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midweekminute Christine Gritmon Inc. midweekminute Christine Gritmon Inc.

#MidweekMinute: Don't freak out about Facebook

Facebook's infamous algorithm reprioritizes people over brands; simplifying Messenger; Facebook "Today In" app; Snapchat's unpopular redesign.

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midweekminute Christine Gritmon Inc. midweekminute Christine Gritmon Inc.

#MidweekMinute: FB devices & integrations

Facebook gets into home devices & ditches its AI/VA hybrid in beta; Instagram Stories expand to WhatsApp; Ripple follows Bumble in taking on LinkedIn.

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midweekminute Christine Gritmon Inc. midweekminute Christine Gritmon Inc.

#MidweekMinute: Suggested stories, business DMs, more Snap

Instagram now recommends stories; Twitter empowers businesses with stronger direct messaging tools; Snapchat expands shareability beyond the app and increases ad strength by disabling immediate skips for some clips.

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midweekminute Christine Gritmon Inc. midweekminute Christine Gritmon Inc.

#MidweekMinute: Troll Patrol

Facebook introduces new measures to curb unpleasant experiences on the platform, and expands ad capabilities to include WhatsApp integration and greater video options; Twitter flags hate; Snapchat lets you develop your own AR.

Facebook introduces new measures to curb unpleasant experiences on the platform, and expands ad capabilities to include WhatsApp integration and greater video options; Twitter flags hate; Snapchat lets you develop your own AR.

New Facebook Snooze Feature

Facebook adds a Snooze button for muting people, groups and Pages for 30 days (TechCrunch)

Facebook Is Making it Way Easier to Ignore Your Annoying Friends (Thrillist)

Facebook's Snooze Button Is a Perfect Addition (Slate)

Facebook Moves to Curb Harassment

Facebook is introducing new tools to help curb harassment (The Verge)

Facebook has new tools to prevent unwanted friend requests and messages (Tech Crunch)

Facebook changes messaging rules to help curtail harassment (CNBC)

Facebook Using Facial Recognition to Alert Users to Posts of Their Photos

Facebook's New Facial Recognition Switch Can Find Photos Of You Across The Social Network(Forbes)

Facebook to notify users when photos of them are uploaded (Reuters)

Facebook to Send an Alert When Someone Uploads a Photo of You  (Fortune)

Facebook Discouraging Engagement Bait Posts

Facebook is clamping down on posts that shamelessly beg for your engagement (TechCrunch)

Facebook To Punish 'Engagement Bait' Posts (Media Post)

Facebook said it will demote posts that beg for likes or comments (CNBC)

Facebook and WhatsApp-linked Ads

Click-to-WhatsApp messaging buttons are now rolling out in Facebook ads (TechCrunch)

Facebook introduces WhatsApp-linked ads (SmartBrief)

Facebook Pushing Longer Ads using NewsFeed and Pre-Roll Ads

Facebook Pushing Videos through its NewsFeed (Reuters)

Facebook tests pre-roll ads, shifts Ad Breaks to longer content (Marketing Dive)

Facebook announces 6-second pre-roll ad test, new mid-roll ad restrictions(MarketingLand)

Twitter Enforcing Anti-Hate Rules

Twitter starts enforcing tougher anti-hate rules (Engadget)

Twitter to put warnings before swastikas, other hate images (Reuters)

Snapchat Launches AR platform Lens Studio

Snapchat launches augmented reality developer platform Lens Studio (TechCrunch)

How To Use Snapchat's Lens Studio To Make Your Own Hilarious 3-D Character(Elite Daily)

Snap releases Lens Studio, a tool for creating your own AR effects (TheVerge)

 

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midweekminute Christine Gritmon Inc. midweekminute Christine Gritmon Inc.

#MidweekMinute: Fighting Snapchat & killing Storify

Facebook adds new features, kills an old one, and resurrects yet another oldie-but-goodie; Instagram introduces a new app and a new function; Tinder gets personal; Tweetstorms & Twitter videos get a boost.

