Elon Musk should be worrying less about tackling Mark Zuckerberg in a fist fight and focus more on the corporate warfare the latter’s company just declared with its fresh Threads platform.

The two social media magnates have been posturing online as proficient fighters recently, leading Musk to issue an invitation to a “cage match”, but Zuckerberg has just struck a major blow of a different kind.

A new Meta app should be Musk’s primary concern.

So what is Threads?

Threads is a sudden challenger for the established micro-blogging platform Twitter, as Meta finally takes on its oldest rival. It launched 6 July to the general public in 100 countries after allowing influencers and brands a head start of two days to provide an initial wave of content.

The new “text-based conversation app” as Instagram have labelled it shares a design ethos with Twitter. Many of Twitter’s features can be found on the new app, including tweets as “threads” and retweets as “reposts”. The feed is a recognisable combination of follower content and recommendations. 

Posts can contain up to 500 characters and can include links, photos and carousels of up to ten images, and even videos up to five minutes.

The rollout does not yet include EU countries though the company is working on launching in that region at a later date. There is also no current advertising compatibility, with Instagram having no plans to integrate sponsors this year.

An Instagram twist on tweeting

Threads comes strongly from the Instagram side of Meta’s portfolio, not as a standalone product. Users are invited to port across their profile and followers, with Meta seemingly trying to kickstart user networks. One welcome screen says the app is “Powered by Instagram” and promises future compatibility with other services.

The official account for Threads, @threadapp, so far has one post.

“You found us! If you’ve used Instagram, parts of this app probably feel familiar,” it reads, making no mention of a more similar service. “We’re here to foster a positive and creative space for you to express your ideas. This time, it’s all about conversation.”

Much like the early days of Instagram, at this point there is no browser version of the social media platform. ‘Threads.net’ simply hosts an interactive deconstruction of its logo, with a QR code to download the app.

Twitter troubles

Elon Musk took over Twitter in 2022 and ever since the company has been battling controversies. In November it introduced a fee for verification and let go of the majority of its workforce, reportedly dropping from 7500 employees to less than 2900.

Recently, new limits on the amount of Tweets a user can see each day were introduced that give premium users 10,000 and regular users only 1000, and Tweets became inaccessible for those without an account.

It could be the final straw for advertisers, and users are fed up with the inconsistency. ‘Delete Twitter’ searches skyrocketed.

An empire with sights set on monopoly

Threads is not the first platform to try and capitalise on the instability at Twitter. Mastodon launched in 2016 and was well positioned to attract former tweeters as they fled last year, but after a promising start it failed to sustain momentum and in 2023 its user base has even contracted.

So why is Threads any different? Well if there’s any company capable of supplanting the competition it’s Meta.

In its early days Facebook took on MySpace and won, before spending big to fend off its own challengers through major acquisitions of Instagram and WhatsApp. In recent years it has taken to integrating features of other social media sites into its own platforms.

As many of the blackout protests wind down on Reddit, the damage is becoming clear.

Major protests have recently taken over much of the community-driven social media platform, as moderators decided to protest against recently announced changes to Reddit’s application programming interface, or API.

Major price increases for third-party applications cast the continued existence of such programs into doubt. The creator of Apollo, one of the most popular applications, announced that its new annual operating cost of US$20 million would be impossible to maintain.

In protest, over 6600 subreddits blocked public access in June, hoping that Reddit would scrap the imminent update. Many of these communities have since come back online, and the company did not give in.

Significant drops across the board

Research from Similarweb shows that the number of Reddit visits dropped within a day of protests starting, down 7 percent on June 13 compared to a typical day earlier in the year.

During the protests the average visit duration fell by 16 percent, from eight minutes 40 seconds down to seven minutes 16 seconds. After many of the subreddits came back online this time recovered somewhat to just over eight minutes, but it still represents an overall decline of 7 percent from May.

Reddit has been suffering from a drop in popularity since before any changes to service were announced, declining on a year-over-year basis since mid-2021. In the month prior to all the uproar, traffic was already down 8.7 percent.

Creative Reddit protests with staying power

Even after most subreddits returned to business as usual within a week, some communities continued protesting by replacing their fundamental subjects with new topics.

Major image sharing subreddits r/pics, r/gifs and r/aww transformed into places exclusively dedicated to the worship of comedian and television host John Oliver, while the community page for Australia’s second largest city became full of the alligators and sandy shores of Melbourne, Florida.

John Loves a good red!
by u/MutthaFuzza in gifs

Evocative lighting and sensual poses seem typical for any brand selling sex, and overall the marketing of condoms seems to really involve building a mood.

