TikTok is facing blowback for lax advertising disclosures. While the platform offers various ways to identify paid promotion, its marketing policies appear to operate on an honor system, and while some creators label their posts as advertising or partnerships, many do not. Where a financial relationship exists with regard to products mentioned, the truth in advertising rules enforced by the Federal Trade Commission and state attorneys general require media partners to disclose that funds will change hands. As part of a renewed national interest in digital consumer protections, particularly related to child safety, the area is getting increased scrutiny. Continue reading TikTok Draws Criticism for Undisclosed Sponsored Content

TikTok had its first official presence at the Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity on the French Riviera, where the ByteDance mobile video platform competed with the likes of Amazon, Netflix, Activision Blizzard, Spotify, Reddit and Meta Platforms for the attention of the world’s biggest brands and top advertising agencies. Touting its viral appeal and popularity among key demographics including Gen Z, millennials and social influencers, the company hosted a cabana on the beach with dedicated space to make TikTok videos, held meetings in a nearby suite and participated onstage at the Palais des Festivals. Continue reading TikTok Expected to Triple Ad Revenue to $12 Billion in 2022

Direct-to-consumer startups that previously relied mainly on Facebook and Instagram to reach customers continue to adapt strategies more than a year after Apple’s privacy policy revisions forced massive change on the digital advertising sector. Brands that were marketing before Apple’s privacy changes took effect last year had an opportunity to build customer bases using the uniquely specific targeting opportunities once offered by social media. Newer entities, however, are struggling to get a toehold as they search for comparable tools, looking well beyond the traditional social platforms. Continue reading Direct-to-Consumer Marketers Seek Social Media Alternatives

As Facebook parent company Meta Platforms continues its planned evolution to the metaverse, observers have begun asking about Instagram. Acquired in 2012, the photo and video-sharing platform may be finding the accommodations that help it with advertisers hurt it with younger users gravitating to TikTok and Snapchat. While Meta doesn’t break out numbers for Instagram, the “family of apps” of which Instagram is a member generated $32.8 billion in Q4 revenue, all but $155 million of it from advertising, according to earnings released Wednesday. That’s an 18 percent improvement over Q4 2020. Continue reading Wall Street Ponders Instagram as Meta Posts $10.2B VR Loss

TikTok is testing the waters with a paid subscription mode for creators, joining Facebook, Clubhouse and others. Although TikTok remains tight-lipped about the experiment, it seems designed to keep TikTok influencers on the ByteDance platform rather than leaving for more lucrative pastures. Last week, Instagram announced a test allowing creators to charge from 99 cents to $99 per month for exclusive content, while Twitter in September debuted Super Follows, with rates of $2.99 to $9.99 per month. A creator with 13,000 followers that gets a 2 percent take rate at $4.99 per month can make $900 a month. YouTube and Snapchat also offer monetization options. Continue reading TikTok Experiments with Paid Subscriptions, Tweaks Stories

TikTok made its shopping play this year, partnering with Shopify, then launching the TikTok World feature for creators and brands. The result has been items from clothes to cosmetics to tech accessories and household goods seeing sales boosts through exposure on the platform. The hashtag #TikTokMadeMeBuyIt is said to have been viewed more than 7.4 billion times, and Amazon in May launched the category “Internet Famous: The Latest to Go Viral,” generously populated by products that “blew up” on the video-sharing service. Now brands are scrambling to leverage the social shopping made successful by TikTok influencers. Continue reading Social Video App TikTok Makes Splash as E-Tailing Presence

Select Facebook creators in the U.S. will have access to more data and revenue opportunities through the social platform’s new “Professional” mode. Previously exclusive to Facebook Pages, creators can now access audience analytics and, by invite-only for now, earn up to $35,000 per month with qualifying video content through a Reels Play bonus program. For creators who are already using Pages, Facebook is adding a Professional Dashboard to access more insights and productivity tools. The goal is to help creators track shares, reactions and comments to their posts in order to make more informed decisions and grow their audiences. Continue reading Facebook Adds a Professional Mode to Expand Creator Base