Facebook adds video music library, AR for Messenger, and tries to resurrect the Poke, while quietly removing the ticker feed (who knew that was still even a thing?); Instagram takes messaging out of the app with Direct, and also now lets you follow hashtags; Tinder will be showing your matches your Insta & Spotify activity (if you let it); Twitter Threads kills Storify, while the platform will also now let you view counts on public videos.

Facebook Sound Collection

Facebook Sound Collection lets you add no-name music to videos(TechCrunch)

Facebook adds a sound and music library you can use for video (Engadget)

Facebook offers free music and sound effects for video makers (The Next Web)

Facebook AR in Messenger

Sorry, Snapchat: Facebook just unleashed its own 'dancing hot dog' studio (Mashable)

Facebook Messenger adds Snapchat-style AR objects (Engadget)

Facebook Removes Ticker

Facebook Removes Ticker News Feed For Monitoring Friends’ Activity (Search Engine Journal)

Facebook's Ticker that showed your friends' activities has been removed (Tech Spot)

Facebook's 'ticker,' aka creeper feed, is no more (Engadget)

Facebook Resurrecting the Poke

Facebook is trying to make the Poke happen again (TechCrunch)

Is Facebook bringing the poke back? One-click greetings are in testing (Digital Trends)

Instagram Direct

Instagram is testing Direct, a standalone messaging app that replaces the current inbox (The Verge)

Instagram Tests Standalone Direct Message App (Geek.com)

Instagram is reportedly separating Direct messages into its own separate, Snapchat-like app (Business Insider)

Instagram letting you follow hashtags

Radical New Instagram Hashtag Update Is a Real Game Changer (Forbes)

Instagram becomes an interest network with hashtag following (TechCrunch)

Tinder showing your online activity to matches

Tinder is testing a feed of real-time updates from your matches, including posts from Instagram and Spotify (TechCrunch)

Tinder is testing a chronological feed of your matches’ profile updates and Instagram posts (The Verge)

Twitter Threads kills Storify

Twitter will now let you publish an entire tweetstorm all at once (Recode)

Twitter adds thread tools to help you craft epic tweetstorms (Engadget)

Twitter Makes It Easier to Compose and Read Threads (Variety)

Twitter Just Made the Tweetstorm a Real Thing (Slate)

Twitter Will Show View Counts on Public Videos

Twitter Starts Showing How Many Views Videos Get On Its Platform (AdAge)

Twitter Will Finally Display View Counts On Video Tweets(Tubefilter)

Twitter Makes View Count on Videos Public (TheVideoInk)

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midweekminute Christine Gritmon Inc. midweekminute Christine Gritmon Inc.

#MidweekMinute: Messenger's where it's at

Facebook closes an API, opens a new app, & expands ads; Instagram adds story archives, stands up for animals, & integrates with Messenger (as does Pinterest).

Facebook creates a new messaging app for younger audiences, adds video ads, clamps down on audience insights. Instagram integrates contacts with Messenger, adds story archives & highlights, and takes a stand against animal abuse. Pinterest creates a two-way relationship with FB Messenger with a pin-finding bot and easy pin sharing.

Facebook Debuts "Messenger Kids"

“Messenger Kids” Gives Children Under 13 Their First Taste Of Facebook (Fast Company)

Facebook's new chat app for kids makes parents approve conversations (Business Insider)

Facebook Messenger Kids Debuts as a Texting App for Children Ages 12 and Under (Fortune)

Facebook Considering "Pre-roll" Video Ads

Facebook could start putting ads at the beginning of some videos, report says (CNBC)

Facebook videos may start with ads, just like on YouTube (Mashable)

Facebook to Test Pre-Roll Video Ads Ahead of Watch Shows (AdAge)

Facebook Dropping "Audience Insight" API

Facebook Is Shutting Down Its API That Marketers Lean on for Research (AdWeek)

Importing Instagram Contacts into Facebook Messenger

You can now import your Instagram contacts into Messenger (TechCrunch)

Instagram contacts can now be imported into Messenger (Social Barrel)

Instagram Stories Can be Archived in Your Profile

Your favorite Instagram stories can now live on in your profile (Fast Company)

Instagram lets you Archive expired Stories and Highlight favorites on your profile (TechCrunch)

