New social media features and updates to know this week

Welcome back! From major updates to shifts to longer-form video to minor tweaks, this week’s social media updates have it all.

LinkedIn

LinkedIn is pivoting to video. Sort of.

The business-focused social network is currently beta testing a dedicated video feed, Lindsey Gamble reported. It appears this will likely focus primarily on short-form video, a la TikTok and Reels, and offer a new chance for professionals to showcase their skills and expertise, should it gain wide release. This could become a critical personal and employer branding tool in the future.

LinkedIn is also rolling out new dynamic UTM codes, which will automatically add UTM codes across campaigns – a big win for time savings and analytics. They’re also finally enabling Messaging on all company Pages – a long-awaited move.

X

X is making a series of seemingly Elon Musk-led decisions, which should make things interesting. These range from the ho-hum to the eyebrow raising.

• Add 256 members to a DM group chat.
• Filter jobs posted to the platform.

Here’s where things start to get interesting.

• X is seemingly closing the door on allowing users to include their pronouns in their profiles by removing back-end code that would have allowed their display, Social Media Today The option was never rolled out fully, but was in the works when Musk, who has repeatedly expressed anti-trans viewpoints, purchased the network. Pronoun options are common on other social networks, but seemingly won’t be on X.
• Bloomberg reported that X is allowing users to join groups and communities based on adult content. While some users might covet this, it does raise brand safety concerns about a platform where there were already plenty of worries on that front.
• Finally, Musk tweeted that X users who have more than 2,500 followers who subscribe to X Premium will get the service for free; those with more than 5,000 Premium followers will get Premium+ for free. This all continues to muddy and confuse what the blue check on the platform means. But hey, you might get some extra tools for free.

Instagram

Instagram is testing and rolling out a variety of new features.

• Blends, still in testing, would create a combined feed for two people based on Reels they’ve shared with each other. Think of it as an algorithm built for two. They’re private and you can leave at any time.
• You may soon be able to specify which photo in a carousel you’re commenting on by including @ followed by the photo number. It’s a handy little idea to make commenting clearer, though this is still in testing.
• Available now, tapping on a hashtag in Instagram will take you to a full search results page, rather than Top Posts. The goal, according to Instagram head Adam Mosseri, is to make “it easier to find accounts and posts that are relevant to your search.”
• Once again following in TikTok’s footsteps, Instagram is allowing some users to post videos up to three minutes long. It’s part of a continuing shift from micro video to just short video.

TikTok

Speaking of TikTok, which is still allowed in the United States for the moment, the platform is releasing new subscriber perks. Among the new benefits are the ability to give someone a role in a Discord server, live shoutouts, priority comment responses and more.

TikTok is also continuing to beef up its ecommerce branch with new options for ads on the TikTok Shop. These include easier advertising onboarding, the ability to surface ads in search and a new carousel format.

Finally, the app formally rolled out its Creator Rewards Program to incentivize certain behavior and content from influencers. These include an emphasis on originality, play duration, audience engagement and search value.

Snap

Snapchat is also incorporating longer videos – up to three minutes in general or five minutes for Chats, Stories and Spotlights. New template options also make adding audio to videos easier. Finally, new editing tools will allow for faster creation.

And, in an intriguing move for brands, you’ll now be able to sponsor augmented reality filters.

YouTube

YouTube, also looking to beef up subscriber benefits, is now allowing channel owners to create Shorts just for subscribers. These can also later be turned public, allowing for a sneak-peek vibe.

The platform is also rolling out even more analytics, continuing to deliver more and more granular insights. Creators can now see audience segments like new versus returning viewers. Page owners can also now fully curate the For You tab on their page, including only surfacing recent content.

Last but certainly not least, YouTube is now requiring creators to check a box indicating when elements of their video are realistic AI generated artifacts that could be confused for real footage. They are not required to disclose when something is obviously fantastical or animated. Make sure you’re following this rule closely.

Threads

Threads is continuing to dabble in the open-source internet by making posts available in the “fediverse,” a network of social networks that use Activity-Pub compliant servers. This will allow easy cross-posting from Threads to platforms like Mastodon, WordPress and more.

Mark Zuckerberg also announced that you can make your Threads experience more like Tinder by swiping to the side to indicate you like or don’t like a post to improve your algorithm.

Which of these updates has you the most excited?

Allison Carter is editor-in-chief of PR Daily. Follow her on Twitter or LinkedIn.