TikTok Introduces Sounds for Business…

TikTok recently announced Sounds for Business, a new collection of sounds designed to help small businesses create quick and engaging content creation.

The templates offer a mix of music, voice-overs, and other sounds in partnership with Elias Audio Branding, a subsidiary of Universal Production Music. The sounds are cleared for commercial use on TikTok, so businesses do not have to obtain licenses of their own.

“Sounds for Business are designed to help small businesses create easy, fun, and engaging content to help them show up and stand out,” reads TikTok’s blog. “With a track list of 10 custom sounds that prompt the community to show off their most popular products, packing, and shipping process, reasons to shop small, and other directional queues, it’s easier than ever to create engaging content.”

Sounds for Business is available in TikTok’s Commercial Music Library and can be used in both organic and paid content.

Instagram Debuts Broadcast Channels…

Meta has announced the introduction of broadcast channels on Instagram, a messaging tool that allows creators to engage directly with their followers at scale by sending many messages at once.

Broadcast channels allow creators to invite all of their followers to share text, video, and photo updates in one place; creators can also use voice notes to share their latest updates, and they can create polls to crowdsource fan feedback. Only creators can send messages in broadcast channels, while followers can react to the content and vote in polls. Followers can leave or mute broadcast channels at any time.

Broadcast Channels are currently being tested with a select handful of creators in the United States. More features are said to be added in the coming months.

Read Meta’s announcement in full here.

Meta Testing Paid Verification…

Meta has rolled out a test of a paid verification program, CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced on Feb. 19.

Dubbed Meta Verified, the subscription service lets users verify their accounts with a government ID, get a blue badge, get extra impersonation protection against accounts claiming to be a user, and direct access to customer support.

Meta Verified starts at $11.99 a month of the web or $14.99 a month of iOS.

Instagram Axing Live Shopping Feature…

Meta has announced it’s moving away from live shopping on Instagram, removing the capability for creators to tag products in live streams beginning on March 16.

“Beginning on March 16, 2023, you will no longer be able to tag products in live broadcasts on Instagram,” the company wrote on an Instagram support page. “This change will help us focus on products and features that provide the most value to our users.”

The news comes after Meta pulled the plug on live shopping on Facebook last October, signaling the platform is stepping away from live shopping as a whole, though it reassures users it is still pushing forward with shopping capabilities on Instagram. “You will still be able to set up and run your shop on Instagram as we continue to invest in shopping experiences for people and businesses across feed, stories, Reels, ads, and more,” Instagram said.

Photo: Getty Images Plus/pressureUA

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