Takeaways from the session
Session Overview In this session, Lucy Hall covered social media updates platform-by-platform, focusing on features that can practically benefit marketers instead of just highlighting new releases. She discussed recent LinkedIn video updates, TikTok’s search ads, YouTube Shorts, and Meta platforms (Instagram and Facebook). The session balanced updates with real talk about prioritising time and energy on platforms that actually help drive results, not just noise.
Platform-by-Platform Takeaways
- Vertical Video: Recently launched and available on mobile. This new feed offers an opportunity for B2B marketers, though it currently lacks search functionality.
- Practical Tip: Use vertical video to share bite-sized insights or events, but recognise engagement is still lower than traditional posts. Track results to see if it’s worth continued investment.
- Premium Company Pages: Allows access to call-to-action buttons, auto-invites for followers engaging with content, and visibility into who’s viewing your page.
- Practical Tip: For B2B marketers with a targeted lead pool, premium pages let you see who’s viewing your page, making warm follow-ups easier.
TikTok
- Search Ads: Search ads now let marketers target discovery-oriented audiences right within search results.
- Practical Tip: Use TikTok’s search ads to appear in relevant searches, especially if a viral trend aligns with your product or service.
- Generative AI Tools: TikTok introduced AI avatars that allow creators to engage and even stream on their behalf.
- Practical Tip: Consider experimenting with AI avatars if you’re stretched thin on time and need a consistent presence. Monitor consumer trust levels closely, as AI interactions are still new.
YouTube
- Extended YouTube Shorts: Now up to 3 minutes, with new templates to remix popular trends.
- Practical Tip: Use the 3-minute length to expand storytelling in vertical formats, blending short-form with meaningful narrative.
Meta Platforms (Instagram & Facebook)
- Instagram’s Original Content Boost: Instagram now rewards original content over shared/repurposed posts.
- Practical Tip: Focus on crafting authentic, on-brand content directly for Instagram, as recycled content is less likely to perform.
- Facebook’s Community Power: Groups on Facebook remain the best option for community building, especially for B2B or niche audiences.
- Practical Tip: Facebook is great for reaching older demographics with disposable income; consider Facebook ads targeting these groups if relevant.
Generative AI and Meta’s New Tools: Meta is developing advanced generative AI for video and avatars.
- Practical Tip: Test AI-generated video creation as it rolls out, particularly for customer service avatars. Consider ethical transparency, flagging AI content to maintain user trust.
General Practical Tips from Lucy
- Avoiding Update Overload: Many social media updates don’t add value to your strategy, so focus only on impactful changes like major algorithm shifts or platform tools that drive engagement or conversions.
- Balancing Platform Strategy: Use LinkedIn and Facebook for B2B-focused, community-led engagement, TikTok for discovery and creative outreach, and YouTube Shorts for storytelling that fits trending formats.
- Staying Grounded: Avoid jumping on every new feature unless it has a clear role in your strategy. Time spent on less effective tools is time lost on core goals.
Transcript (AI generated so may contain errors)
Joe Glover (Host)
Hello, you lovely humans! It’s so, so lovely to see you all here today. I’ve just been watching the “Hellos” come in via the chat feature today, and it just makes me feel so happy, so thank you all for being blummin’ lovely, positively lovely, as we would say here.
It’s a thrill and an honour that you would spend a little bit of time with Lucy and me today, so thank you, thank you, thank you a million times. If you haven’t already, do drop in the chat feature where you’re watching from so everyone can know. And, if you haven’t already in that spirit, you’ll see on your screens right now some instructions because what we always get is a bunch of chat feature messages that come through to hosts and panelists. It’s one of these things that Zoom does; it’s a little bit annoying, but it is what it is. So, I just need to ask you to switch your chat feature over to “Everyone” so everyone can see your messages, just like Nicole has, just like Rebecca has, just like Jessica has, just like Emma has, and we keep on going – there are so many lovely people. Hello to all. I think my favourite one I’ve seen so far was someone saying hello from Basel in Switzerland, the land of chocolate and cheese, as they described it, which is fabulous.
