Bonded Bitesize – Your Midweek Roundup
Bonded Bitesize – Your Midweek Roundup
Bonded Bitesize – Bringing you your midweek roundup of the latest in digital and media.
Stay connected with recent updates from Microsoft, Google, Threads & many more!
Meta has shared tips on maximising engagement on Threads, such as starting conversations and hosting challenges and contests
Given that its new app, Threads, now boasts an impressive user base of 116 million users, Meta has reportedly been sending tips to talent management agencies to help advise creators on how they should approach the app. Meta’s top tips include:
- ‘Make a splashy arrival by announcing you have joined the app’
- ‘Start a conversation’
- ‘Host challenges and contests’
- Post ‘Threads puns’ (which are apparently doing well on the app)
- ‘Utilise the safety features’
Netflix has added the ability to place ads around its top 10 titles as a more premium ad spot for advertisers
Following a healthy bump in subscribers for the second quarter, Netflix has revealed that advertisers will now be able to place ads around its top 10 titles - providing a more premium ad spot for advertisers. The streaming service has said that it will be focusing on building both standard capabilities as well as innovate ad formats such as this. The company also previously unveiled its plan to create episodic ad campaigns that act as mini-series rather than stand alone ads. Despite having only recently brought adverts to the platform, it appears Netflix is experimenting heavily with its advertisements which could be something to watch.
Reddit is taking back control of locked subreddits by replacing protesting moderators with new volunteers
Reddit has had a rocky few months following its decision to raise the price of its API, which priced out many popular third-party apps and developers and consequently led to protests from the moderators of some of the platform's largest community pages. Well now it seems Reddit has had enough of users fighting back, as the platform has been spotted expelling and reappointing moderators of rioting subreddits. Whilst Reddit is largely moderated by volunteers which gives its users a lot of power over the app, the platform is obviously keen to reopen locked subreddit communities and make the app a safe space for advertisers once again.
TikTok updates Ads Library tool for EU campaigns, providing more insights into ads such as targeting parameters & total users served
TikTok has released an updated version of its Ads Library resource, a searchable ads database showing insights into all of the ad campaigns running on the app. The Ads Library shows the ad creative for each ad, as well as information such as the dates the ad ran for, the ad targeting parameters selected, the number of people served the ad, and who paid for the campaign. TikTok Ads Library is currently only showing data on ads running in Europe (likely as a result of changing EU ad policies), whilst ads from all regions can still be explored via the original TikTok Ads Overview tool.
The Daily Mail threatens to sue Google over copyright issues relating to its AI chatbot, Bard
Google has been accused of illegally stealing information from hundreds of thousands of newspaper articles to train its AI chatbot, Bard. According to a report by the Telegraph, the Daily Mail and General Trust (DMGT) has already sought legal advice on the subject and is preparing to officially file a lawsuit against Google imminently. This comes just days following news that a best-selling U.S. author has also accused Google of illegally using copyrighted content to train its AI products.
Pinterest adds support for mobile deeplinking on shopping ads, providing direct traffic to retailer’s own mobile apps
Pinterest has added a new shopping feature designed to drive users in a shopping mindset directly to a retailer's own mobile app via deep links. Pinterest explains, “For retailers, mobile deep links will instantly direct Pinterest users to a specific page in their mobile app, making it easier to shop for products after clicking on a shopping ad they discovered on the platform. Eliminating extra steps and clicks can ultimately have an incremental impact on a retailer’s shopping campaign".
Netflix has quietly axed its basic plan in both the UK and U.S, its cheapest ad-free tier
Following its removal in Canada last month, Netflix has quietly removed its Basic plan in both the UK and the U.S. The basic plan allowed users to stream shows on one screen in 720p quality for £6.99 per month, acting as a middle ground between the platforms cheapest ad-supported tier, and the more costly ad-free tiers. While existing users with the plan will still have access to it, the basic tier will no longer be available for new or rejoining members - possibly pushing more users towards the ad-supported plan.
