We Are Social’s Monday Mashup #188
Teens switch from Facebook to messenger apps
UK newspaper The Guardian has produced an article discussing how teens are moving from Facebook and other public social networks into messaging apps such as WhatsApp, WeChat and KakaoTalk. Assessing data from a variety of studies, they conclude that young people are fed up of three things on Facebook: their parents (who make up a significant proportion of Facebook’s 1.2 billion monthly active users), selfies (almost half of the photos on Instagram feeds of 14-21 year olds are selfies) and a search for increased privacy. The piece also discusses how messenger apps are becoming more and more like social networks, with a variety of features including games, music or sticker sharing. It’s certainly an interesting piece, in the wake of Facebook’s acceptance that they have seen a dip in active teenage users, and it’s worth watching out for how the big social networks react to the rise of messenger apps.
YouTube outdoes Facebook as favourite site for teens
It’s not just messenger apps that are eating into the social habits of teens. A survey of over 4,000 teenagers aged 12-15 found that 50% of them called YouTube their favourite site, followed by 45.2% for Facebook. The story is different for those in their twenties, though: Facebook came top with 55%, followed by Amazon with 37.5%.
More Facebook likes may not increase fan sentiment
A fictional brand called Ashwood Furnishings may have provided some insight into consumer behaviour. A Facebook page was set up for the brand for the purpose of a study, which examined how viewers of the page felt about the brand, based solely on the number of likes. As fan figures increased from zero (low) to 2,000 (medium), page viewers felt more positive about the brand; however, this trailed off as the page approached a high figure (10,000+).
New Facebook ‘like’ and ‘share’ buttons
Facebook has updated its ‘like’ and ‘share’ buttons. Look, look at them:
Good, now you’ve seen them. You’ll see them even more over the coming weeks, as they start getting rolled out gradually.
Facebook testing star ratings for pages
Facebook is testing a star rating (out of five) for pages, which will allow users to rate their favourite (or least favourite) businesses and thus produce a more accurate rating system than the number of likes. Naturally, this has consequences for both users and brands – for whom it isn’t yet clear if the system will be optional or mandatory.
Instagram is the fastest growing social network among marketers
Instagram’s uptake among marketers of the world’s 100 largest brands has rendered it the fastest growing social network amongst said group. Accounts are now held by 71% and active accounts by 65%, compared with 42% in the same quarter in 2012. Growth is also shown in the number of pages posting 1+ photo per week and those reaching the milestones of 10,000, 20,000 and 100,000 fans.
Instagram CEO says 5% of ad views lead to likes
Kevin Systrom, CEO of Instagram, has claimed that over 5% of ad views on the network lead to likes:
Over 5 per cent of the impression led to likes on these ads that we’ve run. That’s pretty tremendous considering most of the ads we see on the internet we ignore.
If the figures are true, his opinion is probably correct. However, figures from a Michael Kors post, the first ever advertised on Instagram, suggest that he may not be: according to analytics company Nitrogram, the update reached 6.15 million people and received over 218,000 likes – a like percentage of 3.57%.
Twitter’s redesign may have increased engagement
Twitter’s more visual redesign looks to have increased engagement across the network, according to some key sources. Klout’s head of marketing, Jon Dick, has said that:
Looking at some of our high-level volume numbers, we’ve seen as much as a 10% increase in engagement among Twitter users.
This is backed up by the founder of Twitter tracking service Favstar.fm, Tim Haines, who says:
It looks like favs and RTs have jumped 10–15%-ish amongst my users.
It’s worth noting that these are, of course, very early figures and not necessarily illustrative of long-term change.
Google link YouTube comments to G+
Google has linked YouTube comments to Google+, in a move that has caused controversy among users of the network. The new comments allow certain social aspects, such as mentioning your G+ contacts in a YouTube comment and are explained further in the following video.
However, many people were hugely unhappy with the changes – not least YouTube co-founder Jawed Karim, who posted the below, his first update for eight years. Eek.
Google+ introduces ‘restricted communities’
Google+ has announced the launch of ‘restricted communities’, a feature that prevents users who are not members of a given organisation from joining. The system is aimed at allowing businesses to create private or invite-only communities, as an extra layer of security.
iTV purchases GetGlue
iTV, the company best known for its eponymous TV guide app and second-screen products for other brands, has purchased GetGlue, the network that allows users to “check in” to TV shows they watch. AdAge interviewed iTV founder Brad Pelo, who cited two reasons for the move:
One is that we view the GetGlue audience as being the most engaged second-screen audience… And then the second reason is that they have perhaps the best established long-term relationships with the broadcasters.
Topshop’s Christmas Pinterest campaign
UK fashion retailer Topshop has launched a campaign on Pinterest called #DearTopshop in the (two month) run up to Christmas. Users are encouraged to pin content from the brand’s online platforms, as well as in store, and the items with the most pins for the day will be featured on Topshop’s homepage. Fans are further incentivised by a competition mechanic, by which they can enter their #DearTopshop board for the chance to win exclusive prizes.
Argos in integrated #giftforsanta campaign
High street retailer Argos is producing an integrated campaign called #giftforsanta, in which viewers of primetime ITV programmes are asked during the bumpers at the beginning and end of ad breaks to suggest the most imaginative gift for Father Christmas on Twitter using the aforementioned hashtag. During the final advert break, the most creative idea will be read out live on air.
The social reaction to John Lewis’s Christmas ad
In what has become an annual tradition, UK department store John Lewis released its latest highly-anticipated Christmas advert last week, and the reaction on Twitter suggests they are in for a good festive season. The piece received 86,300 mentions over the weekend, up from 66,800 in 2012, of which 80% were positive. In fact, 5% said that the advert reduced them to tears and just 1% were negative. We Are Social’s own Ed Kitchingman told Marketing:
John Lewis should be delighted with the overwhelming response and positive reaction to its 2013 advert. Its reputation, savvy marketing and clever use of social media to create hype ahead of its official release have helped turn the airing of its Christmas advert into a national event. John Lewis’ success further highlights the benefits of a well-thought-through integrated campaign, where social plays an integral part. In the future, this should, and will become the norm for brands launching major above-the-line campaigns.
BBC create Dr Who website built from social content
The BBC has created a new website for Dr Who fans, built from the best fan-made content under the hashtag #SaveTheDay on social networks Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. The site includes some other features designed especially for fans, including a golden TARDIS that builds depending on the number of times the hashtag is used, as well as an exclusive video from former Dr Who Matt Smith.
Andy Murray sneak peeks autobiography on Facebook
Andy Murray offered his Facebook fans a snippet from his autobiography prior to its release last week. The update, shown below, included information on how he felt going up against Roger Federer in the 2012 Olympics gold medal match, so shortly after being defeated in the Wimbledon final.
Arsenal FC reach 3 million Twitter followers
Premier League football club Arsenal FC have reached 3 million Twitter followers, making them the first UK sports club to do so. In celebrating their status as the fifth-largest sports club on Twitter worldwide, they posted the below image.
The Labour Party’s Twitter Thunderclap
A number of Twitter users, including celebrities, allowed the UK’s Labour Party access to their Twitter feeds to produce a ‘Thunderclap’ of identical messages, as you can see from the feed below. It’s thought to have reached around 4.5 million people – the same number as BBC’s Six O’Clock news – but it will be interesting to see how people react to these, especially if they start to become more common.
