2017 Immediate Future

Archive: 2022

Some time ago, I wrote an article about Facebook launching Messenger 2.0 bringing group bots and a lot of cool updates to the platform. It is now returning with an updated 2.1 version that comes along with some updates that will please brands and marketers! For this new version,…

Time flies in social media, believe it or not it’s already time to wish Instagram Stories a happy first birthday. A whole year since the launch of Facebook’s first foray into Snapchat territory which inspired so very many knock-offs. We have recently asked if there is a place for so…

If there was an update we didn’t really need on Facebook – it would be Facebook Stories. Like Instagram, the addition sits very obviously at the top of your mobile feed. Yet, nobody seems to actually be using it, and it remains permanently empty. (Seriously, apart from that one friend…

Earlier this week it was announced that Reddit, the social network that only a few of your outlier friends hang out on, had raised $200 million in new venture funding. That means that it is now valued at $1.8 billion according to CEO Steve Huffman. Now, that’s…

With news that WhatsApp Status has 250M daily users, and that Facebook is allowing users to share their Stories publicly, I’m beginning to wonder if there’s enough room in our busy lives for all of these Stories apps? And precisely which platform should I pick to share the intricacies of…

Will copywriters remain part of the digital furniture, or be chucked out? Copywriting obviously needs a degree of intelligence. Hell, maybe not even a university degree, but a sound knowledge & understanding of language, with an embedded personal style that’s flexible enough to adapt to business needs. As copywriters, we’re supposed…

A recent survey compiled by Statista showed that Facebook is still reigning supreme over the social media-sphere – with its monthly views sitting comfortably ahead of the competition. 706 million view’s worth of comfortable to be precise. And it’s not just Facebook. Whatsapp…

It really is a constant battle between Instagram and Snapchat, but maybe, just maybe, it’s finally a little clearer which Stories your brand should stick with….for now! Firstly, Snapchat’s growth has slowed since Instagram Stories launched last August. There’s also been a 15 to 40% drop in the…

Here’s a great example of a social media channel listening to the needs of businesses today! Finally, we are able to see if our content works, measure the brand’s organic presence and optimise accordingly, all within the Instagram app. Since the introduction of business accounts last year, the new development…

It’s time for the summer holidays here in the UK which means we are weeks away from the second most wonderful time of the year; back to school and you can almost hear the sound of retailers, advertisers and marketers up and down the country clicking launch on campaigns designed…

Lead generation through social? The whole point is to drive revenue and hit that C-suite spot. Do it, measure it properly, and you can challenge with conviction at how effective it is, for those that are sceptical. There’s a divide of those that do, and those that don’t…

With Facebook & Twitter’s Q2 results looming this week, we’re predicting the future! We expect healthy results for Facebook, who have talked the talk & walked the walk when it comes to their new product offering. On the other hand, Snapchat still lag behind as their main focus…

How do you take your news? Rolling in the morning on BBC? Heading straight to your favourite news site? In your hands with the ink leaving smudges? The days of exclusively consuming your news from the TV or a newspaper are dwindling for all age groups, no matter the preference.

The online consumption of Sports Online sports viewing has been growing significantly and as consumer attention gets scattered across multiple platforms and devices, it is interesting to understand what major marketing players are doing to follow suit. Trends A positive problem? Opportunities arise for advertisers as a need for engaging…

I am not, nor have I ever been on Tinder – which is some kind of a miracle for a person my age. (Don’t worry though, I lost my Tinder-ginity playing around with my colleague’s profile, and now it’s a regular pub past-time. I think I’m very good at it.

Millennial’s always want more. If you think something is new and upcoming, millennials are already ten steps ahead. With this in mind, they are also avid users of social media. However, it’s much more complicated than we think to reach them and keep up with what they want. Not only…

Have you considered using LinkedIn for talent development and enhancing your business brand? Yep, without doubt, it used to be the place you’d go to find a job but that’s not quite the case these days. At its inception, LinkedIn delivered a clear offering to its users. If you wanted…

We’ve heard on the grapevine that Facebook is making some significant changes to its Custom Audience feature, a brilliant way to re-target users who’ve interacted with brands in some way. Although it’s only in testing at the moment, you could soon be able to create a custom audience based on…

‘All the world’s a social media platform…’ The internet has been called an unregulated Wild West, a digital playground, a threat to society, and more. Realistically, it’s taken 25 years to grow into something that we simply can’t live without. We live our lives on there, and it’s an extension…

There are a million and one blogs out there that talk about how to write great content, and while some have valid points, there’s one thing they tend to miss. Great content comes first and foremost, from passion. Great content can’t be made to fit an audience. It can’t come…

It’s time we talked about the mediocrity of social media. Brands that are filling the noisy, noisy, world of social with average content for the sake of being social. It’s been an issue that has been creeping up on us for some time, but it is reaching silly proportions now.

