Each week the Insights Team at The Goat Agency pull together the latest news from the social space in a weekly social media industry news round-up. This week we take a look at Elon Musk’s Twitter, the layoffs and impending changes, as well as social media marketing trends for 2023, and more!
Don’t forget you can follow us on LinkedIn, Instagram, TikTok and Twitter for real-time announcements of all our new blog content!
Contents
Elon Musk Suggests Brands Could Pay to Use Twitter; Return of Vine?
Social Media Marketing Trends 2023
Elon Musk’s Twitter: Firing Threat Still Looms Large
New Google Shopping Features Spell Implications For Retailers
Meet Kat Callaghan, the Identity Behind TikTok’s voice-to-speech Feature
Elon Musk Suggests Brands Could Pay to Use Twitter; Return of Vine?
Elon Musk’s initial days at Twitter HQ have been chaotic to say the very least. It’s difficult to pinpoint what exactly is happening right now, but what is clear is that Musk is poised to make drastic changes, and hopes to get things moving quickly.
Here are some of the things that may or not be happening at Twitter right now:
Subscriptions update
Musk is looking to revitalize Twitter’s subscription offering, with considerations on charging users for verification ticks, including charging verified users to keep theirs, as well as charging businesses to use the platform. It also suggested that those looking to sign up to Twitter’s verification will receive enhanced exposure, and ‘real humans’ are expected to complete new verification options in order to use Twitter.
With Elon Musk, it’s difficult to predict which of these features he’s serious about rolling out – it could be all or none. However, Musk’s actions in his first days at Twitter have led us to believe that the mogul intends to restructure the platform, in any way he sees fit – just take the recent staff reductions for example.
Return of Vine
Musk has also hinted at the return of Vine via his Twitter account, in order to directly compete with TikTok.
Although this idea is likely to get people hyped, and tug on our desire for nostalgia, the truth is it won’t work. TikTok is better at showing people the content they want to see than Vine ever was, and Twitter’s recommendation algorithms and processes are lightyears behind TikTok’s. There’s no doubting that the resurrection of Vine would see an influx of app installs in its first month, but it would die very quickly, even with a new an improved model, Vine wouldn’t have the capacity to compete with TikTok in this day and age.
Social Media Marketing Trends 2023
As another 12 chaotic months draws to a close, we can reflect on what has been a big year for social media platforms. Meta continues its gradual decline, TikTok continues to grow and then there’s Twitter, who right now, is amidst a volatile change of management that could veer off in any direction.
With all that in mind, let’s look ahead to 2023 and try to predict some of the trends that will occupy our screens over the next year.
Facebook Trends in 2023
As TikTok’s short-form approach continues to change the way we consume online content, Facebook continues to fall into the abyss. Mark Zuckerberg continues to invest in the platform, and along with his cohorts there is a plan in place to get things back on track.
AI recommended posts are expected to infiltrate Facebook feeds. The push for more content from Pages and people that you don’t follow is expected to give Facebook a much needed boost. Zuckerberg’s view is that 40% of the content in your main Facebook feed will come from sources that you don’t follow.
Avatar integration is another of Facebook’s largest projects. Meta are desperate for people to get excited about the metaverse. By promoting the use of avatars as a form of digital identity, meta hope to encourage people to engage through their avatars, which spells a key element of metaverse engagement.
Whilst we’re on the metaverse, posts from VR are also expected to appear on Facebook. These posts will highlight the range of experiences available within the VR environment.
Instagram Trends in 2023
Similarly to Facebook, Instagram is leaning towards more AI content recommendations to improve user engagement, a feature that hasn’t been too well received in the past.
Instagram is also keen to establish stronger creative systems for its creators. With this in mind, new forms of content such as AR and 3D posts, NFT art integrations and other new content formats are expected to appear on the platform.
Live shopping is on the radar too. While it hasn’t taken off just yet, Instagram continues to experiment with live-stream shopping, attempting to replicate the big boom in other markets. Instagram could look to capitalize on this with the launch of a standalone tab enabling users to access live shopping directly.
If you want to learn more about the capabilities of live shopping, download our live shopping education deck here.
TikTok Trends in 2023
Live commerce is the key earner in the Chinese version of the app, it makes sense that TikTok is going to roll the feature out to other regions. The US is currently in preparation for TikTok’s live shopping push. Expect this to become a much bigger, much more promoted element in the app in 2023, as it looks to make live-stream shopping a thing.
Creator payments have often been subject to scrutiny, with the Creator Fund offering little incentive to creators to continue to develop content. TikTok is testing new models to get its creators funded more effectively. The platform could test a similar payment process to YouTube’s Shorts program, which pays the top performing videos a percentage of all ad intake, based on views.
