It’s time for our monthly roundup of Social Media updates, focusing on July…and once again, let’s start with Instagram!
They just can’t get enough of these new features can they?!
Let’s start with the new shiny icon that was recently introduced – IGTV!
You may have seen this new icon pop up in the top right corner which takes you to Instagram’s newest feature…IGTV.
Brands should take note of these important aspects of IGTV:
- No ads (yet) – There are currently no ads on IGTV, but (obviously) that’s going to play a part before long.
- Users can swipe between multiple areas:including “For You,” “Following,” “Popular” and “Continue Watching”
- Channels – If you want to create IGTV content, you must create your own “Channel”
- Share to FB– If you do wade into IGTV, you’ll be able to easily share your IGTV videos to your connected Facebook page
- Commenting – There are opportunities to join existing IGTV conversations by commenting on popular videos.
Instagram has also launched a “creator’s handbook” to guide you through the feature. Download it here.
Also, another new feature is the “Ask me a question” feature which you also may have seen when creating Stories, allowing you to get your followers to ask you questions which you can then answer.
Adweek have created a guide to using this feature, check it out here!
YOUTUBE
YouTube users can now subscribe to their favourite channels for exclusive content. This is part of a push from Google-owned YouTube to create more ways for the most successful YouTubers to “earn more money and build stronger communities.” The fixed $4.99 “Channel Membership” fee includes 30% that goes to YouTube. The feature is only available to channels with over 100,000 subscribers. Simply click “Join” to become a channel member.
That’s not all. Merchandise can also now be sold right from your channel and videos via a new integration with TeeSpring (only available to channels with over 10k subscribers). YouTube Premieres was also announced. Described by Wired as “YouTube’s take on a traditional television premiere,” it also includes Super Chat, a feature that allows fans to pay to send prioritized messages to creators (this was previously only available in livestreams).
Both platforms are rolling out new transparency features for pages & ads
In order to add more transparency to business and advertising practices on Facebook, they’ve created a space called “Active Ads” where anyone can see the ads you’re running. There’s also a Page Info section that will include things like recent name changes.
These sections are visible on mobile via a new prominent button on the page, as well as on the page’s sidebar on a desktop web browser.
Keep in mind that users can see ads here even if you haven’t targeted them. It will also only show one version of the ad. (There’s a “more info” window that says “ads that appear across various Facebook products may have different layouts and formats from what you see here.”)
Facebook Memories: FB announced this new private section of profiles as “a single place on Facebook to reflect on the moments you’ve shared with family and friends, including posts and photos, friends you’ve made, and major life events.” It includes existing features such as “On this Day.”
Subscriptions for Group Admins: This built-in feature will allow admins of popular Groups to monetise a subscription to exclusive content directly from Facebook (rather than by using third party apps). Subscription Group members can also manage their subscription directly in the iOS and Android Facebook apps
Music: Both Facebook and Instagram rolled out updates recently that let users add music to their original content.
Music in Stories allows IG users to add music stickers to their Story posts. This will also add that track to your post, and you can choose the part of the song that fits your story best.
You can also choose a song before capturing a video:
“When you open the camera, swipe to the new “Music” option under the record button. Search for a song, select the exact part you want, and record a video as the song plays in the background.”
Facebook is also rolling out features that let users add music to their Video posts more easily: “we are working to enable people around the world to include music in their videos on Facebook, opening up more options for creativity and sharing memories with friends and family.”
Even more interesting, though, is the new Lip Sync Live feature:
“To try it out, choose the Lip Sync Live option when starting your Live video. After selecting a song from the song list, you can also add a description and customize your video with masks or a background.
When broadcasting with Lip Sync Live, friends will see the artist and song highlighted on the video and can tap to follow the artist on Facebook.”
Twitter is also boosting its transparency with a similar feature to Facebook, the Ads Transparency Center, which will show all the ad campaigns an account has launched in the last week.
That;s all for now, if you need support with your social media, give the team a call on 01904 863511 or email, info@pickandmixms.co.uk