This week we’ve got new insights, numbers, and ideas to help us create our social media content. Snapchat hit us with a report about Gen Z, YouTube is giving tips for creating Shorts, and Facebook keeps it real with COVID-19’s impact on small businesses. 

Snapchat’s Guide to What’s Hip With The Kids

In Snapchat’s latest report, they dubbed Gen Z as “the Snapchat Generation” before diving into trends and insights from their users. Their findings confirm that the younger generation is more likely to communicate visually, with memes, emojis, and photos. They’re dedicated to inclusivity and activism, and drive change by buying from brands that support their values. When it comes to advertising, they’re attracted by compelling narratives and immersive experiences, so think outside the box in your next strategy session!

 

YouTube’s Shorts Report: Encouraging Community & Creativity

YouTube has been exploring short-form content to stay in the running against Instagram Reels and TikTok. Now they’re compiling a bi-weekly report of ideas and highlights for the Shorts community. This is a great resource for creators who are just getting started with short-form content, with everything from tips for beginners to the mindset that should go into your videos.

This week’s tips were all about setting the right tone with your video content. Be authentic with content that’s relevant to your brand and enjoyable to you! Short-form video content can be a lot more spontaneous, so go ahead and say what’s on your mind. Take a minute to assess your lighting, outfit, and background, and you’re ready to film. Keep the vibe in mind as you’re filming, and then edit away! Effects, background music, and text can reinforce your tone and keep things interesting.

What does this mean for Gainesville Businesses?

Even if you’re not using shorts, this is a good resource to inspire your content creation. For example, the first strategy tip in this week’s Shorts Report is to focus on authenticity. If you’re making original videos on any social platform, you could benefit from subscribing to notifications on the Shorts Report post!

Facebook Shares the State of Small Business

In partnership with Small Business Roundtable, Facebook has published a report based on surveys of small and medium U.S. businesses. The results show a slow recovery, with fewer businesses being closed in December as compared to last April, and fewer people being out of work. It also details how businesses have adapted to stay open or re-open.

A majority of small businesses are now incorporating social distancing measures to keep their employees and customers safe. To keep their businesses open, 25% of small businesses have changed their business hours and 18% have given employees location flexibility. As consumers have started switching to online purchases, 87% of businesses are now making sales through digital channels, up from 65% before the pandemic. 

What does this mean for Gainesville Businesses?

This report shows us just how many businesses are still being impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. It puts words from small business owners and consumers alongside the numbers. While the focus is on business, it also looks into our well-being, challenges at home, and general outlook on the future.

About half of small business leaders reported that they required emotional support in the two weeks prior to the survey. Meanwhile, women were twice as likely as men to cite domestic responsibilities, such as childcare and education from home, as the reason that they would not reopen their businesses. As we begin to see the start of a recovery, a third of small business leaders anticipate that it will take more than 6 months for their lives to return to normal.

Ok, now what?

Now that you’re up to date with the latest industry news, it’s time to invest in a team that specializes in all things social media and digital marketing. We can help! Liquid Creative is a full-service marketing agency ready to help your business operate to its fullest potential without missing a beat.

Get it? It’s because we’re talking about Instagram Reels. Okay, nevermind. We’ve got best practices from Instagram, a TikTok trend report, and a new resource from LinkedIn!

Instagram Insists: Reels Aren’t For Reposting

TikTok’s rising popularity, and the possibility that the app would be banned in the U.S., led to Instagram Reels in 2020. The similarities between the two features are clear. Some have even called Reels a “TikTok clone”. However, Instagram is now trying to distance itself from TikTok reposts in a post about best practices for Reels. Instagram says it won’t recommend your Reel to accounts that don’t already follow you if it contains watermarks that show it’s recycled from another app.

What does this mean for Gainesville Businesses?

Reusing content across platforms is a huge time-saver that helps you reach a larger audience. The best way to avoid an obvious repost from TikTok to Instagram is editing your videos outside of these apps. Create your content first, and then upload it to each app. For more about creating Reels, check out this video example from Facebook and follow Instagram’s Creators account for inspiration and tips.

