Welcome back to our digital marketing news round up, where we give you all the hot takes on stories from the digital marketing industry!
October 2021 has been a busy month of new social media features, eco-friendly SEO and the march towards Christmas has officially begun.
Social Media
Facebook brings early Christmas cheer for SMBs with new tools
The run up to Christmas is hectic for brands and implementing Christmas marketing campaigns takes a lot of planning and experimentation. Facebook is looking to give SMBs an edge this year with new tools for reaching more people at Christmas.
The first is new calling options that will allow businesses to make audio and video calls via Business Inbox in Messenger. This means brands can make direct calls with customers in a chat stream and provide additional context and support.
The second bit of good news is Facebook live audio rooms are being expanded for select small businesses. Brands can host live conversations about topics that are relevant to their industry and invite followers, creators and listeners to participate.
Goodbye IGTV, Hello Instagram Video
Instagram announced the retirement of IGTV and integrated it into a more general experience called Instagram Video. This new format is a combination of long-form live content and short video content that appears as a Video tab on Instagram profiles.
The reason behind the change was to create a more user-friendly experience and viewers can also tap anywhere on a video to enter full-screen mode.
YouTube makes auto live-stream captions available to all creators
YouTube announced that all users can now use automatic captions in live stream videos. Previously, this functionality was limited to channels with over 1000 subscribers and now creators have more opportunities to make their YouTube content accessible.
Automatic captions in live videos will make watching content better for viewers who are hard of hearing. People will also be able to stream live videos with the sound off, which could help brands drive more engagement and longer viewing times.
Pinterest launches several new shopping features
The lines between social media and eCommerce continue to blur and Pinterest is a platform that’s leading the way in this area. Recently, Pinterest launched new shopping features to help brands promote products.
They are:
- A slideshow for collections feature that pulls products from a business’ catalogue and automatically turns them into a collections ad.
- A feature called merchant details to help brands show brand values on their profile.
- Organisations can also highlight communities they are a part of e.g. ‘women-owned.’
We love discussing digital marketing trends at Trio Media. If you’d like to hear some of these points broken down as a video, check out our 3 in 3 series on our YouTube channel!
SEO
Google rolls out new eco-friendly search filters
How brands tackle sustainability is going to be one of the biggest trends of 2022 and beyond. Google wants to give businesses some help with new eco-friendly search filters.
The first update focuses on Google Flights. Google now displays carbon emission estimates for most flights and this information is displayed in SERPs next to the price and duration of a flight. Consumers can take carbon emissions into their decision-making to be more selective with flights.
The second update involves Google Shopping helping consumers find the most environmentally friendly appliances e.g. dishwashers and water heaters. When searching for these kind of products, Google Shopping will make suggestions based on energy-saving qualities.
The third update, set to launch In the US and Europe in 2022, is eco-friendly routing in Google Maps. Drivers will be able to plan their journeys better and conserve fuel when travelling.
Microsoft provides key insight into Christmas shopping behaviour and searches
Looking for help with your Christmas marketing campaign? You may benefit from reading Microsoft’s recent survey that highlighted how consumers will be shopping this Christmas.
Key takeaways are:
- Shoppers are starting their product research early this year
- Providing alternative payments and delivery methods is a must
- Sustainability is a trend that can’t be ignored
- Christmas advertising will be highly competitive
Stay up to date with the latest digital marketing stories at Trio Media
Keep updated with new digital marketing insights over on the Trio Media blog and if you need any help with your strategy, get in touch on 0113 357 0440.