Today, let’s get going with introducing our fabulous speaker for today. Some of you will notice a change in schedule in terms of our scheduled speaker for this week, but we have the fabulous Lucy Hall come to speak with us today. Lucy is someone who I admire for her entrepreneurialism, just being like such a supportive human to her community, as well as just being a smart human who just brings so much energy to this.
We’ve got Simon as well in the chat feature, who’s clearly taken this as a Basel comment as a challenge, and Simon says from Birmingham, the land of purple chocolate, which is very good. Lucy is an absolute legend, and I know that you’re really going to enjoy her chatting through today. Over the course of these webinars in this season, we’ve been speaking social media, and we’ve spent quite a lot of time getting quite strategic, so I’m hoping today will be a little bit more tactical for you. With that spirit in mind, if you’ve got any questions that you would like to drop in the Q&A feature, then please do. That’s found down below, and we can get to those as we go throughout today’s session because it is a conversation.
Mark responds to Simon in the chat saying the purple chocolate sounds like a great student nightclub. I will not be going there because I haven’t been clubbing for about 15 years, and I never intend to ever again. Before we get going, I want to say a big thank you to our featured sponsor this week, and this week, it’s Exclaimer. Now, I really love Exclaimer because I think it’s a tool that speaks to managing the little things, caring about the little things, which has to matter in your marketing. What Exclaimer does is enable you to centrally manage your team’s email signatures to bring consistency across the brand but also enabling you to use it as a new marketing channel. It also allows you to sweat your assets. For example, they’ve just released a new feature, which enables you to embed your social media channels into your email signature, which enables you to keep on exposing the folks that you are speaking to via your email to the content that you’re producing and working so hard to produce. It’s a really nifty little platform, and I’d recommend checking it out. Also, a big thank you to Front, Disclaimer, Cambridge Martin College, Redgate, and Score App – you’re all legends. We’ll speak about them in future weeks. With that all done, my introduction is done, so, Lucy, thank you for taking the time, and thank you also – like the chat today is just absolutely wonderful. So, thank you everyone for making that so special.
Lucy, you and I were chatting before we went live today about social media updates, and like I’d just love it if you could repeat what we were sort of speaking about because I think it felt really important.
Lucy Hall (Guest)
Hello! Hello, by the way! Hi, everyone, and thanks for being here, and thanks for having me, Joe. I think social media updates for marketers can just be really, really overwhelming, actually, and I don’t think the majority of them even matter; they’re just distractions for us. It’s great to know that, you know, these new things are happening, but, like, adding a note to an Instagram photo – is this something I could use right away? Probably, but is it something that’s going to make a huge difference to my marketing right now? Probably not.
There are so many things like this – these so many Instagram features, for example. Every day, we hear of something new that Instagram’s doing, and it’s just great PR for them because it keeps us thinking about Instagram, but actually, does it mean anything? Do all of these things mean anything to us? Most of the time, probably not, unless it’s a huge algorithm change or something that’s going to completely shift the strategy. I just think it can be overwhelming, and the fact that, you know, some people say, “Well, if you don’t know what’s going on in social media, what all of these latest updates are and that kind of thing, can you even work in social media? Can you even work in social media marketing?” It’s just rubbish, I think. Yeah, keep it in mind that there are new things happening all the time, but it’s not stuff that we need to jump on right away.
Joe Glover
I love that. It’s so important. Like, I think it’s exactly to the spirit of your point, you know? Like, we’re going to do this CU – it’s important information to accept or reject, I guess, but sort of taking that spirit and taking it all with a pinch of salt and going, “You know, I don’t need to worry about this,” feels really important because that’s not what we’re supposed to be here to do. As Hillary says, that’s reassuring. Information burnout is real, and, like, we can provide information today, but what we don’t want to do is worry folks and sort of go, “If you’re not doing these things, your business is going to collapse,” because that’s not what this is about. So, I just love that you made that point. I think it was important to set today’s session up in that way because we’re going to be speaking about a lot of things, presumably, and so to highlight that upfront is really, really useful, so thank you, Lucy. I found that really healthy, so I hope everyone watching in does, too, today, as well.