What’s Trending on TikTok

TikTok has released a report of the trends they saw in 2020! Their U.S. report gives us a glimpse of how we coped with our weirdest year. The top content categories were home and garden, camping, video games, and cooking. The report also gives us a look at the most popular content and top growth categories across the app.

What does this mean for Gainesville Businesses?

We’re hoping these trends can inspire you to create different types of content on TikTok! For example, since diaries and vlogs are the most popular category overall, you should feel free to shoot a few behind-the-scenes videos of your business’s day-to-day. Meanwhile, if those content categories (such as home and garden) can be related to your business, we encourage you to check out the U.S. report for the top hashtags to use and other tips!

LinkedIn’s New Digital Magazine

LinkedIn has launched a new, free resource: a digital magazine called Return to Growth. The magazine focuses on the business landscape in 2021 and how we recover from the unexpected challenges of the last year. The first issue addresses how to plan a successful recovery, reminds us to appreciate our resiliency, and reviews some new practices and lessons we learned in 2020.

What does this mean for Gainesville Businesses?

Did I mention that this resource is free and digital? There’s no reason not to give it a peak! The magazine includes both LinkedIn-specific information and general marketing reminders. Flip through and see if anything calls your name, or send the link to your marketing coordinator!

Ok, now what?

Now that you’re up to date with the latest industry news, it’s time to invest in a team that specializes in all things social media and digital marketing. We can help! Liquid Creative is a full-service marketing agency ready to help your business operate to its fullest potential without missing a beat.

We know what you might be thinking, why should I even bother writing a press release? Our answer: visibility. Writing and distributing press releases can help your ideal clients discover you. With a press release that grabs attention, you can drive traffic to your website, get your company news coverage, improve your rankings and boost your company’s trust and credibility. However, visibility won’t happen if your press release gets hidden in the crowd. To help you out, we’ve outlined five ways you can enhance your press releases and get discovered in no time.

Don’t Be Cliche

Journalists at premier media outlets receive up to 1,000 press releases a day. A boring, overused headline won’t get them interested. So, what can you do to grab a journalist’s attention? Choose your words carefully. A headline is your press release’s first impression. It’s your chance to stand out. Make sure your headline captures the story in a compelling way.

A NewsWorthy Lead

Yes! Your press release was opened by a journalist. Now, it’s your time to keep them reading. The clock is ticking. Place all your facts, including the five Ws (who, what, when, where, why) and the “how,” in the first paragraph of your press release. As you start with items of most importance, you save the reporter time.

Quotes

Bingo! She made it to the second paragraph. Now what? How can you keep her invested in your story? Start adding quotes to add personality to your press release. If you include quotes from higher-ranking industry officials, you can gain a reader’s trust and attention. However, be careful and make sure your quotes directly tie to your content. Every quote should add value to your story.

Images

She’s hooked! How can you keep the momentum going? Add a relevant image to your press release that includes a caption with photo credits. Make sure the image is high-quality at the size 300 dpi (dots per inch) so the file isn’t too small and does not appear blurry.

Boilerplate and Contact Info

You did it! She made it to the end of your press release. It’s your time to shine. End your press release with a company boilerplate and your contact details. This includes a 120 to 150-word description of your company. Following your boilerplate, you’ll need to list your name, title, email address and phone number in your contact details so a journalist can get in touch with you as soon as possible.

Ok, now what?

If you want to get discovered, put in the work to enhance your press releases. We can help! Liquid Creative is a full-service marketing agency ready to help you amplify your press releases so you are heard over the crowd.

There is no better opportunity for brand recognition than Super Bowl Sunday. Every year, audiences watch in anticipation, waiting for their favorite clydesdales to trot or chip brands to introduce a new jingle. While these ads cost a pretty penny, many brands have made it an annual occurrence after realizing the return on their investment. Some ads tug on viewers’ heartstrings as others spark laughter, but each ad contributes to the branding Mecca that is Super Bowl Sunday. 

Viewers who tune into the Big Game for the commercials (hey, we get it!) were not disappointed in the variety of ads played throughout the Buc’s domination of Kansas City. 