Reddit publishes 56-page ‘Back-to-School’ marketing guide to help with campaign planning
Reddit has published a 56-page guide on back-to-school marketing, sharing tips and statistics on how brands can reach parents during the back-to-school season. Within the guide, Reddit credits itself as “the #1 platform parents come to for candid and unvarnished advice’ - boasting 140 million monthly screenviews within its many parenting communities. The guide includes insights into how parents are engaging with the app, the topics they are discussing, and where to reach them, as well as sharing helpful tips and case studies to help marketers optimise their back-to-school campaigns.
Check out Reddit’s ‘Back to School Insights Guide 2023’ here.
Microsoft’s Performance Max is now in open beta, with plans to bring it to general availability soon
Microsoft has announced that its Performance Max is in open beta, meaning select marketers will now have access to its full inventory and will be able to serve ads across its network. Lauren Tallody, Senior Product Marketing Manager and Automation Lead for Microsoft commented, “Since Google launched their Performance Max product in 2021, we took our time to understand if there was a need across advertisers for this kind of product on our side”. The company is still building more features into the new tool, including API support, Microsoft Advertising Editor support, expanded reporting and smart shopping campaign upgrades - so we’ll have to wait a little bit longer before we can get our hands on it.
Instagram rolls out new Template Browser and Reels editing tools to help brands discover and replicate trending content
Instagram has launched a new Template Browser to help users create better Reels. This new tool lets users search Reels Templates in categories such as ‘Recommendations’, ‘Trending’ and ‘Previously Saved’ to provide creative inspiration and aid discovery. The platform has also added new elements within the editing process to help users replicate popular Reels - for example, automatically adding the same audio, number and duration of clips and any AR effects via the template.
Google has updated its misrepresentation policy with detailed information on how marketers can build trust
Google has made some changes to its Misrepresentation policy to give detailed advice on how marketers can build trust. Firstly, Google advises businesses to assess their business identity - ensuring the official business name is provided, is consistent across its domain, and that the website includes an ‘About Us’ page to help establish authenticity as a business. Secondly, to be transparent and honest in the websites content, messaging and about the brand’s business model. Thirdly, Google suggests building a good online reputation - which can include honest reviews and testimonials, badges or seals of approval from third-party sources and clear contact details. And finally, maintaining a professional design - that is easy to navigate, avoids placeholders and displays an SSL certificate to reassure customers of data privacy.
For more information on building trust with customers, read Google’s guide here.
Twitter announces daily limit on number of DMs unverified users can send in effort to combat spam & boost premium tier
In its effort to combat DM spam - or rather push its premium tier, Twitter Blue - Twitter has announced that unverified accounts will soon have a daily limit on the number of DMs that they can send. Whilst the platform has not yet revealed the exact number of DMs that non-paying users will be limited to, restrictions are likely to limit the businesses, creators and journalists alike that use DMs as a valuable outreach tool. In addition, Twitter also recently updated its user settings to default to a mode that only allows verified users to send DM requests to non-followers, to further combat the spread of spam.
TikTok has launched a new ads starter guide to help SMBs plan their campaign approaches
TikTok has rolled out an easy-to-use ‘starter guide’ to help new or small businesses plan their campaigns. The guide takes users through a series of questions about their business, to create a customised plan based on their goals. The quiz provides users with a checklist of tasks to help get them ad-ready, sharing helpful tips and case studies too. Whether you’re a small business owner, or a seasoned marketer, there’s something for everyone to learn. Check out the Ads Starter Guide here.
Netflix is holding a live celebrity golf tournament as its first venture into streaming live sport
Netflix has confirmed that it will be holding a live celebrity golf tournament in November, marking the streaming service’s first venture into live sports. Netflix’s co-CEO, Ted Sarandos, described the event as “experimental” and stated that it would feature personalities from two Netflix docuseries, ‘Formula 1: Drive to Survive’ and ‘Full Swing’. Sarandos also commented, “We really think that we can have a really strong offering for sports fans at Netflix without having to be part of the difficulty of the economic model of live sports licensing”.
Microsoft confirms its logo extension pilot is now in open beta globally, allowing brands to display their logos next to ads
Microsoft has announced that its logo extension pilot, that displays a brand's logo next to their ad to help it stand out amongst competition, is now in open beta globally. Eligible advertisers will now be able to choose to associate a logo at the account, campaign or ad group level, and these logo extensions will appear across computer, tablet and mobile devices.
Read Microsoft’s Logo Extensions guide for more information.
