Social Minds - Social Media Marketing

On Social in Six this week, we’re breaking down the latest ad offerings from Instagram and Facebook, plus enhancements to YouTube’s Connected TV ads. We also cover Twitter’s Community Notes upgrade that helps combat misinformation, and a new report that suggests Pinterest could be your solution to better ads performance in a cookie-free world. Finally, we discuss reports that Meta’s Twitter rival Barcelona is nearing launch. Got a question or a suggestion for the Social Minds podcast? Get in touch at social.minds@socialchain.com.

Should’ve gone to Specsavers. The proposition is well-known, but most only associate it with witty (and brilliant) ads. Today's guest Lisa Hale - Specsavers' head of consumer PR, brand activation & social media - says they’re laser-focused on evolving that line to show younger audiences the more meaningful reasons Specsavers is the superior choice. In this episode we discuss the problems with how brands are currently sold media by social platforms, whether it’s a myth or not that Gen Z prefers humour to humility, and what happened when the brand gave free eye tests to the worst football team in Britain. Got a question or a suggestion for the Social Minds podcast? Get in touch at social.minds@socialchain.com.

This week on Social in Six, we’re talking about Reddit enabling anonymous native sharing cross-platform, three new TikTok ad solutions, and Twitter possibly replacing Pinned tweets with an Instagram Highlights dupe. We also discuss Instagram’s new Shops feature that puts UGC on the product page, AI-powered ad tools coming to Meta, and YouTube Music’s new plan to help you reach Gen Z. Got a question or a suggestion for the Social Minds podcast? Get in touch at social.minds@socialchain.com.

TikTok is the fastest-growing source of news for adults. But can journalists re-engage younger viewers with traditional media through modern channels? Legacy outlet The Washington Post was among the first to embrace TikTok with open arms, and now the rest are following suit. In this episode we sit down with the person behind the TikToks from ‘We are a newspaper’ @washingtonpost - Carmella Boykin. We talk about how to translate the news into ‘TikTok speak’ without losing the information’s integrity, what to do when the comments section takes on a life of its own, and the line between UGC that gives mass reach to untold voices, and the need for professional reporting and photo-journalism. Got a question of a suggestion for the Social Minds podcast? Get in touch at social.minds@socialchain.com.

This week on Social in Six, we’re talking about the new AI tool Meta’s made to make your Stories for you, and it’s answer to Twitter with a new app in development - as Twitter extends its character limit to 10K. We also talk about Instagram’s API update for creator partnerships, and more links now available in the bio, plus new ad attribution tracking capabilities from Snapchat. Got a question or a suggestion for the Social Minds podcast? Get in touch at social.minds@socialchain.com.

Can you automate creativity? Although we might say no right now, tools like ChatGPT, Midjourney, and Hootsuite’s new AI, OwlyWriter, are pushing the boundaries of what social media managers and creatives can lean on artificial intelligence for. This week we’re joined by Billy Jones, global brand lead at Hootsuite. Billy’s many years of experience in agencies have made him empathetic to the fast paced lifestyle that can leave you drawing blanks. In this, he explains how creatives can use AI to their full potential, why the robots won’t take your job (but people who can use them just might) and how to avoid contributing to the sea of same with lazy AI use. Got a question or a suggestion for the Social Minds podcast? Get in touch at social.minds@socialchain.com.

On this week’s Social in Six, we talk about Elon Musk’s plans to make Twitter an “everything app”, LinkedIn’s new algorithmic home feed, and research that shows how TikTok users feel about your ads. We also discuss how to optimise your B2B LinkedIn ads, how to reach specific TikTok communities, and what advice Meta’s new expert panel has for brands on its new video series, Ask An Expert. Got a question or a suggestion for the Social Minds podcast? Get in touch at social.minds@socialchain.com.

Working with influencers - or as they’re increasingly being called - creators, isn’t what it used to be. Today it’s more of a default than an add-on, and for some brands it’s at risk of wasting their ad spend. For a focused approach to influencer strategy, we’re speaking to Shannon Jennings - head of social and influencers for The Very Group. With a huge roster of retailers in its portfolio, Shannon explains how to treat one-off and long-term talent campaigns, the pivot from traditional gifting when sustainability is front of mind, and whether or not interest in influencers will wain with the current economic state, and some marketing activity in danger of being viewed as a luxury. Got a question or suggestion for the Social Minds podcast? Get in touch at social.minds@socialchain.com.

This week on Social In Six, we discuss TikTok letting users ask to be forgotten by the For You Page, LinkedIn Company Pages’ ability to schedule posts, and Twitter’s test that notifies you when someone else gets a reply or Quote Retweet. We also talk about the option to opt out of some Twitter Ads topics, how you can see the top-performing ad copy on TikTok live campaigns, and the - apparently temporary - end for NFTs on Facebook and Instagram. Got a question or a suggestion for the Social Minds podcast? Get in touch at social.minds@socialchain.com.

Herd behaviour and social proof simply don’t apply to one bigger-than-you-think group, who’re less affected by what other people think and more likely to follow their own rules: the neurodivergent. Whether that means autistic, ADHD, or simply self-identified on the spectrum, they’re each consuming media, tech, and advertising differently to the majority. That’s impacting our work’s effectiveness. In this episode we’re joined by Rory Sutherland, to discuss how catering for the neurodivergent, the disabled, and the elderly means catering for everybody, and what can happen for a brand when you do. We also talk about the most effective media, methods and means for doing this - plus lots more on our behaviour and relationship with tech. Got a question or suggestion for the Social Minds podcast? Get in touch at social.minds@socialchain.com.