Toyota’s heartwarming ad featuring paralympian Jessica Long reminded audiences of overcoming hardship, maintaining a hope and strength that so many find dwindling in the midst of uncertainty. The car company’s sponsorship of team USA may not directly align with the product they’re known for, but a strong mission and loyalty to a larger than life cause connects viewers to the core values of a brand. While there may be many companies who support the same cause that Toyota does, Toyota has taken the time (and resources) to promote that cause, ensuring that fans won’t forget what’s important to them.

Scotts Miracle-Gro decided to pull out all the celebrity cameos in their first Super Bowl commercial. The lawn care company encouraged viewers to “keep growing” as it showcased all the activities yards have hosted in the last year — Martha Stewart spent time in the garden, fitness instructor Emma Lovewell got in a workout, Leslie David Baker manned the grill, and John Travolta and his daughter Ella practiced some signature Grease dance moves. Actor Carl Weathers and NASCAR driver Kyle Busch shared the lawn as well, making this backyard a true call to action for home improvement, something that has been on the rise since initial COVID-19 lockdowns in March 2020. While Scotts Miracle-Gro is new to the Super Bowl ad game, its clever use of a social trend with the support of favorite public figures make the commercial a memorable one.

Bud Light’s Super Bowl LI ad took notes from the Avengers as it invited audiences to follow along in a “find the missing beer” mission with the legends of Bud Light commercials past. This play on a popular scene from one of the most-discussed movies of the last decade brought smiles to fans’ faces, reminding them that a brand they’re very accustomed to seeing on their screens can still come up with new ways to entertain (and sell one of the more popular football game beverages). 

While there were a variety of celebrity-filled ads to choose from this year, some commercials fell flat. State Farm’s 30-second clip, featuring Aaron Rodgers, Drake, Paul Rudd, and Super Bowl quarterback Patrick Mahomes was fairly “meh,” hitting neither the heartstrings, a call to action, or high quality humor. Robinhood’s “we’re all investors” commercial was tone-deaf considering their mishap regarding restrictions on a number of stocks that occurred at the end of January. Oatly’s ad seems to have been thrown together last minute, starring only their CEO and his trusty keyboard — that’s a pretty big disappointment for an ad that costs upwards of $5 million. 

These ads that missed the mark seem to forget that just because you appear in close proximity to Tom Brady doesn’t mean you’re going to take home a trophy. Super Bowl commercials are held to the highest standard, which often requires a thorough vetting process, clear mission, and a budget that allows your keyboard-playing CEO to at least bring in a friend or two. 

The 2021 Super Bowl welcomed many fan favorites as well as a couple flops, but some regulars were not in attendance. Budweiser, Coke, Pepsi, and Hyundai all opted out of February 7th’s game this year, providing room for newcomers to fill a coveted time slot. These brands cited financial uncertainty as part of their decision, arranging their marketing budgets differently than years prior. For some this just meant more affordable channels, while others allocated funds for COVID-19 givebacks. Pepsi, while choosing not to add a commercial to the mix, did sponsor the halftime show for the 10th year in a row. 

No matter what industry these popular commercials represent, the last 12-months have taken a toll on everyone’s business. While Cheetos finds a clever rendition of “It Wasn’t Me” with Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis necessary, other brands may be more hesitant to place their hope in an extra spendy endeavor. But ultimately, while that financially safe decision may help brands like Hyundai in the long run, it’s the names who appeared on the big screen that will see positive effects in the immediate future. Whether your Super Bowl ad is a huge hit or disappointing flop, showing up is still better than becoming a spectator.

Last week’s trend of adding safeguards to social media continues on TikTok. Meanwhile, Instagram protects users from accidental post deletion and YouTube steps up to the plate for sports fans.

Penalties for Unverified Content: TikTok

TikTok has created a flagging system to discourage unverified content on its platform. The company has already been removing content with false information in collaboration with fact-checkers. Now, videos with unverified information will display a warning banner across the top as they play. As a further step, these videos won’t be recommended on the ‘For You’ page, and users will be reminded that the content is unverified before sharing. 

What does this mean for Gainesville Businesses?

