LinkedIn has a new ad format
LinkedIn has announced several changes to its ad platform:
- Boosting posts is getting easier. LinkedIn is adding a “Boost” button to every post on your LinkedIn pages. Its functionality is nearly identical to Facebook’s “Boost” button.
- Event Ads. This new ad format will appear in the LinkedIn feed. You’ll also get event analytics, which will provide metrics such as reach, engagement, and firmographics (yes, this is a real word) of event attendees.
- Custom Streaming. If you want to stream on LinkedIn Live, you can now do so with tools like Zoom, OBS, WebEx, and, in the following months, Microsoft Teams.
What we’re most excited about: Event Ads. We are always excited when a new ad format is announced because it provides a temporary opportunity for higher CTRs (and usually lower CPMs as a result) due to people seeing those new types of ads for the first time.
If you’re into B2B and host events or webinars, this is an update you should be aware of.
SOCIAL MEDIA
Twitter wants to become Instagram, and Instagram wants to become Twitter
If you’re into e-commerce, you’re probably using Instagram. If you’re a creator, you’re probably using Twitter. But these platforms are increasingly copycatting each other.
Twitter has recently been spotted testing various e-commerce features. Twitter’s Revenue Lead, Bruce Falck, has also stated that they are “starting to explore ways to better support commerce on Twitter.”
Instagram, on the other hand, has been looking into adding subscriptions and a marketplace for NFTs. This was stated by Instagram’s CEO, Adam Moserri, in an interview with The Information.
Everyone wants to copy each other: The grass is greener on the other side. Instagram aspires to be more like Twitter. Twitter aspires to be more like Instagram.
This is good news for us: More features equal more opportunities to reach out to your target audience.
SPONSORED BY ATTEST
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Marketers and entrepreneurs are sitting on a massive treasure trove: Business and consumer data. But they’re unable to capitalize on this information. And they’re running their companies with a patch on their eyes.
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Companies like GymShark, Wise (Ex TransferWise), Microsoft, and Boots use Attest to grow, expand and take a bit out of their competitors’ market share, without the guesswork.
How? Attest delivers you the right data, at the right time, for the right decisions to be made:
- Access 100 million people across 49 markets: Attest’s demographic filters make it quick and easy to find out about your existing, target, and growth consumers – what they think, how they behave, and why they buy.
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Get a taste of what Attest can do for your business growth.
PRODUCTIVITY
Productivity tips from a man trying to change the world
A lot of people turn to Google to type “How much does Elon Musk earn”.
How many people actually ask Google how much Elon Musk works?
Changing the world ain’t easy, and you can’t always do it working 40 hours a week. Indeed, on some occasions, Elon claimed to work up to 120 hours per week.
But it’s not all about quantity. Quality matters as well, and Gabriel Gruber shared 7 productivity recommendations by Elon Musk. Let’s take a look:
1) Excessive meetings are the blight of companies. Unless you’re sure that your large meetings are providing value to the whole audience, get rid of them.
2) Get rid of frequent meetings, unless there is something urgent to deal with.
3) Walk out of a meeting or drop off a call as soon as it’s obvious you can’t add value to it. It’s not rude to leave. Wasting other people’s time is.
4) Don’t use acronyms or nonsense words. Everything that requires an explanation inhibits communication.
5) Communication should work through the shortest path necessary, not through the chain of command.
6) Poor communication between departments is another major source of issues. The solution? Allow free communication across all levels. If a piece of information must go through 10 different people to reach the other department, then the system is broken. Watch again the previous point.
7) Pick common sense as your guide. If a company’s rule makes no sense, then it should probably be changed.
The beauty of these rules is that they make everyone’s life easier. Most teams run more efficiently with better communication and fewer calls – and yours might too.
FROM THE CREW
We’re going to be on Clubhouse, and we’ve got invites
This Sunday, we’ll be discussing the top marketing news for the week. Live on Clubhouse, at 4PM EST / 10PM CET.
We wanted to do this earlier, but we were waiting for Clubhouse to become available to everyone. Last Friday, the app became available to Android users worldwide, so we no longer have an excuse.
If you’re not on Clubhouse and need an invite to get in, shoot us a reply. We got 70 of them. First come, first served.
ROUNDING UP THE STACK
AMAZON: The e-commerce giant is again in trouble. A DC Attorney General is filing an antitrust suit against Amazon for trying to exert too much control over third-party sellers.
ADVERTISING: With Google FloC turning into a FloP, advertisers are looking for alternatives. So far, UID 2.0 appears to be the most promising one.
INTERNET: Ever wondered what percent of links articles point to are no longer accessible? A team of researchers at Harvard Law School have conducted a study on this and discovered some interesting insights.
SEO: What happens when you poll 250 digital marketing professionals about the current state of link building? You get some interesting insights. Here are the top 13 from Aira’s study, which we covered recently.
BUSINESS: Mobile apps grew significantly in Q1 2021. Will this trend continue, however, with Apple’s ATT update?
APPLE: Rich Jones has discovered that the company is becoming more generous in terms of giving advertisers higher conversion values.
TWITTER: There are fans, and then there are super fans. Twitter is testing a feature where they’ll tell you how many “Super Followers” a particular person has.
BRAIN TEASER
I tolerate the moon and stars
I can’t abide the sun
Banish me with torch light
And you’ll see me turn and run
You can find the solution here.
POOLSIDE CHAT
Cool tech, (funny) business, lifestyle and all the other things marketers like to chat about while sipping cocktails by the pool.
Charlie just made $760k
If you were on YouTube in the early days, you’ll have seen this video. It’s the classic “Charlie bit my finger” video, and it’s a gem to this day.
And while Charlie might be slightly too old to be biting fingers these days, his family just made $760k by selling the video as an NFT.
It’s not just the video: The family said that they plan to meet with the winner to re-enact the video in person. Whether it’ll capture the same magic is up for debate, but it’s a fun idea.
The original video is being taken down from YouTube… But it’s hard to imagine that duplicates won’t swarm the platform. For now, it’s available here (though this is not the original upload).