Working hard for the money

Just Another Day in Social Media. 😉
So let me get this straight — Instagram doesn't like it when we post a TikTok as a Reel, but now it wants to promote Reels on TikTok? That's right — Insta now has an official @instagramcreators account on TikTok. There are eight videos to date, and they are mostly tips about how to optimize Reels. Meanwhile, Meta has also signed Facebook up for an account, under @Facebook. There aren't any videos yet; the bio just links to Google Play, where you can sign up to be a beta tester for an unreleased version of the Facebook app. There's also a "Teen" mention so wondering if this is just for Gen Z. Either way, I feel like Facebook might not get TikTok...
Here are today's top stories:
How social media managers can get resources, and respect
NFTs are coming to Instagram in the "near term"
Ray-Ban Stories are getting longer
And I 🫶🏻 these new emojis
Read on ⬇️

You Deserve This
If you follow me on Twitter, you may have already seen my thread on this, but I think it's worth repeating, and expanding on. So, I was recently talking to a former colleague, and she was asking me about my business and whether I found it very stressful. And honestly, I found it way more challenging being a full-time social media manager (which I did for almost nine years at a mid-sized university). There was one crisis after another, and even when I wasn't in def-con 4, monitoring the accounts 24/7 was intense. So this week's newsletter is dedicated to full-time social media managers, who deserve more resources, and more respect.
How to Get More Resources
There isn't one social media manager who doesn't need additional resources. You're often a team of one, and perhaps even the only one in the organization who does what you do. So you have to be your own advocate. Here are some strategies to consider:
Internally: Making the case for additional support (which most SMMs desperately need) often comes down to metrics. Make sure you are collecting and sharing metrics every month, including any growth metrics and successes. But you first have to understand what organizational leaders consider to be "success", and then show them that you're reaching those metrics, and make a case for why you need additional support.
Externally: Make sure to reach out to others in your field who you can share and brainstorm with; you need a team even if you have to build it yourself. And check out these accounts: @workinsocialtheysaid and @sippinsocialtea (both are also on Twitter). The posts are just...fact.
How to Get More Respect
Not only are you shouldering the massive responsibility of managing the public "face" of the organization, but your colleagues may have no idea what you do all day (I'm not kidding when I say that a high-level leader once called Twitter "mindless finger pecking"). So how do you get more respect?
Internally: Make sure you are seen as the "expert" in the organization. Find opportunities to share your knowledge. At the university where I worked, I hosted a quarterly meeting with other SMMs across the institution, and that provided me with an opportunity to be a subject-matter expert and provide advice (it was also a great way to bond with colleagues, who feel the same stresses and challenges). But you also want to make sure that your voice is going beyond colleagues to the C-suite level. Offer to provide reports and analysis of an ongoing situation, or pre-emptively offer monthly metrics reports that highlight key goals and objectives.
Externally: Find opportunities to speak at conferences (and perhaps get an added bonus of travel!). Secondly, build your own brand on social media. When you're putting all of your energy and creativity into someone else's brand account, it can be difficult to muster the strength to do this (and I'm honestly terrible at it). But if you can make the effort to establish yourself as a thought leader, it will give you more flexibility in where you can move in your career (and let me repeat, this is one I need to work on, lol).

SOCIAL SNACKS
Insta NFT
Get ready for the launch of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) on Instagram in the "near term" — at least according to Meta CEO and founder Mark Zuckerberg. He made the comment at SXSW. And according to TechCrunch, Zuckerberg didn't offer many details in his conversation with the Shark Tank's Daymond John, only to hint at a timeline of "over the next several months." But there have been reports that Meta is planning to allow users to display NFTs on their social media profiles, or allow users to create — or "mint" — new collectibles, potentially in a marketplace. I guess we'll find out soon enough. Meta isn't the only one jumping on the NFT trend. In January, Twitter announced it was rolling out NFT Profile Pictures. And if you're wondering what the hell an NFT is, the NY Times has a great explainer.
More Time for 😎
As TikTok continues to up maximum record time, other platforms are following suit. Last week, Meta announced that starting in April, Ray-Ban Stories (the company's first-ever smart glasses) will extend the video record time to 60 seconds, from 30 seconds. "You’ll be able to toggle between 30 and 60 seconds as the max recording length in the Facebook View app settings in an update coming in April," the company said in a blog post. The glasses, which allow you to record video and take photos hands-free, debuted in September 2021 in the U.S., Australia, Canada, Ireland, Italy and the UK. They'll arrive in Spain, Belgium, Austria, and France this spring. In addition to recording media, you can also make phone calls, send messages or hear message readouts, hands-free.
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ICYMI
🔴 Meta introduces Family Center and Parental Controls on Instagram and in VR [Meta Blog]
🔴 Snapchat launches custom landmarkers in Lens Studio [Snapchat Blog]
🔴 YouTube marks 10th anniversary of YouTube Learning [YouTube Blog]
🔴 Pinterest now lets you share Idea Pins on other platforms [Pinterest Blog]
🔴 LinkedIn provides update on how it keeps members safe [LinkedIn Blog]
ANNIVERSARY-LIKE
Just Setting Up My NFT
Today marks the 16th anniversary of the first-ever tweet from Twitter co-founder and former CEO Jack Dorsey: "just setting up my twittr." However, Dorsey no longer owns the rights to the tweet. In 2021, it was purchased as a nonfungible token (NFT) by Bridge Oracle CEO Sina Estavi for over $2.9 million. Dorsey converted the proceeds to bitcoin and donated it to a charity that gives cash to those living in poverty, according to CNBC. From tweet to NFT in 15 years...imagine what will happen in the next 15 years!

EMOJI-LIKE
I 🫶🏻 This Update
Why yes, I do want a troll emoji. 🧌 And a mirrored disco ball. 🪩 And a nest with eggs. 🪺
In fact, these are three of the 37 new emojis that rolled out last week to iOS 15.4 (if you haven't updated your devices yet, this is honestly the best reason to do it right now!).
Among the new emojis are several new smiley faces and new hand signs, as well multi-racial handshakes, a pregnant man, bubbles, beans, and so much more! Check out the full list of the new emojis and let me know which one is your favourite.
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