Social Media News: December 2020
Each month I recap the biggest changes in social media so you can stay informed and adjust your marketing strategy accordingly. Here are the highlights of what you should know from December 2020:
Instagram’s New Format Centers Reels and Shops: Instagram is making it easier than ever to sell your product! With a recent redesign, the Activity tab (a heart icon) has been replaced with the Shop tab, making it easy for customers to easily browse shops. Additionally, Reels has been moved to a high-profile position on the main page, making it easy for customers to view Reels. If you aren’t marketing your products on Instagram, now is a great time to take advantage of Instagram’s new features! Learn more here.
Get Frequently Asked Questions Answered on Instagram: Instagram is testing a new FAQ option for business accounts. Customers can see some quick, tappable Q&A options when submitting a message, giving customers the opportunity to find quick answers. At the moment, it appears that a business can set up four questions to be displayed in the initial message interaction. Check out some images of the new feature here.
Messages Vanish on Messenger: Instagram Messenger is adding a new feature that allows you to send messages that vanish! Just swipe up to enter the new Vanish Mode and any messages or images you send will be deleted after they’re seen. This feature is great for casual communication with friends and bodes well for Messenger as a robust communication platform. Check out the official announcement for more details.
Facebook Introduces Kustomer Automation: Facebook has acquired the messaging automation platform Kustomer. Communicating with customers will be easier than ever, with AI detection of customer queries and automated messages. Kustomer also will re-route messages to human service agents, in the case that AI cannot respond. Learn more about Kustomer and read the official announcement from Facebook for more details.
Twitter Adds Carousel Ads: Advertising on Twitter just keeps getting better! Twitter has rolled out their carousel ads worldwide, allowing advertisers to include between two to six images or videos along a horizontally, swipeable space. This option makes it easier to showcase a full breadth of products in one ad. Check out this ad unit in the Twitter Ads Manager!
Updates to Twitter Fleets Keeps it Sailing: Twitter recently launched Fleets, its Stories-like tool. With some recent updates, they’ve been streamlining the new feature- hashing out some sever and system issues, including ones where Fleets were available even after the 24-hour mark had passed. Read more about bug fixes here.
Facebook Partners with the Better Business Bureau: Facebook is committing to eCommerce on its platform! Facebook has partnered with the Better Business Bureau on the “Shop Safe, Shop Smart” campaign for the holidays. This campaign will support ads to help spot, avoid, and report scams online. Read more about this partnership here.
What do you think of these changes? Which one are you most excited about? Let me know in the comments below!