In the past, people used to share everything on social media. However, this trend is fast changing, with most social media users preferring to share on private social media platforms, private groups, and closed social media platforms. This has led some marketers to wonder why people are no longer sharing their posts. 

The fact is that people continue to share, but the only difference is that it is happening behind the scenes. This trend is known as dark social. Since most sharing occurs outside mainstream platforms, it is challenging to track. In this article, we will examine dark social and explore how social media creators can track and analyze it.

What is Dark Social?

Dark social is a term for web traffic originating from popular distribution channels that can be otherwise difficult to track. Alexis C. Madrifgal coined the term in a 2012 article to refer to traffic from sources that can not be measured by traditional web analytics. Other terms, such as dark social media, dark funnel, or dark traffic, also describe it.  

In the dark social sphere, sharing occurs outside major public platforms. This includes sharing a link on private channels, such as email, SMS, and messengers, which is not visible to marketers, search engines, or even the public. It's also worth noting that dark social is not related to the dark web, which is characterized by hidden content and anonymous browsing. Dark social is more about the intent than the platform used.

Dark social is becoming an increasingly important element of modern social media marketing. This is because it is one of the social media trends expected to happen in 2025. It also means that the majority of your website traffic may come from the dark social media platforms. At times, your analytics will show someone visiting your site without having to type your URL. This suggests that they likely originated from a link in an email, a closed group, or private messaging. 

In addition to the number of shares, Dark Social has other benefits, including the quality of the interactions. When people see a recommendation from a friend, they are more likely to buy the product. People usually trust recommendations from family and friends, which means Dark Social is an excellent source of quality leads. 

Benefits of the Dark Social

In the digital age, dark social can be a significant force to reckon with, as it influences consumer behavior, drives demand for products, and impacts overall online visibility. Statistics indicate that 84% of outbound sharing by consumers typically occurs through private networks, such as instant messaging, social networks, and email. 

If you want to take your brand to the next level, you need to be active on these platforms. By marketing on dark social platforms, you can create demand for your products and services and influence buying decisions. Therefore, dark social also presents a unique marketing opportunity. 

Once you understand how to track it, you can get insights into its impact on your content and marketing efforts. You can then use it to improve your social, traditional, and digital marketing efforts. That said, here are some benefits of dark social:

Used By All

When implementing a social media marketing strategy, one of the key questions to ask yourself is whether your target customers are using your preferred channel. However, when it comes to dark social, it isn't a question of whether your customers are using it, but how they are using it, since you are assured that they use email, SMS, text, or Messenger—even when someone clicks on a WhatsApp link that is dark social.

Impact on Analytics

As noted earlier, dark social is responsible for 84% of all traffic resulting from referrals. While it's not easy to get clear statistics on dark social due to the lack of reliable analytics, studies have suggested that dark social impacts other analytics as follows: 

• All TikTok profile clicks are a result of dark social.
• All clicks from private messaging apps such as WhatsApp, Slack, Discord, and Mastodon. 
• Results in 30% of Instagram clicks, 12% of Pinterest clicks, and 14% of LinkedIn clicks.

Ability to Reach New Audiences

Studies indicate that, on average, 54% of Gen Zers spend four hours on social media compared to American adults. When making purchasing decisions,43% of Gen Z are influenced by influencers, compared to 18% of millennials who are influenced by influencers and 9% of Boomers. 

When you understand the generational differences in your audience, you can easily determine where they spend their time—whether online or offline—and how to reach them using their preferred dark social channels, such as private groups or in-person events.

Source of Valuable Information

Dark social also involves connecting people. After all, the primary reason people join WhatsApp groups or Facebook groups is to connect with like-minded individuals. Due to the overwhelming amount of information, people still find it easier to get recommendations from their family and friends when purchasing a product.

Dark social can be a powerful source of information that provides insights into the questions people ask about your products. You can then use the information to revise the FAQ or product description pages. Additionally, when you understand what people are discussing on dark social, you can use the information as inspiration for your next content.

Examples of Dark Social

As noted above, dark social refers to platforms where direct attribution can be a challenge. Here are examples of such platforms:

• Social networks such as X, LinkedIn, and Instagram. 
• Communities and groups, such as Facebook groups and Slack channels. 
• Content Platforms such as Apple, YouTube, and Podcasts. 
• Employee communication channels (Zoom and Slack).
• Meet-ups and events (in-person meetings, virtual events, etc.). 
• Messaging apps (Facebook Messenger, Instagram DM, and Whatsapp)
• Word of mouth (Calls, texts, convos, DMs, and in-person conversations). 