Instagram Just Introduced Two Ways to Keep Stories Around for More Than 24 Hours (Adweek)

Instagram now lets brands feature Stories Highlights on their profile pages (Marketing Land)

Instagram Fights Against Potential Abuse of Animals or Nature in Photos

Instagram warns you if posts show harm to animals or nature (Engadget)

Taking a #koalaselfie or #dolphinkiss photo? Instagram has something to say about it.(The Washington Post)

Think before posting #lionselfies, Instagram implores users (USA Today)

Pinterest & FB Messenger

Pinterest rolls out chatbot, native features for Facebook’s Messenger (Marketing Land)

Pinterest integrates deeper with Facebook with a new bot and messenger extension (TechCrunch)

Pinterest makes it easy to share pins on Facebook Messenger (Engadget)

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midweekminute Christine Gritmon Inc. midweekminute Christine Gritmon Inc.

#MidweekMinute: Major Facebook & Snapchat developments

Facebook and Snapchat are on a streak of new feature rollouts & tests.

Facebook is testing and introducing tools for Messenger, Donations, and even facial recognition technology; Snapchat has, of course, redesigned itself, but has also introduced object recognition and new AR ad formats.

Facebook Broadcast

Facebook tests tool to make it easier for businesses to send message blasts on Messenger (Marketing Land)

Facebook prototypes Messenger Broadcast for businesses (TechCrunch)

Facebook Donations

Facebook drops fee on donations, will match $50M/year, adds Mentor feature (TechCrunch)

Facebook is dropping its fundraising fees for nonprofits, but not for personal causes (Quartz)

Facebook Selfie Logins

Facebook may ask you to prove you’re not a bot with a selfie (Digital Trends)

Facebook uses selfies as login authentication for suspicious activity (The Verge)

Facebook’s new security measure asks users to upload a photo of their face (BGR)

Facebook Testing Streaks Feature

Facebook is testing a Snapchat ‘streaks’ clone for Messenger (The Daily Dot)

Facebook's latest feature test looks like Snapchat's streaks (Engadget)

Facebook maintains streak of copying Snapchat with new Messenger test (Business Insider)

Snapchat Redesign

Snapchat Remakes Itself, Splitting the Social From the Media (The New York Times)

What Snapchat’s major redesign and algorithmic feed means for marketers (Marketing Land)

Snapchat Redesigns Mobile App to Split Friends From Media (Bloomberg)

Snapchat Photo Recognition Filters

Snapchat now recognizes food, pets, and more when suggesting filters (The Verge)

Snapchat’s newest filters can recognize what’s in your photos (TechCrunch)

Snapchat's latest filters recognize pets and food (Engadget)

Snapchat applies for patent to serve ads by recognizing objects in your snaps (The Verge)

Snapchat's New Advertising Tools

Asos, HBO and BMW pilot Snapchat's new ad formats (Marketing Drive)

Snapchat Brings New Advertising Tools to Aid Revenue Growth (Nasdaq)

Snapchat seeks salvation in long-form and “hands-on” AR ads (TechCrunch)


 

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midweekminute Christine Gritmon Inc. midweekminute Christine Gritmon Inc.

#MidweekMinute: slow news week

No video this week, but it was a slow news week anyway - here's the few announcements from Facebook & Twitter. See you on the other side of Thanksgiving...

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midweekminute Christine Gritmon Inc. midweekminute Christine Gritmon Inc.

#MidweekMinute: Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery

Facebook condenses some features, expands others, and generally continues to crush other apps; Twitter continues their expansion kick; Instagram is taking a cue from bots; LinkedIn is taking a cue from that annoying paper clip.

Facebook tries to replace Yelp, Foursquare, and - as always - Snapchat. High on the 280-character-limit raise, Twitter's also raising another limit, and hoping you'll trust them to allocate your money. Instagram is testing out a feature that bots have been using for years, and LinkedIn wants the final WORD on your resume.

