In November, we go to the polls, honor those who served, feast while watching football, and shop until we drop.
November is also Men’s Health Awareness Month and American Indian Heritage Month.
Social Media Holidays to Mark on Your Calendar
- Nov. 1: First day of Men’s Health Awareness Month
- Nov. 1: First day of American Indian Heritage Month
- Nov. 1: All Saints Day
- Nov. 5: Election Day
- Nov. 8: Science, Technology, Engineering, and Medicine (STEM) Day
- Nov. 11: Veterans’ Day
- Nov. 12: Deepavali/Diwali
- Nov. 13: World Kindness Day
- Nov. 19: International Men’s Day
- Nov. 28: Thanksgiving
- Nov. 29: Black Friday
- Nov. 30: Small Business Saturday
Social Media Platform Updates
TikTok
Advertising Week Announcements
TikTok introduced several new solutions for brands at Advertising Week in New York, including automated performance tools, more measurement capabilities, and new privacy technologies.
Performance automation solution Smart+ automates the performance advertising process across targeting, bidding, and creative to deliver the right ad to the right person, ensuring the best performance. Advertisers input their assets, budget, and targeting goals, and Smart+ automatically creates or selects the best creative asset through artificial intelligence tool TikTok Symphony, chooses the right audience, and puts the best ad in front of the right customer at the right time.
@tiktoknewsroomIntroducing Smart+, our new AI-powered performance automation solutions, helping brands put the best ad in front of the right customer at the right time.
Campaign objectives at launch are:
- Smart+ Web Campaigns: Drives traffic and lower-funnel actions, including sales, on advertisers’ websites.
- Smart+ Catalog Ads: Drives lower-funnel outcomes by automatically delivering relevant product recommendations to people based on their interests, intent, and actions.
- Smart+ App Campaigns: Leverages the power of discovery on TikTok to drive application installs and conversions.
- Smart+ Lead Generation Campaigns: Turns leaned-in audiences into high-value customers using next-generation lead-generation solutions.
On the commerce side, new solution GMV Max automates the creation of campaigns for TikTok Shop, including audience targeting, bidding, and creative selection, letting merchants optimize across organic content, paid ads, and affiliate posts.
Conversion lift studies are now available to businesses of all sizes, letting them measure TikTok’s business impact beyond the last click.
Advertisers looking to measure conversion lift with additional privacy measures in place, like clean rooms and trusted execution environments, can do so via integrations with third-party and open-source providers including Anonym Trusted Execution Environments, AWS Clean Rooms, LiveRamp Clean Rooms powered by Habu, and Secure Multi-Party Computation.
Make It and Sell It
TikTok began matching creators with manufacturers to make custom products that can be sold on TikTok Shop.
This tends to be a play for mega-creators such as Emma Chamberlain, MrBeast, and Logan Paul, but the door is open for creators with smaller audiences, such as a food creator selling a cookbook or a fitness influencer making custom athletic gear available.
Flip Story
A new feature called Flip Story lets creators on TikTok add a second side to every story that they post on the platform.
Creators can tap the plus sign button to access the Create page and toggle to Story, or tap the plus sign on their profile photo, at which point they will see the option to add a Flip Story.
Flip Stories only support images, and users can snap content directly via the Create page or upload images from their devices.
Viewers can press the Hold to Flip button on the first side of a Flip Story to see the hidden second side, and creators will see a separate list of viewers who did so.
Pop star Billie Eilish used the feature to share a before-and-after look at the build-up to her “Hit Me Hard and Soft: The Tour.”
Mental Health
TikTok marked World Mental Health Day Oct. 10 with several initiatives to help its creator community access authoritative content and reliable resources.
The company teamed up with Headspace to provide free access to its app for up to 20,000 creators worldwide.
TikTok also became one of the founding members of The Mental Health Coalition’s Thrive program, and it will securely share information about content on its platform that violates its self-harm and suicide policies with industry partners such as Meta and Snapchat, enabling collaboration throughout the industry to keep people safe.
The platform developed dedicated in-app content and educational resources, such as a Creator Academy Playbook focused on creating content for World Mental Health Day and beyond.
