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With new features abound, there are plenty of options for creativity to shine through in 2018.
2017 gave us plenty of new features that content creators can take advantage of for Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. Included in that were the expanded character limit for Twitter, the “tweetstorm” feature, Instagram introducing cohosts for live streams, and a multitude of additions to Facebook’s functionality.
Some of those may be especially useful for sports marketing professionals, and some…well, may not be. As the year comes to a close, plenty of those marketers already have their wish lists for next year’s round of updates to the three biggest social networks.
In order to get a better grasp of what those are, I talked to a few digital professionals from around the industry to get a sense of what would be effective potential features for Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.
For starters, Tweetdeck has been a great tool over the years for scheduling tweets and monitoring multiple Twitter accounts. But what if Instagram and and Facebook had something similar to that?
“It would be great to have an app management tool (similar to Tweetdeck) that was native to each platform”, states Joe Centeno, art director of Team Infographics. “Taking that one step further would be an application that would allow you to post, schedule, etc. across multiple platforms and have full control over the content being posted.”
Something such as this would certainly help streamline certain aspects of a social media manager’s job. In an industry where timing is everything, the importance of the ability to save time can’t be understated. Someone who can relate to this sentiment is Kristina Nauman, Associate Director of Social Media for Penn State University (PSU) athletics.
Nauman has a few ideas to further help streamline the process of managing a Twitter presence for an athletic department.
“I’d love to see improved creative features in-platform and on the mobile apps. Currently, if I want to treat a photo or edit a video, I need to work through multiple programs before being able to upload the final, branded product to social. An in-app creative studio with developed editing features (I’m talking more than just filters) would be huge.”
Nauman also believes that vertical still image previews would make the Twitter experience better from a marketer’s perspective.
“This is mobile-first and gives designers more creative flexibility; it’s a win-win.”
Another common want in terms of Twitter is an edit button, but it may be a while before we see that as some users have wanted that feature from the vey beginning. But with Instagram, former Phoenix Suns social media manager and current columnist Greg Esposito has some thoughts on how to make the platform a better experience for creators and fans.
“I’d love to see Instagram Stories allow longer video clips to allow for more experimentation and creating of actual shows. Instagram in general needs to either get rid of the algorithm or add an option where you can get things in chronological order. I’m sick and tired of seeing team’s quarter score updates three days later.”
Justin Karp, former social media director for the Pac-12 Network, thinks Instagram stories have room for improvement as well, but moreso in the analytics department.
“ While Facebook, in tandem with IG, have made big strides in being able to acquire baseline KPIs and audience insights. I’d love to see more. Video viewership is booming, as is consumption of Stories content. Something we can export and dig into that includes impressions and video viewership a la Facebook would be fantastic.”
Meanwhile, with Facebook, there’s one classic feature that Esposito believes it may be time to do away with.
“As for Facebook, I badly want an explanation as to why there has been and still is a ‘poke’ function? I can’t reach two thirds of the people organically who reach my page but I can push a button to easily annoy someone, what’s the point?”
We may see these potential features come to fruition, or we may not. But if you’re a digital marketer, part of your New Year’s resolution should be to keep a close eye on coming changes to social platforms and adjust your strategy accordingly.
What are some features that you’re hoping to see added to your favorite social media platform in 2018? Let us know on Twitter @frntofficesport.
Front Office Sports is a leading multi-platform publication and industry resource that covers the intersection of business and sports.
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