So why has a recent series of Durex ads featured bright graphics and rubber ducks? Well if you know you know, the company says on each Instagram post. The new campaign is a reactive partnership between Durex and marketing agency MRM that comes hot on the heels of a minor update to Apple’s autocorrect software. 

After more than a decade of either annoying or amusing its user base, Apple has finally announced the removal of a particular autocorrection that surely has been its most prevalent. The f-word will no longer be changed to duck.

It’s a busy time for Apple, with this update merely an afterthought in a schedule of announcements. The showstopper is its Vision Pro augmented reality headset, and for those willing to pay a premium it holds innovative potential. 

The end of an autocorrect cultural phenomenon

“In those moments where you just want to type a ducking word, well, the keyboard will learn it, too,” Apple software boss Craig Federighi announced at its recent developer’s conference. 

And so this notorious correction is no more.

Durex is making the most of its last opportunity with this pun, pushing the joke to its limit by posting a series of rubber-duck themed content across its social pages.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Durex USA (@durex_usa)

From “down to duck” to “duck buddies”, this sexualisation of a bath toy may be a new and surprising context for many consumers, but the rubber connection and impeccable haste in following the announcement gives the campaign a hefty punch.

There is a discount on offer of 15 percent for the social media users whose eyes were caught by the campaign, with the code “DOWNTODUCK”.

A new report into social media marketing reveals contrasting realities for various platforms. Instagram dominates investment optimism, while alarm bells should be sounding at the offices of one particular platform. How can this platform continue to boost ROI for marketers?

HubSpot surveyed 1283 social media marketers and hundreds of US users for its  ‘Global Social Media Trends Report’, and the result is a comprehensive analysis of the trends of 2023. 

Despite harsh economic conditions, times do not seem tough for the industry as a whole with over 90 percent of marketers confident that their social media investments will result in a positive return.

All focus is on video platforms

One specific type of content seems to be driving marketing interest like nothing else: short-form video. The HubSpot report shows that marketers are three times more likely to invest in short-form videos than any other platform.

It is now the most popular format with users, alongside generating the highest ROI, so Instagram’s Reels feature is attracting marketer interest above all else. More than half of all marketers using Instagram plan to invest further in the platform this year.

“You don’t need expensive full-studio production to be hip right now,” says Justin Pohl, HubSpot associate marketing manager, content and social strategy. “Your smartphone, a sense of humour, and a call-to-action might be all it takes to create the perfect video for your brand.”

It is then no surprise that TikTok and YouTube, other platforms known for similar formats, are also having valuable years. Marketers have strong interest in further investment in both channels.

Twitter continues to tumble – ROI falls with it

After all the turmoil at Twitter since Elon Musk took control and overhauled just about everything, marketers are down on the platform.

Twitter now trails instagram, Facebook, YouTube, TikTok and LinkedIn in both perceived potential for marketing ROI and potential audience growth for brands, with only 6 percent of marketers considering it best for each category.

Only 5 percent of influencer marketers have Twitter included in their plans for the rest of the year.

Find the full ‘Global Social Media Trends Report’ here on HubSpot’s website.

Despite the economic slowdown and reviewed marketing budgets, influencers can breathe a sigh of relief that their industry is not showing signs of slowing down in 2023, at least according to HypeAuditor.

The platform, which helps marketers discover and analyse influencers on YouTube and Instagram, expects that brands will continue to invest in influencer marketing in the year ahead.

What exactly will that look like? Which direction will the influencer marketing industry go in 2023? 

Here are HypeAuditor’s top four predictions:

1. The evolution of the influencer marketing industry and what the economic slowdown means for the sector 

While overall marketing budgets may be revised downward, brands are likely to invest more in their partnerships with influencers to reduce their overall marketing costs. The reason is that influencer content is the cheapest form of branded content.  

As a result of this shift in priorities and this greater focus on influencer marketing, Hypeauditor is also expecting that brands will increasingly move their activities with influencers in-house. Instead of focusing solely on one-off sponsored posts, as this has often been the case over the years, marketers will be encouraged to put their influencer marketing strategy at the centre of their overall objectives. There are multiple reasons for this, but essentially it comes down to ensuring the success of influencer marketing campaigns.  

Indeed, with consumers increasingly tightening their purse strings in the face of higher costs of living, marketers will need to ensure that their collaborations with influencers remain relevant to them. 

But aspirational content from influencers is likely to continue to attract a wide audience on social media. According to HypeAuditor data, lifestyle related posts, for instance, tend to attract the most engagement from users in terms of likes and comments on Instagram. The engagement rate for this category is higher than average. 

Despite the bleak economic context, consumers are in fact more likely to welcome sponsored posts for temporary escapism, offering an excellent opportunity for brands to connect with their audiences.  