Finally, TikTok partnered with the World Health Organization to create reliable content and combat misinformation through the Fides network, a diverse community of trusted healthcare professionals and content creators.
Other TikTok News
- Coldplay launched a dedicated, exclusive experience on the TikTok app to mark the debut of new album Moon Music, where users can explore content from the band, shop for exclusive merchandise on TikTok Shop (only in the U.S.), and earn a Coldplay-themed profile frame.
- UnitedMasters, a music distribution platform for independent artists, entered a direct partnership with TikTok to make its full catalog of music available via the platform and provide additional commercial opportunities to its artists via the TikTik Commercial Music Library.
- TikTok launched a Global #ElectronicMusic hub to help artists, DJs, and producers at every stage get discovered.
- Finally, TikTok’s STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) feed is now available to all users in Ireland, the U.K., and the U.S., after previously only being turned on by default for those under 18.
YouTube
Going Long on Shorts
Several updates were announced for the YouTube Shorts short-form video option.
YouTube Shorts can now be up to three minutes long, which the Google-owned video platform said was a top requested feature by creators.
Recent updates to the Shorts video player streamlined its look and placed creators’ content center stage.
Templates let creators tap Remix on a Short, and then select Use This Template, to re-create it with their own touch.
Creators will soon be able to access YouTube content, including music videos, via their Shorts camera and pull from multiple clips across YouTube.
YouTube’s mobile app added a Shorts trend page.
Users will soon see previews of comments directly in the Shorts feed, without having to click into the comments feed.
Finally, YouTube users will soon have a Show Fewer Shorts option, accessible via the three-dot menu in the upper right of any Shorts grid in the home feed.
New Feature Preview
YouTube offered an advanced look at several new features that will be coming to its platform:
- A new mini-player will allow users to browse YouTube while watching a video, and it can be resized and moved.
- Users will gain the ability to collaborate on playlists, and customization tools will be added including letting people design custom thumbnails for playlists from their own photos or by creating them with generative artificial intelligence. Users will also be able to vote on videos in playlists later this year.
- Sleep Timer, already available, lets people set a timer to automatically pause videos after a certain period.
- Badges are coming to the YouTube and YouTube Music apps for mobile devices so users can display their support and celebrate their achievements on the platform. Once they roll out, they can be found in the You tab.
- The YouTube experience for televisions was enhanced, giving it a more cinematic feel. And the visual changes rolling out on web and mobile will also come to the YouTube app on TV.
- A new user interface for watching Shorts on TV provides continued interaction with the content, such as reading comments or browsing the shop.
- Finally, immersive channel pages are coming to YouTube on TV, playing a video automatically when users visit a creator’s channel, so that viewers get a tease of the creator’s content.
Election Protection
YouTube detailed the steps it continues to take to keep its platform safe and free of misinformation before Americans go to the polls Nov. 5.
The YouTube homepage will prominently highlight information for viewers on where and how to vote, and they may see an information panel that directs them to additional details via Google Search.
Searching for something related to a 2024 federal election candidate will bring up an information panel above the search results with information such as the candidate’s political party, a link to their official channel, and a click-through button to Google Search.
Once the polls close, timely context related to election results will appear underneath videos related to the election and atop search results. This information panel will link to Google’s election results feature, allowing people to follow results for federal elections in real-time. There will also be a link to follow the election results in real-time on the YouTube homepage, directing people to details on Google Search.
On Election Day, viewers will see a shelf, in both English and Spanish, of livestreams from authoritative news channels on the homepage, allowing them to watch election night unfold.
Ads related to elections in the U.S. will be temporarily suspended after the last polls close.
Creators must disclose when videos they upload contain any altered or synthetic content, and a label will be added. That label will be more prominent for content about sensitive topics, such as elections. And some synthetic media, regardless of labeling, will be removed if it violates the platform’s community guidelines.
Finally, YouTube continues to work with parent company Google’s Threat Analysis Group to combat government-backed attacks aimed at interfering with elections.
Other YouTube News
- YouTube and partner the Poynter Institute’s MediaWise will launch a media literacy curriculum designed to help teens become discerning digital citizens.