Top Dark Social Platforms 

In our last section, we gave examples of dark social platforms. Let us now examine the top ones driving dark social.

Emails

Social media users regularly share links via text or email, which is a good example of dark social. When an employee finds an interesting article, they send it to their colleagues via email—this kind of sharing drives a considerable amount of traffic. However, when you look at your website analytics, you will never find them. The fact of the matter is that the sharing is happening as a result of personal recommendations.

Messaging Apps

Some of the most prominent dark social sharing hubs are WhatsApp and Telegram. On these platforms, people often share various types of content, including recommendations, screenshots, and links to smaller groups and individuals. For instance, when a social media user comes across a product they like, they may share it on their private WhatsApp group. Since conversations often occur privately, brands rarely have insight into what is happening.

Messenger and DMs

One of the characteristics that marks social media is the viral trends, which are often shared through private messaging such as Instagram DMs, Facebook Messenger, and LinkedIn. When social media users have something they want to keep private, they prefer to keep it on the Instagram DM. This is where they share funny memes with their friends, ask for recommendations from a friend, or share videos of their favorite products in use. While the Instagram DM may not be seen as a breeding ground for viral posts, it's the little shares that add up fast, drive traffic, and affect buying decisions. 

Online Communities

Online communities, such as a professional Slack group or a Discord server, have people with a shared interest. Because people share resources, these spaces are great for dark social, as people have meaningful discussions and share resources. 

People's recommendations on these platforms can be weighty, as they come from individuals with a good understanding of the topic. For instance, a software developer's recommendation of a software on the programming Discord server offers more credibility than a social media post recommendation.

Employee Communications

Nowadays, most work-related conversations typically occur in digital spaces on channels, such as  Slack, Asana, and other similar platforms, where colleagues meet. These internal shares often yield qualified leads, as they originate from individuals in the same field and facing similar challenges. 

How to Leverage the Dark Social

While marketing to dark social media can be challenging, it is possible with a bit of effort. The most important thing is to understand how content is shared online. 

Here are several tools you can use to leverage dark social media:

Create High-Quality Content

The primary reason people share content is that they find it worth sharing with others. This could be an article that solves their problem, a product review that answers some of their top questions, or something interesting they think is worth sharing. Instead of begging them to like and share, focus on creating content that is genuinely helpful and valuable. This could be informative in the form of: 

• How-to guides that help to solve a problem.
• Original insights and research that your audience will not find in other places.
• Customer testimonials that help people make decisions.
• Expert tips to help people in their decision-making.

Sharing comments through a private messaging app can be a good indicator that social media users are endorsing the content. Therefore, you should focus on creating content that people trust. 

Dark Social Content Creation

When creating content suitable for dark social media, think like a content consumer. Consider what makes you click or share the content your friends put on social media. In the small preview provided by the link, consider what draws your attention. 

A good and compelling review should consist of a clear image and an outstanding description. These should be clear and engaging, capturing the reader's attention. That’s precisely what your content should look like when people share it privately.

Additionally, ensure that you have well-optimized landing pages. Consider the way people share content on social media and avoid creating content with large walls of text. Instead, include headers in your content that indicate to readers what they will learn in each section. To make it easy for users to scan, add bullet points. 

When creating dark social content, remember that many people tend to take a screenshot instead of copying the link. Therefore, add visually outstanding graphics. Ensure you use clean fonts, contrasting colors, and white space to enhance the content's visibility.

Encourage Private Sharing

Don't just wait for people to share your content naturally. You can take action to encourage them to do so. For instance, on your blog or website, you can provide them with a link to a skiing theme to share through WhatsApp, email, or even SMS while including the trackable link. By doing so, you will see the channel driving the highest number of shares and take more advantage of personal recommendations to influence people's buying decisions. 

Ensure that you also encourage visitors to share psychologically by optimizing the social sharing buttons based on behavioral and contextual signals. Ensure that the share buttons are bright colors. Additionally, ensure that the share buttons are displayed at the right time and in the appropriate context.

Add Links for Sharing Content

While it's not entirely possible to do so, adding a sharing button can be a good way to track dark shares. This will show you the number of people using these buttons to share your content. When considering the buttons to add, consider the private platforms where most of your audience is. 

If you are targeting a business audience, consider adding Slack or LinkedIn messages to your outreach strategy. On the other hand, if you are targeting a young audience, add a Discord or WhatsApp button. If you aim for a global reach, consider focusing on regional favorites like WeChat or Line.

