What, Like It's Hard?
Let's talk about video
Coming up this week… TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew will testify before U.S. Congress (on March 23). Many will be watching, as the Biden administration continues to threaten to ban the app in the United States unless the Chinese owners sell their shares. Many other governments — including Canada and the U.K. — have already banned the app on government-issued devices, citing data privacy concerns. Meanwhile, U.S. content creators on TikTok are already preparing for a ban and have talked about moving to other platforms — and some have made it clear that it won’t be Facebook or Instagram.
In today’s newsletter:
What, Like It’s Hard? Let’s Talk About Video
Meta Verified Launches in the U.S.
Twitter to Prioritize Tweet Replies
And Gen Z Has an Emoji Update 🫡
What, Like It’s Hard?
Okay, there’s a reason that this week’s post is a video. You’ll have to watch it for the full story, but basically, if you’ve ever struggled to create and post videos — you are not alone.
But here’s the thing — videos of you, sharing your expertise and story, are often the most-engaging piece of content on your social media channels. And that goes for brands as well. People want to see who is in charge. It’s the best way to build trust.
So, if you’ve ever struggled to create video content, here are some tips that I’m trying to follow myself:
Done is better than perfect (There are videos I regret not posting because I didn’t think they were “perfect”).
Create content in batches and save to your drafts; that way you will still have content to post on days where you don’t feel as creative.
Figure out what time of day you’re most creative, and try to create content during those times (it’s the mornings for me).
Don’t worry about production value right away; just start creating videos so that you get used to the process. You can always upgrade your equipment later.
No matter how hard this is, try not to spend all your time looking at your metrics in the beginning; you’re just trying to get into the habit of filming and posting.
Build a community of fellow business owners and/or social media managers that you can turn to for support.
Experiment and have fun, because your community can tell when you’re enjoying what you do.
And really the only way to get better is to create videos and post as often as possible — even if you just have to hold your breath and post.
Any other tips that you want to share?
SOCIAL SNACKS
Meta Verified Launches in the U.S.
It was only a few weeks ago that Meta said it was testing a subscription model in Australia and New Zealand. Fast forward to March 17th, and Meta announced that it is moving ahead with a U.S. launch “after seeing good results from our early testing.” However, it says it’s going to remove increased reach as a subscription feature for now. Other features include a verified badge, increased protection from impersonation, more help desk support, and exclusive features (that aren’t very clear yet).
Twitter to Prioritize Tweet Replies
Elon Musk: “You get what you pay for.” I guess so. The Chief Twit continues to push verified accounts and Twitter Blue subscriptions, and recently confirmed in this tweet that replies will be prioritized in the following order:
People You Follow
Verified Accounts (aka, people who pay for a Twitter Blue Subscription)
Unverified Accounts (people who do NOT pay for a Twitter Blue Subscription)
Reminder: As of March 20th, two-factor authentication will no longer be available to non-Twitter Blue subscribers.
ICYMI
Instagram is testing a new ‘Top 3’ Sticker for Stories [Social Media Today]
YouTube is rolling out Shorts thumbnail selection on iOS [YouTube]
TikTok is adding a third feed just for science and math videos [The Verge]
LinkedIn tests a new AI tool to provide personalized writing suggestions for headlines and About sections [LinkedIn Blog]
GEN Z EMOJI UPDATE 🫡
It wasn’t that long ago that Gen Z warned us to stop using the laughing/crying emoji 😂. (It looks like that might still be the case, btw).
But there have been some updates. So, if your target market is Gen Z — or if you just want to know what it means when Gen Z sends you a certain emoji — the folks at ApplyBoard have a TikTok that explains it all.
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