More Views, Better Quality
Head of Instagram Adam Mosseri said in an Ask Me Anything video shared by creator economy expert and influencer marketing consultant Lindsey Gamble that the quality of videos on its platform depends on the number of views the video is getting.
Mosseri said in the video, “In general, we want to show the highest-quality video we can … But if something isn’t watched for a long time—because the vast majority of views are in the beginning—we will move to a lower\-quality video. And then if it’s watched again a lot, then we’ll re-render the higher-quality video.”
He added that the aim is to show people the highest-quality content it can, and told one user in a response that the shift in quality “isn’t huge.”
Threads Educational Resources
Instagram rolled out educational resources designed to help people learn how to boost discoverability on stand-alone app Threads and drive conversations on that platform.
Users will have access to best practices, content examples, and data-backed tips from successful creators.
Instagram shared the following insights about Threads:
- Replies account for almost one-half of views, so try joining a conversation to reach more people.
- Higher post frequency is linked to higher impressions per post, so post at least two to five times per week to build your audience.
- Funny content receives a higher number of views on Threads.
- Video, photo, and carousel posts that include text average more views than those without text.
- Posting more frequently on the weekends can help drive higher engagement.
- Combining text and video in a single post can drive more views.
- Posts that drive conversations are more likely to get recommended.
- Creators who saw the most replies posted text about TV and movies, photography, books and literature, fashion and style, fitness and workouts, sports, music, food and drink, beauty, technology, and travel and leisure.
- Top-performing creators post original content specifically for Threads, so try sharing something new.
Take My Card
Instagram began rolling out a profile card feature that functions as a digital business card for profiles.
Rather than sending a handle to someone, people can share the two-sided profile card.
One side is a sharable card containing profile information like biography, links, music, and profile picture, while the other features a QR code with a link to the profile.
Best Practices
Instagram added a best practices section to its professional dashboard to provide creators with guidelines in five categories: creation, engagement, guidelines, monetization, and Reels.
Each category will also include personalized tips to give creators an idea of how their account is performing.
Other Instagram News
- Insights are rolling out to Threads on mobile.
- Instagram kicked off a new campaign, informed by the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children and Thorn, to help teens spot sextortion scams and help parents support their teens in avoiding these scams. Follower and following lists are also being hidden from potential sextortion scammers, screenshots of certain images in DMs are prohibited, and Instagram’s nudity protection feature is now available globally.
- Threads users will have 15 minutes to make changes to their posts, which will not be shared to the fediverse until that 15-minute period expires. And users who have turned on sharing to the fediverse can see who follows them and likes their content from other fediverse servers.
- Finally, a new activity status option on Threads enables users to let people know when they’re online. People will see a green dot alongside the profile picture and, for private profiles, only followers will see activity status.
Facebook Content Monetization
Facebook merged in-stream ads, ads on Reels, and its Performance Bonus into a single monetization program, the beta of Facebook Content Monetization, aimed at making it easier for creators to earn from more content formats.
Creators can join the program to earn from longer videos, photo and text posts, and Reels.
Facebook said more than 4 million content creators have earned money on the platform since it began Facebook-funded monetization in 2017, and content creators were paid over $2 billion in the past year for photo and text posts, Reels, and videos.
Some 1 million creators already monetizing on the platform began receiving invitations to join the beta, with more to come in the months ahead.
Facebook IRL
Facebook made several announcements at its Facebook IRL event in Austin, Texas.
The platform is testing a new Local tab that pulls together the best local content from surfaces like events, groups, and Marketplace. The feature is being tested in Austin; Charlotte, N.C.; Chicago; Dallas; Houston; Los Angeles; New York; Phoenix; San Francisco; and Washington, D.C.
Facebook is introducing a Weekly and Weekend Digest for Events, compiling upcoming event recommendations in a user’s area based on interests, and delivered weekly via notification.
A new, swipeable section in Feed surfaces the best local content across Facebook, such as businesses, groups, local events, people, and stuff for sale.
The platform is also testing an Explore tab serving people a variety of content tailored to their interests.
An updated, full-screen video tab is coming to Facebook that lets people view live, long-form, and short-form videos in a single experience, powered by the social network’s recommendations technology.
Users who create Facebook events can invite Instagram followers, as well as send SMS and email invites to guests, allowing people to RSVP whether they are on Facebook or not.