Twitter Trends in 2023
Predicting the future of Twitter is liking finding a needle in a haystack. At present time, things are too uncertain.
However, some of the things that could come to fruition include a bigger subscription push, which will include monetizing verification statuses, and possibly charging commercial and government users to use Twitter.
The Twitter algorithm has been another project for Musk, It’s understood that he wants to gain a better understanding of how algorithms dictate the Twitter experience. The ideas around this are interesting, but the bigger challenge lies with getting people to select and implement algorithmic modifiers. Most people want to log in, see what’s happening without the added fuss.
There could be a way to simplify and enhance this in the app, but trying to get users to engage in increasingly technical elements, in order to define their experience, doesn’t seem like a path to UI improvement.
Snapchat Trends in 2023
Snap’s main challenge ahead of 2023 is appealing to older audiences. To shift away from its younger demographic, Snap are investing in multiple areas, including AR Glasses, which could be the first on the market, as both Apple and Meta’s developments are, well… still in development. If Snap can beat its competitors to the podium then this will help with the platform’s quest for mature audiences.
Avatar fashion and digital items are two more of Snap’s key features coming into 2023. Snap has been making its Bitmoji avatars a more centralized focus, with new fashion partnerships to help people customize and personalize their virtual identities.
Elon Musk’s Twitter: Firing Threat Still Looms Large
Elon Musk’s mass layoff of Twitter staff now looms over the platform’s engineers if they can’t make money with Twitter Blue in the next seven days.
Twitter Blue is the platform’s subscription service that so far has struggled to make a profit. Debuted back in June 2021, Twitter Blue originally charged users $2.99 per month. Currently, that admission fee stands at $4.99 per month, enabling access to several features such as undo send/edit tweet buttons.
Musk has reportedly set the deadline for November 7th, by then Twitter’s engineers need to have upped Blue’s price to $19.99 per month and tie in the platform’s verification features. If not, they’ll be shown the door.
If and when the changes do come to fruition, users who currently have the verified blue tick will have 90 days to subscribe to Blue or lose their prestige.
New Google Shopping Features Spell Implications For Retailers
With the holiday season just around the corner, Google’s adding new shopping assistance tools, making the lives of shoppers much easier, whilst creating implications for online retailers.
Google is integrating coupon codes and promotions into search results, which makes it easier for people to connect with seasonal deals without having to conduct a separate search.
“Our new promotion badge will show up in Search on items running a promotion (like “15% off with coupon code HOLIDAYS”). While in the past we’ve shown when items are on sale or the price has dropped, you can now see specific promotions and compare them to others right in Search. We’re also adding a new coupon clipping feature, which allows you to easily copy promo codes when you’re ready to buy,” explains Google.
Why this spells danger for online retailers is that with this new integration, people won’t have to know which sites they need to visit in order to find deals, therefore driving traffic away from retail websites.
That could mean that brands will need to offer better discounts, and ensure that they are registered with Google. If competitors are running a lucrative promotion, users will be able to see that in-stream, which means brands must be aware of how their offers match-up.
Google offers an example of this using search parameters:
“If you search for a women’s puffer coat, for example, we’ll show you a side-by-side comparison of available puffer coat deals right in your results. This new view will roll out in the US this month, just in time for the holidays.”
If you want to learn more about Google’s new additions to refine the shopping process, you can do so here.
Meet Kat Callaghan, the Identity Behind TikTok’s voice-to-speech Feature
The voice of Generation Z, TikTok’s text-to-speech function is disembodied no longer. Kat Callaghan has revealed herself as the voice behind countless viral TikTok videos.
Callaghan, a radio host who can be heard on the Kitchener, Ontario-based radio station 91.5 The Beat is now recognized at the social media platform’s text-to-speech option. For those who have heard Callaghan over the radio, the resemblance is uncanny, it’s difficult to deny that the voice and cadence isn’t an exact match. This however, has not stopped commenters from responding to Callaghan’s revelation with heavy scrutiny.
Callaghan finds time for voiceover work on the side, but her main focus is with Scott & Kat After 9 with co-host Scott Fox. The pair also share a podcast together. Interestingly, Callaghan had stated her true identity on one of their shows before revealing it to the wider public.
Should Callaghan ever decide to step away from radio, the life of a TikTok influencer will always be waiting. Her first post on the platform has more than 36 million views in less than two weeks after its upload. During that period she has racked up close to 390,000 followers, achieving icon status as “the Siri of our generation.”
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And that’s all for this week, but don’t forget to follow us on LinkedIn, Instagram, TikTok and Twitter for real-time announcements of all our new blog content!
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