Spring is officially in bloom, the birds are tweeting, and we’re back to dive into the latest and hottest social media news updates in the industry. So, grab yourself an iced coffee, sit back and relax while we share a round-up of what has been going on in the world of social media this April.
LinkedIn Has Launched In Platform Games!
While LinkedIn’s platform mission has always been to connect the world’s professionals to economic opportunity, the platform has decided to introduce new puzzle games within the app. This decision comes in the hopes that these games will “spark banter, conversations, and even a healthy bit of competition among professionals around the world.” (LinkedIn, 2024)
Combining games with knowledge isn’t a new concept, the first crossword debuted 111 years ago in the New York World! Offering professionals a moment of relief and downtime while they enjoyed their morning coffee.
LinkedIn however has gone one step further and has launched three in-platform games including:
- Pinpoint: A word association game featuring five words inside a grid with the objective of guessing the common category.
- Queens: A logic game, where the aim is to have one queen in every row, column, and region.
- Crossclimb: A trivia game that is a combination of a crossword and a word ladder.
Similar to Wordle, each game will only have one edition which will be updated daily, giving you an excuse to check LinkedIn regularly.
So which game will you be playing first?
Instagram is prioritising original & emerging creators
Who can say they haven’t blamed the Instagram algorithm for poor post reach? Well not anymore, Instagram has announced a major algorithm update which will accurately detect and recommend original posts.
Key algorithm updates:
Discouraging aggregators
Aggregator accounts are considered accounts that repeatedly (10 times or more in the last 30 days) post content from other Instagram users that they didn’t create or enhance the material reposted. So, if you’re a brand that utilises a lot of reposting UGC (User Generated Content), you may need to re-evaluate your processes.
Adding labels to reposted content
As a way to proactively drive users to original content, Instagram is beginning to detect the original creator of a post and push that upload onto users’ content as opposed to the reposts. This will provide a major boost for brands creating original content, pushing more need for a strategic but creative social strategy.
Shining the spotlight on smaller creators.
If one has become clear on social media in recent years, it’s that growing an account from 0 is A LOT harder than it once was. Instagram previously prioritised creators with large followings…but no longer! The new algorithm will see that all new content will get more initial reach, with posts that see the most engagement then being pushed to a larger audience. Below is an example of how Instagram proposing this will work.
The new Instagram algorithm will force brands to really think about the content they’re producing and make sure it aligns with their audience. We recommend giving our ‘Introducing human-first marketing’ post a read and getting a head start on creating content that connects and converts.
TikTok are set to rival Instagram
That’s right, TikTok is planning to launch its own dedicated photo-sharing app. We have spent the past few years watching Instagram try and keep up with the evolution of short-form video, with Instagram having launched Reels in 2020.
Now TikTok is pulling out the uno reverse card. Users have begun to receive notifications stating that their photo posts will be shared to the new “TikTok Notes” app unless they opt-out. We have seen copycat behaviour succeed in the past when Instagram copied Snapchat and launched its ‘Stories’ feature. But, we have also seen it all end in flames when X tried to introduce a similar feature.
TikTok says they currently haven’t finalised the design of the Notes app, nor do they have an anticipated launch date…but judging by users receiving notifications we can assume it could be closer than we think.
Would you embrace a new photo-sharing app? Or do you think there are already enough platforms available?
That wraps up our social news for April. Check back next month for more insights to help you dominate your strategy and social media presence. In the meantime, why not brush up on your skills with our expert insights?