Facebook began testing a customizable Group AI to help members of groups find answers to questions, especially those that have previously been asked.
Facebook Dating has a new Matchmaker feature that lets users invite up to five friends to swipe for potential matches on their behalf.
Finally, on Messenger, Facebook began rolling out Memories, a way to relive and share moments originally shared via the messaging app, as well as Messenger Communities, where small and midsized communities can connect over shared interests.
Meta
Account Protection Through Facial Recognition
Meta is testing the use of facial-recognition technology to detect and prevent “celeb-bait” ads, which use images of public figures to bait people into engaging with ads that lead to scam websites, as well as to help people verify their identity and regain access to compromised accounts.
The company said that If its systems suspect that an ad may be a scam that contains the image of a public figure at risk for celeb-bait, it will use facial-recognition technology to compare faces in the ad to the public figure’s Facebook and Instagram profile pictures. If it then confirms a match and determines that the ad is a scam, it will be blocked.
In the test for locked-out users, they can upload a video selfie, and Meta will use facial-recognition technology to compare it with their profile picture. That video selfie is then encrypted and stored securely, and it will never be visible on the user’s profile.
Advertising Week 2024
Meta announced ways for advertisers to enhance their campaign performance via creator content and a suite of generative AI and creative tools.
The company said more than 1 million advertisers use at least one of its gen AI ad creative tools each month, and 15 million ads were created with them in the month leading up to Advertising Week.
Meta recently added new capabilities to better incorporate an advertiser’s brand voice and tone, as well as the ability to use text prompts to create an image and upload logos to create more customized image outputs.
Testing of Video Expansion is underway. The feature generates unseen pixels in each video frame to enable expansion of the aspect ratio.
The new Image Animation option lets advertisers generate video creative from a single static image without any existing video assets on Instagram Reels.
Creators are about to become an even bigger part of the mix, as advertisers can now integrate creator content into their collections ads on Reels and additional surfaces, with the two account handles appearing together, powered by their Advantage+ Catalog.
Meta is testing the ability to add a creator testimonial to a partnership ad.
Finally, partnership ads tools are being consolidated into a single Partnership Ads Hub page within Ads Manager.
Brand Suitability
Meta is testing a new control that lets businesses turn off comments on their Facebook and Instagram ads.
The company began testing a publisher block list that enabled businesses to block their ads from appearing on certain Instagram profiles, and that feature is now being extended to Facebook profile ads.
The company is working with its Meta Business Partners to give businesses more control over specific categories that they may want to block their ads from appearing in. Integral Ad Science is the initial test partner.
Finally, Meta recently made updates that led to an improvement of more than 75% in how quickly data is made available to its third-party brand safety and suitability partners, and businesses have an easier and more efficient way to manage their suitability preferences through updates to its Brand Safety and Suitability Center.
More Meta News
- The Meta Ai chatbot debuted in six more countries: Bolivia, Brazil, Guatemala, Paraguay, the Philippines, and the U.K.
- The company released a new white paper that explores the transformative power of AI in marketing.
- Finally, Meta partnered with U.K. banks Metro Bank and NatWest on the Fraud Intelligence Reciprocal Exchange program, which allows banks to share intelligence directly with the company to combat scams on its platforms.
AI and Automation
Pinterest began rolling out the Pinterest Performance+ suite of new AI and automation campaign features for brands running performance advertising campaigns on its platform.
The company said Pinterest Performance+ campaigns help drive lower-funnel outcomes through deciding how much to bid, managing budgets, and optimizing targeting, lowering creation time due to one-half of the required inputs as traditional campaigns.
Pinterest Performance+ bidding for return on ad spend is now available to qualified advertisers in all markets, joining clicks and conversion volume.
The platform also announced the debut of Promotions in Australia, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, Japan, Mexico, the U.K., and the U.S.
The Promotions feature enables Pinterest to serve personalized, branded shopping recommendations powered by machine learning to users in search and their home feeds based on what they have searched and pinned, giving advertisers the chance to reach users who are most likely to convert.
Snapchat
Sponsored Snaps and Promoted Places
Snapchat began testing two new ad placements on its platform: Sponsored Snaps and Promoted Places on Snap Map.
