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Meta Announces Updates to Advantage+ and Shopping Ads

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Meta has announced a heap of new ad updates, primarily focused on retailers and those using its automated Advantage+ campaigns.

And there are a lot of niche use cases within these new updates, which could apply to your business.

The first update is “Advantage+ creative optimizations”, which will automatically optimize your video ads for viewing on Reels, or the mobile Facebook and Instagram apps with 9:16 ratio.

Meta ShopTalk update

That will help more brands tap into the popularity of the various Meta video formats, with Reels being the key focus.

As per Meta:

“Reels and video on our apps continues to grow as daily watch times across all video types grew over 25% year-over-year in Q4. In fact people now reshare Reels 3.5 billion times every day.”

The new process will also enable advertisers to dynamically create multiple variations of an ad, so the system then has more options to display to users, depending on what they respond best to.

Meta’s also updating its Advantage+ catalogue ads, with the added capacity to import and use branded videos or customer demonstration videos, instead of just static images.

Meta ShopTalk update

Advantage catalogue ads, which Meta first launched in beta testing last year, provide personalized recommendations to users, based on what Meta’s system detects that each will be most interested in, and this new process will provide more capacity to showcase relevant products within the display.

Meta’s will also now enable brands to upload a “hero” image in the centre of their catalogue ads, which Meta’s AI will then use to show people the best products from their catalogue to drive performance.

Meta’s also adding more eCommerce ad options, with users of Magento and Salesforce Commerce Cloud now able to create Shops ads within their management systems. Meta’s also integrating its Shops ads and branded content ads (now called “Partnership ads”), which will enable direct purchasing from collaborative campaigns.

And there’s also new elements in Reminder Ads on Instagram:

“Now, advertisers can include external links to a new product or sale in their Reminder ads to help turn a person’s interest into a purchase. This summer, we’ll also give advertisers ways to notify people when an event starts and before it ends.”

Meta ShopTalk update

Meta’s also looking to expand Reminder ads to Reels in the coming months.

There’s also new Promo Codes promotions on Facebook and Instagram, as well as ads with product tags:

“In March, we’ll bring ads with product tags to Facebook Feed (currently Instagram only), and in April, we’ll launch the global availability of ads with product tags to all businesses, whether or not they maintain a Shop.”

Meta ShopTalk update

Meta’s also updating its Collaborative ads offering, to provide more analytics on performance, while it’s also testing the ability for advertisers to use Collaborative ads with Advantage+ shopping campaigns.

Finally, Meta’s also working on Advantage+ Catalogue ads with omnichannel brand and product level reporting as a new managed service solution “to help RMNs prove that ads on Meta platforms drove sales online and in-store”.

So yeah, a heap of updates, all with varying levels of applicability and use. And while there may not be some huge, headline change that will get the most attention, there’s a lot of value for specific brands within these changes.

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Sourced from Social Media Today

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WhatsApp Adds New Promotional Options to Help Brands Connect with Customers

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Meta’s adding some more ad tools to WhatsApp, in order to help businesses capitalize on the rising use of messaging, and WhatsApp in particular, in more markets.

First off, Meta’s adding a new option that will enable businesses on WhatsApp to launch paid promotions on Facebook and Instagram, without needing a Facebook account.

WhatsApp Facebook ads

As you can see in this example sequence, this new promotion type will include a WhatsApp CTA, which will drive potential customers back to your messaging channel.

That could be a good way to boost brand exposure, and open up a more direct line of communication via the messaging platform, which is also more likely to give you access to push notifications for any future messages.

Businesses need to respect the use of messaging in this regard, and avoid spamming potential customers (note: Meta has a limit on how many messages brands can send for this reason). But it could be a good way to establish direct contact, and keep customers updated on relevant product updates.

Along this line, Meta’s also adding some new promoted message options to connect with people who’ve previously registered interest in your business.

As per WhatsApp:

“Starting soon we’ll begin testing a new feature within the WhatsApp Business app where small businesses will have the option to send personalized messages to their customers – like appointment reminders, birthday greetings or even updates on a holiday sale – in a faster and more efficient way. Rather than having to manually send the same message to multiple customers, this new feature will give businesses the ability to send personal messages with the customer’s name and customizable call-to-action buttons to specific customer lists such as those with a select label (like “VIP customers” or “new customers”), schedule the day and time the messages are sent and then see what’s working. We’ll offer this advanced, optional type of message for a fee in the WhatsApp Business app. We’ll have more details to share in the future.”

That’ll add another way to re-engage shoppers, and the more relevant you can make these updates, based on their past interaction history, the better.