Facebook Local

Facebook relaunches Events app as Facebook Local, adds bars and food (TechCrunch)

Facebook Local is the social network’s stab at Yelp, Foursquare (Marketing Land)

Facebook Local Relaunches, Makes It Easier To Browse Events, Listings (MediaPost

Facebook Collaborative Stories

Facebook Stories replaces Messenger Day with synced cross-posting (TechCrunch)

Facebook launches collaborative Stories for Groups and Events (TechCrunch)

Facebook is killing Messenger Day and consolidating it with Facebook Stories (The Verge)

Twitter Name Length Now 50 Characters

Twitter bumps display name length up to 50 characters (The Verge)

Twitter expands display name length to 50 character (Engadget)

Twitter, high on 280 characters, more than doubles the length of display names (Mashable)

Twitter $99 Ad Subscriptions Service

Twitter Tempts Small Marketers With a $99-per-Month Ad Subscription (Ad Age)

Twitter’s $99 monthly subscription ad program launches into public beta (TechCrunch)

Twitter launches $99 subscription tool to promote tweets (Engadget)

Instagram Will Let Users Follow Hashtags

Instagram could let you follow hashtags soon (TechCrunch)

Instagram may soon let you follow hashtags (Express Newsline)

Instagram will soon let users follow hashtags in addition to accounts (Digital Trends)

Microsoft and LinkedIn Resume Assistant

Microsoft adds AI-powered LinkedIn resume assistant to Word (Engadget)

Microsoft integrates LinkedIn with Word to help you write a resume (The Verge)

Microsoft and LinkedIn Team Up to Make Writing Your Resume a Lot Easier (and Your Results a Lot Better) (Inc)

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social Christine Gritmon Inc. social Christine Gritmon Inc.

Social: FB ad targeting, live from Greece!

...OK, I'm not in Greece - but Georgios Chasiotis of Slide In is, and he drops some universal lessons on Facebook ad targeting & customer retention!

As I get in touch with more groups of entrepreneurs & social media folk online, I'm learning from people way outside the confines of Nyack - including this week's guest Georgios Chasiotis, who joined us live from Greece!

Georgios's company, Slide In, uses digital marketing to grow companies in a way that's sustainable - by building and nurturing relationships, not focusing on one-and-done sales transactions. Georgios offers some useful tips for how to put Facebook to work for this objective: building sustainable relationships with the right people who your company can offer value to. (Amen!)

A few of Georgios's key points:

Audience Targeting: Ensure you're reaching the right people who are actually interested in your product. Look at customers as three-dimensional people, with an array of likes and dislikes, and sub-target accordingly. Create custom audiences from your best customers, and target "lookalikes" who are likely to also be interested in your product. Finally, don't be afraid to exclude those clients who aren't what you're looking for (and vice-versa).

Ad Creative: Speak to your clients with the words they use, and make it clear that you understand their concerns. Try showing different ads to different groups. And when something's working, put all your money there - not to something that's failing to deliver. Don't waste time talking to those who aren't going to gain value from your message.

Full Customer Experience: Getting the sale isn't the end of it. Thank your customers, and ensure everything's going well with their experience. If you drop the relationship once the money changes hands, you're not going to get another sale - and you're not truly offering value, just a product.

 

To put these tenets into practice for your business NOW, in time for the busy holiday season, join me next Friday in Haverstraw for my Facebook Audience Targeting Bootcamp:

In this active workshop, you'll gain deep levels of insight on your existing audience (and what else they're engaging with!), assemble your own custom & lookalike audiences, and create some highly targeted ads that WILL drive business.

 

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midweekminute Christine Gritmon Inc. midweekminute Christine Gritmon Inc.

#MidweekMinute: chattin' up a storm

A whole lot of chatter on Workplace, websites, Twitter, Snapchat & Instagram

Facebook Messenger has rolled out to websites (yes, non-Facebook websites) and Facebook's Slack-competitor, Workplace, now has a chat function. On Twitter, you can now use twice as many characters for your chatter. Snapchat needs a redesign because us olds can't figure it out. Instagram Stories no longer have to be in-the-moment...and you can now properly use Hebrew, Arabic & Farsi on the platform.

