TikTok is expanding access to its latest e-commerce feature TikTok Shop, which first debuted with select US retailers. The feature is set to revolutionize the in-app shopping experience completely.
This new integration allows sellers from various backgrounds to boost their brand growth and sales directly on TikTok, ensuring your products reach your target audience quickly and efficiently.
TikTok Shop
TikTok Shop is designed to offer a seamless commerce experience to both sellers and buyers. To get started, sellers can easily sync their product catalog and orders with a simple app from TikTok’s Seller Center.
The feature will allow direct shopping within the app without redirecting users to retailers’ websites to complete purchases.
As a bonus, TikTok offers a 0% referral fee for the first 90 days, which gives sellers a fantastic opportunity to expand their business without additional charges during the initial stage.
“We’re excited to introduce you to TikTok Shop – a new commerce integration that allows sellers of all kinds to drive brand growth and sales directly on TikTok. 🛍 TikTok Shop is easy-to-use and easy to get started. Just sync your catalog and orders with an app from our Seller Center. PLUS you can enjoy 0% Referral Fee for the first 90 days,” mentioned TikTok in a Facebook post
With the power of social commerce, the platform may only succeed if it uses insights from what is currently working to attract more users to its TikTok Shop.
Hashtags like #TikTokMadeMeBuyIt have amassed billions of views and could be a good tool for making the new feature stick.
The platform has since tried various options to increase monetization options for its creators, but none has so far gained as much popularity as TikTok would have hoped.
The US seems to be a tough crowd, so how TikTok shop performs could tell whether the popular social app breaks into the big leagues, but at least it keeps coming up with new ideas.
TikTok has taken a significant leap forward by introducing Interactive Add-Ons for In-Feed Ads.
Now available globally, this feature offers a unique way to engage viewers with interactive elements such as popups, stickers, and other visual elements.
Interactive Add-Ons are designed to capture the undivided attention of your audience in a full-screen, sound-on environment, thereby boosting brand engagement and encouraging interaction.
According to TikTok’s research, viewers who share, like, or comment on a TikTok brand video are 150% more likely to buy a product or service. This statistic underscores the potential of these new creative enhancements to catch the eye of active consumers.
“Our research shows that 57% of viewers are more likely to search for brand information online when they connect with businesses on TikTok.¹ Acting as an extension of your creative idea, Interactive Add-Ons offer flexible formats that encourage consumers to join in the fun when they see your ad,” says Tiktok in a blog post
The Interactive Add-Ons come in two types: Standard and Premium. Standard add-ons aim to reach lower-funnel marketing goals, like driving clicks and conversions; they include display cards, gift code stickers, voting stickers, and countdown stickers, while Premium add-ons target upper-funnel goals, such as brand awareness and community building; they include; pop-out showcase, gesture, and super like 2.0.
Both types offer a unique chance to capture people’s attention in a format that resonates with them.
The Impact of Interactive Add-Ons
Interactive Add-Ons can potentially revolutionize how brands interact with their audiences on TikTok.
For instance, brands can spotlight their product through a pop-out element to drive clicks, delight their audience with surprise gestures to increase participation or captivate them with eye-catching floating icons appearing when users engage with the ad.
Brands can also use Display Cards to visually highlight important messages, share offers, or drive traffic to their website or app.
Furthermore, special incentives can boost conversion and drive loyalty, while audience participation features enable brands to poll, quiz, or collect audience feedback.
The Future of Interactive Advertising
TikTok’s Interactive Add-Ons represents a significant step forward in interactive advertising. They drive engagement by capturing audiences’ attention uniquely innovatively and act as an extension of your creative idea, offering flexible formats that encourage consumers to join in the fun when they see your ad.
The success stories of brands like Sour Patch Kids and Singapore’s CPF Board, who achieved significant lifts in click-through rates using these add-ons, are a testament to the potential of this feature.
TikTok’s Interactive Add-Ons are a promising tool for brands looking to enhance their digital marketing strategies. They offer a unique way to engage viewers, drive clicks and conversions, and boost brand engagement.
