Social in Six 81
1. X is planning on binning the like, repost and reply buttons
The story:
- Last week Elon Musk confirmed reports that X is removing like, reply and repost counts from posts displayed in-feed, leaving only the time posted and view count on show.
- Users will still be able to view these metrics, but only by tapping through to view the individual post.
- Musk is also implementing new controls for posts including swiping right to reply, swiping left to like, and tapping and holding on a post to see all other actions.
So what?
X putting the spotlight on view counts over likes and repost figures means interaction should become less about public validation and more about genuine interest and curiosity. Time to get more creative and create content that demands direct interaction. Simply put, engage genuinely, measure smartly, and let quality drive your content’s reach.
2. TikTok’s shopping push continues with an update to automatically tag products
The story:
- After Bloomberg reported in January that the feature was in early testing, more users have spotted TikTok’s new tool “Identify similar products” appearing in the video upload process.
- When toggled on, this will automatically identify products in your videos using AI, and highlight potential matches that viewers can purchase via the Shop tab.
- Up until now, only approved influencers and brands could tag products when they posted content to the app.
So what?
With more access, this update effectively bridges the gap between discovery and purchase – never a bad thing! But, while ecommerce is huge on TikTok’s Chinese counterpart app Douyin, Western shoppers have so far been slower to hop on the ecommerce train. The key thing to remember here is to merge commerce with content so smoothly, viewers can’t help but shop. And make buying a pleasure, not a push.
3. Meta has added a heap of improvements to Advantage+ and Shopping ads
The story:
- Advantage+ Creative Optimisations automatically optimises ads for 9:16 and allows advertisers to create multiple variations of an ad, letting Meta’s AI display different variations according to what they best respond to.
- Meta’s also updating Advantage+ catalogue ads with support for branded videos and a new hero image; plus it’s integrating its Shops ads and branded content ads (now called Partnership ads), which will enable direct purchasing from collaborative campaigns.
- More new features include external links and Reels support for Reminder ads; Promo Codes promotions; global availability for product tagging within ads; and updates to Collaborative ads offering more analytics and testing capabilities.
So what?
Meta’s revamp is all about making ads personal and dynamic, especially with video. For example, it’s taking the legwork out of creating tailored ads for Reels and testing your ad creative by doing it automatically, and with better optimisation comes more clicks. External links in your Reminder ads will also help shoppers navigate seamlessly to your site to purchase.
4. It looks like TikTok is cooking up a new photo-based app
The story:
- Code in TikTok’s app spotted by TheSpAndroid suggests users will soon be prompted to cross-share their image posts to a new platform: TikTok Photos.
- According to the prompt, TikTok Photos is launching “soon” and will automatically sync public photo posts on TikTok to a presumably connected profile on “the new app” – but only if users activate this feature.
- TikTok’s parent company ByteDance also owns Lemon8, an image-based app visually similar to Instagram and Pinterest with a focus on ecommerce.
So what?
It’s early days, but from what we can tell, TikTok and TikTok Photos seem to be standalone apps connected through profiles, akin to the approach Instagram took with Threads. Are we surprised? Not completely – TikTok’s been encouraging users to post more photos of late. Are we about to start devising a new platform strategy? Not just yet. Go where your audience is – don’t jump on the next big platform just because.
5. Instagram’s creator marketplace is now available to brands in more regions
The story:
- Meta has expanded access for Instagram’s Creator Marketplace tool to the UK, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Japan, India and Brazil.
- Creator Marketplace helps brands find creators to collaborate with by profiling creators and filtering them based on gender, age, region, industry, follower size and more.
- Meta will soon roll out a new Recommendations tool that uses AI to spotlight creators considered the best fit for you, according to their engagement rates, whether they’ve mentioned your brand in the past, or have a strong track record with similar businesses.
So what?
Creator Marketplace has the potential to connect the dots on a global map and turn local voices into worldwide conversations – pretty exciting. The Recommendations tool looks useful, but it’s probably a best fit for smaller creator collaboration teams or those who are limited in resource, as the filters seem to be a little too simplistic and surface level for full-scale, complex campaigns.
6. LinkedIn’s upcoming updates include algorithm tweaks for a new thought leadership ad solution
The story:
- LinkedIn is tweaking its algorithms to prioritise relevancy rather than timeliness when recommending content on the feed, according to new insight from its director of engineering Tim Jurka.
- Jurka also mentioned an upcoming ad solution, Thought leadership ads, which lets brands boost someone else’s post.
- Additional updates in the works include a customisable CTA button for Premium members; making Creator mode-exclusive tools available to everyone; and improvements to Newsletters.
So what?
LinkedIn is flipping the script: it’s out with clickbait, in with substance. It’s a call to dig a little deeper, share a little smarter and create content that truly connects. Thought leadership posts have a lot of potential too: an insightful post from one of your employees, a glowing client testimonial, or a post from a prospective client highlighting the very problem your business can solve.