Facebook Messenger for Websites:

Facebook introduces a Messenger plugin for business websites (TechCrunch)

Facebook Messenger plugin enables cross-platform customer service (Engadget)

Facebook Will Let Brands Integrate Messenger With Their Websites (Adweek)

Facebook Workplace Chat:

Workplace: One Year Later (Workplaceblog)

Facebook's Workplace, now at 30,000 orgs, adds Chat desktop apps and group video chat (TechCrunch)

Twitter Character Limit:

Twitter Doubles Tweet Limit to 280 Characters (Bloomberg Technology)

Tweeting in 280 Characters? Now You Can Do It, Too (NY Times)

Twitter officially enables 280-character limit for all accounts, including brands (Marketing Land)

Snapchat redesign:

Snap Will Overhaul Its App Just Nine Months After Its IPO (Bloomberg Technology)

Snapchat will overhaul its app to bolster user numbers, as it endures the growing pains of shift to programmatic (The Drum)

A huge redesign is coming to Snapchat (The Verge)

Snap CEO Evan Spiegel is redesigning Snapchat because it’s too hard to use (Recode)

Instagram Stories:

You can now upload content older than 24 hours to Instagram Stories (The Verge)

Instagram continues Snapchat assault, lifts 24 hour limit on Stories clone (9 to 5 Mac)

Instagram now lets you add any photos or videos to your Stories (TechCrunch)

Instagram and Left-to-Right Languages:

Instagram now supports right-to-left languages like Hebrew and Arabic (TechCrunch)

Instagram adds right-to-left language support starting with Arabic, Farsi, and Hebrew (the Verge)

Instagram now supports three right-to-left languages (Engadget)

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Christine Gritmon Inc. Christine Gritmon Inc.

Malcolm Gladwell on strengthening our weakest links

Journalist Malcolm Gladwell spoke about "weak link" vs. "strong link" mentality at Synergy Global Forum.

I had an interesting discussion a few months ago with a business acquaintance at the opposite side of the political spectrum from myself regarding our nation's current polarity. Our mutual premise rested on the idea that it boils down to disagreement as who counts as our "neighbor," our "community." Is it all of humankind? Just our countrymen? Our immediate geographic area? People like us? Who do we take care of - and at whose expense?

While Gladwell did not betray any particular political bias, that conversation was brought strongly to mind, as his presentation revolved around how one strengthens a team, a business, a society - by strengthening its weakest members, or its strongest - and how the answer to that question varies by circumstance.

Gladwell gave numerous examples of both weak-link and strong-link systems - in sports, business, in government - and made it clear that he was not placing one inherently above the other. But, one cannot deny the interconnectivity of the digital age, and how that changes the game.

The danger, Gladwell warns, is when people who come from traditionally strong-link situations are put in charge of weak-link organizations. They don't understand the problem; they've got all these strong people at the top, so what could go wrong? This has potentially catastrophic ramifications in a society as democratized by technology as ours has rapidly become. Gladwell does not have faith that our current societal structures - and leaders, though he did not call any out - are presently up to that task. I'd have to agree.

While my phone froze shortly into Gladwell's presentation, I filled in my Tweets later with several of his points that I recalled - his presentation has stuck with me more than any other, as I have been turning his points around in my head, and viewing everything through this new prism, ever since. (Synergy Global Forum, by the way, was a weak-link event operating as a strong-link event; they had a mind-blowingly incredible lineup of speakers, but, as those following me on Twitter are aware, lacked niceties like accessible event staff, printed programs, fast and easy check-in, refreshments [literally no drinking water, unless we wanted to wait in line and pay stadium prices], outlets for device charging, announcement of events, service [even self-service] at the photo booths, lunch [or any suggestions therefor]... the list goes on and on.)

I'm eager to see how our society responds to this new "weak-link" challenge, and hope that we are able to adjust in time to support our growth and development, rather than collapsing under the weight of our own un-met needs. In the meantime, I'm fascinated by how clear so many things become when viewed within these parameters. Try it yourself. You'll be fascinated by what you discover.

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Christine Gritmon Inc. Christine Gritmon Inc.

Steve Forbes on learning from the past

Publisher Steve Forbes spoke about learning from past leaders at Synergy Global Forum.