This is a smart move for TikTok, which gives us confidence in the longevity and practicality of this platform. It’s also a reminder to keep all information accurate and relevant to your brand! If you’re not sure about a claim, don’t share it or include it in your content. You’re building a relationship with your audience, and you don’t want to give them any reasons to distrust you. 

Felt Cute, Might Restore Later: Instagram

Instagram has changed how posts get deleted to save you from accidentally deleting posts! Content deleted within the last 30 days can be accessed and restored by visiting Settings > Account > Recently Deleted on your Instagram app. You can also permanently delete your content there, after verifying your identity. 

What does this mean for Gainesville Businesses?

You might not need to use this feature, but it’s good to have just in case. Even if you’re not tap-happy enough to delete posts by mistake, this safeguard will protect you from having hackers delete posts if they gain access to your account. Either way, we’re happy to see an extra level of protection for our content.

A League Of Your Own: YouTube Sports

YouTube is no rookie when it comes to sports content. This year it might be crowned MVP with its new personalized destination for sports fans. YouTube.com/Sports is filled with all the sports content you could want: highlight reels, live sports, videos from official sports leagues, athlete interviews, and more. 

What does this mean for Gainesville Businesses?

Television used to be one of the best ways to reach an audience. Now, YouTube is sharing this space with them. Video is an impactful medium for reaching your audience, and YouTube offers a wide variety of targeting options. If you haven’t considered advertising on YouTube, you should reevaluate whether it’s worth adding to your marketing mix.

Ok, now what?

Now that you’re up to date with the latest industry news, it’s time to invest in a team that specializes in all things social media and digital marketing. We can help! Liquid Creative is a full-service marketing agency ready to help your business operate to its fullest potential without missing a beat.

 

In the age of do-everything-from-home, your business’s online presence is becoming more and more important. Luckily, we’re continuing to get new ways to show off our brands with the peace of mind that your content is in good hands.

Social Media Answers the Call for Trust

Recently, social media companies have been called to address disinformation and harmful content on their platforms. Twitter’s community-based Birdwatch and Facebook’s independent oversight board are direct responses to this problem. We’re also seeing other social media platforms stepping up to address or anticipate issues. TikTok announced changes to its default privacy settings for younger users, Pinterest is prioritizing and showcasing its social impacts, and YouTube is releasing health content to inform its audience. We’re seeing new initiatives and policies everywhere to rebuild trust in social media.

What does this mean for Gainesville Businesses?

Trustworthy platforms are a great thing for your business. We love to see these companies listening to and addressing issues so that we can both enjoy these platforms ourselves, and feel confident in using them to promote our brands. Trust in social media means more users on the platform, which means more engagement and views on your content. It’s also a great reminder for how we should operate our businesses: Honesty and transparency are essential in communicating with your audience.

Stories Aren’t Just for Social Anymore

Since Snapchat debuted stories in 2013, many other companies have come out with new takes on the format. Tapping through fullscreen, visually immersive content has become the new standard for creating easy-to-digest content. You can also host stories on your own website! While this has been an option for some time, Google is now featuring web stories on their app, giving brands much more incentive to create them. To start creating your own stories, check out Google’s WordPress Plugin, MakeStories, or Newsroom AI!

What does this mean for Gainesville Businesses?

If you’d like to take advantage of this trend, select some of your best story content from the past to host on your website. This can breathe new life into old content, and make it accessible for new visitors to your website. For more information, creation tools, and examples, visit Google’s web stories page.

Just The Important Bits with YouTube Clips

YouTube is slowly rolling out Clips, a new feature that allows users to share a 5-60 second snippet of a video. Currently, this is only available for a limited number of creators’ content, but you can try it out for yourself on YouTube’s sneak peak video! This seems to be a continuation of YouTube’s exploration of short-form video content they launched this past fall.

What does this mean for Gainesville Businesses?

Clips aren’t available for all videos on YouTube, which means that people aren’t going to be able to Clip your videos just yet. It’s a good time to start thinking about how your business could use Clips in the future. Video snippets could be used on your blog, website, or even in conversations with clients with this easy-to-use new tool! With this upcoming feature in mind, what video content can you create now that would make useful Clips in the future?

Ok, now what?