WhatsApp’s focus on privacy has seen it become a more significant connective tool for many more users, while the broader shift towards messaging, as opposed to feed posting, has also helped to boost reliance on the app. And while WhatsApp has always been big in regions like Brazil and India, it’s now also seeing significant growth in North America, which Meta says is now the platform’s fastest-growing region.

Direct connection can be a powerful tool for engaging potential customers, and as users look to shift more of their interactions to more private spaces, it’s worth considering where WhatsApp may fit into your outreach planning.

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Sourced from SocialMediaToday

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YouTube’s Advice for Shorts Creators, Including Hashtags, the Algorithm and More

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Looking to get into YouTube Shorts and build a Shorts presence for yourself or your brand?

You should probably consider it. Shorts is the fastest-growing content type on YouTube, and is now driving over 50 billion daily views in the app. Built in the mold of TikTok, Shorts leans into the growing trend towards more succinct, attention-grabbing clips, and it could be a valuable pathway towards increased brand awareness and perception.

If you can create good Shorts content.

This will help. Today, YouTube has published a new interview with Shorts Product Lead Todd Sherman, in which Sherman answers some of the most common questions about Shorts, including how they’re using hashtags, how often you should post, the Shorts algorithm, and what’s coming next.

There are some interesting notes. Below are some of the key highlights.

On the Shorts algorithm

YouTube advises that creators should “think audience, not algorithm” within their creative process.

Sherman says that the Shorts algorithm is different to the regular YouTube feed, because it’s an entirely different format, with different consumption behaviours.

“For example, on long form, a lot of the times people are choosing which video by tapping on it on their phone, or clicking on it on the web, and that choice is something that drives a lot of engagement. On short form, people are swiping through a feed, and discovering things as they go. That’s one important difference.”

The variance means that YouTube can’t use the same explicit usage indicators as it does in the main feed, so the algorithm is focused more on engagement elements, while the Shorts feed is also broader reaching, meaning that YouTube has to match more content to Shorts viewers.

In essence, this means that YouTube is getting smarter about showing users what they like, based on what they watch, factoring in watch time and re-watches, along with likes, shares, and comments. A big part of that comes down to entity recognition, and YouTube is still building its algorithm to highlight more content based on these measures.

How Shorts views are counted

Sherman says that Shorts views are not measured when a Short appears on screen, but are more aligned with actual viewer interest.

“What we try and do with a view is have it encode for your intent of watching that thing, so that creators feel like that view has some meaningful threshold that the person decided to watch. It doesn’t mean it’s their favourite video ever, it just means that they are deliberately watching it.”

Sherman says that YouTube doesn’t publish its actual calculations on this, in order to stop people trying to game the system.

Extending Shorts length

Sherman says that this is not something that they’re considering, as YouTube already has other long-form options. As such, Shorts will remain 60 seconds max for the time being.

Thumbnail options

Sherman says that the Shorts team has opted not to add specific thumbnail creation tools for Shorts because most Shorts views come from people swiping through the Shorts feed, which means that most people won’t see your thumbnails anyway.

YouTube has added the capacity to select a frame from your clip as the thumbnail, but there are no plans to add custom thumbnail options.

Hashtag usage

Sherman says that hashtags are not required on Shorts, but they can be helpful in certain application.

“Sometimes a hashtag can be associated with a real world thing that’s happened, like an event, and you wanna’ associate it with it. Other times they’re focused on topics, and I think in both those cases, creators should consider using them.”

So not exactly concrete advice on whether hashtags offer any value, but they may be worth experimenting with, in terms of trending discussions and/or niche topics.

Shorts volume

Sherman says that there’s nothing in the algorithm that dictates expanded or reduced reach if you post more Shorts, but he advises that there can be negative impacts for posting lots of lower quality clips.

“If you generated a bunch of relatively lower quality videos and then posted those, and got meager engagement on them, that energy is probably better spent in just making a better video and fewer of them.”

So quality over quantity is, in general, the better approach.

Deleting and re-uploading to maximize reach

Sherman also addresses the suggestion that deleting and re-uploading a Short can help to boost its reach.

Some creators claim that re-uploading can effectively re-trigger the algorithm to expand your distribution, but Sherman says that this is not a great strategy.

“I would not advise that. I’ve heard people talk about this as like a growth hack on Twitter or something [but] I think that there’s also a risk that it gets seen as spam in our systems.”

The future of Shorts

Looking ahead, Sherman says that Shorts will integrate AI elements, though he’s fairly vague on what exactly that means.

You would assume that this would incorporate AI creation tools of some kind, generative elements that can assist in your process, but we’ll have to wait and see what YouTube has in store on this front.