There’s a bit of head-scratching going on in marketing around social selling. You know, that way of using social media to leverage your prospects, build relationships (like the real world), improve and discover new sales. The confusion arises from trying to answer a simple question: Does your organisation have an…

Are you one of those people that likes to pre-plan their Instagram feed and make sure it looks exactly the way you want it to? Then it’s your lucky day! If you curate your Insta feed, then you’ve most probably heard of Later; it’s a visual Instagram…

Chatbots are gradually climbing the ladder of popularity, providing brands with huge potential. Wondering what chatbots can do? Brands have the opportunity to have millions of simultaneous one-on-one conversations with fans without damaging the user experience. The masters of storytelling, Disney, Universal and Lionsgate are all proof that content and…

The race to first place between Snapchat and Instagram is fiercer than ever as Instagram has just launched another Snap-inspired update that let users reply to a Story with a photo or a video. But, our favourite ghost hasn’t surrendered just yet and has launched some new features of its…

We’re behind the scenes at #FujitsuWorldTour. In this rendition of #60secondsocial we’re highlighting the importance of capturing great video content on social. We highlight that planning is extremely beneficial; storyboards are key. Similarly, the best audio and lighting you can get your hands on is of utmost importance.

Networking? Take it from no signal to five bars. Now we’re talking. I’m very new to the networking scene, and it’s very daunting in principle, but like tackling anything new, you can prepare by doing research, research, research. I’ve collated some top tips to use at networking event– impeccable timing…

Facebook’s been busy trying to conquer everything and everyone it seems in the last 7 days taking on everyone from Netflix, Google and Internet service providers. As well as updating its core platform and back end metrics all in the aim to diversify and improve its product offering. Check…

In this week’s #60secondsocial, and throughout this week, we’ll be giving you insight into how you can create world-class video content on social media. We highlight how there’s more to video creation than just a good camera – lighting and audio both have equally as big an impact…

Facebook have made some great strides in their battle against fake news and now they are renewing their efforts in the war on spam too. The social giant announced updates to the news feed algorithm which should limit the reach of spammy content shared by profiles which frequently post large…

Instagram has noticed a strange phenomenon lately. People have started to create small, private accounts, so that they can share pictures with only a select cluster of friends rather than all their followers. In response, the platform (who’s smashing it lately, right?) has created a solution in the form of…

We’ve always loved watching moving images. From the ancient zoetrope to retina-scorching 3D on a massive screen. The development of the moving image has been swift and rapid. One medium in particular looked to kill of cinema and rule the home roost. At one point, it looked like the ubiquity…

After months and months of speculation, our predictions in IF Towers have finally come true and Facebook has uncovered secrets about its TV ambitions. Earlier this year, when Facebook began testing in-stream video ads in non-Live broadcasts, and at the same time changed their newsfeed algorithm to benefit some longer…

Millennials in the morning – It’s a new dawn I was lucky enough to recently attend a GA morning creative session They’re ‘a pioneer in education and career transformation, specialising in today’s most in-demand skills’. Perfect for somebody like me that’s worked in education, is a creative, works in…

With more than 300 million monthly active users, this week Twitter has launched its biggest redesign in years, including round profile photos, live engagement updates, and speech bubbles instead of arrows. Additionally, it’s now much easier to operate on multiple platforms. Whilst we’re loving the…

In a constant bid to compete, the social channels are constantly innovating, finding new ways to keep our eyes firmly glued to our screens. In many cases, this has meant a series of copycat announcements (*cough* Snapstagram). In others though, the developments mean more invasion into our personal lives, and…

It’s been a while since I’ve written about the ad blocking war that is being fought between advertisers and consumers. Every time advertisers find a way to get behind ad blocking enemy lines, ad blocking companies tinker around with a little bit of code and instantly launch a counter attack.

I guess it’s been a long time coming, but Twitter has had a bit of a facelift. Its latest update, rolling out to iOS, Android and web users, is mostly cosmetic and cuts out the clutter of the old interface. The redesign comes after Twitter’s struggle…

We’re talking about bots a lot, and that’s because we really really like them! But somehow, people don’t always get why they are so amazing…so, I thought we would take a minute to give you 5 reasons why you should be using chatbots on Facebook messenger J Facebook Messenger has…

Lost for words? Using emojis in your marketing campaigns has now become the secret ingredient to success. Yes, we are now seeing emojis daily in all social media activity, it’s the talk of the town! Yet, only a few brands have yet successfully included emojis in their Facebook marketing campaigns.

