Social Media News: April 2021
Each month we 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 April 2021:
Facebook Launches New News Feed Filter Bar: Facebook is making it easier for users to switch between the regular News Feed—which uses Facebook’s algorithm—and either a Favorites or Recent listing of posts. Favorites allow users to select up to 30 users and Pages to include in a priority listing. These new feed listings give users more control over their experience. You can read more at Facebook’s official announcement here.
Instagram Announces Drafts for Stories: Instagram is making it easy to post Story updates at specific times by announcing a draft feature for Stories. This will make it easier to maintain a workflow for Instagram posts. Get a sneak peek of the feature here.
Twitter Spaces Expands to Desktop PCs: Twitter users who look forward to using Spaces for their digital broadcasts can rejoice; Twitter is bringing Spaces to Desktop PCs. This will make it easier to create high-quality audio content for Spaces. Keep an eye out for its competitior, Clubhouse, as it rolls out to all users soon. Learn more here.
Twitter Develops New “Communities”: Twitter is allowing you to show your tweets with chosen Communities. Communities will allow you to select a specific audience—a community—for each tweet. This can let you use Twitter for a wider breadth of topics, instead of having to make a separate Twitter profile for a different purpose. You can get a sneak peek here.
TikTok and Shopify Unveil E-Commerce Plans: TikTok continues its foray into the e-commerce realm. Following its integrations with Shopify in late 2020, TikTok is now adding more features to solidify its place as an e-Commerce site. Features to come include Livestream shopping, brand catalogs, and links to drive commission on sales. Learn more about how TikTok and Shopify are developing as e-Commerce brands here.
Instagram Tests “Remix” Option for Reels: Instagram is adding a new feature to Reels—a “remix” option that allows users to create a reaction clip to an existing reel. The result is a video with the original and your new video playing side-by-side. This video style, which became popular on TikTok, is a great way to respond to trends and engage in viral content. This feature is now being tested publicly, so if you don’t see it yet, keep an eye out. Take a look at the feature here.
What do you think of these new features? Which one are you most excited to try out? Let me know in the comments below!