As we progress in the digital age, seeing how brands leverage these Interactive Add-Ons to create more engaging and effective advertising campaigns will be eye-opening.
Anaheim City, Orange County, California (21st June 2023)
Logie.ai is participating in VidCon 2023 in the capacity of an official sponsor. One of the biggest creators’ events in the U.S., this year’s VidCon takes place between June 21 and 24 at the Anaheim Convention Center in California. It will be presented by YouTube and produced by Paramount. This is the first official sponsorship Logie is making since its inception. At a custom booth the company is setting up, attendees will learn how Logie is helping creators turn their fans into cash as well as build a sustainable business around their influencer brand.
VidCon has been one of the most significant annual conventions in the creator economy since it was launched by YouTubers John and Hank Green (Vlogbrothers) in 2010. The 2019 chapter brought together over 75,000 attendees and more than 50,000 people attended the 2022 event after a 2-year cancellation due to Covid-19. VidCon 2023 is projected to bring together record numbers of content stars, fans, executives, and brands. The convention will provide unparalleled opportunities for networking, learning, and collaboration.
Logie’s dedication to transforming the social commerce landscape has not gone unnoticed. Along with being shortlisted to demo at NRF’s Retail’s Big Show in New York earlier this year, the company was also listed as an official Amazon Ads Partner and recently inducted into the prestigious NVIDIA Inception Accelerator Program. These highlights underscore Logie’s potential to continue empowering creators and maximizing product promotion potential as the concept of Web 3.0 takes over the internet.
“We are extremely excited to participate in VidCon 2023. This convention offers an amazing platform to connect with content creators who are driving the industry forward as social commerce continues to have a big moment. Logie is eager to expand its contribution to this vibrant community and demonstrate the remarkable benefits of our cutting-edge AI technology. We expect to see a record number of attendees from across the board as this year’s VidCon promises to be better and bigger than before. Our team will also explore opportunities for collaboration to maximize the impact of AI on social commerce,” Tanya Breus (business development manager at Logie) has added.
The entire team at Logie takes the view that VidCon is a celebration of creativity, innovation, and the power of online communities. By aligning with this event, we continue to solidify our commitment to driving change and innovation in the social commerce realm. We invite everyone to join our booth in order to learn and explore our ideas and constructs for the future of eCommerce.
YouTube has unveiled a novel report in YouTube analytics ‘viewer overlap report’ and experiment with ‘Shorts,’
Viewer Overlap Report
One of the most common questions YouTube creators ask is whether their audience engages with the new formats they are experimenting with on their channels.
To address this, YouTube is introducing a new “Viewer Overlap Report” in YouTube analytics. This report will help creators understand the viewer overlap across their different content formats.
The report will be presented via a new card that shows if and how many returning viewers watch more than one format and the extent of the overlap.
This feature is expected to be particularly useful for creators who are testing new formats and want to see if their existing audience engages with them.
As Lauren, a program manager at YouTube, says, “We hope this comes in especially handy if you’re testing a new format and want to see if your existing audience starts watching it.”
Shorts from Comments
In a move that blurs the line between creators and viewers, YouTube is set to launch an experiment that allows mobile viewers to create ‘Shorts’ featuring comments posted on the videos they are watching.
This initiative aims to allow viewers to create content from comments, a feature previously exclusive to creators.
These viewer-created ‘Shorts’ will be visible in the shorts feed and the viewer’s channel page. However, they won’t appear as a reply in the comments feed, setting them apart from the creator version.
“The short will appear in the shorts feed and on the viewer’s channel page. But unlike the creator version, it won’t appear as a reply in the comments. Feed viewer-created shorts won’t send notifications to the creator whose video the comment is on, nor the comment. Author creator can’t prohibit their comments from being featured in a short unless comments in their video are disabled,” mentioned Laured, program manager at Youtube
The introduction of “Shorts from Comments” represents a significant shift in YouTube’s user engagement strategy. By empowering viewers to create content from comments, YouTube fosters a more interactive community and could potentially democratize content creation, giving voice to various perspectives and narratives.