This week we’ve got all the latest on Facebook and Snapchat’s new ad platform updates & features. Facebook’s new tools, value optimisation and value based lookalike audiences will optimise and add value to your ads. Snapchat have added a self-serve ad platform to their website, where you can…

Nowadays, influencer marketing is playing a major role in brand marketing. It’s not a fad or a passing trend, it’s here to stay. From micro influencers, to stars with millions of followers, brands are investing a lot of money to place their products with the right people, and…

The following blog will focus on a few of the latest features Facebook has launched: GIF button to comments: Ever since we saw the first GIF’s on Facebook almost two years ago, we have always wanted to be able to seamlessly use them across the platform. A dream come true…

Facebook did it, now Snapchat have made the financially lucrative choice to make their ads platform more accessible to small and medium enterprises. As the paid media specialist at immediate future, I have been waiting to sink my teeth into this new proposition since I wrote my first blog about…

Twitter, in partnership with MAGNA, recently announced the results of a scientific media trial examining the location of video ads within a social environment. This was called The Art of the Takeover: Optimizing What Consumers See First. The study was designed to test and formulate best practices for in-feed advertising, while at the…

If you’ve gone to the effort of planning an online or even offline event, then you’re going to want the result to be a fantastic experience for everyone involved. It may seem obvious, but by breaking the planning into into pre-, during and post- event, you’ll be better able to…

Who won this year’s election on social media? In this week’s rendition of #60secondsocial we’re focusing on how the use of social media listening in this year’s general election meant the campaign parties were able to pull out vital insights on their key audiences. For Labour this lead…

In April, Snapchat announced it was rolling out Snap-to store – a set of tools and analytics designed to help marketers track whether their Snap ads campaigns actually drove people to a specific location. Here is the diagram provided by Snapchat to explain how Snap-to-Store works: Snapchat has…

Here at IF Towers there are some older dads in the mix. Yep, there’s traditional dad stuff like photos on desks, and dad jokes flying around, but as is our business, we’re living and breathing social. It’s not the sole preserve of the young. We invented it doncha know! So,…

In a blog and a video yesterday Facebook’s Public Policy Research Manager, Molly Jackman, announced the social giant’s latest steps into using its powers for good. Its new initiative opens up its location data to disaster relief organisations, allowing them to see real-time information and track the extent of a…

As time spent social networking per day continues to climb (now standing at over two hours), networkers have been presented an ever-expanding choice of content to engage with. Cutting through this noise demands compelling content, and social’s ability to allow brands a way of associating themselves with…

These looping clips have come a long way since their creation 30 years ago. And it isn’t just the 18-25 year olds who are obsessed with video and GIF sharing; everyone else has jumped on the bandwagon too. Whether you love them or fear their infantilising impact on language, it’s…

This week in #60secondsocial we’re discussing how the role of paid media has, and will continue to rise. However, the misconceptions around the role of paid media are still heavily in debate. We reinforce the importance of paid modelling to ensure you’re targeting, and reaching,…

Instagram is so close from becoming the ultimate marketing machine, there’s just one thing missing…web links. The social media platform has launched multiple updates over the last year and the latest takes a…

Facebook’s ‘trending’ section has undergone a renovation this week. When you select a trending story, the new carousel format allows you to access a variety of different news articles and posts that other Facebook users have written on one story. The old format just directed you to one single news…

So, how do the best online brands create a loyal customer base, turn them into advocates and shift the power in their hands to attract new customers? The answer is UGC- user-generated content, often referred to as earned media. This is any content that an organisation doesn’t truly have complete control over.

From Cali to Canada! Our MD, Colin Jacobs, is in Ontario in Canada this week for the final preparation of #ProjectCirrus. The cloud cover may be low, but spirits are high in anticipation of Fraser’s approaching wingsuit jump. Here is a full update on Project…

Pre-planning is absolutely vital to effective social media before, during, and after a live event. The recent evolution of live social has led to a mass increase in live video streaming and events are a huge part of that. According to…

Facebook wants you to never leave the platform, and it’s working really hard towards this goal. From TripAdvisor-style travel recommendations with City Guides to helping with your dating life thanks to Discover People (and I am not even going to mention all the features directly copied from Snapchat), you have…

It’s against best practice guidelines to start with a negative, but I’ve never been one for rules and taking lessons from the mistakes of others. Had I done so, then I would have found a tropical island to live and go fishing around, as an old man once advised me.