YouTube announced it plans to expand into e-tailing with the launch of Holiday Stream and Shop, a week-long live-streaming event in which hand-picked social media stars will use the video platform to offer their own merchandise as well as branded goods. YouTube, which is part of Alphabet’s Google, has for years teased the idea of introducing online shopping, but the concept gained momentum when the COVID-19 pandemic triggered explosive growth in e-commerce. Meanwhile, NBCUniversal also plans an interactive live-streamed shopping experience. Continue reading YouTube Tests Shoppable Video, Holiday Live-Stream Events

Pinterest is advancing its objective of becoming more than an image-sharing site by adding live shopping through an app called Pinterest TV that the company believes will help it become a creator destination. Pinterest TV will offer “a series of live, original and shoppable episodes featuring creators” streaming weekdays beginning November 8 on iOS and Android. Topics will span food, home, fashion and beauty. As part of the initiative, Pinterest is launching a virtual studio complete with producers who will help creators develop content, provide A/V support and become ready for live streaming. Continue reading Pinterest TV Launch Focuses on Live Shopping with Creators

Facebook is rolling out its short-form video feature, Reels, to all iOS and Android users in the U.S. Intended to counter the increasingly popular TikTok, creators can use Reels to generate within Facebook content of up to 30 seconds using in-app editing tools for music, audio, AR filters and other effects. The feature was deployed in beta last month. Instagram introduced its own version of Reels last year, allowing videos of up to 60 seconds. Facebook also debuted a bonus program to pay creators for Reels views as part of its previously announced initiative to pay creators $1 billion through 2022. Continue reading Facebook Rolls Out Its ‘Reels’ Video Format for Mobile Users

The Walt Disney Company is formalizing its efforts to leverage the power of social media influencers under a new program called the Disney Creators Lab. The initiative launches with 20 diverse influencers who have already established credibility with Disney by posting content related to the company on platforms including TikTok, Instagram and YouTube. Disney says that while there is no direct financial remuneration involved, the program will help influencers improve their skills and expand opportunities. Participants will be enrolled in weekly online Disney courses imparting techniques to promote social media more effectively. Continue reading Disney’s Creators Lab Leverages Power of Social Influencers

TikTok is pushing out its Creator Marketplace API, which allows partner firms to optimize campaigns using first-party data and platform integration. The Creator Marketplace aggregates TikTok’s influencers, sharing basic stats that helps them connect with brands that can then mount, manage, measure and track campaigns within the app. The new API takes this to a new level with features including demographic filtering and real-time campaign tracking. Formally debuted in June 2020, Creator Marketplace aggregates TikTok influencers with at least 10,000 followers and 100,000 video views in the last 30 days. Continue reading TikTok Creator Marketplace Connects Brands and Influencers

Teenagers are now turning to TikTok influencers not just for fashion advice but to buy clothing worn by their idols. Several items, including a Lululemon skort, a Gap hoodie and Aerie leggings have gone viral, and retailers including Aeropostale and Abercrombie & Fitch are looking for ways to convert popular TikTok videos into sales. Influencers post #fashionhauls and #OOTD (outfit of the day) as well as #preppy and #closettour. One mother reported that, “my kids come to me all the time now showing me TikTok videos, pointing at them, saying, ‘I want to buy this’ or ‘I think this is cute for the fall’.” Continue reading Viral TikTok Videos Fuel Buying Sprees by Young Consumers

At the first Instagram and Facebook Creator Week event, chief executive Mark Zuckerberg introduced a way for Instagram influencers to earn commissions for recommending or promoting products that lead to online sales. Zuckerberg had announced the previous day that Facebook would not take a cut from creator revenues until 2023, at which point its share would be less than 30 percent, the amount Apple and other platforms collect. “Our goal is to be the best platform for creators like you to make a living,” he said. Continue reading Facebook Adds Ways for Instagram Creators to Earn Revenue

Although image-sharing service Pinterest has been less reliant upon influencer culture than Instagram and other social media platforms, that began to change when it introduced Story Pins and creator profiles. These features were intended to make it easier for high-profile users to build a following and showcase their projects. Now, Pinterest is unveiling a $500,000 Creator Fund to pay a small group of influencers to create content for the platform. With this initiative, it joins TikTok and Snapchat in paying creators. Continue reading Pinterest to Foster Influencer Content with New Creator Fund