While I certainly enjoyed it and learned from it, I admittedly didn't tweet a lot of Steve Forbes' presentation. It was constructed around a wonderful premise of telling stories of ancient leaders, and how history has repeated itself, especially with regards to modern business. I decided to only stick to tweeting the insights about today (the more eternal insights, I suppose), and skipped retelling the ancient stories. They were fascinating, though, and relevant, and I hope the full presentation gets released eventually so you can all see it.

Forbes, who knows a thing or two about business, as one would imagine, brought home the premise that businesses require focus on their core purpose, and was armed with many stories from throughout the ages of how loss of this foundation has led leaders and companies astray.

By constantly ensuring that their purpose is clear and drives all decisions, businesses are better able to react to market shifts, focus on building around that core instead of wasting energy by spinning into off-brand directions, deal with crises, and move ahead in ways that will ensure the continuance of the organization. Forbes Media continues to be successful 100 years after Forbes' grandfather founded the magazine. It would appear that the lessons in this presentation have been followed to the letter.

Also? Steve himself liked one of my tweets. ;)

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Christine Gritmon Inc. Christine Gritmon Inc.

Guy Kawasaki on disruption

Brand ambassador Guy Kawasaki spoke about The Art of Disruption at Synergy Global Forum.

I've had the pleasure of seeing Guy Kawasaki present twice now (see his insights from #SMMW17), and I have to say: this guy has the best ratio of expertise and realness I've seen in a presenter. He doesn't feel scripted, but he does have himself together - and not only knows what he's talking about, but truly believes it. I get the impression he'd say no in a heartbeat to a presentation on a topic he wasn't truly an expert on, and for this, he has my trust, and the trust of millions, whenever he opens his mouth onstage. I'm excited to see him again in San Diego in February at #SMMW18!

The theme of this year's Synergy Global Forum was disruption; the early Apple employee ("I'm the guy who's so dumb, I quit Apple not once, but twice!" is a line Kawasaki used both times) of course learned this from the best of the best, the legendary Steve Jobs.

Kawasaki's presentation was based around several keys to disruption (though, of course, a true disruptor doesn't need such a process). I may have skipped a point or two; chime in in the comments if you were there and I missed anything!

1. You cannot ask your current customers what to do.
They can teach you how to make your existing product better; they cannot teach you how to build something entirely new.

2. Jump to the next curve.
Don't be unprepared for the next innovation; be ready to embrace it and make it better, in the way that only you can.

3. MVVVP.
Ensure your product is not only viable, but also valuable and validating.

4. Make design count.
It's not just the inside that matters; it's the total package.

5. Polarize people.
If you're truly disruptive, people will love you or hate you. Embrace that passion. Such a reaction means you're doing something right, something new.

6. Ignore naysayers.
Haters gonna hate. And not everybody embraces the new right away.

7. It is a sign of intelligence to change one's mind.
If you aren't willing to learn along the way, you'll never grow.

8. Niche thyself.
Ensure your product is both unique and valuable.

9. Let 100 flowers blossom.
Don't assume you can control what happens once you're products in the market. Let what happens happen. Embrace any success, even if it's not what you intended.

10. Churn, baby, churn.
It's not enough to launch something disruptive and then rest on your laurels. Continue to evolve the product. Continue to be the best.

11. Perfect your pitch.
If you're going to disrupt, you're going to need to explain to - and convince! - people. So know how to say what you're doing clearly and quickly.

12. Dent the universe.

 
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midweekminute Christine Gritmon Inc. midweekminute Christine Gritmon Inc.

#MidweekMinute: Trolls, exploration, pins, journalism, bots, and camaraderie

Twitter calendarizes their stand against hate; Facebook will let you browse brands & your friend's babies on separate feeds, "pin" together like posts, and subscribe to real news; LinkedIn will let a bot interact on your behalf, and possibly start original programming; you can bring a friend onto your next Instagram Live broadcast.

"When will Twitter take action against the hate being spewed on their platform - and what will they do?" They've detailed exactly what they're doing about it, and when.

"I wish my Facebook feed were more about my friends, and the brands could go somewhere else." Like a new Explore Feed, perhaps?

"I also wish I could 'pin together' pictures, videos & posts that are part of the same basic story." Facebook Sets is in testing.