I’m now going to kind of go against that spirit and spend the rest of this session asking you questions about updates, and the way I thought we could do it is just go through platform by platform. And, speak to some of the updates that have been happening. Just to re-emphasise, folks, if you have questions, then do drop them in. So, Lucy, let’s start off with LinkedIn. So, what’s new here?
Lucy Hall
Okay, so I’ve not picked out the latest new trending things that have come this moment because I think it’s really hard to kind of – if we don’t have any data to back up how it works or we’re not quite sure how to use it, it can be a little bit irrelevant, and it’s just more information that we’re piling on top of you. So, I’ve actually just chosen a couple of features that have come out in the last kind of six months that I think are really useful and, you know, some of the features that they have within them and how we can possibly use them as marketers within our, you know, within our marketing plan, basically.
So, the first thing is obviously vertical video on LinkedIn, which is about six months. I think they started rolling it out, and now there’s a feed on – if you go on your mobile app, there’s a feed just for video, right?
Joe Glover
Yeah, absolutely. It’s gone wild. It really has.
Lucy Hall
So, for me, I’m kind of like, “How useful is this to people working in B2B?” because have you noticed any search functionality in there?
Joe Glover
No, that’s a really interesting point, in fact. No, I haven’t.
Lucy Hall
So, for example, if you work in social media marketing, you probably want to see either industry updates depending on the industry you work in or you might want to see video updates about social media trends, updates, things that you can implement, that kind of thing. But if I hit that video feed, I’ll scroll through, and it’s just random stuff. It’s all kinds of things – marketing, entrepreneurship – which might also be because I talk about several different things and learn about several different things through LinkedIn, but it is just a never-ending feed of stuff that’s very difficult to sort through. It’s not tagged or anything like that; there’s no search functionality.
So, while they want you to create video for LinkedIn and while they’re saying that, you know, dwell time is really important, they’re really focused on this TikTok-style vertical video feed on LinkedIn. But how good is it for the end user if you can’t sort through the content?
Joe Glover
Emily says she’s seeing loads of repurposed video content from other platforms. Not LinkedIn-specific content yet.
Lucy Hall
Yes, absolutely. It’s not fantastic at the moment. But there’s an opportunity there because not everyone is creating original content on LinkedIn. So, for B2B marketers, there’s space to create content for the vertical video feed specifically for that audience.
Also, one thought I had on this, if it’s okay to say, is that with vertical video, we consume it a lot as consumers. We’re looking for fun, interesting content – things we can share with our friends. But for B2B, as people who are actively looking to buy or connect with communities, are we consuming LinkedIn vertical video differently than, say, TikTok? It makes me wonder about the longevity of LinkedIn’s vertical feed, just like how stories didn’t work.
Joe Glover
I love that perspective. It’s really interesting; it’s clear they’re pushing it. LinkedIn is probably the only platform I can contribute to in this discussion, but what’s interesting is that I’ve posted a couple of LinkedIn videos recently that have hit up to 400,000 views, but engagement, in terms of likes and comments, isn’t proportional to my other posts.
So, to your point, it reinforces that we’re seeing views but not necessarily engagement, which is a different experience from typical video. Usually, video drives more engagement, but the vertical video on LinkedIn hasn’t yielded that in my experience. So, it’s worth watching but not necessarily delivering business results.
Lucy Hall
Absolutely, Joe. And speaking of new features, LinkedIn Premium Company Pages is another update that I think is a little more useful. LinkedIn is always looking for ways to earn more money, so they’ve created another subscription model, but this one does come with some useful features for B2B marketers.
Features include:
- Custom call-to-action (CTA) buttons, which are useful if you engage as a page.
- AI-powered post-writing, although I’m not the biggest fan because it doesn’t sound like your brand or personality anymore.
- Auto invites, which automatically invite people who are already engaging with your content to follow your page. I think this is great because you’re inviting people who are clearly interested in what you’re sharing.
It’s £66 a month, so not cheap, but not overly expensive either. I believe there’s a free trial at the moment, too, which you mentioned earlier, Joe.
Another really useful feature, especially if you’re B2B and focused on leads, is the ability to see who’s visited your page. This lets you see a list of people who’ve actually looked at your profile, interacted with your content, and are clearly interested.