“I love how YouTube keeps innovating and adding new reports to YouTube Studio. In my report, I can see that my viewers like video-on-demand uploads more than they like live streams. On another channel, I manage for my daughter, her viewers like everything equally 😂. I hope the new feature for viewers to create shorts from comments will encourage more people to make fun and engaging shorts. I think the benefits will outweigh the downsides!” says Ileane Smith, Live Streamer, Blogger, Podcaster, YouTuber, and Social Media Diva
However, it’s important to consider the implications of such a feature. While it opens up a new avenue for creativity and engagement, it also raises questions about content moderation and the potential for misuse.
As viewers gain the ability to create content from comments, the platform may need to implement robust measures to ensure that this feature is used responsibly and constructively.
It will be interesting to see how this feature evolves and impacts content creation and consumption dynamics on the platform. As always, the key to its success will be balancing creativity and freedom of expression with responsible use and community guidelines.
This move comes as a response to the challenges the platform has faced in the past.
TikTok’s Transparency Initiative: TikTok Truths
To dispel misconceptions about its data practices, TikTok has introduced “TikTok Truths,” a series aimed at setting the record straight about the information it collects and how it is used, shared, and protected.
The platform clarified that it does not collect more information than similar apps; it only collects data that users choose to provide and data that helps the app function securely and improve user experience.
“To be clear, the TikTok app is not unique in the amount of information it collects. In line with industry practices, we collect information that users choose to provide to us and information that helps the app function, operate securely, and improve people’s experience,” stated the app in a blog post.
TikTok also addressed concerns about location and GPS data, keystrokes, biometric information, and access to the camera and microphone. The company emphasized that it does not use face or voice data to identify someone uniquely and only collects keystroke patterns for security and performance-related purposes.
The Future of TikTok Amid Bans
The future of TikTok remains uncertain as it navigates the complex landscape of global data privacy regulations. A bipartisan Senate bill was recently proposed to increase scrutiny of social media platforms, Tiktok being in the front line.
The platform is committed to working with lawmakers to address their concerns while providing a platform for creative expression.
As the platform continues to address privacy concerns and navigate global bans, its “TikTok Truths” series is a step towards transparency. However, the road ahead is uncertain, and the platform’s ability to adapt to changing regulations will be crucial to its survival and growth.
In an era where privacy is paramount, WhatsApp, the globally recognized chat application, is making strides to ensure user privacy and control. Today through his private channel, Mark Zuckerberg has unveiled two new features to provide users with additional privacy and control.
Silence Unknown Callers
This feature is designed to give users more control over their incoming calls, automatically screening out potential spam, scams, and calls from unknown individuals.
In the announcement, Zuckerberg stated, “You can now automatically silence incoming calls from unknown contacts on WhatsApp for even more privacy and control.”
Users can activate this feature by navigating to Settings > Privacy > Calls and selecting the “Silence unknown caller” option.
While these calls will not ring on the user’s phone, they will still be visible in the Call list. This ensures that users can check later if the call was from a known person whose number is not saved in their contacts.
When a call from an unknown number is received, the phone will display the number along with the message “silenced unknown number.”
A new privacy checkup option was also introduced alongside the call-silencing feature.
Privacy Checkup
In addition to the call-silencing feature, WhatsApp has introduced the Privacy Checkup feature.
This guide will help users navigate important privacy settings, helping them choose the right level of protection.
By selecting ‘Start checkup‘ in the Privacy settings, users will be navigated through multiple privacy layers that strengthen the security of their messages, calls, and personal information.
“Securing your private communication is important because we know people need a safe place to communicate. We’re taking this message around the world in new ways to help communicate why this is so important. Starting this week, we’re encouraging people to check in with one another securely via a private message so friends and loved ones know they have a safe space to open up,” mentioned Whatsapp in a blog post.
WhatsApp’s new feature is a significant step towards enhancing user privacy and control. By automatically silencing calls from unknown numbers, the app provides users with a much-needed shield against unwanted interruptions.
The additional privacy checkup feature further empowers users by making them aware of the various privacy controls.
