This Month in Social: March 2016

The world of social media is constantly changing – and with so many platforms and algorithms out there, it’s hard to keep up. That’s why we provide our clients and followers with This Month in Social – where we highlight the biggest changes in social media and how we prepare to tackle them.

Facebook Reactions Are Here

You’ve probably already noticed some additional hearts and laughing emojis showing up in your news feed. That’s all due to Facebook’s new Reactions feature, a way for users to express emotions beyond just a “Like.” Users can now hover over the “Like” button and select an expression of either like, love, laugh, surprise, sadness or anger in response to a post.

What this means for businesses: Fortunately for businesses – any reaction is a “good” reaction! Marketers and brands can now use this type of engagement to see how an audience reacts to specific content, and, as a result, they can determine which type of content really resonates with their following.

Facebook LIVE Videos are Taking Priority

Move over native videos, Facebook is prioritizing Live content. We’ve seen this before – last year Facebook started favoring its native video option over YouTube and Vimeo links and now thanks to the introduction of Live (real time) videos, they’re the ones taking precedence. And we’re certainly not surprised – Twitter-owned Periscope has been a primary place for live video-streaming and with that said, Facebook is doing what it does best – adding a similar feature to remain a top player.

What this means for businesses: According to Facebook, “People spend more than 3x more time watching a Facebook Live video on average compared to a video that’s no longer live.” With this in mind, it’s time for brands to now figure out how to use this to their advantage. The type of live video content shared will depend on industry and audience (online webinars, how-to demonstrations or a behind the scenes video, for example), but one thing’s for sure – this is worth experimenting with to stay on top of the news feed.

Twitter Changes Timelines To Show Tweets Out Of Order

Know the “While You Were Away” feature? Now consider it as a full time thing. Twitter has updated its timeline so that it will show tweets out of order. Users can now switch between top tweets and recent tweets – very Facebook-esque – and although there were no plans to completely take away the typical reverse chronological Twitter feed, this big change can have an even bigger impact for brands.

What this means for businesses: Yes, users have the opportunity to enable/disable the feature, but knowing that audiences can keep it on indefinitely, brands need to realize that their content may be competing with others in a new way. Now when it comes to content creation, brands may need to focus more of their time and effort into learning what their Twitter following prefers to ensure a top spot.

Snapchat: Create Your Own Geofilter for Your Event

Just in time for your next event, Snapchat has opened up geofilter creation to the masses. Using templates provided by Snapchat, start by designing and uploading your own custom filter (business logo, event logo, etc). Then select the date range and geographic area of where you want it to be live, confirm details (including payment method), and submit!

What this means for businesses: Even if a younger demographic isn’t a business’ target demographic, they can be through the use of Snapchat. By creating a customized geofilter, and through the use of Snapchat in general, brands can engage with a younger audience by “speaking their language.” Want them to get excited about your next happening? Give this a shot and see how it does.

WordPress Blogs to Become Facebook Instant Articles

Facebook’s quick loading Instant Articles have slowly been rolling out and on April 12th, every publisher will have access. In a bid to get more communities on board, Facebook teamed up with Automattic (parent company of WordPress), to create a plugin that will turn WordPress blogs into Instant Articles.

What this means for businesses: Since Instant Articles help users read content without ever leaving the Facebook platform, WordPress users will now be able to have their blogs read quicker and easier than before. Furthermore, being able to utilize Facebook and WordPress in tandem can help make the blogging and sharing process a much more seamless one for brands looking to distribute information.

Facebook Officially Launches Canvas Ads That Load Full-Screen Rich Media Pages In-App

Instant Articles, meet Instant Ads. Facebook has officially launched Canvas ads for all advertisers. Now, users who click on an ad connected to Canvas will open to a full-screen rich media page within Facebook – without needing to leave the app or wait for a mobile page to load. With Canvas, ads can load in just one second, and they can be more interactive than ever — with animations, carousels, catalogs, tilt-to-view images and videos.

What this means for businesses: Canvas helps advertisers create interactive ads without coding, because it’s all done within the app. Not to mention, building a canvas ad costs the same as a regular news feed ad — even though it offers more benefits: “53% of users that open a Canvas view at least half of it, and the average view time is a stunning 31 seconds. The top Canvas ads can see more than 70 seconds of view time per user.” With that in mind, this new launch has just made it that much easier for brands to create interactive and engaging ads without any added expenses.

Have any questions regarding the above changes and updates? Reach out to one of Ferocious Media’s Social Media Analysts today!

To learn more about our Social Media Marketing Campaigns as well as other packages that we offer, explore our website, or contact us today!