Now that you’re up to date with the latest industry news, it’s time to invest in a team that specializes in all things social media and digital marketing. We can help! Liquid Creative is a full-service marketing agency ready to help your business operate to its fullest potential without missing a beat.

While we’ve been staying at home, social media has become all the much more important for keeping our audiences informed, engaged, and connected. This week, Twitter and Instagram are giving us more insights into how we connect with our audience, while Pinterest is giving us a new way to do so!

Stories That Keep On Giving: Pinterest

Pinterest has created a new form of content on their platform: Story Pins. These Pins are a better way for businesses and creators to engage their audience, and they don’t disappear after 24 hours like most social media stories. Plus they can be pinned to boards by viewers as normal, keeping them discoverable forever! Check out Pinterest’s examples of how you can use Story Pins here.

What does this mean for Gainesville Businesses?

If your business isn’t on Pinterest, this might be a good time to create a few Pins. Pinterest is a place where tutorials, blogs, and inspirational photos can thrive. Start with content that you already have – from product photos to an instructional blog – and watch it gain new life as it gets Pinned on different boards!

Online Customer Care: Twitter

Twitter released a report focusing on how brands can provide value on their platform. The full version is 48 pages, so here are some cliff notes. The most common types of content Twitter users value are savings and deals, an easy place to find the information they need, and relationship-building and humanizing content. Brands also benefited from responding quickly to problems and treating individuals like VIPs.

What does this mean for Gainesville Businesses?

Businesses that maintain a Twitter account should make sure that they’re checking their messages and mentions regularly. Someone messaging you could go from disgruntled to a customer-for-life based on how you handle the interaction. It’s also a good idea to make sure you’re sharing information about your business, especially sales, on Twitter as well as other platforms.

One Place For Everything: Instagram

In their continued effort to elevate small businesses on the platform, Instagram is making understanding your performance and following easier with the Professional Dashboard. The dashboard will feature insights and trends based on your post performance, tools for running your account and boosting your business, and curated inspiration and tips.

What does this mean for Gainesville Businesses?

Instagram is an ally for local businesses! It’s a great way to get new eyes on your brand with geotagging and hashtags. Now, the whole system is even more approachable with an all-in-one dashboard. Use your insights to inform what types of content you post, take advantage of tips curated by Instagram’s team, and watch your following grow!

Ok, now what?

Now that you’re up to date with the latest industry news, it’s time to invest in a team that specializes in all things social media and digital marketing. We can help! Liquid Creative is a full-service marketing agency ready to help your business operate to its fullest potential without missing a beat.

Last week, we shared how you can get discovered faster. Now, we’ve outlined exactly what you need to know to get your ideal clients clicking purchase. 

Tagging Items Within Video Clips: Youtube

Youtube’s new shopping feature will help people discover and purchase your products faster. The app has launched a live test to enable creators to tag products within their video clips. Viewers can view the tagged products by clicking a shopping bag icon. From there, viewers have access to purchase options for that product and related videos.

What does this mean for Gainesville Businesses? Once all creators can tag products, shopping will become more and more popular inside the Youtube app. If you don’t have one already, create a Youtube account for your business and share links to featured products in your videos. Begin partnering with influencers to advertise your products in their videos so when tagging does become available to all, viewers can purchase your products without ever leaving the app.

New Insights to Highlight Video Performance: Youtube 

In the first 24 hours after upload, you can see how well your Youtube video has performed and compare two different videos, side-by-side. The purpose behind this new data insight is to help creators refine their strategic approach for posting and maximize their video performance.

What does this mean for Gainesville Businesses? If you want to gain key insights into reach and resonance with your audience, use Youtube’s newest metric option to see how well your video has performed in its first 24 hours. With these greater insights, you can maximize your discoverability. 

Removing ‘Our Story’ Section from Pages: Facebook

On February 28, the ‘Our Story’ section from all Facebook Pages will be removed. Facebook is encouraging all users to shift their ‘Story’ description to the ‘Additional Information’ section.

What does this mean for Gainesville Businesses? If you want to continue connecting with your customers, move the information listed in your ‘Story’ section to the ‘Additional Information’ section before the change occurs. If you don’t, users will no longer be able to read about your business, making it harder to connect with Page visitors. 

