There have been many updates to Instagram in the last few months. These changes, along with major updates on other platforms are impacting not only social media strategies, but also potentially SEO.
In October, Google announced that the Google+ platform will begin to shut down over the next 10 months. By August 2019, the platform won’t be accessible anymore for personal users. Google is keeping the intra-company corporate network alive, but other than that, the platform will be gone by August.
Users will have the chance to download and migrate their data from Google+. Standby for instructions from Google on how to do this in the coming months.
What does this mean for SEO? Google hasn’t released any information yet, but we do know that +1’s received on content improves the SEO for the webpage. This means we can anticipate negative effects in SEO for pages that have historically had traction on Google+.
Google+ wasn’t a frontrunner on social by any means, but the loss of a big name like this is sure to bring about some changes for sites that were well-integrated with Google’s social system.
Okay, now on to some of the more lighthearted updates. Keep reading for new updates and features from Facebook and Instagram.
New Instagram Features: New Shopping Features
Now, new shopping features are available both on stories and in the “explore” section of Instagram.
Brands can now tag products featured in their Facebook catalog on their Instagram stories. This is done through the use of shopping stickers placed in a brand’s story that a user can click to see the price and product description of the item, or to visit the product page directly from Instagram.
Shoppable items are also now visible in the explore page to help users find popular items.
New Instagram Features: Name Tags
Instagram launched a new “name tags” feature which allows users to create personalized name tags that can be scanned by another user that will prompt them to follow you. Much like a QR code or the snapchat nametags, this feature is a great new way to prompt people to follow your account.
New Instagram Features: Longer Stories
As of a recent update, you can now add longer video content to Instagram stories. Now, stories can be uploaded for up to one minute at a time instead of 15 seconds at a time.
Videos can still be broken up into 15 second chunks, though. This way, if you upload a one-minute video, followers can still tap through it 15 seconds at a time. Because of this, tapping through stories will feel pretty much just like it always has.
New Facebook Features: New Ad Features
Facebook ads are continuing to update, and now include many options that make ads more appealing to consumers. New features such as customizable holiday templates, a Facebook video creation kit, and a special upgrade to collection ads that will allow customers to see a personalized storefront and recommended items.
When using ever-changing platforms to market your business and represent your brand, keeping up with the changes is the key to using them well. Strategies have to change just as much as the platforms do. Brands need to take advantage of new opportunities that make sense for their audience and brand personality.
Keeping up with updates isn’t always about staying trendy, it’s about adjusting your strategy so you can make the most of your presence on social. Contact us at Nice Branding Agency and let our team mastermind your social strategy into a powerful representation of your brand.
