LinkedIn Opts for Readership While Periscope Goes for the Money | Social You Should Know

syskblackboard-header_rev2016

LinkedIn makes more UX changes by launching curated stories, Twitter gives Periscope additional monetization with pre-roll ads, and Instagram takes a new stand on fighting NSFW images in this week’s edition of Social You Should Know.

LinkedIn Launches Trending Storylines

Since Microsoft’s acquisition of the channel, LinkedIn has been making several changes to their paid content offerings, channel layout, and mobile user experience. This week they’ve released a curated content platform very similar to that of a Twitter Moment or Snapchat Discover. The Trending Storylines platform is displayed prominently as a new navigation option in the mobile app and shows users top stories as determined by their interests and contacts. Clicking on a trending storyline will show you articles being shared about that topic, as well as other users’ opinions on the topic, LinkedIn Influencers on that topic, and similar stories to follow. For a network that traditionally reported low channel engagement, this could be a game-changer for brands if users begin following this newly-available rabbit-hole of content.

Periscope Gains Pre-Roll Ads

We told you last week that Twitter is investing once again in the live-streaming network of Periscope. While last week they announced they’d make it easier for brands to add livestreams by opening up their API for broadcast, they’ve also decided to monetize those potential feeds. During an in-person announcement of the feature to several publishers, they even decided to stick it to YouTube a little by reiterating that these pre-roll ads will be “highly-controlled”. While they are available immediately to select partners, you’ll begin seeing pre-roll ads roll out more broadly in the next few months.

Instagram Takes Control of “Sensitive Content”

Instagram’s “policies” on nudity and sensitive content have long been debated and critiqued. There are entire Instagram communities (ironically, link may not be suitable for work) built on criticizing their removal of accounts who share content that could be seen as NSFW, while inexplicably leaving up other content that is definitely NSFW. In an apparent move forward, they’re adopting Facebook’s method of gating potentially inappropriate content with a “Sensitive Content” overlay. This puts the onus on users who may then click to see the photo, or just continue scrolling if they choose. While there are few implications for brands, I think this signifies an even stronger functional connection between some of the positive features of Facebook moving into their increasingly important Instagram network. Let’s just hope they don’t bring some of our least favorite features [cough…fan reach…cough]. They also released some additional security features, such as two-factor authentication, that may keep brand pages safe from hackers.

Your reward for reading through to the end? Our favorite Instagram Pet Influencers you should start following ASAP.

SYSK BLOG_Voicestorm Art



Ignite Social Media