Joe Glover
I love that. It’s useful, especially if you get a manageable number of visitors each day; you can see if they’re engaging, and you can reach out to them more meaningfully. It feels like a really lovely tactic to use the Premium Pages effectively.
Joe Glover
Thanks for highlighting those, Lucy. Let’s keep moving – next up, TikTok. Could you walk us through what’s useful here?
TikTok Updates
Lucy Hall
For TikTok, search ads are the number one thing right now. TikTok is rolling them out, allowing advertisers to pay to appear in search results. TikTok is fantastic for search, and Instagram could improve here. Instagram’s search isn’t very useful, whereas TikTok users are actively searching for things, and search ads create a discovery opportunity for marketers.
So, unlike Google, where people go with specific intent, TikTok users are in a discovery mindset, meaning they’re open to stumbling upon something new.
Joe Glover
Interesting, so how do these search ads work? Do they appear as videos in search results?
Lucy Hall
They’re still rolling it out, so I don’t know the full details yet, but I think it’s exciting for brands to target certain search results. And since TikTok creators drive much of what people search for, there’s great potential to get in front of people if your product aligns with trending searches.
Joe Glover
Makes sense. What else is new on TikTok?
Lucy Hall
TikTok is introducing AI-generated avatars, allowing creators to create digital versions of themselves. It’s a little scary, but it does mean creators can engage more without always being live. However, it raises questions about trust, as the AI avatars clone your voice and appearance.
It’s a wild new feature, and I wonder what it’s going to do to trust with followers.
Joe Glover
It’s definitely something. My initial reaction is fear and discomfort, but I see how it could help some creators who are less confident on camera. For them, it could be liberating.
Lucy Hall
Exactly, and apparently, these AI avatars can even interact with audiences and stream on behalf of the creator – that’s huge. It’s a step beyond, you know?
Joe Glover
I’m just going to hide from the internet if that’s where we’re headed! But, yes, it’s a lot to think about. Let’s jump to YouTube – what’s happening there?
YouTube Updates
Lucy Hall
YouTube is really pushing YouTube Shorts. They’ve now made Shorts up to 3 minutes long, which gives marketers more space for storytelling. They’ve also introduced new templates, making it easier to remix and jump on trends quickly.
Plus, they’re rolling out a Shorts Trends page to help marketers track what’s hot in their region. If it aligns with your strategy, it’s a great way to capitalise on trends.
Joe Glover
So helpful, Lucy. The vertical video trend is everywhere now – LinkedIn, TikTok, Instagram, and now YouTube. It’s definitely something worth considering.
Lucy Hall
Yes, and YouTube is pushing Shorts hard. From the 15th of October, they made Shorts up to 3 minutes, so more room for storytelling in short-form video content. Plus, the Shorts Trends page lets you track trends by region, so you can capitalise on relevant trends more easily.
Joe Glover
Maybe we can do a bit of a straw poll while we’re here today. I’d love it if folks could pop in the chat if you engage with social media channels like LinkedIn, TikTok, etc., and if you engage with YouTube specifically as part of this. So, yes or no to social media and yes or no to YouTube – just to get an idea of how people view YouTube in the social media ecosystem. Looks like we’re seeing a mix of answers – people saying yes to social media but maybe no to YouTube.
Is there anything else on YouTube?
Lucy Hall
That was the main thing on YouTube – Shorts trends and extended video lengths. The updates make it easier for marketers to create trend-driven content and join in on trends, especially since many young people are really into the trends.
Joe Glover
Let’s move on to Twitter, or should I say X, which feels like an interesting platform at the moment. What are your thoughts?
Twitter/X Updates
Lucy Hall
Good news – X is rebranding as a news platform, which might mean we don’t need to talk about it as much! However, X is doing a lot to support creators, like partnerships with influencers, so depending on your audience, it could still be useful.
Even if we don’t use it personally, it’s still relevant if your audience is there, so it’s good to keep an eye on it. Some journalists are moving to Threads, though, so it’s worth watching the migration.
Joe Glover
Practical and realistic – thanks for sharing that perspective, Lucy. The chat today has been wonderful, everyone helping each other out. Thank you so much for being here and for sharing your thoughts and experiences.
