
User generated content plays a growing role in the mix. Forty-one percent of organizations say they invest in UGC programs. The appeal is clear. UGC performs better across key metrics and produces higher credibility. The challenge lies in collection. Sixty-four percent still gather it manually through social platforms or email. Only a small group uses tools that streamline the process.
Distribution shapes reach as well. Half of organizations push content to stakeholders who can share it through their own channels. Employees and fans make up 33 percent of that group. Sponsors and partners account for 25 percent, and athletes or influencers contribute 15 percent. This approach widens the audience far beyond brand accounts and amplifies content that might otherwise remain unseen.
All of these numbers show how social media stands at the center of modern marketing. Teams devote time, budget, and energy to it because the channel brings measurable results. The workload will keep climbing as expectations rise. To stay competitive, marketers turn to authentic content, stronger communities, and tools that help them scale without losing their voice.
Notes: This post was edited/created using GenAI tools.
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The pressure to keep content flowing is intense. More than 70 percent of organizations post every day, and one in three push out multiple posts across their platforms daily. Only a small share post on a monthly rhythm. The behavior holds steady across company size and industry, which signals that teams of all shapes feel the same need to stay visible in crowded feeds.
A gap still sits between the importance of social and how teams judge their own work. Most give themselves a B. Nearly a third feel their content strategy needs to mature. Another 19 percent point to staffing limits and bandwidth shortfalls that slow them down. They want tighter planning, more hands, and stronger execution, but they also try to keep pace with platforms that change their rules often.
The shift in goals over the last year stands out. In 2024, 76 percent of marketers saw brand awareness as the top goal for social. That dropped to 22 percent in 2025. Teams now focus on engagement, reach, leads, and sales. The numbers paint a story of a channel that moved deeper into the funnel and picked up more responsibility for measurable outcomes.
Budgets follow these expectations. Marketers plan to increase spending on Instagram at 46 percent, YouTube at 39 percent, and LinkedIn at 36 percent over the next 12 to 18 months. Confidence in X continues to slide, with nearly one in five cutting spend. TikTok picks up interest with 20 percent planning to grow their investment, while new platforms like Threads and Snapchat remain smaller bets.
Challenges remain heavy across the board. Bandwidth sits at the top with 46 percent saying they feel stretched. Engagement issues follow at 37 percent as teams struggle to understand what their audiences want at any given moment. Another 36 percent say their content needs more variation and stronger ties to organizational goals. Algorithm changes affect 26 percent of respondents, yet the impact rises among heavy posters. For teams already pressed for time, each shift in ranking logic makes results unpredictable.
Even with those challenges, certain practices consistently deliver better outcomes. Authentic content carries weight. Seventy-eight percent call user generated content important to their strategy. Human stories, real voices, and visuals created by actual users draw stronger reactions than branded content. Community engagement helps as well. Twenty-seven percent say it plays a major role in their success. Teams that build conversations see steadier growth. Consistency is another factor. Forty-one percent say it strengthens their performance and helps them hold attention in busy feeds.
AI enters the picture as one of the main tools teams use to keep up with the workload. Forty-five percent of marketers report using AI to support their social efforts. Among organizations that post multiple times a day, usage rises to 53 percent. The contrast between users and non users is sharp. Those who avoid AI report higher expenses at 32 percent, bandwidth constraints at 32 percent, and performance challenges at 29 percent. Social media roles feel these issues more strongly than other functions.
The study shows how AI is used in day-to-day work. Teams rely on it to accelerate content tagging, organize visual libraries, trim routine tasks, and keep production moving when deadlines stack up. Findings from related research add more context. Nearly four in ten marketing and creative professionals use generative AI for both written and visual content. Many report time savings that reach about 24 hours a month for content generation alone.
User generated content plays a growing role in the mix. Forty-one percent of organizations say they invest in UGC programs. The appeal is clear. UGC performs better across key metrics and produces higher credibility. The challenge lies in collection. Sixty-four percent still gather it manually through social platforms or email. Only a small group uses tools that streamline the process.
Distribution shapes reach as well. Half of organizations push content to stakeholders who can share it through their own channels. Employees and fans make up 33 percent of that group. Sponsors and partners account for 25 percent, and athletes or influencers contribute 15 percent. This approach widens the audience far beyond brand accounts and amplifies content that might otherwise remain unseen.
All of these numbers show how social media stands at the center of modern marketing. Teams devote time, budget, and energy to it because the channel brings measurable results. The workload will keep climbing as expectations rise. To stay competitive, marketers turn to authentic content, stronger communities, and tools that help them scale without losing their voice.
Notes: This post was edited/created using GenAI tools.
Read next:
• Americans Point to the Tasks They Want AI to Handle Most
• Weak Password Culture Starts With the Websites and New Research Maps the Scale
