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Friday Social: Snap-Cat, Instagram IRL and #RoyalBaby!

  • Social Media

Our #FridaySocial is a weekly round-up of the key social media news stories from the previous seven days.  Let us know your thoughts in the comments or via Twitter – @Umpf

TWITTER LAUNCHES EVENT PAGES FOR EPISODES

Whatever your taste in TV, we know that along with the colder seasons comes a whole host of shows to keep us entertained, and with the recent return of The Apprentice, Strictly Come Dancing and the Premier League, this year’s offerings have arrived right on time.

In celebration of the autumn TV season, Twitter has begun rolling out event pages related to popular shows in a bid to bring users who are watching live, together in one place. The pages go live 30 minutes before shows start and compile tweets and activity into one, easy-to-find location – like a big old group chat.

You may be thinking how is this different to simply following a show along with a hashtag? A Twitter spokesperson said that the page will pull together tweets relating to all things about the show such as related words and hashtags, as well as talent names and handles. The pages will also eliminate the need for people watching a show with multiple hashtags to change between the two, making it easier for people to follow the activity buzz.

Users will see links to the pages at the top of their timelines if they have previously expressed an interest in the series or they can search for the pages in the Explore tab. There is also a mute feature for avoiding spoilers.

SNAP-CAT

In other news Snapchat launched selfie filters specifically for cats this week for all of our feline friends.

They work just like the existing filters for humans and dogs and the new range includes glasses, flower crowns and wings.

You can tell which will work on cats as the filters have a pawprint icon on them.

Happy filtering!

LADBIBLE BUYS UNILAD

By now I’m sure you’ve heard about UniLad going into administration. It turns out that the company has now been bought by its online rival LadBible for an undisclosed sum.

Both companies are British and are the two biggest publishers on Facebook, making them larger than the likes of the BBC, CNN and The New York Times. This deal now makes LadBible the largest social video publisher ever with more than 120 million followers.

LadBible intends to keep UniLad as a separate business for the time being but its future will be laid out in an upcoming refresh of the company’s business model.

 

INSTAGRAM IRL

Earlier this year, Instagram began to allow brands to include shoppable links on their Stories and allowed business to use the app as a customer point of consideration before sale.

Earlier this month, Instagram brought this feature to life by launching a pop-up market in Covent Garden. Fashion, beauty and lifestyle brands, such as Never Fully Dressed and Oh Squirrel, which use Instagram as a commercial platform, gathered in the market for a real-life version of their Instagram Stories (a shop), where customers could browse and buy IRL instead of on their phones.

To see inside the pop up, click here.

#ROYALBABY

Unless you’ve been living under a rock this week, you’ll know that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, (Harry and Meghan), are expecting a baby in spring 2019.

As with all trending news, brands from all over the world took to social media to congratulate and celebrate. Here are some of our favourite posts: