Facebook has merged two of its most treasured efforts: Instant Articles and Messenger. Soon, Messenger users will begin to see a lightning bolt on the top right corner of select links shared in the popular app. These indicate that the link is an Instant Article. “Currently, links shared via Messenger load in a mobile browser, […]
With users’ privacy in mind, Facebook is testing the ability to create one-to-one “secret conversations” in Messenger that will be end-to-end encrypted. Plus, Facebook is promising that these clandestine conversations can only be read on the mobile device of the intended receiver. “That means the messages are intended just for you and the other person […]
The Straight Outta Compton mobile app, which allows users to modify the Straight Outta Compton Logo to fit their own hometown, won the mobile category’s gold award at the 2016 Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity. To promote Universal Pictures‘ film about Dr. Dre’s life, Beats by Dre partnered with R/GA Hustle of Los Angeles […]
Hashtags for Life, a social media campaign to help expand the Red Cross‘ donor database in Peru, won the mobile category’s gold award at the 2016 Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity. With a population of over 30 million people, and yet only 1250 registered blood donors, Peru faced a potential catastrophe incase of emergency. […]
2016’s back-to-school shopping seems to have parents spending more on mobile—and more overall. According to the results of a survey released today by Rubicon project, more than a third of parents have already begun shopping for the fall, spending an average of $917 per child. Parents of college freshmen are spending even more than that—more […]
Bank customers may soon be able to exchange money on social media on Facebook or Twitter. Following a trial in Singapore in 2017, the service would allow people to wire money by selecting their Facebook or Twitter account instead of entering a bank account number and sort code. The service will bring together 20 banks to allow […]
The new account linking feature would allow customers to link, for example, their account with a book retailer to the brand chatbot. The chatbot can then suggest new books based on what the customer has purchased before. The feature is opt-in. Although Facebook doesn’t mention consumers going on to make a purchase, there are retailers already […]
A user who searches for the club on Messenger and subscribes to its updates can follow news about transfers, new manager Pep Guardiola and what other social media users are saying. As well as news, the bot will push out photos, behind-the-scenes videos, phone wallpapers and match highlights. Unlike more customer service-oriented bots from retail […]
Instagram‘s long-awaited algorithm has finally started rolling out, and food influencers and sites that built their brands on the Facebook-owned app are already feeling the squeeze and moving to Snapchat. Food photography—think pictures of perfectly-styled plates and overhead shots of meals—has long been one of the most popular categories on Instagram. Now that Instagram is […]
Starbucks is inviting Facebook users to find out which iced coffee drink best suits their lifestyle, reflecting a resurgence in popularity for mobile-optimized personality quizzes as consumers seek out quick hits of entertainment. The coffee giant is sponsoring ads on Facebook to promote its newest mobile quiz, which consists of eight summer-themed questions designed to […]