Disney is the launch partner for Sponsored Snaps, which lets brands deliver full-screen vertical video Snaps directly to users, who can then engage by sending a message to the brand or clicking the call-to-action button.
Sponsored Snaps that are not opened by users are removed from the inbox.
McDonald’s and Taco Bell are the launch partners for Promoted Places, which highlight sponsored places of interest on the app’s Snap Map feature, which is used for browsing places in the area where a user is at the time and seeing if friends are nearby.
Fall Feature Drop
Snapchat rolled out some new features as the leaves began to fall off the trees.
iOS users can customize the Camera Control on iPhone 16 handsets and switch Lock Screen controls on any iPhone running iOS 18 to launch Snapchat and take photos and videos even when the phone is locked.
More Bitmoji Stickers were added with new trends and lingo, like the Gen-Z heart and the ability to tell your best friend to “slay.”
And Footsteps, a new addition to Snap Map, lets users see where they have been while the feature was turned on. The information is only visible to the user.
More Snapchat News
- Snap’s Spectacles camera sunglasses debuted in Austria, France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, and Spain, and developers in those countries can apply to join the Spectacles Developer Program.
- Snap released a statement in response to the New Mexico attorney general’s complaint about Snapchat’s effects on minors.
- Snap detailed the steps it takes to keep minors safe on Snapchat.
Adding AI to Sales Navigator
Noting that AI can free up about 11.5 hours per week, LinkedIn made several announcements regarding incorporation of the technology.
The professional network began testing enhancements to Account IQ, including more detailed, personalized insights that show why a marketer’s solution is a perfect fit for a target account, and coaching them on how to best map their solution to their buyers’ business needs.
New tool Lead Finder uses a member’s custom-built Sales Navigator persona and information about their target buyers on LinkedIn to identify who they should reach out to at accounts alongside connections for a warm introduction.
Lead IQ aggregates members’ information shared on LinkedIn, combined with Account IQ data, to highlight shared experiences and opportunities for connection, such as celebrating a new job or mutual topics of interest.
And the professional network’s new Message Assist feature pulls insights from LinkedIn, web results, and details a member chooses to share about products and services to help create personalized messages.
Accelerate
AI-powered solution LinkedIn Accelerate was made available in public beta to all advertisers worldwide.
Accelerate campaigns harness the power of AI to find the right combination of targeting, creative, bidding, and placement based on simple inputs.
AI predicts the most likely audiences to convert using firmographic data, campaign engagement data, and data provided by the user.
Gen AI ad copy is coupled with past images and Shutterstock images that are predicted to drive the best performance, and users can take advantage of Microsoft Designer to generate creative.
Machine learning is used to automatically adjust bids for maximized campaign results, and cost caps can be added for further control over costs.
Throughout the process, an AI marketing assistant provides campaign recommendations and conversational support, while the brand’s marketing team retains complete control to make tweaks and improvements to incorporate its own expertise and brand personality.
New B2B Research and Live Event Ads
LinkedIn released new “Business of Influence” research, a survey of more than 1,700 business-to-business tech buyers in India, the U.K., and the U.S., aimed at learning how they prefer to receive information on new products. Highlights included:
- 63% of respondents said short-form video content helps inform their buying decisions, and 80% of those who consume video content said video-focused influencer content is one of the most trusted forms of content in B2B.
- 67% of buyers who are aware of B2B influencer marketing said influencer content plays a critical role in the consideration stage of the IT buying process.
- 53% said subject matter expertise is B2B influencers’ most important trait.
- 67% of respondents who consume B2B influencer content believe B2B expert content helps build brand trust and creates awareness of different products and solutions.
The professional network also introduced Live Event Ads, noting that Live Events on the platform are up 14.4% over the past year, and Thought Leader Ads are generating click-through rates 2.3 times higher than those of single image ads.
Brands can now:
- Promote a member’s post about a Live Event their company page is hosting via a Thought Leader Ad that links directly to the event to drive engagement, registrations, and views.
- Offer a 30-second video sneak peek enabling members to see a preview, driving attendance and registration.
- Regionally target who they want to invite when setting up the event to promote a more personalized event experience.
