Check out this week’s summary of all the latest social media news, including changes and new features for Facebook, Twitter and Instagram:
- Facebook puts its web feed in motion with auto-playing videos – shortly after rolling out auto-playing videos to mobile users, they’ve now arrived on Facebook.com (TechCrunch)
- Facebook’s new offline sales measurement trick could make ad clicks obsolete – retailers using Facebook’s Custom Audience campaigns can now measure their offline sales; previously, offline conversion measurement was only available for advertisers working with a Facebook measurement partner (TechCrunch)
- Twitter launches broad match for keywords, lets advertisers target synonyms, different spellings, and tweet lingo – Twitter’s new broad match feature helps advertisers find consumers who are having conversations that include both keywords and related terms (The Next Web)
- Photos in direct messages and swipe between timelines – Twitter users can now send and receive photos through direct messages, and swipe back and forth between timelines (Twitter blog)
- Twitter Mirror: celebrities’ new publicity machine – Twitter introduced “Mirror,” a tablet in filigree frame to be placed backstage at awards shows and in talk-show greenrooms, where celebs can take photos and then send them out via the event’s Twitter feed (WSJ)
- Twitter retracts changes to blocking policy – Twitter changed its blocking policy so that users you blocked could still see your tweets and follow you; after a massive outcry, Twitter reverted back to the original policy (Information Week)
- Twitter tests new “Nearby” feature to surface local tweets from those around you – Twitter is testing a new service that displays geographically local tweets to users – even if the user is not following the person who posted the tweet (TechCrunch)
- Twitter MoPub opens up native advertising – Twitter’s mobile advertising exchange is now allowing its thousands of mobile app publishers to use native advertising (WSJ)
- Twitter tries to get your attention (with push notifications) – Twitter is testing push notifications to users about what TV shows your friends are talking about (AllThingsD)
- Instagram introduces Instagram Direct – last week Instagram introduced private photo-sharing, video-sharing and messaging (Techcrunch)
Any social media updates that we missed? Let us know in the comments below!