2. Gaming Influencers gain momentum 

Gaming influencers are a rapidly growing segment of influencers, globally, with a large audience on most social media platforms. They can range from skilled players who stream their gameplaying to millions of fans to professional video game players who compete in the up-and-coming esports space.  

Gaming influencers are more accessible than they may seem at first glance. Their fans not only follow them for their high-level video game skills, but also for the tight-knit sense of community they have built both with the influencer and fellow fans. 

This phenomenon is also encouraged by the legitimacy esport has gained. Overall, esport is estimated to grow at least another billion by 2025. Thanks to funds from advertising and sponsorships, prize money at national and international competitions has become significant, for example, the International 10 hosted by Valve, offered $40 million in pooled prize money.   

Marketers will increasingly prioritise partnerships with gaming influencers, even if no obvious direct ties to the gaming community exist. While the gamers’ main platform might be Twitch or a similar streaming service, they often have a following on other social media platforms, such as Instagram. For instance, Samsung, Red Bull, and even Hershey are some of the brands that already have partnerships with Ninja, a top gaming streamer on Twitch. In 2023, more brands are expected to follow this path.   

3. TikTok and Instagram’s reign continues

Two platforms remain the leading ones for brands when it comes to influencer marketing: Instagram and TikTok. Instagram’s reputation remains undisputed when it comes to influencer marketing. It continues to offer brands the most potential for their influencer marketing strategy.  

But competition remains sharp with the ever-growing popularity of TikTok among Gen Z. TikTok’s continuous hype comes down to the many opportunities for influencers and users to express themselves creatively. 

For a long time, marketers have understood the potential for these two platforms to authentically connect with their target audiences. But in the next year, they will increasingly adapt and diversify their marketing strategy to the specifics of these two platforms to fully reap the benefits they offer.  

On Instagram, for example, the number of followers an influencer has remains a key metric to evaluate their popularity, however brands need to continue to be mindful of bots and inauthentic accounts before agreeing to any partnerships. According to HypeAuditor data, only 60 per cent of accounts on Instagram are estimated to be owned by real people. 

Short format videos are the most successful on this platform as they effectively catch the short attention spans of audiences across all demographics. 

TikTok ticks differently: on this platform, marketers should prioritise creative and entertaining content to generate the most engagement. The focus is more on the content rather than the influencer. “Authenticity” is in the foreground at TikTok, which is why nano- and micro-influencers are increasingly taking the reins.  

4. The advantage of live shopping 

Recently, live shopping has gained momentum and Hypeauditor expects retailers to increasingly prioritise live shopping in the year ahead. 

Hypeauditor says it’s a “necessity” to provide a seamless omnichannel experience and adaptability of traditional retail features on social media platforms. TikTok and Instagram do provide good creation tools that retailers can rely on, but they also need to ensure an optimised integration with their own website. 

It’s great to attract new customers in addition to the ones already retained in their website, but this also means retailers will need to be able to handle the increase (sometimes quite substantial) in numbers of users and generated orders. Scalability needs to be at the heart of their live shopping strategy. 

Finally, companies will also need to make internal adjustments in terms of how they work transversally with their colleagues. Sales teams will need to be even more integrated with marketing teams in order to ensure the success of their live shopping strategy.  

If retailers manage to achieve all this, live shopping is bound to turn into a major source of revenue for them in 2023. 

TikTok has released its international charts of popular content from 2022 this week and now it is zooming in on the moments that defined Australian internet culture.

Pictured: Daen Lia of Daen’s Kitchen.

TikTok’s annual wrap-up offers an interesting exercise in cross-cultural comparison. What do our memorable TikTok moments say about our values and attention span? Which content transcends borders, and which is uniquely Australian? Are we really that different from the USA?

“2022 was a year like no other, and we are so proud of the Aussies on TikTok who have shared their talents, their laughs and their life hacks with us all this year,” says TikTok Australia and New Zealand’s general manager, Lee Hunter.

“From businesses finding new ways to reach their audiences, to creators around the country connecting within their diverse and unique communities, it has been another unforgettable Year on TikTok.”

Buckle in, here’s the full list of Australia’s favourite TikTok moments from 2022:

Trending videos

Popular videos from ‘For You’ feeds in 2022.

1. @howridiculous Extreme balloon popping
2. @swag.on.the.beat Do Americans really understand us?
3. @katrina_ashleighh What’s so funny about a tortilla?
4. @robertirwin Robert Irwin rescues a tough blue tongue lizard

Music

Songs that soundtracked 2022.

1. L$d – Luclover, @cas.___.
2. Ginseng Strip 2002 – Yung Lean, @chloebunny_.
3. About Damn Time – Lizzo, @nathanlust.
4. As It Was – Harry Styles, @emhodder.
5. Running Up That Hill (A Deal With God) – Kate Bush, @zach_mander.