Hiring Assistant
LinkedIn introduced AI agent Hiring Assistant with the aim of handling repetitive tasks and leaving hiring managers more time to focus on advising hiring managers, connecting with candidates, and creating exceptional candidate experiences.
Hiring Assistant rolled out in charter to a select group of LinkedIn customers, including AMD, Canva, Siemens, and Zurich Insurance.
The professional network also added a new coaching feature to LinkedIn Learning that helps members practice human skills through interactive scenarios using text or voice, such as conversations on work-life balance, feedback, and performance reviews.
More LinkedIn News
- The professional network said 10 million members have signed up as freelancers on its Services Marketplace.
- LinkedIn parent Microsoft said in its fiscal first-quarter earnings report that the professional network’s revenue rose 10% year-over-year, member growth continues to accelerate, weekly immersive video views on the platform increased by six times quarter-over-quarter, and total video viewership on LinkedIn is up 36% year-over-year.
- Tango is LinkedIn’s fourth thinking-oriented game.
X
Creator Revenue Sharing Update
X detailed changes to its creator revenue sharing payouts.
Ads in replies will no longer impact creators’ payouts, which will instead be determined based on engagement with content by subscribers to X Premium.
And the platform said payments will increase as the number of X Premium subscribers rises.
AI Training
X updated its privacy policy to allow third-party “collaborators” to train their AI models on the platform’s data, unless users opt out.
The update to X’s privacy policy reads: “Third-party collaborators: Depending on your settings, or if you decide to share your data, we may share or disclose your information with third parties. If you do not opt out, in some instances, the recipients of the information may use it for their own independent purposes in addition to those stated in X’s privacy policy, including, for example, to train their artificial intelligence models, whether generative or otherwise.”
Other X News
- X “re-architected” its Community Notes system, which lets users provide context on tweets, calling the new system Lightning Notes. Users can request a Community Note on content where they feel it would be helpful.
- The search icon on the X iOS app and the web lets users search for posts on any profile.
- X announced an expanded rollout of real-time trend analysis tool Radar.
- The X application-programming interface is now live. The basic API tier now costs $200 per month, up from $100, but the number of monthly reads was boosted to 15,000 from 10,000, and new endpoints like reposts_of_me and communities search were added.
Permission Required
Subreddit moderators can no longer change their settings from public to private, or label their subreddits as NSFW (not safe for work), in order to impact ads on the platform, instead having to submit a request in order to do so.
Reddit will instantly approve requests to switch types of communities if they are under 30 days old or have fewer than 5,000 members.
Discord
Video Quests
Streaming platform Discord introduced Video Quests, a way to reward viewers for watching a video ad with perks such as in-game items, skins for characters in that game, or ways to customize their Discord profiles.
Discord said Video Quests will initially appear in the lower-left area of the app on desktop, via mobile banners, and in the Quests home page.
Brands can only purchase Video Quests directly from the Discord sales team, and the platform said there are currently no self-service options or integrations with third-party ad buying platforms.
Campaigns can be targeted by age, geography, and a user’s gameplay history.
WhatsApp Status Updates
Meta-owned messaging app WhatsApp detailed updates to its WhatsApp Status feature.
Users can now like another user’s Status, with those likes private and counter-free, so only the author of the Status can see them.
And a new private mention option lets users ensure that those closest to them see their Status and have the option to reshare it with their audience.These mentions will not be shown on the Status.
Prettying Up Video Calls
WhatsApp users can now add filters and backgrounds to video calls on the messaging app, for a more playful atmosphere or a more artistic feel.
There are currently 10 filters and 11 backgrounds to choose from.
The filters are: Black & White, Cool, Dreamy, Duo Tone, Fisheye, Frosted Glass, Light Leak, Prism Light, Vintage TV, and Warm.
And the backgrounds are Beach, Blur, Cafe, Celebration, Foodie, Forest, Living Room, Office, Pebbles, Smoosh, and Sunset.
Other WhatsApp News
- WhatsApp users can now privately add and manage their contacts from any device they are using, and a new option lets them save contacts exclusively to WhatsApp.
- The app introduced custom lists, which let users filter chats with custom categories of their choice.
