Fill Me in Friday | Oct. 2, 2020
It’s Friday and that means I’ve rounded up the top social media updates for you! Lots happening this week and the previous week (because I forgot last week).
We’ll start with every advertiser’s favorite - Facebook!
Facebook removes restrictions on text in ad images - yay! See ya, never, 20% text rule. A while ago, Facebook’s ad approval process wouldn’t approve ads with more than 20% text in the image. Then, in 2018, it moved to allowing them, but would significantly decrease the reach and impressions of your ads. This was stated to be because it wasn’t a good user experience when scrolling through the feed, to come across an ad with too much text in the image.
Alas, Facebook has said it will be removing the rule altogether, and ads should have no reach or impression hindrance because of the amount of text in an ad image.
Facebook announces new Groups features - If you haven’t noticed, Facebook is pushing Groups this year. It’s said previously that posts from groups will be prioritized in a user’s feed over those from brands they follow. And, given the isolating issues COVID-19 has brought, more is being done to make Groups easier and safer to use. One new feature is a set of admin tools for Facebook groups, which will provide admins more ways to moderate and manage engagement. One new feature is automated rules for moderation, which allow the admins to automatically decline posts that contain certain keywords or links, and from people who haven’t been a part of the group for long enough.
Pinnable topics is another feature being rolled out. Members will be able to add a topic to any post by using a hashtag before a keyword or phrase, allowing the admins to pin topics to the top of the group.
Facebook is also adding the ability to make monetization within a group easier for admins by adding its Brand Collabs Manager tool. Relevant groups can now be found within Brand Collabs manager when looking for potential partnership opportunities.
Real-time chats, conversation starts and Q&A tools are also new functions. As explained by Facebook, “[Chats] will allow for smaller, and real-time discussion among group members. So if you're in a photographic group, for example, and you have a specific question around what the best spot to photograph flowers is in your home town, you can simply start a chat with a few of the members of the group to have a real-time conversation."
Facebook integrates Messenger and Instagram DMs - confusing everyone. According to Facebook, the change is all about making messaging the best experience no matter which app you’re using. The ultimate goal is to have all of the messaging platforms in one place - Messenger, Instagram DM and WhatsApp. This is the first baby step in the integration process and not all cross-messaging is available just yet.
TikTok can remain available for download in the US, despite executive order - at least for the time being. Oracle/Walmart is set to takeover the app, which allows the app to remain available for download while details are finalized. However, things could change if the deal isn’t finalized by November 12.
TikTok also added more duet formats which provide new layouts to Duet clips and new creative options. Available Duet formats are now: Left and right (traditional), React (streamer style, PiP display), Top and bottom (overlays new response above original) and Three screen (enabling more users to get involved in 1 clip).
Pinterest announces Pin Stories and new Pin Analytics. Much like the other major platforms, Pinterest announced a full beta launch of Story Pins. According to Pinterest, "Story Pins is an all new type of Pin and publishing option that gives creators a way to tell dynamic and visual stories with videos, voiceover and image and text overlay. We’re making it easier for creators who are eager to share their talent, passions and creativity to flow back directly into Pinterest without the need for a website. For Pinners, this means the ideas within a Pin will be more engaging and actionable."
Pinterest also launched a new holiday hub and marketing guide to help with holiday campaign creation and shopping. The hub includes previous research reports, case studies, audience person insights and more. It’s also published a new holiday marketing guide to help users and advertisers.
