The world of social media is forever changing. With new platforms popping up, app updates and ever-changing trends, as a small business owner, keeping up with the social media changes can be hard, but important to keep an eye on. Whilst it can be tempting to spread your marketing efforts far and wide across all platforms, the best thing you can do for your business (and time!) is to do one social media channel well and then build from there. Choose the network you know your audience engages with most and start there. Choosing a one or two to focus on will allow you to truly get into the nitty gritty of a platform and be prepared for any changes that will inevitably come your way.
Once you have identified where to focus, that’s when you can really start to embrace it for your business. That means integrating it into your marketing strategy, creating content plans and keeping up to date with the latest changes in the industry so you are always on top of your marketing game. We know the latter can feel overwhelming at times which is why we’re sharing the top 4 recent changes and updates across social media:
1. Pinned posts on Instagram
Instagram users now have the ability to pin their top three posts including reels or photos to the top of the grid on their profile. This means users will have greater flexibility to express themselves and highlight the content they want other users to see, when visiting their profile. Businesses could pin a post introducing themselves, a reel launching a new product or a great client testimonial.
You can pin a post by navigating to a specific photo or reel and clicking on the three dots in the top right corner and selecting “Pin to your profile.” Once you do so, the post will appear at the top of your profile grid, just to note though if you have a curated grid format, be careful it does not knock the pattern.
2. Shoppable Shorts on YouTube
YouTube Shorts are 60 seconds videos which are akin to reels on Instagram . . .and now they are shoppable! Gradually being rolled out globally, businesses will be able to add products to their YouTube Shorts allowing users to shop in real-time. With the number of daily views generated by shorts averaging more than 30 billion views per day, it’s a fantastic opportunity for businesses to reach people who enjoy short-form content. And perfect if you own an online e-commerce site.
3. Feed sorting options on Twitter
Something that you could argue was a long time coming. Twitter will now enable you to sort the your news feed, allowing users to control how users view their timeline — you can choose from a chronological view or “For You” which showcases the most relevant tweets based on your past engagements.
4. Excited updates to LinkedIn’s Creator mode
LinkedIn has announced some exciting additions to Creator Mode recently. From LinkedIn Live to audio events, there’s a lot going on in the platform!
Perfect for showcasing the people behind your business or sharing your expertise, LinkedIn Live is a great way to develop stronger relationships with your connections. Live videos receive on average 7x more reactions and 24x more comments than a native video so it’s great to see LinkedIn focussing on this powerful tool.
Similar to Clubhouse or Twitter Spaces, Audio Events on LinkedIn allow users to host audio discussions within the app. On a platform where building professional connections is the aim, the ability to organise meetings and discussions with those in your industry is a valuable addition for B2B marketeers.
Whilst there will be more to come this year, we hope these have helped you get the most out of the platforms you are using for your business. Of course if you would like help navigating the in’s and out’s of social media, simply get in touch!
