#SongbirdStories: The Rest from the Nest of #SocialMedia
The weekend is upon us once more and brings with it our latest edition of Songbird Stories, our weekly roundup of all the social media chatter we have yet to mention. So, let's get started shall we?
Instagram Advert Quality Takes a Nosedive
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IHOP Cause Controversy with 'Racy' Tweet
IHOP have received praise in the not too distant past for the way they manage their social media presence. Making use of slang and posting in a form that sounds like a teenager's ramblings has worked well for them, with their tweets and posts garnering plenty of attention. Unfortunately for them however, they have now proven, via a distasteful joke about breasts, that they're yet to completely perfect their strategy. Infuriated users have made their disapproval known as IHOP crept over the line. The tweet in question, pictured below, showed a stack of pancakes and included the caption "flat but has a GREAT personality", which many people see as sexist, misogynistic and generally a little too racy to be posted on an account whose followers include teens and youngsters.
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Jack Dorsey Gifts Workers Millions of His Own Shares
In last weeks feature we talked about Twitter laying off up to 350 of their employees following Jack Dorsey becoming CEO. The latest development concerns Dorsey's attempt to appease those who remain. In a move that I highly commend, Dorsey have gifted nearly $200 million worth of his own shares. That equates to one third of Dorsey's shares and 1% of the company as a whole.
🐥⚡️ I'm giving ~1/3rd of my Twitter stock (exactly 1% of the company) to our employee equity pool to reinvest directly in our people.
— Jack (@jack) October 23, 2015
As for me: I'd rather have a smaller part of something big than a bigger part of something small. I'm confident we can make Twitter big! ✌️
— Jack (@jack) October 23, 2015
Disney Announce Live-Streaming Plans to Compete with Netflix and Amazon
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| Business Insider |
iOS 9.1 Update Adds New Emoji
The iOS 9.1 update has landed, bringing with it the usual mix of bug fixes and minor changes. Users are getting somewhat excited, however, about the addition of 184 new emoji. The new range is based on a list set by the Unicode Consortium, which aims to standardise the characters available across all operating systems. The list includes many of the most called-for emoji such as the middle finger, nerd face, champagne and unicorn, as well as religious symbols, animals and sports equipment.
Pathologist Causes Outrage on Instagram
Instagram is a weird and wonderful place, where everybody is a model and food is revered in an almost deity-like fashion. It does, unfortunately, get even weirder from time to time. Nicole Angemi, a pathologist and Instagram enthusiast, has taken to posting real, gruesome autopsy photos online, which has naturally caused a fair measure of controversy. The pictures, which are too graphic to include here, include severed limbs, miscarried babies, stabbing victims and dissections. Angemi insists that she posts the photos in order to educate people about her field of work, but as most of the pictures are posted without permission from the families of the deceased, this has prompted serious debate over the ethics of what she is doing. Myself, I'm inclined to agree that, without permission, they should not be posted. What if someone stumbled upon a loved one as they flicked through the gallery? I hate to imagine the distress such an occurrence would cause.Pepsi Blunder with 'Pepsi Perfect' Campaign
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| Fox News |
More Back to the Future news as Pepsi brought to life the iconic 'Pepsi Perfect' range featured in the 1989 hit film to tie in with Back to the Future Day earlier this week. Unfortunately, due to a failure to properly announce the date and time the bottles would become available, Pepsi have succeeded in angering their customer base. It stands to reason, given the fact that Marty arrived in 2015 on the 21st of October, that the associated drink would launch on that date. This was all fans had to go on in the build up to the sale as Pepsi neglected to provide any further information. So, people were outraged when they logged on at 12:01am ready to place their order, only to discover that the bottles had actually gone on sale the previous day and had already sold out. This is a mistake that should have, and could have, been easily avoided. In an attempt to recover, Pepsi have now announced that a further 6500 bottles will go on sale on November 3rd at 6am PT.
Facebook's New 'Search FYI' Feature
Announced on Thursday, Search FYI marks Facebook's latest attempt to make their search function more useful and relevant to their users. According to Facebook, the update will allow users to "find out what the world is saying about topics that matter
to you". Typing into the search box will now provide live, personalised results, posts from friends will be listed alongside relevant public posts and public conversations are also to be added to search. Facebook is hoping that these new features will help to tie together all relevant content in order to improve user experience. Of course, you can still only see posts shared either with you or publicly, and you can easily change your own settings to dictate who sees your own posts.
