Forrester Wave Q4 2024: The trend toward AI-enabled, unified social marketing platforms

The rapid evolution of social media management platforms reflects the growing need for businesses to streamline their social media operations across multiple teams and functions.

Market dynamics and current trends: Social suite platforms are experiencing increased demand as businesses seek to consolidate their social media management tools and improve cross-team collaboration.

• According to Forrester’s research, 83% of US B2C marketing executives are actively working to consolidate their social media tools
• 81% of executives plan to evaluate their social suite options in 2025
• Social suites combine multiple capabilities including content planning, publishing, social listening, and customer response management

Core capabilities and evolution: The social suite market has undergone significant maturation, with providers enhancing their foundational offerings while expanding into new territories.

• Unified measurement tools and workflow automation have become more sophisticated
• Platforms now incorporate expanded capabilities like employee advocacy programs
• Influencer marketing management and ratings/reviews oversight are emerging as key differentiators among providers

AI integration and innovation: Artificial Intelligence is becoming a crucial differentiator in the social suite marketplace, with varying levels of implementation across providers.

• Leading platforms are leveraging AI to redesign traditional workflows and create new efficiencies
• Vendors are developing clear AI innovation roadmaps and implementation strategies
• Task automation capabilities are being enhanced through AI integration

Customer-centric considerations: Platform selection increasingly depends on the quality of customer support and implementation assistance.

• Strong onboarding experiences have become a key decision factor for businesses
• Ongoing customer support is cited as a primary motivator for platform selection
• Providers that prioritize customer service as a core value proposition are gaining competitive advantage

Strategic implementation factors: As social media’s influence expands across business functions, platform selection requires careful consideration of specific organizational needs.

• Companies must evaluate their unique requirements for emerging capabilities like influencer marketing
• Integration capabilities with existing systems should be carefully assessed
• The platform’s ability to support cross-functional teams should be considered

Future outlook: The social suite market is poised for continued evolution as platforms expand their capabilities and integrate more advanced technologies. The push toward consolidation suggests that comprehensive, integrated solutions will likely dominate the market, while providers that fail to innovate or maintain strong customer support may struggle to compete effectively.