As WhatsApp continues to innovate and prioritize user privacy, what other features the company will introduce remains to be seen.
In a move that underscores the increasing scrutiny of social media platforms, a bipartisan Senate bill has been proposed to regulate TikTok, the popular short-form video app.
The bill, introduced by Senators Amy Klobuchar and John Thune, aims to impose export controls on TikTok’s recommendation algorithm, citing national security concerns.
Senator Amy Klobuchar said, “Our legislation would impose stricter controls on the export of sensitive technologies like TikTok’s algorithm to countries of concern like China.” Senator John Thune added, “This bill is about ensuring the safety and security of Americans in today’s interconnected world.”
The bill’s proponents argue that the algorithm, which determines the content shown to users, could be manipulated by foreign entities to spread disinformation or propaganda.
The Response from TikTok
TikTok has responded to the proposed bill by stating, “We have stringent data access controls in place and are committed to transparency and accountability in how our recommendation algorithm works.”
Just last month, Montana became the first U.S. state to sign into law legislation prohibiting the platform’s operation in Montana. TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew faced a grueling five-hour congressional hearing with Lawmakers questioning him over alleged Chinese influence on the platform, the purported harmful effect on children’s mental health, and the app’s influence on Americans.
Chew continuously denied the claims that the app shares data with the Chinese Communist Party, stating,
“American data is stored on American soil, by an American company, overseen by American personnel,”
With the new bipartisan bill, the company has also highlighted its efforts to combat misinformation on its platform. However, critics argue that these measures are not enough and that more needs to be done to ensure the integrity of the platform’s content.
The Future of Social Media Regulation
The proposed Senate bill is part of a broader trend toward increased regulation of social media platforms.
As these platforms continue to grow in influence, the need for transparency and accountability becomes ever more critical.
The bill represents a significant step towards achieving this goal, but it also raises important questions about the balance between regulation and innovation in the digital age.
Impact on TikTok’s Business Model
The proposed bill could have significant implications for TikTok’s business model. The app’s recommendation algorithm is a key driver of user engagement, and any changes could potentially impact the company’s revenue.
However, TikTok has stated that it is committed to working with lawmakers to address their concerns while continuing to provide a platform for creative expression.
As lawmakers worldwide grapple with the challenges posed by these platforms, the outcome of this bill could set a precedent for future legislation. Regardless of the outcome, it is clear that the era of unchecked social media influence is ending.
The future will likely see a greater emphasis on transparency, accountability, and user safety in the digital space.
Pinterest, the visual discovery engine, has recently launched two new advertising products: Premiere Spotlight and Travel Catalogs.
These innovative tools are set to revolutionize how creators and brands advertise on the platform, offering more immersive and engaging ways to reach audiences.
Premiere Spotlight
Premiere Spotlight is a premium video solution offering an immersive brand awareness format. It uses widescreen video in priority placements, making it an ideal tool for seasonal moments, launches, or other big promotions.
As Pinterest puts it, “Premiere Spotlight is our most immersive awareness format yet, providing scale and reach for your biggest brand moments. Starting today, Premiere Spotlight is available to advertisers in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States.”
The ads appear on surfaces that reach millions of people daily, maximizing reach and scale. The ad will take up approximately 50% of a mobile screen on a guaranteed date. This means that creators can now ensure that their content is seen by a large audience at the right time.
Brands using Pinterest Premiere Spotlight have seen higher view rates and completion than other ad placements.
For instance, e.l.f Cosmetics used it to launch their new Lash N’ Roll Mascara and saw a 13% higher view-through rate with Gen Z compared to MRC’s baselines.
Travel Catalogs: Turning Inspiration into Booked Holidays
On the other end of the advertising spectrum, Pinterest has introduced Travel Catalogs. This tool is designed to drive engagement and performance, helping travel brands boost their bookings.
Millions of Pinterest users save travel content to their Pinterest boards, and the new feature by the platform is an easy way to turn these wishes into reality.