We’re back for 2023 with Social In Six, and on this episode’s syllabus are Instagram’s new Broadcast Channels, changes to Twitter’s ad targeting, and TikTok removing its watermark for repurposed content. We also talk expansions to TikTok’s Commercial Music Library, YouTube’s new podcast feature, how Pinterest mitigates stress, and your brand’s Instagram engagement rate. Got a question or suggestion for the Social Minds podcast? Get in touch at social.minds@socialchain.com.

Pinterest Predicts 2023 is officially out, and after three consecutive years of an 80% success rate, it’s guaranteed to be the best weapon advertisers can take into the pitch room with them next year. To tell us about the trends we can expect to see, what they say about culture and society, and how advertisers can use them in campaigns and content, we’re joined by Pinterest’s director of marketing for Europe, Louise Richardson. Expect to learn why Gen Z and millennials are avoiding ‘tech neck’ and taking up origami, how Gen X are gamifying their finances throughout the cost of living crisis, and how Boomers are going from conserving water in the garden to planning parties for their older parents. Got a question or a suggestion for the Social Minds podcast? Get in touch at social.minds@socialchain.com.

On Social in Six this week, we’ve got two updates from Instagram, including its 2023 trend predictions for Gen Z and reports that it’s testing some…familiar…camera features. We also cover LinkedIn’s newest updates for brands and marketers, Twitter ramping up recommended content, and the news that Pinterest is retiring its Creator Rewards programme. Finally we discuss TikTok’s 16:9 video update. Got a question or suggestion for the Social Minds podcast? Get in touch at social.minds@socialchain.com.

The banking sector is full of red tape - more so than for smoothie brands, anyway. Yet one bank is challenging more than just the traditional product and service in its category; Monzo’s social channels are a breath of fresh air for any marketer hoping to have fun in a corporate industry, and for consumers hoping to see a human side to their bank. In this episode, we’re joined by Monzo social media manager, Richard Cook, to learn what the barriers to entry are for banking with a “new” bank, and how Monzo’s social media strategy helps break them down. We cover turning tracking into shareable content, the power of making your brand name a verb, and how to avoid tonal whiplash. Got a question or a suggestion for the Social Minds podcast? Get in touch at social.minds@socialchain.com.

On this week’s Social in Six, we’re talking about Instagram’s new music posts, YouTube community quizzes, and Snap’s report on the state of augmented reality. We also cover Meta’s new AI system that’s beating all records, LinkedIn’s brand safety hub, and the issues with the Twitter app convincing people it’s headed for a server crash. Got a question or suggestion for the Social Minds podcast? Get in touch at social.minds@socialchain.com.

Tone of voice documents and brand guidelines are the business staple that most brands don’t have. And if they do, it’s probably not as thorough or as thoughtful as it needs to be. Today’s guest, copy chief and brand and TOV consultant Vikki Ross, has written for or created brand books Nando’s, Harvey Nichols, Sky, Sony, ITV, and more. In this episode, she shows us how copywriting goes beyond captions for the brands that really get it, and how words can be your best friend when building your brand - which is what advertising is all about. Expect to learn Vikki’s copywriting principles and how to apply them, why you have to get granular when crafting a persona for your brand, and how to make words count, make words work, and make words dance. Got a question or a suggestion for the Social Minds podcast? Get in touch at social.minds@socialchain.com.

This week on Social in Six, we break the latest on Elon Musk’s Twitter acquisition as the story develops and advertisers watch carefully. We also discuss the rollout of Pinterest’s app Shuffles, shopping integrations on Snapchat, separate tabs for YouTube’s various video formats, and Meta’s upcoming NFT toolkit - along with new wallet options. Got a question or a suggestion for the Social Minds podcast? Get in touch at social.minds@socialchain.com.

WeAre8 is a new sustainable social platform that promises to curtail hate. It also wants to offer ‘green’ advertising solutions, reward users for watching ads, and empower creators who share positive content. But do we need another platform? Here to tell us what made brands like Heineken, Nike, BT, and lots more, partner with the new platform, is Sue Fennessy, founder and CEO. Expect to learn how it’s defining hate speech vs free speech, how their ad model differentiates itself, and what a platform looks like when it’s not designed to keep you there. Got a question or a suggestion for the Social Minds podcast? Get in touch at social.minds@socialchain.com.

On this week’s Social in Six, we mourn the demise of Facebook Instant Articles and Bulletin (sorry, journos) but welcome TikTok as the news kid on the block, as a new study shows the increase in its use for news content. We also discuss what Pinterest’s new partnership means for video-first advertisers, new TikTok ad formats that charge brands only if users watch, how Instagram is adopting Linktree’s USP, and a time-saving feature possibly coming to LinkedIn that’s sure to be a crowdpleaser. Got a question or a suggestion for the Social Minds podcast? Get in touch at social.minds@socialchain.com.

Brand Twitter has subscribed to one way of doing things for the last few years, following brandter trends and popular text meme formats. Now Twitter is politely asking us to stop. Here to walk us through its #RealTalk report among other learnings is Sophie Trinder, head of the company’s UK brand strategy team Twitter Next. She warns of drowning in the sea of same and, instead of following the platform’s supposed rules, has tips for brands on their tone, topics and community to ensure your brand stand outs by being uniquely itself. Expect to learn best practice for the bio, how the humble follow feature made a standout campaign execution, and what data says people really want to hear from brands (it’s not a RIP tribute to Her Late Majesty the Queen). Got a question or a suggestion for the Social Minds podcast? Get in touch at social.minds@socialchain.com