July Social Media Roundup
Twitter now lets all users apply for a verified account – Any Twitter user can now request verification and apply for the ‘blue tick’, a mark of authenticity given to celebrities, influencers and businesses. Previously, Twitter would make the decision entirely at its own discretion, and this new option means any individual or company can apply to be considered for verification. One of the best outcomes of verification is the ability to filter all tweets so that only those from other verified users can be seen, which should help combat the issue of abuse.
Twitter partners with Bloomberg to live-stream financial market news – Twitter has made another move to grow its live-streaming portfolio (which already includes CBS US election coverage and sporting events such as Wimbledon) by announcing a partnership with Bloomberg Media. This deal means Twitter will live-stream financial market performance coverage and commentary throughout the day.
Snapchat grows up – Snapchat stormed into the app world as the millennials’ favourite. Throughout 2015, over half of Snapchat’s adult users were 16-24 years old – but in the second quarter of 2016 that demographic fell to just over 4 in 10. At the same time, older people (those aged 24-44 in particular) accounted for a bigger share of its audience. Perhaps the shift in demographics explains why financial companies are no longer shying away from the app. Nasdaq gave Snapchat a huge boost when it started using it for product launches, press conferences and other events.
Facebook follows Whatsapp with end-to-end message encryption – Facebook is following in the footsteps of social media giants Whatsapp and Snapchat by testing a way for users to message one another in encrypted conversations that disappear after being read. This new feature, ‘secret conversations’, not only encrypts the messages end-to-end but also allows users to choose how long each message remains visible in the conversation for. As end-to-end encryption does not support the use of Messenger across multiple devices, or the sharing of content such as GIFs, this encryption will be optional rather than default.
Twitter tests a way to showcase select tweets – Twitter users will be aware of the ability to ‘pin’ one tweet to the top of their timeline, but what if you want to highlight more than one? Twitter is now testing a new stream on users’ profiles called ‘featured tweets’. This is the default stream that users will land on when viewing somebody’s timeline, and includes a selection of tweets and retweets chosen by the user. This will allow users to showcase the tweets they want people to see and ensure that other posts (such as customer service or day-to-day conversations) do not take up the majority of the timeline.
Dating app Bumble branches into business networking – The popular mobile dating app Bumble has added to its roster with a function specifically for business networking. BumbleBIZZ joins Bumble and its platonic friendship spinoff (BumbleBFF), allowing users who are looking for professional connections to see potential matches and swipe left or right. BumbleBIZZ is being positioned as a more casual version of LinkedIn, and means the app’s almost 7 million registered users can treat it as more of a social network for “social discovery”, rather than just a dating app. Women will still have to speak first, which Bumble founder Whitney Wolfe sees as important, saying: “I think a lot of women to this day struggle with feeling respected and feeling like an equal when it comes to business connection”. She also highlighted the use in immediate business connections, such as at a conference or business trip. BumbleBIZZ will be available in early autumn.
Facebook now translates posts into any language – In the first quarter of 2016, Facebook had 1.65 billion monthly active users across the world, with 50% speaking English and 50% speaking dozens of different languages. The social network has now introduced a “multilingual composer”, a capability that translates posts instantly into any one of 45 languages when requested by the poster. The translated post will then be shown to users who have that as their default language, or who typically post in that language – and these users will only see the translated post and not the original.
Twitter shows when accounts are most responsive – Facebook has been showing how responsive a company’s Page is (by including comments such as “very responsive to messages” or “Typically replies within a few hours”). Twitter has now introduced a similar feature, including a line in users’ profiles that tells others when the account is most responsive. This will allow users to contact companies or brands at the best possible time to get a response, and should streamline the customer service process for tweeters. The set time can apparently either be set by the user or calculated by Twitter using algorithms.
Consumer PR, Corporate PR, Digital, Digital Communications, digital PR, Facebook, Snapchat, Social Media, Twitter