“Leading German travel booking company TUI got to try Travel Catalogs in beta. Their ads became more actionable, leading to an 8x higher optimized click-through rate (oCTR) than they were seeing previously.5 Hotel and rental companies worldwide will gain access to Travel Catalogs later this summer. You’ll find it in the catalogue menu in Ads Manager, along with our other shopping solutions,” mentioned Pinterest.
With Travel Catalogs, hotel, and rental brands can upload their full travel catalog to Pinterest, automatically creating dynamic product ads for each listing. These ads directly show relevant details on the Pin itself, such as the brand, pricing, and descriptions.
In a blog post, Pinterest explains, “Travel Catalogs will make it easier for people to turn their travel dreams into reality, with the click of a button.When someone clicks on an ad uploaded from Travel Catalogs, they’ll navigate directly to the booking site for that specific listing.”
Impact on Creators
These new advertising products are set to impact creators on Pinterest significantly.
Premiere Spotlight offers a new way to create high-impact, immersive video content that can reach a wide audience. This game-changer is for creators looking to boost their brand awareness and reach on the platform.
Travel Catalogs, meanwhile, offer a powerful tool for creators in the travel industry. By making it easier for users to go from inspiration to booking, creators can drive more conversions and boost their performance on the platform.
When asked if the introduction would open up some new avenues for Amazon influencer, Justin Germino, a seasoned vlogger, blogger,affiliate marketer, and Amazon influencer, said, “well tricky thing about Amazon influencers is, it is against Operating Agreement to do any paid promo to your Amazon store/live or any affiliate products, it gets you banned. So this may be useful to get people to promote if they own their own stores/merch, or shopify, but going to influencer channel, hard to convert to sales or ROI. Travel would be good for travel bloggers who have partnerships with travel agencies, hotels, and can benefit that way perhaps,”.
By leveraging the new advertising products, creators can reach a wider audience, create more engaging content, and ultimately drive more conversions, but does it really gel with their kind of marketing? Whether it is or not is debatable, but with the monthly numbers the platform attracts, it is worth a shot.
Facebook has introduced new features and enhancements to support creators. The platform hopes that the recent updates will make it easier for creators to express themselves, build an audience, and earn a steady income.
Simplifying Video Content Creation
To cater to users’ diverse viewing preferences, Facebook will release updates in the coming weeks to enable creators to reach larger audiences with various video formats.
When creators upload long-form videos or finish a Live on mobile or desktop, they can create a reel clipped from the original content that links back to the original video.
From inspiration to simplified creation, we’re making it easy to produce fun and creative reels on Facebook.
“To help inspire fresh content ideas, we’ve added an Inspiration Hub in the Professional Dashboard to gather popular reels, hashtags, topics and music. And the new Templates Hub in the Reels Composer displays popular, trending, and quality templates that you can use to easily create reels,” mentioned Facebook in a blog post.
Facebook has updated its Clips to Reels feature for Live videos to automatically select the highest quality clips from the Live video and reformat them into a reel that creators can easily publish.
This update will streamline the content creation process and help creators maximize the impact of their Live videos.
Professional Mode for Profiles
Professional mode (ProMode) for profiles lets anyone become a creator using their profile on Facebook. Facebook statistics show that in the six months, since it expanded globally, tens of millions of creators have started using it, unlocking audience growth, monetization opportunities, and professional tools.
To help put creators on the path to success, creators are now prompted to personalize their profile by adding a website and social media links and reviewing their privacy settings.
After setup, a ‘Your daily checklist’ module displays on the Profile home with tips and guided actions for creators to help grow their following.
In the coming weeks, Facebook will also roll out new metrics on the Professional Dashboard that will show creators how their accounts perform at a more granular level, including levels of interaction and consumption by format and followers and non-followers across all of their content5.
Expanding Monetization Opportunities
Facebook continues to expand and enhance its monetization offerings so that more creators can easily earn steady streams of income on Facebook through brand partnerships, bonuses, and fan support.
The platform is testing the ability to cross-post Instagram-branded content reels and stories to Facebook, increasing campaign reach and impact.
