Lately in Social Media – 6/29/18
As motivational speaker Denis Waitley once said, “You must welcome change as the rule, but not as your ruler.” And when it comes to social media marketing, that’s absolutely the case. Despite the constant whirlwind of changes on these platforms, us marketers and advertisers have to hold tight to our directives and make the most of the tools we’ve still got.
So, let’s dive in to the tweaks and updates that matter most to marketers right now:
- Unsurprisingly, privacy is still an issue Facebook is grappling with very publicly. But let’s be honest – taking our data has always been Facebook’s prerogative.
- In the interest of transparency, Facebook will now let users see the ads a Page is running on Facebook, Instagram, Messenger and their partner network, just by selecting “Info and Ads” on the Page. At least your competitor and market research just got a little easier!
- After a Texas immigration charity’s fundraiser found viral success, Facebook will begin letting users make automatic, recurring monthly donations to nonprofits by using the donate button on their Page. Also, Pages will be able to donate directly to nonprofit fundraisers. (How’s that for ROI, fund development folks??)
- The post-GDPR changes we’ve been anticipating are starting to hit, including new requirements for custom audience targeting.
- In more political news, Facebook can’t decide if it should treat publishers’ promoted news stories about politics the same way it treats political ads, which are not the same thing.
- Influencer marketing is officially the future of Facebook marketing, according to Facebook, with the launch of the Brand Collabs Manager tool.
- Messenger can now translate between English and Spanish, which feels like something that should’ve been possible a long time ago, right?
- Speaking of overdue things on Messenger: Brace yourself for the upcoming autoplay video ads we’ll have to suffer through soon.
- If you’re like me and Facebook is always part of your workday, then let’s both have a good laugh at ourselves if/when Facebook starts showing us how much of our time was not “well spent.”
- Facebook is giving a select few group admins the ability to charge subscription fees to members, which could range from $5 to $30 per month. So far it sounds like the organization or individual leading the group would actually receive most of the money, but at some point I’m sure we’ll find out that Facebook doesn’t really want to share. They say subscriptions for Instant Articles are doing well so far, at least.
- If you like “On This Day,” take a trip through your “Memories” to recall a time when Facebook felt…worthwhile?
- By adding new features like polls and quizzes to live video, Facebook hopes creators will migrate over from YouTube (which has had these kinds of features on the Community tab for awhile now).
- When you’re tired of everyone in your news feed talking about a triggering subject, you can snooze that keyword. With the emotionally exhausting headlines these days, who’s to blame you?
- I just read that this is apparently supposed to help people avoid spoilers for the TV shows they should have just watched already. Smh.
- And just because: What if engagement is the bane of the internet?
- Expect to see more live events in your timeline and notifications, because the news-first approach seems to be saving Twitter.
- Perhaps Twitter is less popular with teenagers today because it’s not well-suited for sharing memes?
- If you’re struggling with abuse, doxxing or worse from other users, don’t expect Twitter to protect you unless you’re, like, really really famous or something. They sure care about spammers and influencer fraud, though.
- Instagram now has a billion users worldwide! It’s growing much more quickly than Facebook (duh) and is on track to have more than two billion users in the next five years. Maybe your business should be on there, too? Here’s how the algorithm works, btw.
- We have finally achieved video chat, with up to three people! And custom filters!!
- Because Facebook Watch wasn’t enough, we now have IGTV. It’s intended to help Facebook/Instagram compete with YouTube in the long-form video arena. Some creators might decide it’s a nice complement to their YouTube presence.
- To get a feel for what other brands are doing so far, check this out.
- Want to create your own channel? AdWeek has a nice guide, and tips to maximize reach.
- If your business is interested in reaching emerging audiences in the developing world, rest assured that Instagram Lite makes the app a lot smaller and more accessible for mobile users around the world.
- Big brands already have access to shoppable Instagram Stories – cross your fingers you’ll be able to monetize yours soon, too.
- Not cool with other users sharing your post in their Stories? You have your reasons. Here’s how to stop them. But if you want to repost Stories that you’re mentioned in, now you can!
- For the record: Instagram does not alert people if you screenshot their Stories.
- And just because: Lurking is a much better experience on desktop, and you’re less likely to accidentally like an ancient post.
SNAPCHAT
- If crazy-high prices scared you away from Snapchat advertising before, maybe reconsider now that they’re getting really cheap and are allegedly as effective as Facebook ads.
- I’m fascinated with the concept of the Snap Map, because I’m pretty sure no one asked for it. Just like I’m pretty sure no one cares to watch rain fall on their Bitmoji. What am I missing here? Please tell me.
- On that note: You can now upload photos and videos from your Spectacles in new formats: Square, wide-screen, circular black and white – sounds like a nice change from the default circle format, I guess? Knock yourself out?
YOUTUBE
- Good news for creators: If you’re member of the YouTube Partner Program, at least 18 years old and have more than 100,000 subscribers, you can charge for channel membership and sell merchandise directly to fans!
- The ups and downs of YouTube drama have taken a toll on many creators who make a living from their video content, but it still seems to be the best option for monetizing their work.
P.S. Remember the GDPR? LOL.
Got questions about social media marketing? Not sure how social tools could benefit your business? Let’s talk!