Instagram Updates
Joe Glover
Let’s talk Instagram, a platform that seems to have constant updates. You mentioned earlier how they can be useful but overwhelming. What’s the reality?
Lucy Hall
Yes, Instagram is great, especially for product sales and e-commerce, but it’s overwhelming because there’s always something new. One of the most important updates is that Instagram is now rewarding original content. This means they’re prioritising creators who post original work over re-shared or aggregated content, which is important for marketers to know.
Creating authentic, original content is still key. This might sound obvious, but it’s so easy to get caught up in trends. My advice is to create content that’s truly helpful to your audience rather than jumping on every new feature.
Joe Glover
Yes, that’s reassuring to hear – focus on original content and what’s genuinely valuable, rather than shiny new things. And you mentioned Facebook too. Any thoughts on differences between Instagram and Facebook?
Facebook & Meta Updates
Lucy Hall
Yes, Facebook may not be trendy, but it has the biggest audience, especially among people with higher disposable incomes. It’s still great for e-commerce, groups, and communities, and the reach is excellent. Facebook groups are especially strong and, in my opinion, the best place to host a community right now.
Also, WhatsApp is a great platform for customer service and communities. You can set up automated replies, share catalogues, and manage groups there. For e-commerce businesses, WhatsApp’s potential is huge, especially for customer support.
Joe Glover
I totally agree about Facebook groups. I just wish LinkedIn groups were as good! And with all that’s happening in Meta, the AI-generated video creation is something to keep an eye on, right?
Lucy Hall
Absolutely. Meta is working on AI-generated video creation, which is said to be amazing – no joke. It’s a sign that generative AI is becoming more sophisticated. They’re also introducing AI avatars, so we’ll be seeing even more focus on AI in the coming years.
Joe Glover
Thanks, Lucy. Let’s move to some community questions now. The top one is about Pinterest: “When it comes to platforms like Pinterest, how important is it for predicting future cultural trends, and is it one we should be spending more time on?”
Community Q&A
Lucy Hall
I think Pinterest is an incredible platform, but it’s different. Years ago, Pinterest announced they’re not a social media platform; they’re a discovery platform. They’re fantastic for trend prediction, especially if you’re in a creative or visual industry. Pinterest’s reports are great for identifying upcoming trends, so if that aligns with your brand, it’s absolutely worth considering.
Joe Glover
That makes sense. Pinterest has such a unique approach. Let’s take the next question, which is a bit more tactical: Are hashtags still useful on Instagram and TikTok?
Lucy Hall
On TikTok, hashtags aren’t as critical because the search function is so strong – people can find what they’re looking for easily. But on Instagram, the search doesn’t work as well, so hashtags are still important. I’d say if you’re an event organiser, hashtags are useful for tracking conversations, but for general marketing, Instagram hashtags might be less critical than they used to be.
Joe Glover
Good to know. Thanks, Lucy! Another interesting question here – “Is LinkedIn now just the spiritual home of the humble brag?”
Lucy Hall
I think LinkedIn is a personal work space, so people naturally want to share their achievements. It’s a great platform for celebrating wins and recognising other people’s successes. Plus, sharing good news and connecting with others can drive positivity on the platform.
Yes, there’s some odd behaviour here and there, but I believe LinkedIn can be a really positive place for those of us using it to build genuine connections. It’s my favourite platform for work-focused communities and B2B connections.
Joe Glover
Fully agree, Lucy. LinkedIn is such a personal platform, and most people are just trying their best. For the most part, it’s a fantastic space to celebrate others and connect with people.
The community has been amazing today – it’s truly heartwarming to see everyone engaging and sharing. Thank you all for being here, and thank you, Lucy, for being such an insightful and grounding presence.
Joe Glover
Thank you again, Lucy, and thank you to everyone for being part of this session. If you’d like to connect with Lucy, you can find her on LinkedIn. And, of course, a big thanks to Exclaimer for supporting us today.
Next week, we’ll have the team from Innocent Smoothies joining us to talk about how they create content and respond to their community. It’s going to be a great case study, and I hope you’ll love it.
With that said, thank you, Lucy, for everything today, and thank you to everyone in the community for making this an amazing session. Take care, and we’ll see you soon. Cheers!
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