Ensure that these contents are placed near your key content and that the products feature what people want to share, rather than at the bottom of the page. Add some quotable snippets that include one-click sharing buttons. This will enable people to gain specific insights and statistics that will catch their attention. 

Create a Community for Your Online Brand

You can use platforms like a virtual clubhouse to create a space for the most engaged customers. This will enable them to connect with other people and share the brand’s passion. It will also provide a good platform for receiving your customers’ reviews. When creating a community, begin by selecting the right platform. This is where your target audience is mostly located. If you need in-depth discussions, find a dedicated forum.

After setting up a platform, consider how to grow it. You will need to think of a way to initiate the conversation by sharing engaging content, asking thought-provoking questions, and encouraging interaction between users. Ensure you log in regularly to keep the discussion going and maintain your audience's engagement.

Tracking and Measuring Dark Social Traffic

If you want to track dark social traffic, you will need to think beyond the usual metric. You will also need the right strategy and tools to track this traffic effectively. Here are ways of doing that:

Use UTM Parameters

UTM stands for Urchin Tracking Module, a text snippet that social media users can add to the end of a URL to provide Google Analytics with more information about the link being shared. These small text bits added to the end of your URL can help show the source of your traffic, including private traffic. After adding the UTM link, you will be able to view the link's performance. You can use the UTM link to get the big picture on:

• The amount of traffic you are getting from a particular source
• The revenue you get from an ad campaign 
• The performance of a CTA
• The amount of traction you receive from an influencer

However, it's also worth noting that the link has a downside in that it may not look appealing, and savvy users might end up deleting the text before sharing.

Keep the URL Short

By shortening your URLs, you can get a better solution for tracking dark social shares. The good news is that you can leverage tools such as Bitly to create short and unique links for your different pieces of content. For instance, when promoting a new product, include one link to the product page and another to the related blog. 

After the links are shared, the shortener analytics will track key metrics, such as the number of clicks. While they will not show you the dark social channels data, you will get essential insights on the page generating the highest amount of interest. 

Direct Traffic Analysis

While you may not receive a lot of details about your direct traffic, it can provide essential insights into the people visiting your site from private sharing. The most important thing is to set Google Analytics or your preferred web analytics tool to help you get deeper insights. When doing that, begin by creating filters to exclude visitors who have already visited your site. This will enable you to track first-time visitors.           

When analyzing the traffic, consider when you shared content through a social media channel or email. If there is an increase in direct traffic, this could be a sign that people are using these channels to share your content. Remember the devices from which most of your traffic is coming. If a large percentage comes from mobile site visitors, it could indicate that dark social sharing occurs mostly on mobile phones. 

Leverage Social Listening Skills

It is worth noting that social listening doesn't track private messages. However, the tools can help you understand how people are discussing your content. Tools such as MailChimp can help you track social mention data such as:

• Brand mention, even when it's misspelled.
• Name and features of the products.
• Campaign slogans and hashtags.
• When your competitors are mentioned.
• Industry trends and keywords.

Ensure you track these mentions on a weekly or monthly basis to identify social media trends. For instance, some content is drawing big discussions, or people are showing interest in certain features. You can then use these insights to determine how to create your content and position it to be shared. 

Ask for the Customer’s Feedback

At times, you only need to ask your customers to determine how they learnt about you. In your customer service form or survey, you can add a question asking how they heard about you. You might be surprised to learn that many of them will mention that they received a link from a colleague or a friend using a private channel.

Create Targeted Engagement for Private Communities

Establishing private forums and groups can create a space for loyal customers and enthusiasts to share their experiences and get feedback. This can generate greater revenue by increasing lead generation and demand through more personalized and targeted engagement.

Check Your Content

Besides tracking your dark socials, find out what works for your audience by examining the content that resonates with them on the knowledge front or in dark social. For instance, if you find that a particular topic, content style, or format generates a lot of dark social shares, you can focus on creating more of this type of content. Your goal should be to ensure that people who encounter your dark social content take the desired action, such as signing up, following, or making a purchase. 

In Conclusion

While dark social may sound like a complicated concept, it is quite simple. It could be as simple as your partner sending you a picture of the new chocolate bar they saw at the store or sharing an interesting TikTok video through WhatsApp. This is how the world of dark social operates, and it has become a key driver of social media shares. 

Therefore, brands need to understand how to use it in their social media strategy. With the right tools and strategy, you can easily track your dark social shares and mentions and leverage them for your viral or evergreen content strategy. By reading our detailed guide, you should be able to do that.