We’re starting 2024 off with a bang. Instagram has answered some of your top questions, including whether reach and engagement will get better in 2024. TikTok have dropped a 2024 marketing calendar to help businesses get ahead of their content planning. And both apps continue to battle each other by testing out fun new features. We can’t wait to see how you use them!

TikTok drops their 2024 marketing calendar

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TikTok spotted testing a new AI generate images by using words or topics feature

In an update nobody asked for, TikTok has been spotted testing a new AI generate images by using words or topics feature. We’re not sure this is an update the app needed, given they’ve recently announced that they’ll be requiring creators to declare when content has been created by AI. But hey, maybe it’ll bring out a whole new age of creativity like we’ve never seen before!

TikTok announces 30 minute videos

TikTok sent out this notification over the holidays, announcing the release of 30 minute videos. We’re yet to see these in action, but given how much it struggles to get videos over 5 minutes out of processing, we’re sceptical.

Head of Instagram answers Q&A “will reach get better in 2024?”

Adam Mosseri, Head of Instagram, went live on Instagram over the weekend and answered two major questions that we know you all want the answers to:

Will engagement and reach continue to decrease in 2024?

His answer? Vague at best. It’s the stock standard “it depends”. According to Mosseri, “reach will increase for some people and decrease for others, that’s always how it goes”. He also said the goal is to “connect people with content that they’re interested in“.

So long story short, create good content that interests your audience = get more engagement = increase your reach.

But he did mention that what your audience is in interested will continue to change, so he suggested trying new things to stay fresh and engaging!

What’s coming for Instagram that you’re most excited for?

He’s basically said he can’t share (boo). But he’s wanting Instagram to be a more social place, and for people to connect over creativity. It looks like the focus will be on sharing content more seamlessly (we suspect across platforms – which Zuck has expressed in the past).

Could it be this test to add notes to posts? My Spidey senses are tingling.

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Instagram spotted testing public “collections” feature

All Social Media Managers as know and LOVE the “collections” feature that Instagram gave us years ago. The ability to save content into collections is genius and makes content creation oh so easy. But it looks like in this recent test spotted by App Researcher Alessandro Paluzzi, Instagram might be taking it public by allowing users to pin collections to their profile. TikTok already has this option, so it’s not a huge surprise that Instagram would adopt it too. But we’re here for it.

How we’d use this feature:

• Showcase your own series (no more searching for each part, put them all together for easy binging!)
• Categorise recommended services or products (e.g. Summer faves)
• Show off hot offers (e.g. a quick spot to find all of your most relevant offers to snap up)
• Save inspiration for your clients (Interior designers could use this to spark inspiration and encourage enquiry!)

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Are Instagram going public with share counts?

Adweek shared this screenshot of one of their public posts that displays their insights for all to see. The interesting metric that’s popped up is the Shares count, which wasn’t previously visible. We know Instagram are prioritising sharable content, so it looks like this could be another little hint that brands should be focusing on content that will be shared to stories or directly to DMs.

Can’t wait to see if this rolls out.

Well, it was pretty quiet this break. But we’re pretty excited about what’s to come for 2024. As always, we’ll keep you posted! Feel free to sign up for our monthly summary here so you never miss the best updates.

XOXO

OMD SQUAD