It may be a small dopamine rush when you get more invites on LinkedIn than an A-lister to a fabulous party, but is it just a vanity numbers game, or are you actually using it to find people outside your existing professional network for job hunts, lead generation or promotion?…

Our MD, Colin Jacobs, is in Davis, California this week for #ProjectCirrus. Ray Bans and all, here he is congratulating our very own Tajah Brown for her nomination in this year’s B2B Marketing’s Rising Star/Newcomer of the year category. Click here…

With the Snapchat-esque feature updates rolling in seemingly every couple of weeks from Instagram, it was only a matter of time before they went for the big one – and they finally have. In their latest update, Snapchat rolled out Face Filters – i.e. Snapchat lenses. It’s hard to ignore…

5 years ago, a lot of people argued that brands should be on every major social media platform: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, LinkedIn, Tumblr. Now we’re wondering… was this such a great idea? Well, all things considered, probably not! Let’s look at how everybody spits out content online: news, press…

In a bid to be a step ahead of Facebook, Snapchat has announced three new ad products, adding to the already trending lenses and geofilters. As Snap Inc. missed the expectations for its first quarterly earnings last week, it’s really not surprising that the pressure is on when it comes…

Measuring the success of a social media campaign has become more and more sophisticated, it’s not just about the traction on social media, but also the next steps to site side. Gone are the days when a website and social media was simply there to look great. Today, websites and…

Last week, I attended The Drum’s Future of Marketing Awards at the America Square Conference Centre in London. In keeping with my social mind-set, I chose to attend the following sessions; ‘The Future of Content’, The Future of Social, and ‘The Future of Personalisation.’ To give you an insight into the day, and a…

Last week marked the release of Snapchat’s quarterly results; in #60secondsocial we discuss what these results mean for their future and question whether their new features will be enough to expand their demographic and weather Facebook’s storm. Snapchat are reliant on their youth demographic,…

Want to join a Facebook group in the not so distant future? Well, get ready for a quiz. But why? I hear you ask. Well, Facebook is ramping up its admin tools to help admins certify users that seek access to join their group. To access this new feature group admins…

Following Snap Inc’s first quarterly earnings report on Thursday there has been a lot of speculation around the apps battle against copycats such as Instagram Stories, WhatsApp Status and to an extent Facebook live. Two of the operational highlights of Snaps Q1 report below paint…

Snapchat already has a variety of advertising formats available: sponsored geofilters, sponsored lenses and Snap ads, but up until recently you needed a big advertising budget to be able to use them (you needed to invest at least $10,000 for an ad campaign on the platform) Then, late last December,…

The mobile phone has been a ubiquitous part of everyday life for over two decades now. Let’s pause to think about that because it’s something we’ve taken for granted. When you leave the house, the one thing you’re most likely to turn back for if you’ve forgotten it, is your…

Ahead of its first quarter results announcement on Thursday, we’re taking a look at Snap’s history and most memorable moments: 2011: Stanford beginnings – Chances are you didn’t know about it then, but Snapchat launched in September 2011 and quickly grew its user base amongst university and high school students. In…

This week marks the annual RBTE event in London, where retail organisations come together to find the right tools & innovations to improve their business. Social media will no doubt feature, particularly with recent developments on platforms that integrate digital stores with their physical counterparts.

Today’s a very chatty Snapchatty kind of day. The internet is awash with stories and speculation about the rise and potential future of the fun messaging application after its first set of results as a public company are released. One of the biggest considerations is their hot…

Brands can now turn social into sales on Instagram, and more interestingly (for me, anyway) Snapchat, without having to leave the platforms, thanks to MikMak Attach. Users simply swipe up from the Instagram Story or Snap ad to add the item to their cart. They can…

Social and mobile go together like Instagram and food porn. They are a match made in marketing heaven. Why? Because for every waking moment, consumers seem surgically attached to their phones. And according to the latest research, when it comes to social media, 80% of folk now access social via…

Whether or not you have embraced emoijs in your social media, it is undeniable that these pictograms have become a legitimate communication tool. They can convey an emotion and express thoughts visually. They add an additional level of context, in fewer characters. They’re fun, sometimes a bit silly, and you can…

B2B marketers, meet your new best friend, LinkedIn Matched Audiences! The new feature includes three new targeting capabilities; website retargeting, account targeting and contact targeting. The new targeting options are similar to that of Facebook’s custom audiences, and Twitter’s tailored audiences, but will they prove…

