- Today in Digital Marketing
- Posts
- Talk to the Hand
Talk to the Hand
Meta's new advertising feature lets you “pre-silence” the haters. The only real question is... why did it take so long?
by Tod Maffin and Steph Gunn
Today's News
Ad Campaigns Can Finally Go Comment-Free
At long last, Meta is letting brands turn off comments on ads from the get-go. Advertisers on Facebook and Instagram can now publish ads with comments disabled before the trolls arrive, something Reddit and TikTok marketers have been able to do for years.
The company announced several new brand safety controls for advertisers yesterday.
Turn off comments
First, Meta launched a live test that lets brands deactivate comments on ads before publishing during ad setup.
Previously, advertisers could only switch off comments on Facebook and Instagram campaigns after an ad was already running.
However, the new feature comes with limited options—you can either turn off comments entirely or leave them open to everyone, with no option to restrict comments to specific groups like followers.
And you can't play with it just yet... Meta says the feature is only available to "a limited number of businesses" for now.
Block specific profiles
Meta is also rolling out more ad placement controls.
Now, brands can block specific profiles on Instagram (and soon Facebook), preventing ads from being placed there. These are ads that show up when scrolling the personal profiles of people, not brand pages, on mobile — so this presumably is meant from brands to keep their ads from being associated with controversial figures.
Meta says businesses will be able to upload a list of any public profiles where they don’t want their ads to show.
Third-party filters step in
Meta is also adding support for third-party block lists for brands working with Meta Business Partners to ensure ads don’t appear in unsuitable content categories.
Finally, Meta is updating its Brand Safety and Suitability Center, giving brands more tools to control where and how their ads appear with an updated interface.
In 2017, Kendall Jenner starred in a Pepsi ad that was widely criticized for co-opting imagery from which social movement? |
🎁 Everyone who guesses will be entered in our monthly draw for a full year of our Premium Newsletter free!
PayPal Turns Buyer Data into Digital Ad Dollars
PayPal just jumped on the ad network train, joining the growing list of retailers cashing in on user data.
The company launched PayPal Ads yesterday, its new ad platform that turns consumer shopping data into targeted ads for brands across the U.S.
This new division, led by a former Uber and Amazon ad executive, will sell digital ads based on the shopping habits of its 400 million active users in the U.S.
From display to video
PayPal is currently selling display ads on its own properties, but plans to expand with video ads and self-serve options in the next year.
Ads on merchant sites coming soon
It will also begin selling ad placements on merchants' websites next year.
In one example, PayPal Ads could include ads on order confirmation pages after a purchase is made.
In another example, Paypal says it will use its data to help brands that sell items at multiple stores—like fashion brands— grow their sales at specific retailers. This could include advising brands on where to spend their ad money and which groups of shoppers to target for better results.
The company says it expects that performance advertisers will be among the first to use PayPal Ads, with branding-focused campaigns likely following as the platform introduces more ad formats.
DM-ing Your Way to Consumer Connection
Instagram is on the brink of rolling out a new WhatsApp sticker for Stories to hopefully spark DM conversations — which could help brands drive connection with users in the messaging app.
This sticker will be available to businesses that have linked their WhatsApp Business accounts to Instagram, letting them prompt users to chat via DM.
That could be valuable, because both WhatsApp and DM connection are on the rise in most regions.
WhatsApp in particular has seen a big surge in the U.S. of late, as more people look to engage within private chats, as opposed to posting their updates in public.
... Instagram chief Adam Mosseri has noted several times that people now share a lot more in their DMs and Stories than they do to the main feed.
That’s been a significant paradigm shift for online interaction, and now, brands are working to find new ways to maximize connection in line with these trends.
Instagram is currently testing the new WhatsApp sticker with select users.
The Sky Is Bluer on The Other Side
As Meta tries to boost its DM game, Bluesky is capitalizing on the growing frustration among Threads users.
Bluesky, the decentralized platform and Threads competitor, now lets users pin posts to the top of their profile, apply language filters, and customize fonts and text sizes.
Bluesky
The platform announced these new features on the Threads account it created yesterday.
Seizing the moment
The move comes as Threads users voice concerns over excessive engagement-bait posts and reports of inaccurate moderation decisions, prompting many to seek alternatives.
In response, Bluesky, the company "not owned by a billionaire" is hoping to lure these frustrated Threads users to switch platforms.
New features
The update also includes some quality-of-life improvements like swiping to delete DM conversations, sharing videos directly from the camera roll, and muting specific words in notifications and search results.
Version 1.92 of the Bluesky app is rolling out now.
Follow us on Bluesky at @[email protected]
X Sidesteps EU Tech Regulations
X is dodging a regulatory bullet.
The European Commission ruled this week that X, formerly Twitter, isn’t important enough to be considered a “gatekeeper" platform under the Digital Markets Act, sparing it from strict regulations.
Under the EU Digital Markets Act (DMA), platforms designated as gatekeepers must let third party systems inter-operate with their services, let business users access their data, and provide ad performance info for independent verification.
It’s intended to promote fair competition in the market, preventing dominant platforms from overshadowing smaller players.
Following its investigation, the European Commission determined that X does not meet the criteria necessary for gatekeeper status.
Which is no doubt a relief to Elon and Co. because of these additional obligations. But still, that also means that EU officials have decided that X simply doesn’t hold the market power or influence to require additional safeguards.
In order to qualify as a gatekeeper platform, EU officials need to determine that the company:
- Has a significant impact on the internal market
- Provides an important gateway for business users to reach end users
- Holds an entrenched and durable market position
X, according to EU investigators, doesn’t meet these thresholds.
Which means, really, that EU officials simply don’t see X as being a key player in the European market.
TikTok Kicks Off Holiday Season with New Promotion
As we head into the holiday marketing season, TikTok has launched a new “Fall Deals For You” promotion this week to push more in-stream shopping.
Throughout October, the platform will offer discounts on thousands of trending products from a range of big brands, like Phillips, Dyson, and Keurig on TikTok Shop.
TikTok is also hosting several live shopping events where consumers can get discounts from popular brands.
Building momentum for in-app shopping
This campaign hopes to build momentum for TikTok’s in-app shopping push, which remains a key part of its plan to boost revenue.
This strategy has already proven effective in China, where in-stream sales have become the primary revenue driver for the app.
NOTE: Monday is Canadian thanksgiving, so we’ll see you Tuesday.
- 30 -
Upgrade Your Media Buying Skills:¹ | Tools We Use and Recommend:¹ ¹ Some links provide affiliate revenue |
Reply