This Month in Social Media
What’s new in the world of social media?
Last month was all about innovation in the digital world, as tech changes for the better and platforms work to reinvent themselves once more before the year is out.
At Create8, we love to provide specialist insight on relevant topics and it’s fair to say we are reasonably obsessed with all things social media! The latest updates have been a hot topic in the studio this month so we thought we would bring you our unbiased opinion on who is heading in a direction that will benefit the masses and who seems to be misunderstanding everyone’s wants and needs. Let’s get started…
Send those tweets far and wide!
After much debating about where to start, we’ve chosen Twitter. Why? Because this month Twitter announced that they are potentially looking at the implementation of WhatsApp and LinkedIn sharing buttons.
What’s the purpose?
There are 2 billion users of WhatsApp worldwide and 830 million LinkedIn members, so the mass audience is already there for Twitter to leverage. On top of that, great tweets often go viral (from sombre memorials to classic Elon Musk moments), doing the rounds as screenshots on other social media platforms.
So, Twitter has excellent virality and sharing buttons could be the perfect way to highlight this fact. As LinkedIn continues to boom and WhatsApp has become the go-to messaging platform globally, could connecting the dots restore Twitter to its former glory? Personally, we think it’s got a shot!
Social Media Management at Create8
As a provider of regular blogs filled with expert advice and the latest digital news, Create8 is also one of the most innovative digital agencies in the sector. We are here to help your business thrive online by creating boundary-pushing content and thought-provoking design work.
If you’re looking for a team of creatives who are experts in social media management, you’ve come to the right place. Simply follow the link below for more information about all our services. We can’t wait to hear from you!
Pinterest wants to stand alone
It feels like forever since we spoke about Pinterest, but the truth is it’s a pretty cool space, especially for creatives. September saw the launch of a new Pinterest campaign which chose to highlight the differences between themselves and the competition.
The campaign entitled ‘Don’t Don’t Yourself’ (we aren’t overly sold on that part either!) portrays Pinterest as the place to explore creativity and not be persuaded by the opinions of others, ‘a catalogue of ideas’ if you will. And it is far less ‘social’ than other social media platforms. Rather than focusing on community building and interaction, Pinterest hosts a plethora of product images and creative perspectives from huge and small companies alike.
The sheer amount of images hosted on Pinterest is what makes it such a profitable business. But the question remains: does that make it the hub of creativity it desires to be? We’re not sure. But one thing is for certain; Pinterest is less about engagement which, in turn, makes it less about negativity. And that an only be a good thing.
Share and Share alike with Instagram
Is your Instagram feed full of things you don’t want to see? Such as Reels that are less interesting than TikTok videos? The latest suggestion from everyone’s ex-favourite platform brings more questions and, of course, more scrutiny.
Much like Twitter’s retweet button, the suggested feature will mean users can share other people’s posts on the feeds of their followers. This may help attribute credit to those who deserve it, however we see the change as far more troublesome than it initially sounds.
It looks like a move by Meta to strategically align users with the content that it deems the ‘stickiest’, based on interaction from other users. The most popular pictures, reels etc. will be shared on your feed. It sounds like TikTok, doesn’t it? But there are fundamental differences between the two platforms which we think should be maintained. On Instagram, we choose the people from whom we want to see content (based on our friendships and interests). On TikTok, the ‘for you’ page algorithm is tailored to content with the most virality, so we see popular content regardless of our connection to the creator.
It seems totally illogical that we would begin to see content on Instagram from people who we don’t follow. The notion of a reshare button suggests that we have the exact same interests as our friends and those we follow… It goes without saying, but we don’t!
This may not seem like the most significant move to some, but honestly, when we look at it from a user interface stance, we can’t quite get our heads around it. For as long as we can remember, we have been told to interact with and connect to the Instagram accounts we are interested in, but will that really matter if the reshare feature is implemented? While reshare is in its infancy as just a suggestion, we can’t help but hope it doesn’t come to fruition.
LinkedIn wants you to find employment
Let’s finish this blog with some positivity! LinkedIn, once used solely as a platform to host online CVs, continues to grow and is currently trying to provide its users with better employment opportunities.
Behind the scenes at LinkedIn HQ, they are working on a new job overview which will show open jobs that your connections are looking to fill. LinkedIn has also been busy sharing lists of desirable skills which are currently sought on the platform. Customer service took the top spot, with sales and accounting at 2nd and 3rd respectively.
The beauty of this kind of information being readily available is that the platform’s users can tailor the information they share to suit the desires of prospective employers. If you’re currently job-seeking, we suggest you use your LinkedIn profile as much as you can!
As the digital universe continues to grow and develop, we look forward to seeing what innovative implementations appear next month. There’s something genuinely endless about the possibilities of social media, especially when a platform understands the needs and desires of its audience.
If you are looking for an agency of experts to manage your social media or to help you understand more about digital marketing, PPC or SEO, why not contact Create8 today? We are a team of creatives who constantly strive to break the mould and build memorable and successful campaigns for all of our clients.
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