It’s an interesting overview of the current stats of Shorts, and how to best approach Shorts engagement, which could help guide you in your efforts to make the most of the option.

You can view the full interview clip above.

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Sourced from SocialMediaToday

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In News

5 Tips to Rock Your Local Business Social Media Marketing Strategy [Infographic]

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Are you looking for ways to expand the online presence of your local business? Want to learn some clever social media tactics to find more local customers?

The team from Idunn share their social media tips in this infographic.

Here’s a quick summary:

  • Be where your customers are.
  • Stop selling aggressively.
  • Find out what people are interested in.
  • Always fill in all sections of your profile.
  • Run contests and special promotions.

Check out the infographic for more information.

5 local social marketing tips

 

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5 Tips for Brands on How to Use Facebook’s New ‘Brand Collabs Manager’ Tool

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Influencer marketing has emerged as one of the more effective ways for brands to spark engagement, drive brand awareness and reach audiences via digital platforms. And with the option growing in popularity, social media giants like Facebook are now looking to better facilitate such connection, enabling improved, transparent brand campaigns which deliver better advertiser results.

Facebook’s latest initiative to foster influencer marketing is its new Brand Collabs Manager tool, which helps to connect brands with relevant content creators for such purpose.

Through the platform, brands have the option of finding influencers who have similar audiences based on various factors (age, gender, interests). These influencers – who have follower counts ranging from 25,000 to 8 million people – also have access to insights and data, making it easier for brands to assess their actual reach and capacity, helping to find the right match.

So how will this impact the world of influencer marketing? In this post, we’ll take a look at how brands can leverage the new platform to fuel up their influencer marketing strategies, and get the most out of their efforts.

Identify the Right Influencer

Brand Collabs Manager enables businesses to establish improved connection with influencers who align with their brand values, vision, and purpose.

Influencers can set up a portfolio that’s connected to their Facebook Page, and present campaigns where they’ve collaborated with brands and incorporated messages and products into their content.

The top relevant creators will also have a percentage match on their profile thumbnail, depending on your listed requirements, while you can also be able to see their audience reach, and set an audience match to see how it compares to yours. From there, you can choose any influencer or group of influencers.

Identifying the right person to represent your brand is vital – influencers with a massive following aren’t always the right fit for your audience. Always remember that quality trumps quantity when determining the right creators to partner with.

Great Content Wins Over All

The pillar of any effective marketing strategy is exceptional content – and that’s no different for influencer marketing.

Influencers are content creators who have become exceptionally successful with their craft – brands should not only focus on the influencers they’re looking to partner with, but even more so, the content they publish, and how that might work in representing their brand. Effective content is authentic, resonates with the target audience and represents both sides well.

With the influx of brands and influencers, you need to get creative to break through the noise and stand out. Think of compelling ways to reach your audience by leveraging various channels and formats.

Authenticity Is Key

Facebook is constantly working to filter out fake content and accounts, in order to ensure users only see transparent and authentic content. This is because consumers want authenticity from brands more than ever.

If you think of influencer marketing as a quick way to amp up sales, you’ll quickly fail. Every influencer should be a true brand ambassador, not just a paid spokesperson.

Instead of partnering with big-name influencers for temporary projects, invest in establishing genuine, long-term relationships with those who truly align with your brand’s vision. Create an authentic relationship with your creator – they’ll feel that you’re more invested in the partnership, and in return, they may also become more invested and be more loyal to your brand.

This kind of relationship will help both sides create content that genuinely resonates with your target audience and which doesn’t come off super salesy.

Personalized Messaging

Personalized marketing efforts have never been more important, and with Facebook’s access to a wealth of data on individual consumers, brands have the opportunity to ramp up their personalization efforts.

Brand Collabs Manager opens up the door for even better-targeted experiences – by serving more engaging ads and individualized content, the audience you’re reaching through influencers will likely be impressed and intrigued to discover more about your brand.

Track Your Performance

In order to gauge your success with influencer marketing and Brand Collabs Manager, you need to consistently measure your data and analytics in order to evaluate how users are reacting to your campaigns.

By using Facebook to track your performance, you’ll be able to better understand the type of content that works, which doesn’t, and what CTAs drive conversion. This will, in turn, help you focus on driving measurable results which boost ROI.

Conclusion

The launch of Facebook’s Brand Collabs Manager emphasizes just how significant influencer marketing has become – and really, the option is growing to form a crucial part of any successful digital marketing strategy.

Brand Collabs Manager is only open to a few brands creators at this stage, but it will soon be available to all. We predict that it will become a major disruption to the state of influencer marketing – and if used properly, it’ll maximize the quality of partnerships between the two parties and drive better ROI.

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