The State of Social Performance: What Actually Works Now
Social media did not get quieter in 2025. It got louder, faster, and far more competitive.
According to the Social Media Study 2026 by Metricool, the brands winning right now are not posting more. They are posting with intent. Higher-impact formats. Smarter distribution. Content designed to activate real behavior, not just fill a calendar.
If 2024 was about consistency, 2025 is about precision.
Let’s break down what the data actually says, and how you should use it heading into 2026.
The Big Shift: Saturation Changed the Rules
Social is more crowded than ever, and the numbers prove it.
Instagram reach dropped sharply despite increased activity:
Posts: down 31 percent
Reels: down 35 percent
LinkedIn impressions followed the same pattern, falling 23 percent as more brands posted more often.
The takeaway is simple and uncomfortable. Volume no longer guarantees visibility. In many cases, it actively hurts it. Winning now requires fewer posts that work harder.
Video Still Leads, But Performance Is Fragmenting
Video continues to dominate reach and interactions across platforms, and algorithms are prioritizing it aggressively, especially short-form and vertical formats.
However, not all video performs equally anymore. Generic Reels, rushed TikToks, and trend-chasing clips blend into the feed. What cuts through is video with a hook, a purpose, and a reason to engage.
A practical example for boats and lifestyle brands:
Film one 60–90 second walkthrough or story moment, then repurpose intentionally:
Three short-form cuts for TikTok, Instagram Reels, and YouTube Shorts
One Facebook Reel repost (Facebook is seeing strong organic gains)
One longer YouTube upload as a “mini review” or feature story
This “one asset, many outcomes” approach respects both the algorithm and the team producing the content.
Hooks that work in 2025:
“The number one mistake people make when buying a bay boat…”
“Three things you should check before your first sea trial…”
“Watch this storage trick. Most owners miss it.”
Video still rules, but only when it earns attention.
Carousels: The Quiet Advantage Brands Are Ignoring
One of the most actionable insights in the entire report is hiding in plain sight.
On Instagram, carousels generated:
~30,809 impressions per post
~794 interactions per post
Yet they are the least-used format, averaging just 1.13 per week.
LinkedIn shows the same pattern. Carousels consistently outperform other formats for interactions, while being dramatically underutilized. This is a “work smarter” signal brands can operationalize immediately.
Carousels should become a core pillar, not filler content.
Instagram carousel ideas (education + saveability):
“Five features to consider before you buy”
“Offshore checklist: what to pack that nobody tells you”
“Bay vs offshore hull: a quick visual guide”
Structure matters:
Slide 1: bold promise or tension
Slides 2–8: bite-sized clarity
Final slide: activation CTA
“Comment ‘CHECKLIST’ and we’ll DM it.”
Facebook Is Back (Yes, Really)
Facebook quietly had one of the strongest organic rebounds:
Average reach: up 51 percent year-over-year
Interactions: up 56 percent
And video is booming.
For many brands, Facebook is no longer a legacy platform. It is a high-ROI redistribution channel.
YouTube Rewards “Slow Social” and Content Libraries
YouTube’s momentum supports a very different strategy than most platforms.
Average views per video rose 76 percent versus 2024. YouTube now functions as:
Long-form content
Short-form discovery
Community engagement
Search and evergreen visibility
This is ideal for brands that want to build a content moat over time. YouTube should be treated as a compounding asset, like a website, not a vanity channel. Fewer uploads. Higher quality. Clear intent.
The New Differentiator: Activation Over Attention
Perhaps the most important insight from the report is this:
Content that activates people travels farther.
The platforms are rewarding interaction mechanics:
Swiping
Commenting
Saving
Sharing
Clicking
Replying
Creative briefs can no longer aim for views alone. They must drive behavior.
A Reel that sparks a comment outperforms a Reel that earns a passive watch. A carousel that gets saved keeps circulating long after posting day.
As you plan for 2026, the priorities are clear:
Build a video-first engine
Short-form at the core, with smart repurposing across TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube Shorts.Add carousels as a core pillar
Especially on Instagram and LinkedIn, where efficiency is highest and competition is lower.Treat Facebook and YouTube as amplification channels
Facebook for redistribution and conversation. YouTube for search, library content, and long-term equity.Shift KPIs toward activation
Saves, shares, comments, clicks, replies. These are the signals that still cut through saturation.
Social posts that are designed to move people, not just touch them, is the future of performance. And it is already here.
