It’s been a bumper week in the world of Digital Marketing, with X seeing (tangible) declines in users, TikTok moving against the US Government, and (slightly less geopolitically) Threads adding post drafts!
Beyond that, there are also a few new features from Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok. Enjoy the read!
X is seeing a decline in European users
While I’m sure you might be rolling your eyes at this headline and saying, “Duh”, there’s been relatively little first-party data indicating that X has seen any real decline until now. As part of the EU Digital Services Act (DSA), all social channels are required to provide updates on active users in the EU twice a year. Last week, X posted its latest update.
There are a couple of interesting takeaways here. At the same time, all the talk has been of bursts of people leaving following individual events (coverage of the recent race riots in the UK, for example). At least within the EU, it actually just seems to be a slow, steady decline. This makes sense—I think we all have our own jumping-off points, and over time, more people are reaching these. I myself hardly use X now personally, beyond a couple of clients.
On the one hand, X is doing better than third-party reports suggest. But on the other, there is clear evidence now that there is some level of decline. Combine this with the level of growth at Threads, and the landscape then starts to look very changeable.
X is also running undisclosed ads at the moment, which is a weird step given the high level of scrutiny advertisers (and wider stakeholders) are applying to it. Particularly given the news this week from the CCDH (Center for Countering Digital Hate) that the platform ran ads alongside harmful posts.
What’s going on at TikTok?
In April this year, it felt like every edition of this newsletter included an item about TikTok (mainly related to the US ban), but lately, there’s been less noise.
In truth, there’s been plenty going on, but none of it sounds quite as sexy as “major government planning to ban exponentially growing social network owned by a firm based in a country it doesn’t see eye to eye with”.
Recent developments have included:
- It has filed a motion to oppose the US Government’s sell-off bill. This sounds far more exciting than it actually is to read, but is important context.
- Feature-wise, it’s experimenting with group chats containing up to 32 people.
- People have reported receiving push notifications from TikTok containing misinformation, such as an old Tsunami warning or that Taylor Swift declared Florida to be “racist” and had cancelled concerts.
- The Information also reported this week that TikTok has resorted to (essentially) cash incentives for new users to try and re-accelerate growth.
- It did, however, reveal the Top 10 Songs of Summer in the app, so it’s not all doom and gloom! Million Dollar Baby (VHS) by Tommy Richman, in case you were wondering.
Threads adds grown-up features
Threads is finally growing up, with the news that it’s finally testing analytics, scheduling and post drafts. After a year of establishing itself and slowly bringing new/interesting voices to the platform, it’s finally reaching a point where it can start to form part of an effective and measurable social media strategy.
If these features (or lack thereof) have been putting you off, it might be time to take another look.
Further Reading
While many marketing managers scrap over dozens of new followers a month, Cristiano Ronaldo launched a YouTube channel that attracted 1 million followers in 90 minutes this week. Say what you will about the man, but that is some serious pulling power.
We can talk all we want about the actual efficacy of AI-driven ads and customer support on Meta, but in terms of revenue they’ve definitely been effective for Meta, with revenue-per-headcount increasing massively.
Very related – Meta’s announced how its AI tools are going to make ad targeting more precise. Mhm.
Instagram is testing changes to the user feed grid, which might alter your approach to posting. It’s pretty much the reels grid but integrated with images on the main display.
Something a bit different and not really related to digital marketing, but I was fascinated by WizzAir’s announcement this week that it’s offering an ‘unlimited flight’ subscription. Looking at the not-exactly-favourable Ts and Cs (essentially, this is a way of shifting last-minute empty seats), it does make one think this is a publicity stunt – but nevertheless, it makes for interesting reading and thinking moving forward.
That’s it! Your correspondent has one last short summer break next week. However, we’ll be back at the beginning of September through the end of the year.
If you found this interesting, I would really appreciate it if you shared it with your friends and colleagues.
If you’re feeling particularly generous, then I won’t stop you from buying me a coffee. Have a great weekend!