On Facebook, the platform has also reduced partnership ad eligibility requirements so that creators on Pages can permit their brand partners to run ads from their Facebook page.
The Performance bonus program, which rewards creators for garnering strong engagement on their posts, is expanding significantly, inviting more creators and introducing extra bonuses to help creators earn more.
Facebook has also lowered some of the monetization eligibility requirements for Stars so that more creators who are just starting can earn money from Meta through the support of their fans.
By making it easier for creators to express themselves, build an audience, and earn a steady income, Facebook is paving the way for a new era in the creator economy. Monetization opportunities have not yet been fruit for many creators; maybe the current updates will spark something.
YouTube, the world’s leading video-sharing platform, is revolutionizing how creators monetize their content.
The platform has recently rolled out a new shopping affiliate program and expanded its Partner Program, offering more flexibility for creators to generate income from their content.
YouTube’s New Shopping Affiliate Program
In a significant move, YouTube has launched a shopping affiliate program that empowers creators to tag products directly in their videos and shorts.
These products, sourced from popular brands and retailers, can now become integral to a creator’s content.
“For creators who are further in their YouTube journey, we’re expanding our YouTube Shopping affiliate program to all eligible US-based creators who are in YPP with over 20,000 subscribers,” mentioned Youtube in a blog post
This innovative feature not only simplifies the shopping process for viewers but also enhances the visibility of the creator’s content. At present, this program is exclusively available to creators in the US.
Through the affiliate program, creators stand to earn a commission when fans purchase products from the merchants featured in their content.
This initiative is a win-win for creators and viewers, making shopping a seamless part of the viewing experience.
Lower Eligibility Criteria for the YouTube Partner Program
In another progressive step, YouTube has introduced a new level of the YouTube Partner Program (YPP) with lower eligibility criteria.
“we’re expanding our partner program, meaning more creators and artists will have the opportunity to make money on YouTube across different creative formats,” said Youtube in a blog post.
This level provides early access to promoting creators’ own products on YouTube shopping and fan funding features like Super Thanks, Super Chat, Super Stickers, and Channel Memberships.
To qualify for YPP and unlock these benefits, creators need to meet the following thresholds:
500 subscribers
Three uploads in the last 90 days
No active community guidelines strikes
Either 3,000 valid public watch hours in the last 365 days or 3 million valid public Shorts views in the last 90 days.
Creators who meet these criteria and are accepted into the program will gain access to a host of features, including channel memberships, Super Chat, Super Stickers, Super Thanks, and the ability to promote their own products on YouTube shopping.
They will also have access to creator support. However, some features may have additional eligibility criteria.
Expansion of the YouTube Partner Program
YouTube is gradually rolling out the lower eligibility criteria to creators in the US, Canada, the UK, South Korea, and Taiwan.
The platform plans to extend early access to YPP across all countries where YPP is available.
All creators will undergo a standard review process upon applying to ensure their channel aligns with YouTube’s policies and guidelines.
Also all YouTube Partner Program terms must be accepted by July 10, 2023, to continue monetizing on YouTube. Lauren, a Program Manager at YouTube, advises, “If you do not accept by July 10th, 2023, you will be removed from the YouTube partner program, and your content will no longer be eligible to monetize on the platform.”
Creator Music
In a significant shift, YouTube has moved all tracks that creators previously saved in their Library to Creator Music.
This growing catalog of high-quality music allows creators to use tracks in videos without losing monetization.
Some songs can be licensed upfront, allowing creators to retain full monetization. Other songs may be eligible to share revenue with the track’s rights holders.
These updates from YouTube are a game-changer for creators, providing them with more opportunities to monetize their content.
In particular, the new shopping affiliate program opens up a new avenue for creators to earn revenue by promoting products directly in their videos.
As YouTube continues to evolve its platform, it will be exciting to see more features that enhance creators’ ability to earn from their content.
Logie streamlines influencer discovery, product distribution, and content performance to drive measurable sales for eCommerce brands. We also equip content creators with the smart tools, brand partnerships, and commission opportunities they need to turn content into income.