"I like real journalism and I'm willing to pay for it." So subscribe to Facebook Instant Articles!

"I tend to have the same predictable responses to most of my LinkedIn messages." Let LinkedIn Smart Replies handle it for you!

"LinkedIn is such a great place for networking and thought leadership, and video is great for both - they should have video shows on LinkedIn!" That may be happening soon...

"When I'm on Instagram Live, I wish I could pull a viewer out from the crowd to share the screen with me - I'd feel like Oprah, or Bruce Springsteen." Well, you can do that now, though I doubt Oprah or Bruce will be utilizing this new feature.

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Christine Gritmon Inc. Christine Gritmon Inc.

Which social media platforms should you be on? (VIDEO)

Video of a talk about the differences between some of the major social media platforms and how to know which ones you really need to be on. 

Today I had the honor of speaking to two of Sterling National Bank's women's networking groups, Sterling Women and Extraordinary Women of Sterling, in their Montebello, NY office. One of these groups includes some of their corporate banking clients (including small business owners), and the other comprises Sterling employees. I spoke about the differences between some of the major social media platforms (LinkedIn, Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook), and how to know which ones you really need to be on. I'm giving a talk on the same topic Wednesday night to a very different group - and I expect it will be a whole different talk!

Some key takeaways from this morning's talk:

LinkedIn:

  • Everyone who does business
  • Have a picture
  • Keep it current

Instagram:

  • Tangible product
  • Visually engaging
  • Feeling, not telling

Twitter:

  • Informative communications
  • Joining larger conversations 
  • Direct engagement with others

Facebook:

  • “Main Street” of the internet
  • You’re on their turf: be relevant
  • All types of communication
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Christine Gritmon Inc. Christine Gritmon Inc.

Social: Christy Laurence on how to PLANN a great brand story

Christy Laurence of PLANN discusses how to tell engaging, relatable brand stories on Instagram.

Marketer, artist, and entrepreneur Christy Laurence started PLANN, an Instagram app, because people wanted help creating impactful, on-brand Instagram profiles. Images that stood together as a gallery, not just a random collection of one-offs. Posts that served strategic goals. And, above all, ways to tell their brand's visual story that didn't take up all of their time. Christy was kind enough to share some of her Instagram expertise with us today, namely on how to use this tool to tell a story (and why you should be doing so).

Some of Christy's top storytelling strategies:

  • BEHIND THE SCENES: Give followers a glimpse of what you're doing
  • COMMUNITY: Show your human side; be a little more vulnerable, less perfect. It's more relatable.
  • INSPIRATION: ...at the same time, sometimes giving your followers something to aspire to isn't such a bad thing. Just be sure the inspirational shots you post are in line with your brand.
  • EDUCATION: What can you teach your followers about your process, your mission/vision, your product, your area of expertise? People are more likely to look kindly upon you - and buy from you! - if you've taught them something.
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midweekminute Christine Gritmon Inc. midweekminute Christine Gritmon Inc.

#MidweekMinute: TWO MINUTES of news this week!

Facebook makes news with VR, food delivery, away messages, a resume feature, branded stories, tbh... yikes, chill with the innovations, FB! LinkedIn and Twitter up their video ad game, and Snapchat is getting scripted programming.

Facebook, as usual, dominates this week's news, as they attempt to bring corded-quality VR to the wireless masses, pizza to the starving gamers playing it, AIM-style away messages to us nostalgic folk, and JOBS to all. LinkedIn continues their "new features every damn week of 2017" streak with sponsored auto-play video ads. Twitter is changing its video ad game with Video Cards that launch a playing video over a clicked link. Back to Facebook, who's finally letting brands create Facebook Stories. But if they don't succeed in stealing the Snap demographic there, it's all good: Facebook has also acquired tbh (don't worry if you don't know what that is), which is the rare anonymous platform that's all about positivity. Snapchat's still very much in the "constantly developing new stuff" game, though: they just announced a partnership with NBCUniversal (& Donut Studios) for new, scripted programming.

