4 Social Media Updates You Don't Want To Miss This Week

Twitter says that its usage growth was driven by "ongoing product improvements and global conversation around current events". 

Also, advertiser demand was strong in the quarter, with Mobile App Promotion revenue also increasing.

All in all, it's a good report for Twitter, with growth continuing, which looks like a good opportunity for your businesses!

New 'Instagram Insider' Digital Magazine, Highlighting Platform Trends

Interesting news for creators - Instagram has published the first edition of its  ‘Instagram Insider' digital magazine, which aims to highlight key content trends, based on Instagram activity, as well as influential creators on the platform.

As explained by Instagram:

"‘Instagram Insider’ is about inspiration and discovery – not just of the trends, but the people behind them."

The 9-page magazine, which you can download in PDF form, includes overviews of key, rising trends, with example images, and links to top creators to follow.

It also features brief profiles of selected creators, along with emerging trend tips.

Instagram also answers some key, common platform questions in the last section:

Some of the answers include:

• Profile verification is only available to profiles that represent "a well-known, highly searched for person or brand." 
• Hashtags are "the primary way" that people search and discover content on Instagram, and you should add three-to-five highly relevant hashtags to all of your posts (don't add too many)
• Instagram's currently testing a new option that enables users to display total like counts or not on their posts.
• Instagram is working on new link options in Stories, which could make Stories links available to all users.

Pinterest Shares the Latest Search Trends 

These rising trends could be very relevant for your digital marketing plans - here's a look at where Pinterest is seeing significant increases in search activity, and the potential opportunities for marketers.

• Searches for “dream vacation destinations” are up 13x, and “luxury vacation” searches are up 6x
• New shopping behaviors are also emerging, with searches for “vacation fashion” up 3x year-on-year, while “travel tattoos” are up 45%
• General fashion trends are also rising, with searches containing the word “outfit” now at an all-time high.
• More specific fashion trends include “Y2K outfit ideas” (+230x), “60 and 70s fashion” (+133x), “zebra pants” (+14x), and “plaid pleated skirt” (+12x)
• Trending accessories include “clay rings” (+303x), “hippie jewelry” (+16x), and “nose chain piercing” (+8x).
• And lastly, parties are back on the agenda, with searches related to “party” increasing 64% from November ‘20 to March ‘21. Key trends include “Euphoria party ideas” (+43x), “backyard dinner party” (+3x), and “party food buffet” (+10x). 

At the same time, Pinterest also notes that home crafts and projects remain popular among Pinners:

More specific home decorating trends include “grand millennial decor” (+3x), “indie room” (+132x), “sage green aesthetic” (+32x), and “eclectic home” (+9x).

There's a wide range of ideas and inspiration in there, which may help to guide your social marketing strategy, both on Pinterest and more broadly.

Pinterest continues to see steady growth in usage - now up to 478 million monthly activities - and the increasing shift towards eCommerce stands to work in the platform's favor moving forward.

TikTok Launches Lead Generation Ads

TikTok is looking to help advertisers gain more direct insight on potential customers via a new Lead Generation ad option, which will enable brands to capture user data direct from their in-stream ads.

As you can see here, Lead Generation ads include a CTA button which leads users into the form process.

 

As explained by Tiktok:

"Lead Generation starts by making it easy for users to fill out a form and provide their information in order to signal their interest in that particular product or service. Additionally, basic information that our users provide to TikTok can also be automatically populated for an efficient experience between the business and user."

So much of the key response data can be auto-populated, streamlining the process, and making it as easy as possible for interested users to submit their information direct to your business.

You can also customize the header and profile image on your form, as well as the questions in the listing.

When people fill in your Lead Generation form, the information is then stored on TikTok, to be downloaded at a time of your choosing (with relevant privacy provisions in place), while the data can also be directly integrated into your CRM, adding to your proprietary information stores.

That can also help you build more accurate audience personas for expanded ad targeting.

Worth considering in your process. TikTok's Lead Generation ads are now available to all businesses globally.

That's all for today. More news coming your way next week, same time, same day!