This week in social media news, TikTok publishes its What’s Next 2020 trends report for 19 global markets, Pinterest announces its first marketing summit, Instagram says it won’t promote reposted TikToks, Pinterest reaches 459 million monthly actives, Instagram debuts a ‘Recently Deleted’ feature and more.
TikTok Publishes Its 2020 Trend Report For 19 Markets
TikTok published its ‘What’s Next’ trend report for 19 global markets, including the US, UK, Korea, France and more. The reports are based on TikTok’s performance from January to November, and highlight the content categories that grew the most in 2020.
Why it matters: TikTok’s trends recap is part of the app’s larger effort to help brands reach its 1 billion user base and get the most return on their ad investments. It recently announced three forthcoming ecommerce integrations, including affiliate links for creators, the ability for brands to showcase product catalogs and live-streamed shopping within the app.
The details: The findings of the report are based on nearly a year’s worth of performance, as well as the biggest hashtags related to the top categories on the platform.
Among the most popular content categories on TikTok in 2020 globally were: diary/vlog, comedy, video games, movie and TV, pets, romance, cartoon and animation, cooking, sports and outfit.
The content categories that saw the highest growth last year were: news and events, music, photography, sports news, environment protection, livestock and poultry, education, interview and experiment, home and garden, and camping.
In the US, the home and garden topic grew 156 percent, camping increased 113 percent, video gaming grew 104 percent and cooking grew by 57 percent.
Pinterest Announces ‘Pinterest Presents’ Advertising Summit
Pinterest is set to host its first-ever summit for marketers, ‘Pinterest Presents,’ on March 3. Marketers from the US, the UK, Germany, France, Canada and Australia can tune in on March 3 to hear from local speakers from their respective regions.
Why it matters: The pandemic accelerated Pinterest’s growth, as evidenced by its Q4 update which shows it added 17 million additional monthly actives and grew its revenue by 76 percent year-over-year.
The details: As per Pinterest: “Pinterest is going to share your audience’s plan for 2021. Make sure you’re part of them. We’ll share Pinterest’s plans, too, like a different vision for the future of the internet and online advertising from our co-founder & CEO Ben Silbermann . . .”
Speakers for Pinterest’s US summit will include five members from the platform’s leadership team, as well as Tilting the Lens founder and CEO Sinéad Burke and vice president, global brand engagement and design, American Express, Walter Frye.
Instagram Says It Won’t Promote Repurposed TikTok Videos
Many users have been reposting their TikTok on Instagram’s TikTok clone, Reels. In a new post featuring Reels best practices, Instagram is discouraging that behavior, noting that “these types of reels won’t be recommended as often to people who don’t yet follow you.”
Why it matters: Instagram confirmed to The Verge that it has updated its algorithm to downrank posts such as reposted TikTok videos, saying:
“We’re building on what we’ve learned from Explore to recommend fun and entertaining videos in places like the Reels tab, and personalize the experience. We are getting better at using ranking signals that help us predict whether people will find a reel entertaining and whether we should recommend it.”
The details: In its new list of Reels do’s and don’ts, Instagram suggests not posting a Reel that: is blurry due to low-resolution, is visibly recycled from other apps (i.e. contains logos or watermarks), is uploaded with a border around it, or has the majority of the image covered by text.
It says that these kinds of Reels will be shown the way they always have been to their followers, such as on their profile or in feed, but that they won’t be recommended as often to new followers.
Pinterest Debuts New iOS Widget, ‘Interests’
After a strong Q4, Pinterest has launched a new widget option for iOS called “Interests,” which enables users to receive their favorite Pinterest content daily based on their preferred cadence.
Why it matters: According to Pinterest, since launching the iOS widget in October, more than 2 million users worldwide have added the widget to their home screen.
The details: The widget aims to make it easier for Pinners to regularly access the content they love most.
Pinterest Adds 17 More Million Users In Q4, Reaching 459 Million Actives
According to its latest performance report, Pinterest welcomed 17 million additional users in Q4, taking its total user base to 459 million monthly actives.
Why it matters: Pinterest was able to maintain its growth from Q3, during which time it reached 442 monthly actives. In 2020 overall, Pinterest added 124 million additional users.
The details: In the US, Pinterest’s monthly usage grew 11 percent year-over-year (YoY); globally, it grew 46 percent.
In Q4, Pinterest generated $706 million in revenue, a 76 percent increase YoY, primarily driven by an “earlier and sustained holiday season and product improvements that helped advertisers scale budgets and achieve more conversions.”
Said improvements include Pinterest’s new Story Pins and product tagging features.
Instagram Debuts ‘Recently Deleted’ Feature
Instagram has announced a new feature called ‘Recently Deleted’ that lets users review and restore deleted content in the app.
Why it matters: Instagram says people have been asking for the feature, and that it will help users restore content that hackers might have deleted when they gain access to an account.
The details: To access the new feature, users can go to their Settings then to Account, where they’ll see the Recently Deleted folder. Instagram will first verify they’re the rightful account holder when permanently deleting or restoring content.
When users delete photos, videos, Reels, Stories and IGTV videos, the content is removed from their account immediately and moved to the ‘Recently Deleted’ folder.
Deleted Stories that aren’t in their archive will remain in the folder for up to 24 hours, but everything else will be automatically deleted 30 days later.
Facebook Is Testing A Feature That Would Promote Instagram Reels On Facebook Watch
Facebook is building on a feature it has been testing that would enable users to share their Instagram Reels to Facebook Watch, reports Social Media Today.
Why it matters: In December, Facebook started testing a new option that would let Reels creators share their clips to the Facebook News Feed and to Facebook Watch. Now, it seems a more official version of that test is underway with a select group of users on Instagram.
The details: As seen in this post from Varun Banur, Facebook is prompting users to share their Reels clips to Facebook, noting that their content will be shown as recommended content on Facebook to anyone based on what’s relevant to them. The prompt also notes that the user doesn’t need a Facebook account to access the feature.
Facebook Launches A Series Of Initiatives For Black History Month
As part of its ongoing commitment to uphold black voice and businesses, Facebook is launching a docuseries called “Written By” on its company page to promote conversations about black history and a miniseries showcasing emerging black musicians.
Why it matters: In June, Facebook committed $200 million to support black-owned businesses and organizations as part of its broader $1.1 billion investment in black and diverse suppliers in the US.
Facebook says that over the years it has invested $25 million in support of black content partnerships.
It has also allocated $10 million over two years to fund the Black Gaming Creator Program, which helps black gamers apply for partnerships status and exclusive benefits such as mentorship and training on the platform.
The details: Facebook’s “Written By” docuseries will feature stories by director and cinematographer Bradford Young.
Facebook is also launching a new four-episode miniseries to highlight emerging and veteran black musical artists, viewable on Messenger’s Watch Together.
The network is also debuting We The Culture, a creative community started by a team of black Facebook employees. The page’s goal is to partner with black creators and spark community.
On Facebook and Instagram, the hashtag #ShareBlackStories and virtual workshops will celebrate black innovation.