Do you ever find yourself describing a funny video you watched days ago and not quiet getting it right? The most annoying thing is forgetting the name all together! Tumblr has the answer with its new app called Cabana. Cabana allows groups of friends to video chat and watch videos…

I’m writing this blog whilst in-flight, on my way to Athens, to present a keynote at Social Media Conference 17 – #SMC17gr. As with all good keynote speakers, my aim is to strike a balance between inspiration and relevant insight. All too often, shared case studies are limited to brands…

Facebook is mixing things up and exploring avenues to make businesses and publishers pages more interactive, with the addition of moving cover images. Well, first of all, I am just glad I am not writing a blog on the topic of…

Earlier this week, LinkedIn announced it has hit the 500 million user mark, with users from 200 different countries. Although this is modest in comparison to the extensive growth Facebook & Snapchat see, LinkedIn is still undoubtedly one of the best professional platforms, with 10 million active job listings and…

Daaaaaamn Facebook! Back at it again with copying Snapchat! That’s right! It had been a good week since someone got all up in Snapchat’s business, so it’s lucky Facebook stepped up with its latest announcement to keep them on their toes. This one may give the ghost a run for its…

This week’s #60secondsocial focuses in on the recent Facebook F8 Developer Conference with developers and businesses. Tune in to find out how Facebook’s taking ‘What’s on your mind?’ to a whole new level with their neural interface development, the addition of their new digital assistant ‘M’,…

Creating a social media marketing strategy and not sure where to start? Just what are your goals and objectives? What is it that you want your social media to do for you? As soon as you have worked that out, you’ll then need to do it is determine what your…

You like them or you hate them (here, we like them… a lot!). Bots have their usefulness, particularly because they are so good at repetitive tasks and let us – humans – focus on more advanced work. And the truth is, even if you’re not using them in your company,…

Not content with stealing Snapchat’s thunder, it looks like Instagram’s set to take on Pinterest with its new Collections feature. Since last year, you’ve had the ability to save or bookmark any photo or video on Instagram that you want to look at again, but this feature seems…

Is Snapchat changing the future of retail? In this week’s #60secondsocial we’re focusing on how Snapchat are succeeding at marrying social engagement to in venue traffic, particularly with their recent geo-filter for fast food chain, Wendy’s. Find out more about the geo-filter that 80% of Snap-chatters…

Reporting back to senior management with low conversion rates can become the bane of one’s life. And then to top it off, you are probably working extremely hard to persuade for more budget towards your social campaigns. It’s 2017, and you shouldn’t have to battle to prove the success rates…

Video is playing an ever important role in marketing and challenging brands to be responsive to the fast-changing environment. While businesses start to realise the importance of social video, making matters complicated for video marketers is that different social media platforms have unique features, requirements and…

I don’t know about you but I am tired of writing and especially reading, blogs with the same narrative, but here I am doing it again. Instagram has copied Snapchat… and if I had a penny for every time I have read about this topic I would have at least…

Cast your mind back to the hazy days of June 2016 and you might remember that Facebook announced something very exciting at Vidcon – the ability to livestream with a friend on a split screen broadcast. Almost a year later, some different iterations along the way in the Mentions app…

What a huge week for social! This week we’re talking Facebook’s new AI-powered digital assistant, Twitter losing live streaming, and the ASA banned Instagram blogger. We also highlight the importance of an in-depth understanding of paid social, as it continues to make an impact on the…

Years ago, when immediate future first started, we talked a lot about social being the oil in the engine. The same is still true today. Social works at its best when integrated into marketing machine: amplifying and enhancing performance both within social and across all your marketing and sales activity.

Way back in the the halcyon days of 2014 we had high hopes about the fledgling social network Ello an ad-free alternative to the established Facebooks and Twitters of the social world, but, alas it never really took off as much as we hoped. But now the creators of the ill-fated…

Do you remember how I was banging on about a pair of shoes and how Pinterest now lets you shop from pictures about a month ago? (if you don’t here is the post) Well, now, shoppable videos are coming to Facebook and Twitter but maybe not just as you…

So April has arrived, and with it a day when we stop bashing ‘fake news’, and instead celebrate it, and the other witty and, in some cases, heart-stopping ways that our friends and loved ones make April Fools of us all. Not to mention, the brands that get in on…

Missing your fill of paid media gossip? In this week’s #60secondsocial we’re focusing on the ongoing battle between Facebook, Snapchat and Instagram, specifically where paid media is concerned. Snapchat has well and truly caught up with Twitter, but will it have a chance going against Facebook? Since Snapchat launched…