What’s popping in the influencer space this week. The highlights, opportunities and challenges for influencers and content creators in the MOOTS platform roundup.
Snap Summary
📸🎞️ Instagram Tests Extended Reels
📸📜 Instagram Showing Threads in Feed
🔎🇦🇺🇳🇿 Threads Tests Search Function in Australia and New Zealand
👀📚 Look at Your Competitors Ads with Meta’s Ad Library
🎵💰 TikTok Exceeds Instagram Time Spent on Platform but not in Ad Dollars
📰💼 LinkedIn Newsletter Refresh
🎥🌍 YouTube Relaxes Partner Program Eligibility in 33 More Countries
📌📈Pinterest Growth in Gen Z Engagement
📖🌀 Content Strategies for Google’s Search Generative Experience (SGE)
Instagram Tests Extended Reels
- Instagram is internally testing longer durations for Reels, exploring both 3-minute and 10-minute clips.
- This move mirrors TikTok’s decision to allow longer video uploads from the previous year.
- Instagram had phased out its long-form video feature, “IGTV”, in the past year, suggesting that this new extended Reels duration could be a re-introduction of long-form content in a more integrated fashion.
- The cyclical trend in video duration has been evident: starting with short videos, moving to long-form and TV-like content, and then back to short-form with platforms like Vine, Stories, and TikTok. Now, mid-length and longer videos seem to be making a return.
- It’s speculated that Instagram’s move might be to lessen TikTok’s unique appeal and value by eliminating differentiation.
Opportunities: The introduction of longer video durations on Instagram offers influencers and content creators a broader canvas to share more detailed content, stories, or tutorials. This could potentially enhance user engagement and increase monetisation opportunities for creators, especially those who have felt constrained by shorter video formats.
Challenges: With the trend in video consumption continuously evolving, influencers and content creators must gauge their audience’s interest for longer content on Instagram. Considering the platform’s history of shifting between video lengths, it’s uncertain how the audience will respond to extended Reels. Creators also need to ensure they’re not just creating longer content for the sake of it, but that the content remains engaging and valuable to their audience.
Instagram Showing Threads in Feed
- Instagram is showing Threads app posts directly within its main feed.
- The change aims to promote the Threads app to Instagram’s user base.
- Threads initially saw rapid growth but later experienced a decline in active users.
- Users report seeing a ‘for you’ section displaying Threads content.
- Feedback indicates some users don’t want Threads content in their Instagram feed.
- Some users are frustrated by Threads promotions in regions where the app isn’t accessible.
Opportunities: Integrating Threads posts into Instagram’s main feed can give creators using Threads a broader audience exposure and encourage creators not yet on Threads to join and diversify their content.
Challenges: Creators face potential content overlap across platforms, resistance from users uninterested in Threads content on Instagram, and uncertainty in content strategy if f Instagram reverses the change.
Threads Tests Search Function in Australia and New Zealand
- Threads has launched a web version of their platform, addressing a demand from users.
- Meta is testing a new feature for Threads, allowing users to search posts rather than just usernames.
- This full-text search feature is currently in the testing phase in Australia and New Zealand, with plans to expand to other English-speaking nations.
- Mark Zuckerberg and Instagram head Adam Mosseri have both expressed excitement about the upcoming search capabilities.
- Threads is actively working on enhancing engagement, especially after a daily user slump after its initial launch. This includes rolling out features like the following tab, viewing likes, reposts tab, the web version, and the latest full-text search.
- The current search version on Threads might be limited, lacking advanced search features or filters, especially when compared to other platforms like Mastodon that offer advanced search options.
Opportunities: For influencers and content creators in Australia and New Zealand, this is a prime time to familiarise themselves with the new search features, potentially optimising their content for better visibility and reach. As Threads aims to improve its engagement, content creators who align with these new features early on may enjoy a competitive advantage. The expansion of Threads to web and other anticipated features also opens avenues for diverse content strategies.
Challenges: While Threads is adding new features, it’s essential for influencers and content creators to understand that these are in their early stages. They might face challenges related to the search algorithm’s accuracy or limitations in filtering content. Also, with Threads still trying to regain momentum after its initial excitement waned, creators need to be strategic and patient in expecting significant engagement surges.
Look at Your Competitors’ Ads with Meta’s Ad Library
- Meta introduces a new feature in its Ad Library that focuses on increasing transparency by showcasing branded content involving paid partnerships.
- The library provides advanced filtering options, allowing searches by platform, date range, and specific usernames for a comprehensive overview of collaborations.
- The tool can be used to keep tabs on competitors’ campaigns, which could inspire their own unique collaboration ideas.
- Keep in mind that this transparency goes both ways, allowing competitors and followers to look at your brand partnerships as well.
Opportunities: For influencers and content creators, Meta’s Ad Library can be a goldmine of inspiration and competitive analysis. By understanding what collaborations competitors are publishing, they can identify industry trends, spot potential partnership gaps, and strategise their future campaigns more effectively.
Challenges: The transparency offered by the Ad Library can be a double-edged sword. While it provides insights into competitors’ moves, it also makes you own campaigns visible. This means influencers and content creators need to be more thoughtful and strategic about their partnerships, ensuring they maintain a unique brand voice amidst visible similarities. Privacy concerns and potential oversaturation in certain brand collaborations might also be hurdles to consider.
TikTok Exceeds Instagram Time Spent on Platform but not in Ad Dollars
- Time spent on social media platforms by US adults is increasing.
- Despite its popularity, TikTok falls behind Instagram and Facebook in US ad spending.
