Let the (social media) games begin!
Looking to add to your summer reading list? You might want to check out An Ugly Truth. As described by Harper Collins: "Award-winning New York Times reporters Sheera Frenkel and Cecilia Kang unveil the tech story of our times in a riveting, behind-the-scenes exposé that offers the definitive account of Facebook’s fall from grace." 😮
😎 It's officially the start of my summer break. I'll see you back here on Monday, Aug. 16th. But don't worry — I've loaded up the content calendar so you don't miss a thing (see below).
Here are today's top stories:
These platforms are owning the podium
Not everyone loves Instagram's new Sensitive Content Control
A new ad-free social media app promises "real relationships"
And welcome to the lighter side of TikTok
Read on ⬇️
Owning the Podium
The Olympic Games are officially underway (congrats to the Canadian swimmers and divers leading the way with Canada's first two medals and our first gold medal 🎉). But in the competition that is social media, you might be a bit shocked about the platforms either starting to take the lead, or making serious gains. For today's newsletter, I thought it would be fun to hand out medals to the top contenders. Let's go!
Going for the Gold
And the 🥇 goes to: TikTok! If you read last week's newsletter, you already know that it's the first non-Facebook app to reach 3 billion downloads globally. That, in itself, is a feat of strength. It's also a leader in music and culture, according to a recent independent study commissioned by TikTok. You can read the full results here, but they all resonated with me (yes, I associate music with TikTok; yes, I have tried things I learned on TikTok; and yes, I like it when brands embrace trends). And finally, consider how other platforms are trying to compete. For example, YouTube recently hosted a dance challenge featuring K-Pop sensation BTS in a bid to promote YouTube Shorts — a TikTok copycat. And just a few weeks ago when Instagram CEO Adam Mosseri admitted that competition from TikTok is part of the reason the platform is embracing video.
In Second Place...
The 🥈 goes to: Snapchat 👻. While the platform faltered for a few years after a failed redesign, and an exodus to Instagram when the Facebook-owned platform copied its look with "Stories," the platform just had its best quarter in four years, according to TechCrunch. Snapchat's Q2 revenue in 2021 hit a new high of $982 million. That's 116% higher than one year ago. Why?
Snapchat embraced creators with a new Spotlight feature (aka: its TikTok clone). It distributes $1 million per day to creators, and says daily time spent on that part of that app has grown by 60%, according to Forbes.
Snapchat's focus on augmented reality. “More than 200 million Snapchatters engage with AR every day on average, and over 200,000 creators use Lens Studio to build AR Lenses for our community," Snap CEO Evan Spiegel said in an earnings call last week. There are also plans to use AR to support try-ons for online shopping (which Pinterest has said many times helps encourage purchases).
#WinningTheBronze
And the 🥉goes to: Twitter! It's not necessarily a "cool" platform when compared to TikTok or Instagram, but Twitter is seeing some impressive gains on Wall Street. The stock is up 30% this year, according to CNN. That's a bigger bounce than either Facebook or Snapchat. And while it said good-bye to its Stories-like feature, called Fleets, earlier this month, Twitter is working hard to reward creators with: Tip Jars, Super Follows, and Ticketed Spaces (Spaces is the platform's audio-only feature, and competitor to the Clubhouse app). And if you are wondering where Twitter is headed — Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey recently said bitcoin will be a "big part" of its future.
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SOCIAL SNACKS
Too Sensitive?
Facebook-owned Instagram recently launched new Sensitive Content Control, which allows users to control whether they see some types of sensitive content in the "Explore" section of the app. "We recognize that everybody has different preferences for what they want to see on Explore, and this control will give people more choice over what they see," Instagram said in a a blog post. What do they mean by "sensitive content?" On the support page for this new feature, Instagram defines sensitive content as: violent, sexually explicit, or content that promotes regulated products, such as vaping products or pharmaceuticals. However, according to an article in The Verge, some creators are concerned this new feature is blocking their posts.
Super, Thanks!
Creators are getting another boost — this time from YouTube, which just launched a new monetization feature called Super Thanks. "Fans watching YouTube videos can now purchase Super Thanks to express their gratitude and show support. They will see an animated GIF and, as an added bonus, get a distinct, colorful comment to highlight their purchase, which creators can respond to," YouTube said in a blog post. It's currently available at four price points between $2 and $50 (or local currency equivalent).
ICYMI
🔴 Twitter tests Reddit-style upvote and downvote buttons [TechCrunch]
🔴 Instagram can now automatically translate text in stories [The Verge]
🔴 TikTok, Biden administration agree to drop litigation over Trump-era App Store ban [CNN]
🔴 Pinterest introduces Arabic [Pinterest Blog]
🔴 LinkedIn offers free marketing certification program [Search Engine Journal]
🔴 WhatsApp rolls out the ability to join group calls that have already started [Facebook Blog]
APP-LIKE
Now Open: Remember when we all needed to get a special invite to join audio-only app Clubhouse? Well, now everyone is invited to join this ears-only party. "This means we have removed our waitlist system so that anyone can join," founders Paul Davison and Rohan Seth wrote in a blog post. The company also announced a new logo and website, and promised it will ship "big new updates for you every 1-2 weeks."
Oh, Hallo: Two early employees of WhatsApp, Neeraj Arora and Michael Donohue, have launched a new "real relationship" app. HalloApp promises an ad-free, encrypted experience that allows users to have real conversations with real people. "HalloApp is the first Real-Relationship Network. No ads. No bots. No likes. No trolls. No followers. No algorithms. No influencers. No photo filters. No “feed fatigue.” No misinformation spreading like wildfire," Arora wrote in a blog post. (You had me at "no algorithms").
HAPPY-LIKE
Taking control of your FYP
If you've used TikTok for a while, you may have noticed that you get served up the same types of content. That's because the platform works by watching how you interact with content (how long/often you watch videos, what you engage with, etc.), and then keeps serving you up more of the same.
But I recently had a friend mention that she had fallen into a weird side of TikTok (it happens; for a while TikTok kept trying to push me into "potato TikTok" 🤷♀️). If you're looking to escape your current TikTok FYP in favour of lighter viewing, I put together a mixed group of accounts you might want to consider checking out.
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