November wasn’t just turkey day, it was an action packed month in the world of social media and influencer marketing. Let’s break down the top news, best brand influencer campaigns, and reports worth reading.
TOP SOCIAL NEWS
Musk Tells Advertisers to ‘Go F— Yourself,’ Calls X Boycott ‘Blackmail’
TLDR: during an interview on stage at the New York Times DealBook Summit, Elon apologized for antisemitic posts while also cursing out advertisers who are pulling out. It’s another head scratcher for the billionaire who can’t seem to get out of his own way.
Amazon inks deals with Meta and Snap allowing users to purchase Amazon products directly from ads on those apps.
TLDR: Amazon has teamed up with Meta and Snap to enable one-click purchases of Amazon products on the social platforms without consumers needing to leave the app. This is a major move at a time when most of the social commerce attention has been on TikTok Shop. With credit card input, returns and fulfillment being key hesitations from US consumers with buying products on social media, this is a very smart move for Meta and Snap to partner with the most trusted eCommerce retailer in the US.
TikTok launches new measurement tool providing data into how ads drive conversions.
TLDR: When a viewer watches a video ad for over six seconds, it counts as an engaged view. EVTA tracks conversions that occur after a user watches an ad for at least six seconds but doesn’t click, and then converts within a seven-day attribution window. THis helps look beyond just clicks to the value of engagement with TikTok ads.
Facebook launches “A/B” testing for Reels captions and thumbnails
TLDR: Creators will be able to set up to four different thumbnails or captions for a single video in a test. Different versions will be shown to separate groups of their audience for 30 minutes. At the end of the testing period, the version with the most plays will “win” and show up on the creator’s profile.
TikTok Adds New Conversational UI To Help Guide Its Algorithms
TLDR: The new “Customize Feed” option on the “For You” page settings lets users enter in conversational guidance on what they want to see more, or less of, in-stream. This provides more control to the user, and will hopefully solve for those scrolling sessions that just aren’t hitting the spot for that day’s mood. It marks an important step in user algorithm control.
Instagram Enables All Users To Download Publicly Posted Reels Clips
TLDR: After initially rolling out the option to U.S. users back in June, Instagram is now letting all users download public Reels. Downloaded Reels will have an Instagram logo and the creator’s IG handle overlaid on the clip, which means we may see a lot more IG logos on our TikTok feeds.
TikTok offered attractive shop incentives for sellers during Black Friday and Cyber Monday
TLDR: In addition to subsidizing product discounts for all sellers (meaning creators and brands alike) through Black Friday, TikTok Shop also offered other seller incentives like ad credits, customer coupons, and reduced fulfillment charges. As a user shop content was unavoidable during the holiday weekend, which could help shop sales but erode user experience.
Instagram Is Working On A New Feature To Let Users Have Their Stories Up For 7 Days
TLDR: Called “My Week”, and as the name suggests, you can use this to ensure that your story remains live for a week. The best thing is that you can even remove any story you want or quietly add a story to the My Week only.
TikTok’s latest feature lets users make AR filters
TLDR: TikTok has launched a new in-app feature allowing users to create their own AR effects and filters without needing third-party apps. The tool includes filter templates and over 2,000 digital assets to build effects. Users can also add interactivity triggered by actions like screen taps, winks, and smiles.
TikTok’s $1 billion creator fund is shutting down
TLDR: TikTok’s $1 billion creator fund is ending on December 16, 2023 for users in the US, UK, Germany, and France. It’s being replaced by the Creativity Program, introduced in February 2023, offering potentially higher earnings based on views and engagement for longer videos (1min+). This change could impact influencer partnerships and the nature of collaborations, potentially affecting engagement strategies and the type of content produced by creators.
TikTok tests new ways to embed commerce into the in-app experience
TLDR: TikTok is testing a feature that uses AI to identify products in videos and suggest similar items for sale on its ecommerce marketplace. It’s a smart feature for a platform prioritizing shopping, but as of right now creators whose videos are included in the test don’t receive commissions on any resulting sales, nor are they notified of the feature’s presence on their content.
Snapchat rolling out ad-free subscription tier
TLDR: Seemingly every platform is rolling out their Paid ad-free offering driven primarily by EU laws. But for them to catch on in the US users will have to view social platforms as being worth not just their time, but their money.
YouTube steps up roll out of Shorts ads
TLDR: YouTube Shorts ads are being rolled out to more advertisers as the solution moves from beta to general availability. For the first time, Marketers are reporting the ability to choose Short ads as a video format, integrate them with in-stream ads and combine them with in-feed ads.
BRAND INFLUENCER HIGHLIGHTS
Unilever spins TikTok soap opera as part of #CleanTok sponsorship
Lay’s, reality star Matt James join viral TikTok trend with cookbook kit
Marriott’s Bonvoy loyalty program assembles “TikTok Travel Tribe” to offer tips from influencers
A Stanley Thermos Survives a Car Fire, so Stanley Replaces Both the Mug and the Car
The FTC sends a warning letter to select food creators about failing to disclose paid promotional posts, which could warrant fines up to $50,000
Snoop Goes Smokeless … for His Solo Stove Fire Pit
Why Whirlpool is tapping influencers to boost awareness of its in-school laundry program
REPORTS & DATA WORTH READING
TikTok is America’s next major news source
TLDR: According to Pew Research, TikTok has rapidly grown as a source of news for Americans, with 14% now getting news from the popular short-video app. Notably, 32% of adults aged 18-29 rely on TikTok for news, representing massive growth since 2020. There are serious concerns about this given misinformation on social, and the fact that TikTok’s highly-personalized algorithms mean users often see news related to their interests rather than a full picture. But professional journalists and publications see the writing on the wall and are making sure they have a TikTok strategy.
Almost half of US consumers bought something via social media this year
TLDR: According to a survey of 1,000 people based in the US, conducted by the Influencer Marketing Factory, 43.4% of them had bought at least one product on social-media platforms in 2023. Concerns about data and a lack of trust in platforms are the biggest reasons people didn’t buy, beauty products and clothes are the most popular items bought on social media, and over a third of those who bought on social media spent more than $100.
Younger consumers rely on TikTok for holiday inspiration, not purchases
TLDR: Over half (53%) of US adults ages 18 to 29 will use TikTok for holiday shopping this year, according to ESW’s 2023 US holiday shopping report. Consumers are most likely to use TikTok for discovery rather than actually make a purchase via the platform. Though nearly a quarter (23%) of 18- to 29-year-olds will use TikTok to search for gifts, only 8% will buy gifts from TikTok Shop if available, per ESW.
TikTok Says Users Spend Half Their Time in the App Watching Minute+ Long Clips
TLDR: According to “The Information”, TikTok invited dozens of creators to its New York offices for a private event aimed at mobilizing them to create more videos at least a minute long. TikTok told creators that users are now spending half their time on the app watching content that’s longer than a minute. And over the past six months, creators who post videos longer than a minute have five times the growth rate in followers of those who post only short videos
