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Latest insights – July 2024
In this July edition of our Digital Insights Bulletin, we bring you the latest trends, insights, and updates crucial for navigating the digital landscape. Our spotlight shines brightly on LinkedIn, a platform that has dominated discussions and strategies across the industry.
Image credits: LinkedIn
LinkedIn’s Rolling Out a New Sponsored Post Option to Maximise Content Benefits
LinkedIn is expanding its sponsored articles feature to include sponsored newsletters, offering brands a new way to generate leads. This addition allows companies to boost their newsletters, which have seen significant growth and engagement on the platform. Sponsored newsletters will help increase brand visibility and reach a wider audience. Currently, only newsletters created by company pages can be sponsored, with member-authored newsletters to be included in future updates. LinkedIn reports a 47% rise in newsletter engagement over the past year, highlighting the potential for brands to connect with users effectively.
What this means for brands:
This introduction of sponsored newsletters offers brands a new opportunity to generate leads and enhance visibility. By boosting company-created newsletters, brands can reach a wider audience, increase engagement, and strengthen their presence in specific sectors, capitalizing on the growing popularity of LinkedIn newsletters among users.
Expertise feature
The advertising landscape is evolving at an unprecedented rate and the media landscape is increasingly more fragmented. This fragmentation has created a multitude of channels to reach and engage with your target audience. Paid media is no longer a nice to have, it is imperative to the success of every social campaign. At FleishmanHillard, we understand how to amplify our client’s stories to the correct audience, at the right time, to meet their unsaid expectations. Paid media increases staying power, will feed longevity of your content and ultimately increase the likelihood of consumption and engagement. It will also ensure your content has the opportunity to be seen by the people you want to see it.
Image credits: Instagram
Instagram Shares Tips for Reels Creators
Instagram has shared new tips for improving IG Reels on its Professional Dashboard. Key pointers include grabbing attention in the first 3 seconds, making Reels 30-60 seconds long, using trending hashtags and audio, driving engagement, replying to comments within 7 days, sharing content simultaneously across platforms, creating relatable and humorous content, uploading high-resolution clips, and posting at least 10 Reels per month. Familiarising yourself with current trends and successful content on Instagram is also recommended. These tips aim to enhance Reels performance and are available to all Business and Creator Accounts in the app.
What this means for brands:
This emphasises the importance of engaging content that captures attention quickly and leverages trends. Consistently creating high-quality, relatable Reels can enhance visibility and audience interaction, driving brand awareness. Utilising these strategies effectively can lead to improved performance on the platform and foster stronger connections with followers.
Image credits: Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto via Getty Images
X plans to more deeply integrate Grok’s AI, app researcher finds
Elon Musk’s X (formerly Twitter) is integrating xAI’s Grok chatbot more deeply into the app. New features will allow users to ask Grok about X accounts, highlight text to search with Grok, and access the chatbot via a pop-up while using the app. Independent researcher Nima Owji discovered these developments, although they are not yet public. Despite broadening Grok’s access to more subscribers, X’s in-app purchase revenue has declined, potentially due to increased competition and the high subscription cost. Additionally, X’s app downloads have dropped since its rebranding.
What this means for brands:
Grok’s integration into X provides new opportunities for engagement through enhanced customer interaction. By leveraging AI capabilities for real-time insights and support, brands can improve user experience and drive deeper connections with their audience, though they must remain cautious of potential misinformation risks associated with AI content.
Image credits: Luke van Zyl on Unsplash
Instagram’s rise as a news source
The research investigates the shift in news consumption towards Instagram, particularly in South Africa, over the past five years. Traditional media no longer dominates as social media platforms like Instagram emerge as significant news sources. Instagram’s rise as a news source, especially among younger demographics, is noted by the Reuters Institute Digital News Report, highlighting its visual storytelling appeal. The Global Digital Report 2024 emphasises the dominance of social media, with South Africans spending over three hours daily on these platforms. The research outlines key factors driving this trend, such as accessibility, user-generated content, algorithmic personalisation, and viral spread. Despite the benefits, social media platforms, including Instagram, face challenges like misinformation, regulatory scrutiny, and competition.
What this means for brands:
This shift to Instagram as a news source means adapting to a visually driven, interactive content strategy. They should leverage Instagram’s features, stay current with trends, and engage with followers to remain relevant and effectively reach their target audience in this evolving digital landscape.
Image credits: LinkedIn
LinkedIn’s 3-Step strategy for exponential follower growth on company pages
LinkedIn has released a guide outlining a three-step strategy for businesses to boost their follower count on company pages. The steps include establishing a strong foundation by inviting personal connections to follow, consistently posting content (with daily posts leading to the fastest growth), and understanding the target audience through analytics. By implementing these strategies, businesses can significantly enhance their online presence and engagement, making it especially beneficial for both small startups and larger corporations in today’s digital landscape.
What this means for brands:
This offers brands a structured approach to grow their follower base through personal connections, consistent posting, and audience targeting. By implementing these strategies, brands can enhance their online visibility, boost engagement, and leverage employee networks, ultimately driving greater brand awareness and customer relationships in a competitive digital landscape.
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