Social Swipe: August
Brands and agencies must stay ahead of the game when it comes to social, reacting fast to remain competitive. Knowledge is power, and that’s what our Social Swipe supplies.
Each month, we give you bite-sized updates on social developments. Take a look at what hit the headlines this August, from TikTok’s Shop Tab to YouTube’s Shorts Fund.
TIKTOK
TikTok is looking to expand its range of in-app content creation options. It’s testing a version of Stories, which allows users to create Stories with a 24-hour life cycle. Stories display in a collapsible side panel on a user’s main feed.
TikTok will also be partnering with Vimeo and Canva, linking the apps via TikTok Ads Manager, broadening marketers’ creative capabilities.
Additionally, the platform plans to introduce a Shop Tab for all Shopify retailers, enabling them to promote in-app product catalogues that connect to their online stores for checkout. This opens up fresh territory for brands on TikTok. We’re excited to see where it leads...
Reaching beyond its highly visual nature, Instagram has added an ‘Audio’ option to its search tab. Replicating the sounds tab featured on TikTok, the new function will display all the Reels that include a specific music track.
In other Insta news, ‘Swipe-Up’ links on Instagram Stories are being replaced with Link Stickers users can pop anywhere within their Stories.
Users can now create and share Reels directly in the Facebook App, heightening engagement across platforms. The Reels will appear within the News Feed and Facebook Groups.
YOUTUBE
YouTube is hoping to spark creator interest in Shorts by launching a Shorts Fund. Each month, the app will pay a selection of creators up to $10k, based on the performance of their content.
To raise awareness of the feature, the platform has launched an ad campaign demonstrating how users can create Shorts in response to popular music videos. We’re sure the Shorts function will inspire a rich crop of inventive content – exactly what we love.
YouTube has also rolled out a ‘Chapters’ search feature. Users will be able to pinpoint and jump to specific sections of videos via a drop-down display – all the more reason to create thumb-stopping content that engages from the get-go.
Twitter is further expanding Spaces, offering a co-hosting option. Hosts will be able to invite a maximum of two co-hosts into their audio Space, opening the door to a dynamic batch of collaborative content.
