In this week’s Platform Five: Facebook is testing Stories that last for three days
What’s changed in the last seven days? What does it mean?
Social media platforms including Pinterest, Instagram, TikTok and YouTube are introducing new features to help small businesses and families connect during the COVID-19 Pandemic.
Let’s take a look at these changes in more detail.
Instagram is introducing new Stickers to help businesses
The COVID-19 pandemic has drastically changed the way people live their lives and businesses are feeling the direct impact of this. That’s why Instagram is rolling out new Stickers that let users buy gift cards or order take away from Instagram Stories. The feature is currently available in the US and Canada but will be available globally in the coming weeks.
Learn more here.
TikTok introduces Family Paring, a new parental control
Staying home means people are going online to connect with others, pass time and find inspiration which means they’re spending more time on the internet overall. With this in mind, TikTok has introduced new Family Paring controls which will let parents customise their child’s safety settings. Family Paring will let parents restrict content, manage screen time and limit direct messages.
Find out more here.
YouTube rolls out its Video Builder to more businesses
Now more than ever, businesses are relying on video to make and maintain connections. YouTube is hoping to make things a bit easier by increasing the number of businesses who can use their Video Builder which is currently in beta. Video Builder is a free tool that lets businesses create short YouTube ads.
Read more here.
Pinterest updates Pinterest Shop to give SMBs a one up
According to Pinterest, searches for “support small business” have increased 351% over the last month as Pinners look for ways to support those impacted by COVID-19. Pinterest is making it easier to connect businesses with customers by launching “a brand new collection of products from sustainable brands on the Pinterest Shop…[which] features hundreds of shoppable products from 21 small and medium-sized businesses.”
Learn more here.
Facebook is testing Stories that last three days
Stories are finally getting some traction on Facebook with over 500M using the feature daily. So Facebook is looking into new ways to increase views on Stories, including giving users the option to choose how long the story is visible for, one or three Days.
Find out more here.
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Missed last week’s edition? You can check it out here.
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