Things are always changing, that is something most social media users notice almost every time they log onto their favorite platforms. Lucky for us, using new features helps us grow on social media, as the platform has invested time and money into building these new features, they often incentivise early adopters of the feature. This means if you’re quick to jump on a new feature, the platform may give your post higher reach or share it closer to the top of the feed in hopes to spread the word about their new feature.
Retailers do not need to know and keep up with every update, as it can be a full-time job (mine!), so allow me to recap the latest new features on social media:
Ai Tool on Instagram Stories
Many platforms are racing to create a way to integrate and use AI on their platforms. From the Magic Studio on Canva, AI Chats in Meta, and using ChatGPT to generate social media ideas, there are plenty of ways to post. A great entry-way to immediately use AI in social media is to use the new AI sticker in Instagram Stories. You can find it by creating a Story and then going to the engagement sticker (that looks like a smiley-face post-it icon) and then choosing the “AI Stickers” engagement sticker.
Using these stickers is like generating your own unique GIF that no one else has used before. You can enter as many prompts as you need until you find the sticker you had in mind. Try a variety of adjectives and nouns, such as “Fluffy Pink Open Sign” to find a unique and fun way to use a new feature and engage with your audience. Here are a few AI Sticker prompts to try:
- Shop Small (insert business category)
- Person walking into a (insert business category) store
- Santa’s sleigh being pulled by (insert your pet breed)
- (Insert store category) inside of a snow globe
- (Insert perfect customer group) shopping at a local store
Turn your Highlights into a Reel
Stories on Instagram are fun 24-hour and full screen pieces of content that appear around the ring of your profile. This is a great place to use engagement stickers, show off your BTS moments, be more silly and candid, and practice showing your face and personality online if you’re not ready to face the feed yet.
There’s a new feature that allows you to create a Reel out of your highlight, allowing you to cement your Stories into your feed! You can do this by holding down on the highlight circle with one finger until a menu pops up. Choose the option “Convert to Reel”, and then edit the Reel as a normal video from there.
Threads: Voice To Text on the Threads App
We are currently seeing quite a few new updates in Threads (one of the latest social media platforms from Meta), from glitch fixes to Threads being recommended on Instagram. One of my favorite updates that makes social media creation just that much easier is the Voice Note and Voice to Text feature in the platform.
You can now record a voice message in Threads and the app will translate the message and write the Thread for you. This gives the viewer the choice to listen to the message or read it based on their preferences. I’m already loving this feature as it saves me time, and helps me quickly get a message out there. Need some ideas for what to post on Threads:
- Updated store hours with seasonal emojis
- Customer testimonials
- Announce event dates and details
- Tell a joke, and post the followup/answer in a reply
- Product updates (Ex: We’re currently watching the delivery truck back into the driveway! New items coming soon!)
- Fun Facts about your location/state/products/team
What I Want You To Take Away From This Blog:
- Use new features to grow your engagement and get on the algorithm’s good side
- Implement AI to create fun and unique content
- Bring your Highlights to your feed by converting your highlight to a Reel
- Add more personality and new ways to engage to your Threads with Voice Notes
Okay, over to you…
Do not fret if you cannot find one of the features listed above. New features get released in batches, so be sure to keep updating your social media apps in the app store to get the latest features when they’re available to you.
In the meantime, tell us, which prompt are you going to try first using the AI Stickers?
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