Social Media Snapshot
Catch up on the need-to-know changes and updates in social media that affect your business and brand…all in one place.
Below are highlights of changes on top social media platforms for the week ending December 20, 2013:
New on Facebook
Facebook Acquires SportStream
Announced Tuesday, Facebook acquired SportStream, a personalized social feed for sports fans. 
With this acquisition, Facebook will look to compete with Twitter as a source of real-time information and chatter around sporting events. SportStream will also open the door for big-time media partners (i.e., teams, leagues, individual athletes or media outlets) to create their own social media experiences for fans.
Facebook Confirms Autoplaying Video Trial for Ads
Facebook now plans to begin video advertising within members’ News Feeds.
Facebook’s video ads will run automatically across members’ News Feed, but will remain muted unless audio is manually turned on. The new ad forms will begin on both desktop and mobile, but no official roll out date has been announced yet.
Facebook is testing out an ad for the film Divergent with a small number of people this week. Pending its success, an estimated roll out date may soon follow.
Facebook’s Custom Audiences Can Now Help Measure Offline Sales
To further drive offline conversions, Facebook has announced an important update to Custom Audiences. All details are not yet available, but the ability for brands to measure offline sales is sure to be a hit for many advertisers — even those not currently working with a Facebook measuring partner.
A Facebook for Business blog post explains the process:
- Marketers upload hashed data, including emails, phone numbers and addresses, as well as encrypted transaction information
- Facebook matches the retailer’s hashed data to hashed data from Facebook’s databases
- Facebook then provides a report that compares, on an aggregate basis, the purchase behavior of customers who saw an ad on Facebook with customers who did not
Facebook Adds ‘Donate Now’ Button for Non-Profits
Announced Monday, Facebook added a feature that allows users to donate cash to non-profits directly through the platform. By clicking an embedded “Donate Now” button in any Facebook post, users can directly donate various amounts using a credit card, debit card or PayPal account.
For now, only the 18 partner non-profits selected (including Boys & Girls Club of America, Livestrong Foundation and the World Wildlife Fund) can elicit donations. According to a spokesperson, Facebook “hope[s] to open it up in the coming weeks” to other non-profit partners.
– Mashable
New on Twitter
Promoted Accounts Feature Now Available on Mobile Timelines for iOS and Android Devices
Users of the Twitter App on both iOS and Android will start to see Promoted Accounts on their mobile timelines.
Formerly, this feature was tested with a select list of advertisers. Beginning December 17th, Twitter has expanded this beta to all advertisers globally. Per Twitter, advertisers can take advantage of this in addition to the existing Promoted Accounts format that runs within the Who to Follow section.
Twitter Testing ‘Nearby’ Timeline Feature for Businesses
Twitter is testing ‘Nearby,’ an app with a map showing a user’s current location above a timeline of recent, local tweets.
No current timeline on a potential drop date, but the tool will surface local tweets through a new timeline for users who allow Twitter to see their location on the Twitter mobile app. This may become especially important for local retail businesses to reach potential customers in their area as they near.
Vine Vanity URLs Are Here — Sign Up Fast!
If you’re a verified Vine account, snatch up registration for your vanity URL beginning Friday, December 20, 2013 9am PST. All other accounts can begin registration on Monday, December 23, 2013.
As expected, vanity URLs will be in the format “vine.co/USERNAME.” Twitter announced that it will be automatically reserve profile URLs that “mirror verified Twitter @usernames”. Please note that this does not guarantee your vanity URL — you still need to claim the profile by registering for it.
