Welcome back to the best part of your week, a brand new edition of Spark Bites! This week we’ll be covering “Facebook Dating,” how Snapchat and Instagram are getting into voting, and whether Snapchat is getting some knockoff Spectacles. Read on for all the latest social media updates!
- Looking for love hopefully just got a little easier. While Facebook launched Facebook Dating in September for Colombia, the social media juggernaut decided to bring it to Canada and Thailand with this update. The feature, which as of yet has no standalone app, will also have some new improvements. The first improvement is the ability to go back if you think you might have a been a little too hasty swiping right on a potential date. The second improvement is the option to “pause” your matching if you’ve found “the one.” I’m ready to find love, Facebook!
- This just in, Facebook is expanding their breaking news feature. The update will allow publishers to add a “breaking news” label to their posts. This label is an opportunity to get more people to engage with the content. It is also a way for Facebook to show you your news in a timely manner. This is great news for publishers who can now get their stories front and center on a very crowded platform.
Snapchat
- Snapchat wants your vote. Well, actually, they just want you to share you voted! During last week’s midterm elections Snapchat helped get the vote out by adding filters and polling locations. While the election is now over, we sincerely hope that with future elections Snapchat will continue to help spread the word and encourage its young userbase to go out and vote!
- Do Snapchat Spectacles have some competition? Chinese social media giant Tencent unveiled their own version of Snaps Spectacles this week with a lot of the same features. Rather than just being a cheap knock off, these glasses might just be the revival Snapchat needs. Tencent actually owns sizeable shares of the “camera” company and can really be the push to bring AR to Snap Spectacles. All I need to know is the price!
- Just like Snapchat, Instagram wants you to get out and vote! The picture sharing app added a plethora of stickers and filters to encourage people to share they went out and voted last week. Let’s keep this going for all future elections!
- Instagram is getting into the school spirit. The app is considering launching a feature that will allow schools to have their own stories that all students can contribute to! With this though, comes concerns of bullying. Instagram has said that the stories will be reviewed to ensure no bullying is being posted, which is easier said than done. Only time will tell if Instagram thinks school stories are worth the gamble for teen engagement.
- Reporting issues on Twitter has never been smooth sailing. Twitter hopes this new update will shed some light on past issues. Users will now be able to provide more details about issues they experience. People will also be able to report tweets with malicious links, spam and misuse of hashtags. Twitter is really trying hard to be an inclusive and safe social outlet. Kudos to them!
That’s all for this week’s social media updates. Thanks for reading and see you next week!
