Weekly Digital Breakdown – 6.20.19

Augmented Reality Enhances YouTube Engagement

This week, YouTube unveiled a way for viewers to have a more authentic interaction with influencer content and increase engagement. A ‘virtual try-on” feature now allows products to be tested through the mobile app with the help of augmented reality (AR). Users can then shop for the items via a link to the brand’s website.

By using their recently acquired Famebit, a platform that allows content creators to monetize their YouTube channels, the company is able to tap into brands and influencers and link products directly to their videos. With content creators having a loyal following, adding augmented reality promotes a stronger connection for viewers with trusted personalities.

While the feature appeals across verticals, initial efforts are concentrated on beauty brands, specifically MAC Cosmetics. With consumers becoming immune to traditional advertising, augmented reality allows for consumers to interact with brands in a unique and helpful way on their own terms. Initial testing produced staggering results with 30% of viewers trying on the virtual lipstick with an average of 80 seconds spent per viewer.  

YouTube will continue leveraging beauty brands for the foreseeable future. However, based on early results the company expects to roll out the offering across verticals later this year. As content creators continue to be eager to partner with brands, the unique experience will revolutionize the partnership with the platform.

https://adage.com/article/digital/youtube-rolls-out-augmented-reality-virtual-try-ons-makeup-brands-influencers/2179071

Snapchat Focuses On Trending Moments To Help Guide Advertisers

The key to engaging content on social media is capitalizing events in the world around you. While is sounds simple, deciding which events to include in your marketing efforts can sometimes be a struggle. To alleviate the stress, Snapchat has made keeping up with holidays, notable sporting events and other historically trending times incredibly easy with the publication of “Moments in Focus.” The newly released guide helps brands create Snap content and ads tailored around events with tips and insights to help foster success and capitalize on spikes in engagement.

For marketers looking to plan their Snap presence in advance, the guide is incredibly helpful. It will guide their efforts to not only plan their social campaigns, but also related advertising used to tie users back to Snapchat.  

What makes the guide unique?  Snapchat has gone the extra mile to breakdown platform statistics by month and event. Information includes; filters and lenses viewed during the event or date, stories posted, insider tips for connecting with users and associated mentions to include to boost content engagement.

While intended for Snapchat marketers, the guide can be leveraged across platforms to aid marketers in proactively planning their ongoing approach. It also can trigger creative ideas to relate to audiences they may not have considered such as incorporating related hashtags.

https://www.socialmediatoday.com/news/snapchat-publishes-new-guide-to-major-events-and-how-brands-can-tap-into-th/557043/

Gmail Gets A Dynamic Update

With many businesses turning to Gmail’s G Suite for their employees, the company is taking an additional steps to integrate their breadth of products. Beginning July 2nd, all domain and G Suite customers can dynamically interact directly in messages without having to move to another webpage.  This particularly comes in handy for collaboration projects hosted on Google products. For example, when a comment is added to documents such as Google Docs or Google Sheets and a user is tagged, they can reply within an email thread instead of opening an additional document, streamlining the process.

Dynamic email will not be limited to Google platforms. The partner list currently includes companies such as Pinterest, Freshworks, Booking.com and Nexxt, among others and is expected to grow. Beyond the Google suite, the new feature will allow users to respond to reservations or save ideas to Pinterest boards without leaving the email interface.

As online security remains a growing concern, Google requires all partner companies to register before being connected with the dynamic system. The goal is to prevent spammers from tricking users into replying to requests that are disguised as something else.

While the company did a soft launch in March, it will now be a default which users are eager to use. For those with multiple projects and contributors, it will save time and excessive tabs from cluttering up your desktop.

https://www.engadget.com/2019/06/10/gmail-amp-available-july-2/