Facebook Announces Inexpensive Oculus VR Headset:


Facebook Announces $199 Oculus Go Standalone VR Headset (Variety)

Facebook announces a wireless $200 virtual reality headset (Chicago Tribune)

Facebook unveils "portable" Oculus VR headset (Axios)

How Oculus and Facebook Are Attempting to Make VR Social (DesignNews)

Facebook food ordering:


Facebook's Newest Feature Lets Users Order Food (Refinery 29)

Facebook launches new food-ordering feature (Philly Voice)

Facebook Adds Options For Ordering Food (Forbes)

Facebook's "Order Food" feature officially launches across the US (TechCrunch)

Facebook Status Messages:


Facebook Tests A Return Of The Status Message (BuzzFeed News)

Facebook Goes Retro With Its Test of Text-Only Temporary Profile Status Updates (Adweek)

Facebook Testing Resume Feature, challenging LinkedIn:
 

Facebook is testing a Resume/CV feature--watch your back LinkedIn! (Social Barrel)

Facebook is testing a LinkedIn-like resume feature (Engadget)

Facebook is reportedly testing a new resume / CV feature (Mashable)

LinkedIn autoplay video ads:
 

LinkedIn launches autoplay mobile video ads (Marketing Land)

Video Ads Are Finally Coming to LinkedIn (Adweek)

LinkedIn would like to add autoplay ads to your professional network (Engadget)

LinkedIn is testing autoplaying video ads (betanews)

Twitter Video WEbsite Cards:


Twitter introduces a new video-centric ad format (TechCrunch)

Twitter’s New Ad Unit Pulls a Video Above a Website to Make Click-Throughs More Interactive (Adweek)

Twitter’s new Video Website Card ad format uses video to push link clicks (Marketing Land)

Facebook launches branded Stories:
 

No one uses Facebook Stories, so now they're available for #brands (Engadget)

Facebook Stories open to Pages, bringing brands to the ghost town (TechCrunch)

Facebook acquires tbh:
 

Facebook Acquires Teen App (Reuters)

Facebook acquires anonymous teen compliment app tbh, will let it run (TechCrunch)

How tbh hit #1 by turning anonymity positive (TechCrunch)

Facebook Acquires 'tbh,' an Anonymous App for Teens (Fortune)

Snapchat and NBCUniversal scripted programming:
 

Snapchat and NBCUniversal Are Creating a Digital Content Studio for Scripted Shows (Adweek)

Snapchat & NBC Are Teaming Up For Scripted Shows (Refinery 29)

Snap teams with NBCUniversal in drive for TV shows on Snapchat (CNBC)

Snap and NBCUniversal team up on Snapchat scripted shows (TechCrunch)

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social Christine Gritmon Inc. social Christine Gritmon Inc.

Social: Jason Bay on nurturing LinkedIn relationships

Jason Bay of Jason Bay Consulting discusses using LinkedIn to nurture business relationships.

I'm part of too damn many Facebook groups, most of them local. But when I heard about the by-application-only Badass Marketers & Founders (BAMF) group, I knew I had to go for it. Part of the group's value is in the connections: everyone involved is legit. That's how Jason Bay found me (especially after I was spotlighted as one of the group's most active members), and connected with me on LinkedIn. And, lo and behold, here he is on my livestream, telling us all about how to strategically connect with the right people, then develop and nurture relationships on LinkedIn!

    Just a few of Jason's great tips:

    • Fill out your profile - especially the picture and the summary.
    • Don't worry about being on every platform. Be on the platform where the people you want to connect with are. (Jason's work is B-to-B, so LinkedIn works for him.)
    • Groups can be a great source to mine for relevant connections.
    • Include a personalized message when you try to connect with someone; give them context, don't leave it blank.
    • Add value! Make sure people are getting something out of being connected to you.
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    Christine Gritmon Inc. Christine Gritmon Inc.

    #MidweekMinute 10/11/17

    Permanent away message for AIM; Facebook guarding against fake news; Shopify bringing eCommerce to Instagram; Instagram Stories and Facebook Stories allow cross-posting; Snapchat introduces user verification and location context cards

    Permanent away message for AIM; Facebook guarding against fake news; Shopify bringing eCommerce to Instagram; Instagram Stories and Facebook Stories allow cross-posting; Snapchat introduces user verification and location context cards

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