 

Ok, now what?

Now that you’re up to date with the latest industry news, it’s time to invest in a team that specializes in all things social media and digital marketing. We can help! Liquid Creative is a full-service marketing agency ready to help your business operate to its fullest potential without missing a beat.

Getting discovered —  It’s something we all want. We’ve outlined exactly what you need to know to help your ideal clients find you faster and easier so you gain the leads you’ve been waiting for.

New Pages for Hashtags: Youtube

Youtube’s newest update can help viewers discover your brand faster. Viewers who’ve searched or clicked on a specific hashtag will see a new dedicated page that only contains videos listed with that hashtag. The most popular videos are listed at the top of the page. 

What does this mean for Gainesville Businesses? Linking strategically chosen hashtags to your video content can maximize your discoverability inside the Youtube app. If you aren’t using hashtags already, what are you waiting for? Viewers have been gifted this new way to find content that matches their interests. With the right hashtags, they’re a click away from finding you.

Introducing the New Pages Experience: Facebook 

With the help of Facebook’s redesigned pages, you can build community and achieve your business goals easier. The redesigned layout is simpler and includes a dedicated news feed to discover and join conversations and follow trends. Pages no longer include Likes but instead showcase Followers. Easier navigation is provided between personal profiles and Pages, and users will now see more actionable insights with more relevant notifications. Trusted Page admins can now have full control or partial access to admin controls. 

What does this mean for Gainesville Businesses? Once all users experience this change, it’s your turn to get familiar with the new Pages experience Facebook is offering users. Researchers have designed a new layout to help you market your business better and establish greater connections within your community. With knowledge on navigating these new features, you can achieve your business objectives.

Swipe-Up Links Added to Stories: LinkedIn 

You can gain leads faster with LinkedIn’s newest update. Businesses can now add swipe-up links to Stories. However, the feature is only available if you have the ‘follow’ option turned on for your profile and 5,000+ followers on a page. You’ll be able to see unique views and link click statistics by clicking the eye icon on the bottom right of your story. 

What does this mean for Gainesville Businesses? By adding swipe-up links to your Stories, you can help consumers conveniently discover your products and services. You can create Stories that directly link to the product your marketing or a contact form to increase lead generation. 

Ok, now what?

Now that you’re up to date with the latest industry news, it’s time to invest in a team that specializes in all things social media and digital marketing. We can help! Liquid Creative is a full-service marketing agency ready to help your business operate to its fullest potential without missing a beat.

Last week we touched on the newest TikTok and Twitter features on track to launch in 2021. Now, we’ve outlined exactly what you need to implement in your marketing mix to win this new year.

Google Adds Short-Form Video Carousel in Search Results

Google’s newest search feature could change your 2021 content approach. A new carousel of short-form video is in testing to appear in selected search results where direct links to relevant TikTok and Instagram Reels video clips will appear. As marketing through short-form videos is on the rise, this new feature will allow creators to maximize their discoverability on search results in Google.

What does this mean for Gainesville Businesses? If you want to be on the front page of a Google search result, implementing short-form videos in your content is valuable to think about when it comes to SEO consideration. If you use TikTok clips or Instagram Reels in your content approach this year, it could give you an advantage over your competitors.

 

Influencer Marketing Shifts Toward TikTok and Instagram Stories 

More than ever, advertisers will need to adapt to the changes in consumer behavior on social platforms. Influencers are shifting away from full posts and posting shorter content on TikTok and Instagram Stories, according to Klear’s State of Influencer Marketing 2021 report. While the use of the hashtag #ad on Instagram declined 19% year-over-year, the use of sponsored Stories rose by 32% and the use of sponsored TikTok clips rose by 130% in 2020.

What does this mean for Gainesville Businesses? If creator partnerships are not in your marketing mix yet, now is the time to connect with influencers and up your advertising game.

Ok, now what?

Now that you’re up to date with the latest industry news, it’s time to invest in a team that specializes in all things social media and digital marketing. We can help! Liquid Creative is a full-service marketing agency ready to help your business operate to its fullest potential without missing a beat.