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| Facebook Newsroom |
Crowdfunding Holidays, Hen-Dos and Gap Years
Crowdfunding is nothing new. From video games to films to businesses, countless endeavours have only achieved success, or even production, due to crowdfunding on sites such as Kickstarter. These projects receive donations because they provide something in return. Now, a new form of crowdfunding has emerged. Sites such as Fund My Travel and Patchwork Present allow users to request donations from friends and family to fund a trip or holiday. It seems like a strange concept to me, but thousands have signed up for these services and they continue to grow at a steady rate. Its a nice gesture, to help someone get away for a break, but the person asking for such charity still strikes me as odd.
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| FundMyTravel.com |
Airbnb Reveal Star Wars Themed Properties
Ever since Ross Noble and Brian Cox appeared on QI and discussed the prospect of smashing Ewoks in a lake of liquid farts I've wanted to holiday in the Star Wars Universe. After many long years of waiting, that dream could now become a reality, sort of. Following the release of the new Star Wars: The Force Awakens trailer, Airbnb have begun to showcase their portfolio of Star Wars themed properties. Many seem to be based on Tatooine, the iconic sand-covered planet that serves as home to Luke Skywalker throughout his early years. There are also apartment buildings in Tokyo based on the endless skyscrapers of Coruscant, the Republic Capital and residence of the Galactic Senate, as well as bamboo houses in Bali that resemble the forest moon of Endor, home of the Ewoks. If none of those take your fancy, head over to Khao Yai, Thailand to stay in your own mini Death Star. Combine this idea with the crowdfunded holidays mentioned above and you're all set!
Sam
is an aspiring novelist with a passion for fantasy and crime thrillers.
Currently working as Editor of Social Songbird, he hopes to one day drop that
'aspiring' prefix. Follow him @SamAtSMF
Contact
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#SongbirdStories: The Rest from the Nest of #SocialMedia
Reviewed by Unknown
on
Saturday, October 24, 2015
Rating:
Reviewed by Unknown
on
Saturday, October 24, 2015
Rating:
Unknown
Keeping you up to date on social media, digital marketing, apps, news & reviews. Social media, and digital marketing as a whole, are rapidly and constantly changing, adapting to new developments at an ever increasing rate. Just keeping up to date can be a nightmare. Our team of writers know their field, and keep an ear to the ground. We aim to keep you informed of all recent developments in the online world, and teach you a little something along the way. So whether you just want to stay connected, or gain some knowledge for yourself, the Social Songbird will keep on singing! More articles are posted every day so keep checking back! Join the discussion on Twitter - #SocialSongbird Or contact us directly - @SocialSongbird_
Entrepreneur, international speaker on Social Media Marketing. First one in the UK to write and speak in conferences about Twitter as a marketing tool. Consultant to Corporate Companies, Government Organizations, Marketing Managers and Business Owners.
Aspiring novelist with a passion for fantasy and crime thrillers. He hopes to one day drop that 'aspiring' prefix. He started as a writer and soon after he was made Executive Editor and Manager of the team at Social Songbird. A position he held for 5 years.
Adrienne is a passionate writer with experience in editing, content creation, and social media marketing. She’s a lover of animals, helping others improve their writing, and 2000s pop culture.
Musician, audio technician, professional tutor and a Cambridge university English student. Interested in writing, politics and obsessed with reading.
Recently graduated with a BA in English Literature from the University of Exeter, and he is about to study an MA in Journalism at the University of Sheffield. He is an aspiring journalist and novelist; in his free time he enjoys playing chess, listening to music and taking long walks through nature.
Lucy is an undergraduate BSc Politics and International Relations student at the London School of Economics and Political Science.
Anna Coopey is a 4th year UG student in Classics at the University of St Andrews in Scotland. She is a keen writer and researcher on a number of topics, varying from Modern Greek literature to revolutionary theory.
Ellie is a recent BA English Literature graduate and aspiring publisher with a passion for writing. Her favourite pastimes include reading and shopping.