Vanity Metrics #9
The Rise of Digital Campfires and the end of HQ.
It’s a long weekend for we socialism-loving Canadians, so maybe don’t read this until you’re back at work Tuesday. Give your mind a break! Let’s get to it (in a few days).
The Big Stuff
image: mmuffin for MetroUK
The decline of “mass social” has begun.
The way younger generations are using social media to connect is changing. A lot. A recently-released study by Edison Research and Triton Digital shows a surprising shift in usage statistics. Among people 12-34, daily time spent on major social platforms basically plateaued four years ago, and has remained flat, or declined, ever since. In particular, and perhaps not shocking, younger users have seriously given up their newsfeeds. The flood of negative messaging, unrelenting brand posts and the exhaustion of maintaining a curated online persona has the new generation tuning out completely.
“…social media can feel like a crowded airport terminal where everyone is allowed, but no one feels particularly excited to be there.” - Sara Wilson, The Era of Antisocial Media (HBR)
That’s not to say phone usage or time spent online has declined, but it’s the way GenZ users are approaching app time that’s moved: away from how we would think to approach social users as a brand strategy. In Sara Wilson’s new piece in the Havard Business Review, The Era of Antisocial Media (which I highly recommend you find 5 minutes to read), she outlines how users are shifting to “Digital Campfires”: groups away from the open forum style of newsfeeds and public posts, to connecting in private, intimate and honest platforms. Here are a few examples:
Message Apps. 40% of UK users under 30 reported they only use Facebook to access Messenger. It’s a place away from brands, where many feel they can speak openly. In response, Instagram has recently launched Threads, a new app designed to allow users to message and share with just their “close friends” list.
Micro-Communities. The wild success of Facebook Groups is an example of how micro-communities offer a more private place to talk about shared interests with limited brand interaction. Platforms like Reddit, Slack, and Discord have also seen functionally leveraged for small-scale forums moderated and populated by like-minded users. Micro-Influencers have also begun to use options like responding to fans with “close friends” options and interacting more within their YouTube comments.
Shared Experience. Kids are using Fortnite as a social platform. That’s right. With more than 8 million users online at any time, young people are using it to catch up with friends while they play. Staged events, like EDM musician Marshmello’s live concert, or Disney’s in-game Star Wars event for Rise of The Skywalker brought tens of millions of users together for one shared experience. Twitch is also another powerful platform allowing similar open-yet-intimate shared experiences in real-time.
“Today we already see that private messaging, ephemeral stories, and small groups are by far the fastest-growing areas of online communication,” - Mark Zuckerberg, 2019
The key to the game in 2020 is to pay attention. A lot of brand strategy seems to have regressed back to broadcast: one-way messaging that leverages ad spend to reach people. That work is bouncing off the walls instead of landing with audiences. I don’t think you need to throw everything out and start over, but understanding how the next generation of social media users are finding value in platforms and approaching them on their own terms is an invaluable exercise everyone needs to undertake. Shouting at bots is a waste of money.
The Small Stuff
For a hot second, HQ Trivia was the biggest thing on social, and one of the most successful standalone social apps out there. No more. After just three years, HQ officially went off the air on Friday, citing a lack of funds and a failed acquisition deal.
Instagram now attracts more ad dollars from top brands than Facebook. No surprise there, as Instagram is racking up 25% of the company’s revenue per quarter now, and Stories ad spend is up 40% over last year.
Another big redesign is coming to Snap, focusing on a new “Snap Map”, original content and breaking news.
Image: Casey Newton via The Verge.
Regulators are getting serious about Influencer marketing practices. In the US, the FTC is looking to boost fines for brands and influencers that don’t disclose when posts are ads, and The Candian Competition Bureau has issued over 100 warning letters to brands to get in line or face serious fines.
Ad inserts are coming to IGTV as the platform keeps trying to give the format a lifeline and compete with the upcoming and well-funded Quibi platform.
Twitter looks to be tweaking it’s new sharing restrictions, but in name only. Concerns still persist that allowing public figures to broadcast announcements without any commentary is anti-democratic.
In-app video editing is coming to Instagram Stories
US Politicians are using Influencers and meme accounts to skirt election regulations and platform rules, and Facebook moved swiftly to accommodate rather than regulate. Update: Bloomberg apparently offered influencers $150/post to get into his ill-fated meme campaign.
Instagram may or may not be working on a new feature to “what you’ve missed while you were away”. Could this feature be the way to satisfy a return to a chronological newsfeed? Keep an eye on this one (link to thread in image).
Bonus for your phonus
We’re always on the hunt for good ear candy, so if anyone has podcast recommendations that dovetail into the work I do here, please throw it up in the comments!
Geekout with Matt Navarra wraps another season with Snap UK’s General Manager, Ed Couchman. Ed talks about the next phase of Snap and how brands can start to use features they may not know of. Check it out.
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Ryan LaFlamme has worked in social media marketing and advertising for longer than the job had a title. He formed the independent social consultancy Hub and Spoke in 2016, and can be found hanging out on Twitter @ryanlaf Now accepting new clients and speaking engagements.