- The primary reason Instagram and Facebook lead in ad revenue is due to Meta’s reputation as the gold standard for social media ad buys.
- In terms of daily watch time, YouTube outperforms both Instagram and TikTok.
Opportunities: Influencers and content creators on TikTok have the opportunity to capitalise on the increasing time spent on the platform by US adults, potentially allowing for enhanced engagement and a growing audience.
Challenges: While TikTok is a platform where users are spending more time, the lag in ad dollars might make monetisation slightly more challenging for influencers and content creators compared to platforms like Instagram and Facebook.
LinkedIn Newsletter Refresh
- LinkedIn newsletters, since their 2017 launch, have garnered over 365M total subscriptions, proving their potency in sparking conversations and knowledge sharing.
- The readership for these newsletters has enjoyed a remarkable growth, tripling in the past year with more than 1.3M daily readers now.
- LinkedIn is unveiling several new features to enhance the newsletter experience:
- A redesigned article editor offers a more intuitive editing and publishing experience, including features for better content layout, multimedia inclusion, and article saving for feedback.
- Members and companies can now host up to five distinct newsletters on different topics, catering to varied audience interests and enhancing content relevance.
- With the new auto-follow feature, whenever a member subscribes to a newsletter, they automatically follow the author’s profile, building community growth and engagement.
- Other enhancements include one-click subscriptions, newsletters being more visible in search results, and easy sharing across various platforms.
Opportunities: For influencers and content creators, LinkedIn’s enriched newsletter toolset offers a excellent avenue to expand their reach, engage in deeper conversations, and solidify their expertise in their domain. The revamped article editor ensures that creators can craft content effortlessly, while features like hosting multiple newsletters and auto-follow can significantly increase their audience base.
Challenges: While the tools are promising, content creators need to be wary of not overwhelming their audience with too many newsletters or diluting their core messaging. Also, the sheer volume of newsletters on the platform might lead to saturation, so creators must continually innovate and deliver unique, high-value content to stand out and keep their audience engaged.
YouTube Relaxes Partner Program Eligibility in 33 More Countries
- YouTube expands its Partner Program (YPP) to 33 additional countries, giving creators earlier access to monetisation tools.
- Eligibility requirements have been relaxed, with creators now needing only 500 subscribers and 3,000 watch hours in the previous year.
- Once these requirements have been achieved, creators can leverage tools like Channel Memberships, Super Chats, and merchandise sales. Reaching 1,000 subscribers allows access to ad revenue sharing.
- Creators risk losing monetisation if they don’t upload new content for six or more months.
Opportunities: This expansion provides creators in 33 additional countries an opportunity to monetise earlier. By hitting the 500 subscribers mark, they can immediately access monetisation tools, and reaching 1,000 subscribers unlocks ad revenue sharing.
Challenges: The requirement to remain active and regularly upload content remains crucial; pausing for over six months can cost monetisation privileges. With more creators joining YPP, competition might intensify.
Pinterest Growth in Gen Z Engagement
- Pinterest is experiencing an increase in user engagement, notably among Gen Z users.
- Bill Ready, Pinterest CEO, described the recent period as their best user growth quarter in over two years.
- Gen Z users are Pinterest’s fastest-growing segment, showing deeper engagement than prior user groups.
- Over 50% of Pinterest users claim their primary intent on the platform is to shop. However, previously, the ability to act (actionability) was limited.
- The integration of shoppable content has led to over a 50% year-on-year rise in engagement, with a quarter-on-quarter acceleration from 35% in the previous quarter.
- Ready emphasises the shift from “inspiration-to-actionability” as advantageous for both users and advertisers.
- A key takeaway for brands is the potential of Pinterest as a platform, especially with the rise of shoppable content, to target the Gen Z demographic.
- Also, Pinterest has rolled out new safety features targeting teen users, with provisions like private profiles for those below 16 to ensure safer browsing experiences.
Opportunities: Influencers can tap into Pinterest’s growing Gen Z user base, leveraging the platform’s increasing engagement rates. With over half of Pinterest users looking to shop, influencers have a prime opportunity to incorporate shoppable content, enhancing their content’s actionability and monetisation potential.
Challenges: While Pinterest’s user engagement is rising, influencers need to ensure their content resonates deeply with Gen Z to stand out. And, with Pinterest’s new safety features, particularly those aimed at younger users, influencers must be mindful to craft content that aligns with these safety guidelines while remaining appealing and actionable.
Content Strategies for Google’s Search Generative Experience (SGE)
- Google’s search generative experience (SGE) will significantly impact the type of content that drives traffic to websites.
- Traditional topics might not bring the same amount of traffic as users will find answers on Google via generative AI.
- HubSpot’s SEO team recommends leaning into:
- Personality-driven, thought-provoking content since AI lacks perspective.
- First-person narratives for authenticity.
- E-E-A-T signals (Experience, Expertise, Authority, Trustworthiness) to rank content.
- Long-tail queries to capture more traffic.
- The inherent limitation of AI is its inability to move conversations forward or fully convey the subtleties of complex topics.
Opportunities: Adapting to the changes brought about by SGE provides an opportunity to create more authentic, first-person, and experience-based content. Emphasising personality-driven content and E-E-A-T signals can help in distinguishing creators from generic AI-generated content and in ranking higher on search results.
Challenges: Generative AI poses the risk of making certain types of content redundant. With AI providing straightforward answers, creators must continuously innovate to maintain traffic and visibility. There’s also the challenge of ensuring content aligns with the evolving SEO strategies in the post-SGE world.
