So-Called Social: Week of April 30 – Info UI

It’s nearly the weekend and I’m readyyyyy. This week, we’ve got unskippable ads, appreciating our teachers, a sorta-fit spokesguy, and more. Check it all out below.

Social nets update stuff

Hmm. Unskippable, six-second video ads are coming to Snapchat, and I’m just not sure how I feel about it. The platform has always been reluctant to force advertising on its users, but I’m thinking that since it hasn’t been doing so well… they’re going to give it a shot. The new ad format is going to be called Commercials (yup), and will run in select Snapchat Shows and not in Snapchat’s magazine-style Discover editions or users’ personal stories. The test will start mid-May.

Snapchat has introduced a new type of augmented-reality-enhanced interactive lens, called Snappables. Users can select to play games with friends and can control these lenses with motion, touch, and facial expressions. Shared AR experiences — fascinating.

Get ready to shop the ‘gram. Instagram just stealthily added a native payments feature to its app for some users. It lets you register a debit or credit card as part of a profile, set up a security pin, then start buying things without ever leaving Instagram. This could be pretty big considering you won’t have to leave for a separate website to purchase something.

Adobe does stuff

This week, we launched our first ever Digital Dollar! It’s a new quarterly report that shares year-round real-time online consumer spending, leveraging Adobe Analytics. In addition to retail spending, the Digital Dollar also includes an evolution of the Digital Price Index debuted in 2014, that looks at online inflation and deflation. Help us spread the word!

It’s almost Teacher Appreciation Day (May 8) and we want to help you thank the educators who have had an impact on you or your student’s life. Adobe created three thank you card templates — you can personalize an animation in Photoshop, add a special message to a digital card in Adobe Illustrator, or remix an Adobe Spark template. Email them, share them on social with #CreateEdu, or even go old school and print them out.

In case you missed our Think Tank on Monday, be sure to check out the on-demand video. We also hosted 20 interviews at the AI Conference, so head over to the Document Cloud and Adobe Facebook pages to see some more bite-sized brilliance on AI.

Other brands do stuff

Vitaminwater is cracking me up with this “Sorta-Fit Spokesguy” campaign. Basically telling people it’s okay to be “sorta fit.” It’s right in-line with Vitaminwater Active’s 2017 launch, championed as “the sports drink for the rest of us.” With the brand’s new “Sorta-Fit Sportsguy” campaign, the message stays on target for the product — not taking itself too seriously while encouraging consumers to have fun with fitness.

Oscar Mayer has launched a bacon-based cryptocurrency, aptly named Bacoin. Essentially a giveaway with a varying prize value, Bacoin puts a fun branded twist on the roller coaster of cryptocurrencies. The value of a Bacoin is based on the number of times it’s been shared on social media, encouraging those who sign up for Bacoin to give it a short-term boost by talking about it endlessly. Which is what cryptocurrency is all about, right?

Vogue is experimenting with a new Instagram strategy, and I’m digging it. The newly created @vogue Instagram account focuses on a community of up-and-coming creative talent, such as model and artist Richie Shazam and fashion illustrator Maria Saporito. The experimental account is separate from its US @voguemagazine profile and is dedicated to community-focused storytelling.

Interesting stuff

Amid all the news of Facebook’s scandals, Instagram has remained relatively unscathed. Why? The short answer is that FB did a stellar job keeping Instagram separate — different look and feel, unique functionality, no big changes (other than algorithmically), etc. I’m sure Zuck is feeling pretty smart about that one right now.

Fun stuff