Now Trending: YouTube Launches Shorts, Directly Rivals TikTok

June 8, 2021: Good morning! Let’s start the week off right with some influencer marketing news.

In today’s edition:

Twitter launches monetization features
Instagram launches branded content tools
YouTube takes on TikTok

Twitter Adds Paid Subscription Services

The Story

Twitter launches Twitter Blue, a paid subscription model that provides users with more features.

Go on…

The update is first being rolled out in Canada and Australia where users can pay a monthly fee of $3.49 CAD/$4.49 AUD for additional features and tools. Some of the features the subscription includes:

Undoing tweets within 30 seconds of posting
Saved tweets can be categorized into folders
Reader Mode — a way to turn tweet threads into a single stream of content
Customization of the app icon
Dedicated subscription customer support

Reports suggest that Twitter has been looking into other paid offerings at varying price points.

Innovation Acceleration

For a while now, Twitter has been working on ‘Super Follows,’ a feature that would allow creators to charge followers for access to exclusive content (think: Patreon). App researcher Jane Manchun Wong tweeted out a sneak peak of what users can expect from this update that is soon to launch. In order to take advantage of this update, the creator must have at least 10,000 followers, have posted at least 25 Tweets in the past 30 days and be at least 18 years old.

What else has Twitter been up to?

It’s no surprise that with this new paid offering comes more opportunities for Twitter to monetize. *Drum roll please* Advertising is now being tested in Fleets (A.K.A. Instagram stories look-alike.) Also, as Twitter continues to build out their Spaces feature (A.K.A. Clubhouse look-alike), they have been testing a tab for it in the lower function bar on the app. Twitter wants Spaces to be as accessible as possible, which is why it is also now available via desktop.

Last but not least…

Remember a couple weeks ago we discussed Twitter re-opening their public requests for profile verification? Well, that was very short lived because they are already pausing the initiative. The Twitter Verification account explained, “we gotta hit pause on accepting any more for now while we review the ones that have been submitted.”

STC POV

Twitter seems to be crushing it lately — every day they announce a new feature or update. Although Twitter Blue isn’t the most exciting update, it opens the door to a plethora of opportunities for Twitter in the realm of paid services. Not to mention, no other social platform currently offers anything like this. As Twitter Spaces continues to develop and show its value, it is likely that both brands and creators will pay for extra functionality to keep their followers engaged. What will Twitter Blue evolve to? Only time will tell.

Table of Contents

Instagram Wants to Keep you Shopping

The Story

Instagram launches a new shopping and advertising feature called ‘Drops’ and also updates their branded content tools.

Drop it like it’s hot

Drops is Instagram’s attempt to boost eCommerce activity and we aren’t mad about it. At the top of the Shop tab in the mobile app you can now find the latest new releases from your favorite brands. These brands can enable alerts to interested users based on their previews, which then helps in boosting awareness, and maximizing interest at launch. The best promotional piece to this new feature? Brands can pay to be featured in Drops (basically another form of advertising.) Where do we sign up?!

Double Trouble

Want even more ways to shop on Instagram? You’re in luck, creators can now tag up to two brands in a single piece of branded content which expands opportunity for tie-in promotions. Each brand will have the option to see the other before approving any integrated messaging. However, creators can post branded content prior to brand approval, just without the brand’s name pending their response.

But wait, there’s more! Brands also now have access to more data and insights for Branded Content partnerships made with Reels and IG Live.

STC POV

Instagram is going all in on eCommerce and we predict it’s going to pay off. The longer users stay in the app, the better! How many times have you been trying to track down the clothes your favorite influencer is wearing? Why not use their affiliate code and get it at a discount too? We foresee Instagram using these updates to create curated Drops by top influencers. If that’s not a good idea, I don’t know what is.

YouTube’s Taking on TikTok

The Story

YouTube Shorts, yet another TikTok copycat, will soon be able to take audio from any video on the platform.

Why should I care?

One of the top ways something goes viral on TikTok is because of the ability to play into a trend by using the same audio. In the coming weeks, users will be able to sample audio from any YouTube video to use in their Shorts. Users can already sample sounds from other Shorts videos or from a library of licensed music. So, why is this so special? Because it will greatly expand the audio they have easy access to and the creative options will be endless.

It’s a win-win

This feature will also benefit the creator of the long-form video that the audio is being sampled from. Some creators aren’t happy with this new feature for fear of plagiarism. However, a permission box has been introduced for creators to opt-in to this feature. This permission box is currently by video but a bulk opt-out option is in the works.

STC POV

Will another platform ever beat out TikTok? Probably not. But this is a step in the right direction. Any update that allows creators to think outside the box and get creative is fine by us. Hopefully this update creates some excitement around YouTube Shorts because quite frankly, the hype isn’t quite there.