Check out YouTube's newest Shorts editing feature

Hello and welcome to this week’s Social Buddy newsletter, where we share the news from the world of social media, insights and tools for creators, and the latest social media marketing trends. 

Some highlights you’ll find this week: 

📫 Instagram added more creative DM features to encourage more engagement over messages 

👻 Snapchat is now offering Sponsored Snaps that show up in your chat inbox

🎨 YouTube’s new thumbnail editing options for Shorts, plus AI protections for creators 

Check out the biggest headlines from this week in social media: 

Meta released a 10-page Reels Performance Playbook

Reels are the fastest growing content on Facebook and Instagram, so if they’re not a part of your social media strategy, they should be. To help you out, Meta just dropped a 10-page Reels Performance Playbook with tips on how to create successful reels, how to tap into trends, how to track performance, and more. The guide offers recommended formats, editing techniques, and other creative tips to help users make the most of their reels. Check it out! Read more.

TikTok has added “Thoughts”, which are basically the same thing as Instagram Notes 

The Instagram Notes feature has been a popular addition, so TikTok is adding something similar - “Thoughts”. TikTok Thoughts are a short, text bubble that users can add to their profile on your profile image, and Thoughts can also be seen on the Stories bubbles at the top of your DM inbox. It’s another way to share a quick update on your thoughts, or even ask a question for your followers to respond to. TikTok users can make their Thoughts visible to everyone, just followers, or share private thoughts. Read more.

Snapchat is now offering Sponsored Snaps ad placements in the Chat tab

Snapchat is expanding its advertising options with new Sponsored Snaps, which will appear in the popular Chats tab along with messages and Snapchats from friends. These ads will appear as unread messages at the top of users’ Chat tab. Snapchat announced that these ads will appear without a push notification, and they are optional to open, but it’s not clear how you can remove the chat notification without opening it. Before now, the Snapchat inbox was promotion-free and the most popular tab on the app, so it’s no surprise that Snapchat is cashing in on that opportunity. Snapchat will also be adding a “Promoted Places” advertising option on the Snap Map, where local businesses can promote themselves by appearing on users’ maps. Read more.

YouTube now offers more thumbnail editing options for Shorts, plus AI updates

YouTube announced this week that they are adding more new features to Shorts. The latest addition is new editing options for the thumbnails that act as a cover for Shorts. Now, users can add a frame, text, filters, and emojis to their Shorts thumbnails to better customize and add context to their Shorts. Users can also now choose and edit the thumbnail choice on their Shorts post-upload. According to YouTube’s Creator Insider, “the goal of these features is to give creators more aesthetic control over their short”. 

YouTube has also released an update on tools to protect creators in the new world of AI. The tools include technology that can identify AI content that mimics creators’ voices or faces, and will alert creators if their face or voice is deep-faked on another account. Their ContentID technology also has singing-specific capabilities to help artists learn if their voice is being copied via AI. YouTube is also working on advanced permissions so that users can control how their content may be used by AI and other third party developers. Read more.

TikTok Shop shares more tips for online sellers

TikTok continues to try to push itself as an ecommerce platform, with a new guide on TikTok Shop Mastery. TikTok Shop continues to grow in sales, though it’s more popular for shopping in China than it is in the US for now. The new guide offers tips on how advertisers can increase GMV - that’s gross merchandise value - which is computed as GMV = Shop Traffic x Conversion x Average Order Value (AOV).The guide offers in-depth tips on how to increase that metric to boost sales on TikTok. If you’re advertising on TikTok, it might be a huge help as we lean into the holiday season! Read more.

Instagram is adding more new features to their DMs 

Earlier this summer, Instagram shared that “sharing” via DM is the new metric to look out for, and they continue to push direct message engagement. The latest update to the DMs came this week, with new editing abilities. They just added drawing tools and stickers for images shared via DM, similar to the editing tools already available on Stories. Instagram also added its “cut out” feature to DM photos, where you can cut out specific elements of a photo and layer it onto another as a sticker. Another helpful feature: Instagram also added a birthday indicator to users’ Notes bubbles, so you’ll have a reminder when it’s time to wish someone a happy birthday. Read more.

Also in the news this week: 

• You can finally edit your DMs sent on X - learn how here.

• Instagram Chief Adam Mosseri says that sharing your recent reel as a story is "a good practice" and helps with reach.

• A new study shows that YouTube has become Gen Z’s music hub of choice over Spotify and other competitors.

• X has launched a beta version of a TV streaming app, X TV.

• TikTok and the NFL renewed their partnership “to enhance the fan experience for the football community”.

• YouTube added a “Family Center” to help parents see insights into their kids channel activities.

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Until next week,

Social Buddy