This Week in Social (Week of January 20)
This Week in Social is a weekly digest of some of the biggest stories in social media marketing news. These stories are the show notes for the Brave Ad World Podcast. Each story is discussed at a deeper level on the podcast.
Facebook Rolls Out More Video Features for Pages (Read more at AdWeek)
Facebook is slowly rolling out the ability for Page administrators to do more with videos on their Pages. Among the features are the abilities to feature videos and organize videos into playlists. A featured video is highlighted under the Videos tab of a Page.
The features started testing last month.
Video is clearly Facebook’s big focus right now, and now the social network is giving Page administrators a destination to drive users to. Previously, the Videos tab was little more than a collection of content in no particular order. Now, marketers can drive users to a destination on Facebook to see all content in a clear, cohesive way, just like they can with their YouTube channels.
Twitter Acquires ZipDial (Read more at TechCrunch)
Twitter has acquired the India-based company ZipDial for an undisclosed sum that experts believe is between $30 and $40 million.
ZipDial is a platform that allows users to call a toll-free number and then hangup before it is answered. The missed call then triggers text messages and phone calls with ads in them. These ads are often accompanied with goods or information, such as cricket scores. Mobile users in India have limited phone plans, so using missed calls allows them to receive information without using their minutes.
The ZipDial acquisition will probably mean little in the U.S., but now, Twitter has a huge asset in more emerging markets. And ZipDial fits well with Twitter in terms of offering real-time information. Although, the biggest opportunity here is for Twitter to expand its ad offering in more emerging markets, which is where Facebook has also set its sights.
Snapchat Unveils Its Media Platform (Read more at Digiday)
Snapchat will be rolling out Discover at the end of this month. Discover will be an ad-supported offering from
Snapchat that features original content from Snapchat as well as media companies like ESPN, CNN and Vice. Snapchat will split ad revenue with the media companies creating exclusive content for the Snapchat audience.
To launch the platform, Snapchat has brought on journalists, animators and videographers to create quality content for its users. In terms of advertising, Discover will include pre-roll and native units.
This is a bold move for Snapchat and really unlike anything it’s done in the past. It’s a shift from being a messaging platform to being a media company. The question is how receptive Snapchat’s users will be to such a service and whether or not Discover can generate enough revenue and audience to please media companies behind the content.
Pinterest Acquires Kosei (Read more at GIGAOM)
Pinterest has acquired Kosei, a machine learning platform that specializes in recommending products.
According to Pinterest, “ Kosei has been building a unique technology stack that drives commerce by making highly personalized and powerful product recommendations… As we build a discovery engine for all objects, Kosei is a perfect fit for our team."
Kosei has a unique ability to map product relationships, and Pinterest can use that knowledge to better understand the motivations of its users. It can then recommend better pins and better target ads to users. If it can understand what a user wants based on what a user has already pinned, it becomes an even more powerful platform than it already is.
Tumblr Launches Creatrs Network (Read more at Fast Company)
Tumblr is taking a page from YouTube’s playbook and launching an agency to connect some of its users with brands. Up until this point, Tumblr has focused on generating revenue by offering brands sponsored posts created by brands themselves.
Now, Tumblr will also offering the ability for brands pick from a pool of 300 content creators to create content. Tumblr also acts as an agent for its creators to get more exposure, deals and celebrity status.
AT&T, Gap and Universal Pictures are already on board.
Many users have already found their voices on Tumblr. Now, this network gives them even greater access to more audiences as well as revenue. It’s a model that has worked for YouTube in terms of creating stars.
Tumblr says it “owes the world’s best content.” And with that in mind, it feels it can power some of the best advertising as well. In a world of declining organic reach, working with content creators themselves makes a lot of sense, and Tumblr has creators in droves.
News Quick Hits
- Facebook is currently testing a feature that transcribes audio clips sent over its Messenger app to text. The feature is intended to make it easier for message recipients to receive messages in situations where listening to audio clips is difficult. (Read more at Entrepreneur)
- Facebook is giving users the ability to flag stories shared on the social network as false news or a hoax. After enough people flag a story, it will show up less often in the News Feeds of other users and include a warning that many have reported the story as false. Facebook says the goal is to prevent the spread of false stories. Although, Facebook has not specified how many times a story needs to be flagged or the potential ramifications of having an algorithm determine the legitimacy of a story, especially satirical content. (Read more at The Guardian)
- Flipboard has introduced Promoted Items. The ad unit will allow marketers to share articles and videos from their brand magazines or websites labeled as ads among user content. Advertisers will be able to ask users to take actions like signing up for newsletters from within the units. (Read more at AdAge)
- WhatsApp launched a web version, allowing users to send and receive messages on their computers. Previously, the service was only available on mobile devices. (Read more at Recode)