Today in Digital Marketing - Meta's New Promise to Marketers: Too Little, Too Late?

Starting point is 00:00:00 Today, have our prayers been answered? Will we soon be able to speak to actual human beings at Meta? Also, what post format is the worst performing on Instagram? I bet you'd be surprised. Meanwhile, the anti-Instagram is on a roll, while its photo-only competitor pokes fun at marketing metrics and the simpler path to buying digital billboards. It's Thursday, August 25th.

Starting point is 00:00:23 I'm Todd Maffin. Here's what you missed today in digital marketing. Facebook is finally building a customer service division to tackle complaints about account bans and decisions by AI-powered policy enforcement bots. Netatotay confirmed a Bloomberg report that this team will help businesses and users who've had posts removed, ads deleted, or accounts banned. You might recall last year, the company piloted a chat support option that promised people could talk to a human if they got locked out of their accounts. At the time, Meta said it was, quote, the first time Facebook has offered live help for people locked out of their accounts, unquote.

Starting point is 00:00:59 Whether this is part of that or is something else entirely, nobody's quite sure. According to the report, the company's efforts have taken on higher priority due to feedback from its arm's-length oversight board. In the last two years, the board has received more than a million appeals from users, many related to account issues. As a result, the board has made more than 100 formal recommendations to Meta. Meta says that while improving customer service was not a formal recommendation, the board's broader feedback, quote, helped illuminate the issue, unquote. Not, you know, the millions of complaints that keep... Anyway, I digress. Details are scarce on this. There's a lot of things we don't know, whether this will be a public-facing team or

Starting point is 00:01:39 an internal team that only Meta reps can talk to, or when this will launch, or in what countries. But still, better late than never. With all of Instagram's recent developments and changes, are you feeling a tad confused about your social strategy? The platform has repeatedly noted that it is pushing short-form video. But how effective is video and which formats are driving the best results? New data indicates it really is becoming all about the Reels. For now, though, images still remain by far the most popular type of content posted on Instagram, followed by carousels. But despite being the third most popular post format, Reels are generating the most reach on the platform.

Starting point is 00:02:25 Although that is a lever directly controlled by the app, so we shouldn't read too much into that. Reels are also generating more likes, which is a better indicator. Images are still more effective at getting comments. Interestingly, normal video posts are now the platform's worst performing content. The data provided by Hype Auditor's research have more than 77 million posts. Maybe all we wanted was an app to see photos of your friends. That was a tweet from the BeReal app account just two days after Instagram chief Adam Massari tweeted a video addressing concerns about the platform's push to video. It seems they were onto something.

Starting point is 00:03:06 The social network some people call the anti-Instagram, which, hilariously, Instagram is now copying, now has 10 million daily active users. In contrast to polished lifestyle images on Instagram, the app focuses on no filters, no followers, just friends sharing with each other. Be Real doesn't currently allow for formal advertising. So how can brands fit into an app designed just for friends?

Starting point is 00:03:31 Some brands are using the app to share promo codes based on B-Real's limited time window. Others are using it to post behind-the-scenes shots. In any case, with 10 million users and counting, you may want to consider incorporating it into your social strategy. Be Real isn't the only app seeking to benefit from a photo-centric approach. The same day Be Real tweeted about its focus on photos, so did Dispo. Though the app's tweet posted a video bearing a striking resemblance to Adam Massari wearing a yellow sweatshirt and glasses while explaining the company's values. First, we're about photography.

Starting point is 00:04:12 In fact, we don't even offer video. We're about using photos to make memories, share those with your friends and look and feel good through photography. Secondly, our priorities as a company are fun and mental health. You'll notice I didn't say the words engagement or endless scrolling or watch time that we can then package for advertisers. Ouch. That sounds nice, but how effective is the strategy? Dispo's CEO told Digiday that the company's approach isn't just about betting on the photo format. It's also a bet on how people want to spend time online. In that regard, he says upstarts like Dispo,

Starting point is 00:04:48 BeReal and others with small user bases help each other as they compete collectively against social media giants. Do you have business insurance? If not, how would you pay to recover from a cyber attack, fire damage, theft, or a lawsuit? No business or profession is risk-free. Without insurance, your assets are at risk from major financial losses, data breaches, and natural disasters.

