Platforms make moves to prioritise verified users
This week, rivals Meta and X have raised a few eyebrows by making a publicised step towards the priority of verified users on their relevant platforms. Both giants have experimented with features that have seen major backlash from other users on the platforms.
Announced last week, Meta has been experimenting with a comment filter on posts that would prioritise the replies of verified users above regular users of the platform. The filter would fall under the settings of the post in question and would place verified users’ comments at the top of the comment feed to let users prioritise their engagement from ‘trusted sources’.
Next, it was X’s turn to rifle a few feathers. The platform introduced a feature this week which gives verified users the option to restrict their post replies to only other verified users. This feature has been utilised by various existing verified users who have somewhat shown off the fact they have paid for using X by having exclusive conversations in the comment section of certain posts on the platform.
Instagram experiments with new stickers to promote engagement during the holiday season
Moving on from its recent focus on adding new features to Threads, Instagram is now attempting to facilitate engagement elements in its main app, which this week includes a bunch of new stickers in time for the upcoming holiday season.
The standout sticker set to be added to the platform would allow users to link directly to apps via their stories with a sticker known simply as ‘app’. With Christmas time on the horizon, it is predicted that certain brands will use influencers to use the new sticker on their stories and link customers directly to their app for specific wintertime deals.
They are also set to add a sticker called ‘Secret’, which would allow customers who click the link access to exclusive content which they wouldn’t receive if they didn’t interact with the story. It is also said that this feature could drive engagement as the fear of missing out will likely overcome most users and encourage them to interact with the story to see what content is behind it.
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LinkedIn answers paid social specialist’s prayers
LinkedIn is digging deeper into AI and introducing a new tool called Accelerate, which automates the entire process of creating a campaign within the platform’s ad creation section.
A spokesperson from LinkedIn claimed that “In as little as five minutes, Accelerate will recommend an end-to-end campaign and automatic optimizations to reach the right B2B audience with engaging creatives, which you can adjust and fine-tune before you launch your campaign”
The process of setting up an ad campaign on LinkedIn has been criticised in the past for being quite complicated, however with this new feature, users would simply provide a URL for the product that they want to promote, and the system will do the rest – potentially saving so much time and stress that specialist’s are currently experiencing.
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TikTok shares their ‘Halloween Hacks’ to maximise engagement during spooky season
TikTok has shared its top ‘Halloween Hashtags’ to give brands an insight into ways to hit its desired audience across the season of scare. Additionally, the company has announced its latest Halloween activations, which include spooky-themed AR effects and visual tools that can be used by influencers on the platform.
Unsurprisingly, the top hashtag this year is #Halloween, however, there are a few interesting elements that markets could jump on before the 31st. Third in the list with 11.6B views was #HalloweenMakeup which is a major trend around this time of the year and could be jumped on by major makeup brands looking to go viral this year. Interestingly, #HalloweenDecor received 3.6B views on TikTok which could potentially lead to some interesting content potentially by home and interior-based businesses in the coming weeks.
According to TikTok, nearly 80% of its users say that TikTok “inspires them to buy or try new products”, so it could be key for brands to target these trends and attract their audience through TikTok if they want to grow their seasonal sales.
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