ICYMI: Sometimes, the Internet Provides
Here's what happened on social media this week, June 10
Thanks for being here! This a recap of news and trends for and about creators.
I feel the need for a break coming on. Does anybody know when Adam Mosseri plans to take a vacation?! Either way, I’ll be taking next week off and will be back on June 23.
💻 ROADMAP
📌 Instagram Pinning: Instagram rolled out grid pinning this week, allowing creators to pin three posts (photos or Reels) to the top of their profiles.
Marketer Mandy Hoskinson shared what she saw as the potential in this one and this had me more excited than the actual announcement itself:
A collage/mosaic/triptych using three images
Throwbacks
Contests/deals
A 3-part advertisement detailing different offerings
😳 Instagram Sensitive Content Controls: Instagram’s Sensitive Content Control feature is expanding to cover wherever you see content from people you don't follow: Explore, Reels, Suggested Accounts and Posts. Some of the categories covered seem obvious (nudity, self harm) but users will also be able to control how much or how little they see of contests, giveaways and “sensitive or low quality” Health and Finance content, which could take some people by surprise. The types of content that could get flagged in those verticals include:
Content that promotes or depicts cosmetic procedures.
Content containing exaggerated health claims, such as “miracle cures.”
Content attempting to sell products or services based on health-related claims, such as promoting a supplement to help a person lose weight.
Content that promotes misleading or deceptive business models, such as payday loans or “risk-free” investments.
⏰ TikTok launched two new tools to encourage more mindful user habits: Scheduled Break Reminders and Well-Being Prompts (the later one specifically for users 13 to 17). It’s auspicious timing given the recent headlines about TikTok’s questionable working conditions and leadership issues.
👹 TikTok launched custom avatars, giving us yet another option for our digital identities:
TikTok Avatars
Snapchat Bitmoji
Apple Memoji
Instagram 3D Avatars
📺 YouTube’s Second Screen Experience: Over 80% of people say they use another digital device while watching TV so YouTube just rolled out a new feature that lets you connect your TV to your iOS or Android device. That way you can dive deeper with your favorite content on mobile — read video descriptions, leave comments, share the video, or send a Super Chat — while you watch YouTube on the big screen.
🛍 YouTube Beauty Fest: YouTube wants you to save the date for its second annual Beauty Festival: June 16, 4pm PST. Hosted by Derek Blasberg and joined by a slew of celebrities, the event will allow users to shop directly from the live stream.
They’ve also launched the first Shoppable Shorts Challenge with Glossier ahead of the fest. Fans can use the hashtag #WrittenInGlossier to participate. Every Short created with the hashtag will be Shoppable using the link directly on the video.
🗂 LinkedIn Creator Mode Update: LinkedIn announced several updates for the 10 million users who’ve enabled Creator Mode on the platform:
Link in bio support
Expanded access to LinkedIn’s Audio Events (previously in test mode)
Improved visibility for creators
Connection requests become automatic followers (if you’re trying to grow your audience on this platform, now would be a really good time)
Some people even got hoodies
👆🏻 CLICK THRU
🤴🏻The Internet Has Agreed: Prince Louis of Cambridge Is a Whole Mood
This 4-year-old is a gift to the internet (and to the royal family for distracting everyone from any other potential issues, exhibit A and exhibit B).
📲 Depp Sends His Frenzied Fanbase Into a Spin With New TikTok Montage
I loathe this whole drama but feel it’s necessary to point out that Johnny Depp joined TikTok Monday and was at 12 million followers within three days. That’s the power of traditional celebrity. His first and only video was a highly produced piece which suggests we’re not going to see a lot more from him unless his team hires a TikTok ghost creator.
🤖 68% of consumers already experience the metaverse, even if they don’t realize it
If you play Roblox and Fortnite you’re already engaging with the metaverse, aka immersive experiences inside all-digital environments. “What this study reveals is that creators and brands who sit idly awaiting some ‘golden moment’ when the Metaverse ‘arrives’ do so at their own peril,” said Joe Kessler, Partner and Head of UTA IQ. “In fact, the metaverse won’t present itself in a singular moment. It’s here now…”
📣 QUOTE OF THE WEEK
"While I can go on TikTok Live and engage with my followers about all different subjects for hours, talking nonstop for an hour about Amazon products feels a lot like QVC."
-Anonymous creator to Insider, discussing the problems with Amazon’s live-shopping program. Struggles include a sense that the format is not authentic, difficulty migrating followers from one platform to another and creators having to purchase their own product to promote: Why Amazon's live-shopping program has struggled to win over influencers, even though it's handing out bonus payments
🧮 DATA OF THE WEEK
Influencer rates rose by 44% from 2020 to 2021 and 45% from 2021 to 2022. The trend is due in part to increased pay transparency among influencers, but also because of increased demand for influencer marketing. However, brands want to see the analytics to back up those higher rates.
-Influencer agency The Motherhood to Marketing Brew: Influencers are charging more for their services across social media platforms
🔨 RESOURCES
Some helpful TikTok headlines surfaced this week so I’m going to group them in chronological order from getting started to rebounding when your video doesn’t get the results you want:
How Do I Get Followers On TikTok?: A good primer from Buffer on getting started
TikTok Ads Guide: A comprehensive ads guide from Demand Curve that includes creative best practices and creator collaborations. It’s not a downloadable pdf so it just takes some clicking around to access all 5 chapters
How To Flop Successfully: Flop is a TikTok term for when you don’t get the results you want. But it doesn’t mean failure. So, the team at TikTok and creator @latinapreneur put together this advice piece to encourage people to embrace the flop.
📖 ALSO ON MY READING LIST…
Travel is back. And so are the influencers -CNN
How Influencer Marketing Will Change In The Metaverse -Forbes
It’s been a rough year for social media stocks. Blame TikTok -CNN
KOLs are dead. Long live the virtual influencer -Campaign
Ariana Grande endorsed Karen Bass on Instagram to her 315 million followers -Variety
Streamer Ms. Pinky is paving the way for more Black women in gaming -Daily Dot
If #SwedenGate was the trivial drama we needed last week, the bowl-in-bowl saga was this week’s delightful diversion -NBC News
Notes: My thoughts on going from social media to the C-suite were included in this article from Phoebe Bain —Social media pro today, CMO tomorrow. I was grateful to be included and hope it inspires any social media manager who doesn’t see a clear path to success.
I also got to talk to the growth team at Mavrck about my career path with an emphasis on work-life balance. It was an interesting exercise in reconciling the advice I give versus what I actually do. I recommend this HBR piece I quoted from if you haven’t read it yet: If You’re So Successful, Why Are You Still Working 70 Hours a Week?