Starting point is 00:05:16 Get customized coverage today starting at $19 per month at zensurance.com. Be protected. Be Zen. Google has a new solution to making traditional advertising buys digital. The company today announced digital out-of-home ads can now be bought through Display and 360. These are digital billboards and displays in public places like stadiums, airports, bus stops, shopping centers, and so on. Because the placement is now in Display and Video 360,

Starting point is 00:05:44 media buyers will have a simpler time managing strategy, reporting, and so on. Because the placement is now in display and video 360, media buyers will have a simpler time managing strategy, reporting, and optimization. Google did emphasize, though, that out-of-home ads placed through display and video 360 are not personalized and do not, of course, use any individual identifiers or location data, but brands can run multiple versions of their message depending on location and time of day. Quoting the company, Advertisers can reach people based on contextual information of the screen location, like a traditional out-of-home ad. For example, a fast food spot can quickly advertise on a billboard

Starting point is 00:06:15 in a bustling business district during the lunch hour for office workers to see. Later that day, the same billboard can promote an upcoming performance at a nearby concert venue, unquote. And that sounds very cool, but you might be thinking, as did I, wait, how do I measure impressions? After all, eyeballs have to see these, not web browsers. Google says it will do this through the age-old method of guessing. Well, educated guesses, to be fair. They'll use an impression multiplier, which estimates the number of people who may have seen an ad.

Starting point is 00:06:51 All the back and forth we need to do as marketers with privacy notices, banners, opt-out links. It's important, but sometimes overlooked. Maybe that's what happened at Sephora. Somebody thought, eh, we'll cover our bases later. Bad idea. The California Attorney General has announced that Sephora will pay $1.2 million after the retailer allegedly sold consumer data without consent. After conducting an enforcement sweep of online retailers, state officials alleged that Sephora failed to tell customers that it was selling their personal

Starting point is 00:07:23 information, failed to allow consumers to opt out of that sale, and failed to fix the problem within 30 days, as required by law, even after it was notified of the violation. Yesterday's settlement was part of California's efforts to enforce the state's comprehensive consumer privacy law, which lets consumers tell businesses to stop selling their personal information to third parties. Quoting the state attorney general, I hope today's settlement sends a strong message to businesses that are still failing to comply with California's consumer privacy law. My office is watching, and we will hold you accountable. There are no more excuses.

Starting point is 00:08:01 Follow the law, do right by consumers, and process this law applies to the targeting of consumers within California, not, as many brands mistakenly believe, to companies based in California. As far as the state is concerned, your business could be based on the moon. But if you're dealing with consumers in California, you are on the hook. We spent a lot of time talking about B2C here and of course other media do as well. But we have not forgotten about you B2B folks. And recent research has revealed that three out of four B2B marketers increased their digital marketing spend this year. So which top digital channels are B2B marketers increased their digital marketing spend this year.

Starting point is 00:08:49 So which top digital channels are B2B firms investing in? Half of them say they will increase their budgets for social media, 45% will increase for content marketing, and a third will invest more in paid search. According to B2B marketers in a study, social media and email are the most effective upper funnel digital marketing tactics, while email is also ranked as a top lower funnel tactic. In terms of revenue, B2B marketers point to social media as the channel that drives the most revenue, followed by content marketing, email and display advertising.

Starting point is 00:09:20 The data came from W Promote's survey of more than 300 B2B marketers. Remember, you can get this podcast as a daily email newsletter, too, with images, related videos, links to dive deeper. There's a free tier as well. You'll get an issue every Friday. The newsletter comes out about an hour before the podcast drops. Go to todayindigital.com slash newsletter to sign up or tap the link in the show notes. See you tomorrow. It's the season for new styles and you love to shop for jackets and boots. So when you do, always make sure you get cash back from Rakuten. And it's not just clothing and shoes.

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Today in Digital Marketing - Meta's New Promise to Marketers: Too Little, Too Late?

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