It would seem many social media apps are looking for new ways to generate cash without solely relying on ad revenue. Snapchat and Meta are two examples of platforms generating paywalls and paid content. This means we can expect to see exclusive content, and new in-app assets and features.
Snapchat premium
Snapchat has officially launched Snapchat+, its paid subscription service, where users get exclusive access to exciting new features. These include exclusive Snapchat icons, a dedicated profile badge, new data insights and access to a #1 Best Friend feature.
For just $3.99 per month, it’s an affordable way to elevate your content and allows early adoption before these formats reach the masses. And if it does become popular – which is likely – Snapchat+ will encourage longer overall app use. This means more eyes on your ads.
Meta’s Avatar store
Mark Zuckerberg has confirmed that The Avatars Store – which sells digital goods from brands Balenciaga, Prada and Thom Browne – will soon be available on Facebook, Instagram and Messenger. Meta confirmed the Avatars Store will also be available in VR, but there’s no launch date yet.
Digital goods let fans of your brand express themselves in the social platform space and, in future, the metaverse. And the next step will be true interoperability across platforms outside of Meta so consumers can show up as fans wherever they go.
Love is in the air in 2022 as platforms keep coupling up with a whole host of shopping providers, data science companies, and production companies. Partnerships to look out for include:
Twitter announced an integration with the shopping platform Shopify
This means merchants can list products on their Professional Profiles and link to purchases.
As part of the update, the Shop Spotlight and Twitter Shops tools are available to US merchants following beta testing.
Twitter’s sales channel app is available now in Shopify’s app store and through the Shopify admin.
This means you can automatically sync your Shopify product inventory with your Shopping Manager catalogue so that products update in real time. You can also showcase products on your Twitter profile to build awareness, drive discovery and reach customers.
Spotify launching their own ad-age
Spotify’s ad provisions are launching and in order to curate the perfect ads to the right audience they have teamed up with Integral Ad Science on a brand safety solution for podcast advertisers.
The solution will use Spotify’s first-party data to validate brand suitability across shows while conforming to industry standards and guidelines, verified by Integral Ad Science.
This assures advertisers of brand safety and suitability for their Spotify ads using third-party, impartial data. It also protects brand reputation and mitigates risk, as advertisers will be reassured that messaging gets across within the intended content and that they’re flagged if it doesn’t.
Lastly Pinterest has secured a partnership with lifestyle content platform Tastemade consisting of 50 new scripted shows, live streams and worldwide events.
Content will debut exclusively on Pinterest, featuring talent from both Pinterest and Tastemade’s creator community. This collaboration expands programming to high-value categories like beauty, fashion, health and fitness.
Creators will be working with both platforms to produce high-quality video content, providing opportunities for you to establish partnerships and tap into these communities.
You’ll also benefit from Pinterest’s focus on live programming, reaching audiences with Pinterest TV ads and feature in a shoppable live stream.
Tastemade content is among the most popular on Pinterest, with Tastemade Pins driving 200% more saves than the average Pin.
Oh to be young again! Well if you are not, there is a whole generation of socially native kids, teenagers, and now adults that behave and interact with social platforms in unique ways. In order to help you navigate the weird and wonderful matrix of Gen Z behaviours, Youtube and Spotify have released guides on best practices.
YouTube stats
65% of Gen Z agree that personally relevant content is more important than content that’s popular. And almost two-thirds of Gen Z followed one or more meme accounts in the past 12 months and over half agree that they like it when brands participate in memes.
59% of young viewers use short-form video apps to discover content that they go on to watch longer versions of later.
82% of Gen Z said they’ve used YouTube to watch content that makes them feel nostalgic.
Spotify data
Mental health is the top podcast genre among Gen Zs, with a 62% increase in streams in 2022 vs. 2021.
There was a 40% increase in average podcast listenership among Gen Z Spotify users between Q1 2022 and the year prior.
18-24 year olds streamed over 578 billion minutes of music in Q1 2022, slightly more than 25-34 year olds (562 billion minutes).
77% of Gen Zs like when brands revive old aesthetic styles, and 73% like when they produce retro products or content.
68% like listening to and watching media from earlier decades as it reminds them of a simpler time.
If your campaign targets more people than Gen Zders, TikTok and LinkedIn have released reports and guides on how best to use the plethora of new updates on their platform. Have a read of our brief summary and click on the links to find out more.
TikTok tips
TikTok content doesn’t need to be a big production – just keep it human, transparent and have fun. Shoot vertical and in hi-res (720p at least), use music and sounds, and make it longer than 10 seconds (ideally 21-34).
Use the Creator Marketplace to find creators aligned with your brand’s purpose or motto.
Trust creators when it comes to the creative process. This is what they do best. Don’t be afraid of failure. Experiment with different approaches to understand what works for your brand.
Explore the Creative Centre to discover trends and use tools to level up your content.
LinkedIn stats
Native documents generate 3x more clicks than any other type of content, while the average video view rate is 14.46%.
Small accounts with up to 5,000 followers have the highest average video view rate of 17.18%. And the average engagement per impressions rate on LinkedIn is 3.16%. The average LinkedIn page reach rate is 3.49%.
For pages between 50,000 – 100,000 followers, images far outstrip any other type of content for engagement rate. But for pages with over 100,000 followers, the same is true for native documents.