The hitmakers

Some of our own are among the artists who captured Aussie ears, and eyes, with the most video views throughout 2022.

1. @deanlewis 
2. @peachprc 
3. @thekidlaroi 
4. @clintonkane 
5. @joelsvnny 

Breakthrough Australian creators

In Australia, home cooks and stuntmen made their mark on TikTok.

1. @andy_cooks 
2. @lukeandsassyscott 
3. @unicewani 
4. @howridiculous 
5. @jimmyjan 

Communities

There’s a safe space out there for our coffee snobs.

1. #BookTok – @pretty.bookish 
2. #LawnTok – @aussieacrebros
3. #aboriginaltiktok – @raintreeart 
4. #PetsofTikTok – @caiqueing.withus
5.  #CoffeeTok – @goldenbrown.coffee

FoodTok 

What were our foodies drooling over this year?

1. @effectivespaces Sushi
2. @musclehoney Honey fresh off the comb
3. @daenskitchen The humble eggs and avocado
4. @andy_cooks DIY fish and chips
5. @lukefalzon Some Aussie survival skills 

Tutorials

What life hacks did TikTok teach us?

1. @madsie.s How to make a brownie in 45 seconds
2. @drkarl What happens when you hold in a fart? Dr Karl fills us in
3. @coincollecting_detecting Everything you need to know to spot a rare coin 
4. @nickkdempsey Learn a bit more about life with quadriplegia 
5. @oneminmicro What does tap water look like under a microscope? 

#TikTokMadeMeBuyIt Products

Popular trends inspired by brands in 2022.

1. @mymessymonster 
2. @theladcollective 
3. @thelazydoor 
4. @waggsandbone 
5. @hangeasy 

TikTok Australia has partnered with the Melanoma Institute Australia (MIA) to inspire Gen Zs to lose the tan this summer.

Melanoma is often referred to as ‘Australia’s national cancer’ as we have the highest rates of this skin cancer in the world, along with New Zealand.

One Australian dies from melanoma every six hours and it’s the most common cancer for Australians aged 20 to 39, according to the MIA.

To raise awareness about melanoma among this younger cohort, the institute has partnered with TikTok for an anti-tanning campaign via TBWA.

Kicking off today, the first day of summer, ‘Tanning. That’s Cooked’ will see popular Aussie TikTok creators call out the behaviour of tanning. Their short-form video content, which TikTok will actively promote to 20- to 39-year-olds, will use humour to highlight not just the dangers of lying in the sun, but the absurdity of the act itself.

“Tanning is actually skin cells in trauma. There is no safe way of sun tanning,” says MIA CEO Matthew Browne. 

“We encourage people to seek shade.”

Choosing the right platform for younger Australians

It’s not quite a nude Bondi beach campaign photographed by Spencer Tunick for skin cancer awareness, as we saw over the weekend. But TikTok was the “right partner” to help deliver the MIA’s message to young Australians, says Browne. 

TBWA’s chief creative officer Evan Roberts agrees.

“We believe this peer-to-peer approach to highlighting the absurdity of tanning is the key to changing those perceptions,” says Roberts.

According to TikTok’s general manager Brett Armstrong, research shows humour works with this young demographic rather than serious health messages.

“The campaign is inviting TikTok creators to use humour to throw shade at tanning in their own authentic way, helping spread the word and change the behaviour this summer,” he says.

Cultural change and damage control

TikTok was apparently motivated to launch this campaign having seen how the app can “drive cultural change with younger demographics” through previous campaigns with the United Nations and Movember. 

To take this further, it is kicking off the TikTok for Good Launchpad in 2023. This initiative will help not-for-profit organisations and their creative partners get corporate social responsibility campaigns off the ground.

But with ‘Tanning. That’s Cooked’, TikTok might be putting out some of its own fires.

Every day, it seems like a dangerous new trend goes viral on TikTok. Sunburn challenges and sunbed spruiking garnered criticism from the MIA in just the last few months.

“A ‘sunburnt tanlines’ stream on TikTok had more than 200 million views, predominantly teens and young adults showing short videos of their red raw burns,” MIA co-director Professor Georgina Long said in an address to the National Press Club in September.

The MIA co-directors put a call out to social media platforms to work with them to change the cultural narratives around sunburn and tanning – and TikTok has answered.

As part of ‘Tanning. That’s Cooked’, TikTok will ban the #sunburn challenge and the #tanning challenge. Both will feature a pop-up link to Melanoma Institute Australia to educate its community.

“Our medical directors put out a plea about the urgent need to stop the glamourisation of tanning, to save young lives, and we are delighted TikTok provided its support, led by our creative partner, TBWA,” says Browne.