Changes to Instagram DM’s could cause trouble for businesses
Instagram is launching a new feature that is designed to better protect users from unwanted images and videos in DMs. The update has been spearheaded by Cindy Southworth, head of Women’s Safety at Meta, who claims the update will be “especially beneficial for women on the platform”.
With the new feature, users who want to send DM requests to other users who don’t follow them will face two new restrictions. Firstly, rather than being able to send an unlimited number of DM requests, they will now only be able to send them a single message; users will only be able to continue to send them DMs once the other user has accepted the request to chat.
Secondly, DM invites are now limited to text only, which means users can only send images, videos or voice notes to someone who doesn’t follow them after they’ve accepted the request to chat.
The update means that businesses may have to adapt their outreaching messages for their campaigns and limit them to a single message, alongside also restricting exactly what customers can send to businesses, which could prove as a frustration going forward.
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TikTok announces $25,000 ‘Gimme the Mic’ contest
TikTok has announced that it will be hosting its own musical competition in the app, which will give aspiring musicians a chance to win mass exposure and prizes along the way.
The event, dubbed “Gimme the Mic,” will provide a platform for wannabe music stars to show off their talent and receive votes from the TikTok community, with the competition winner walking away with $25,000. Registration for the event requires entrants to post their submission videos with the hashtag #GIMMETHEMIC.
Following that, the top 30 most popular creators (based on video interactions) will proceed to the semi-finals on TikTok LIVE. The top 10 will then move onto the Grand Final event, which will be hosted on September 10th.
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Meta adds more Threads features amid app growth concerns
Despite achieving 100 million sign-ups in a record amount of time, Threads growth has since slowed significantly. This is likely due to the platform’s user base becoming frustrated with issues such as limited functionality, decreasing engagement and lack of regional availability on the platform.
Threads is now sitting on 120 million total sign-ups, with reports that its growth has slowed by 90% since its initial hyped launch. In a bid to tackle this, CEO Mark Zuckerberg has issued an update to users regarding new features hitting the platform in the coming weeks.
With the focus on improving user experience, the two major updates include a desktop app and an improved search function, which have been a key point for existing users. Threads are also said to be adding minor features including new notification control options and the ability for users to view past threads they have liked.
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TikTok testing ‘PrivacyGo’ to improve ad targeting options
With the launch of PrivacyGo, TikTok hopes to align its ad targeting practices with emerging data privacy shifts. This would be achieved by integrating advertisers’ CRM data with the platform’s audience insights in a privacy-protected way.
In essence, the process would work like a digital clean room, where collaborating parties can share their data securely. This would then ensure that the information provided can be used for ad targeting, without either party having access to the other’s information, enabling more specific audience reach without compromising regulations.
This comes as the platform faces constant scrutiny over its data usage practices. The company is still under investigation over its potential links to the Chinese Government and the potential for US user data to be provided directly to Chinese spy agencies. The privacy edition should help the platform gain some credibility amongst governments.
Find out more here.