Stickers are coming to WhatsApp, Twitter is going back to a chronological timeline! LinkedIn ads can now be tracked by Google Campaign Manager, You can now add Snapchat filters on your desktop!

Stickers are coming to WhatsApp

WhatsApp has announced that it is introducing stickers to help its users express themselves while communicating on the app. This addition follows the company’s introduction of emojis, camera features and gifs earlier this year, to help users become more expressive.

It is following in the footsteps of its parent company Facebook by adding these stickers which will be available both on IOS and Android devices. The company announced these new features in a statement that read “Whether with a smiling teacup or a broken heart, stickers help you share your feelings in a way that you can’t always express with words.” As well as this, they have taken a page out of Snapchat’s book by adding support for third-party sticker packs from designers. This allows developers from around the world to create stickers for the app on both IOS and Android.

Designers or developers who would like to do so can publish their sticker app just like any other app directly to the Google Play Store or Apple App Store – users can then download and install the app to be able to send stickers from the packs.

Twitter is going back to a chronological timeline!

Twitter has said that it wants to give users more power on what they see, and they’re putting their words into action, as they are switching back to a chronological timeline. This is giving the power back to its users and is making a stand against the algorithm set up by Facebook, wherein the platform decides what updates are most relevant to us.

For the typical Twitter user, there is a pen button in the top right corner of the screen when on the app, but for those lucky ones who are part of the early access test feature, there will be an asterisk followed by a prompt to choose the way you want to read through your timeline.

There is no mention of when the feature will be officially rolled out, but it seems as though Twitter has been researching this for a while. It looks to be struggling between those who prefer the new algorithm and those who want to revert back to the chronological order. It’s possible that they could even create two timeline options for users to switch between, something that would be perfect for all users based on what they are looking for from the app.

LinkedIn ads can now be tracked by Google Campaign Manager

LinkedIn announced a new integration with Google Campaign Manager this week; this integration will allow marketers to get attribution across all impressions and interactions.

LinkedIn will now offer marketers the opportunity to see ad performances alongside their paid media spend. LinkedIn already offered this for a select few ad formats but now it also includes Sponsored Content, which is very important in understanding the buyers’ journey, allowing marketers to create better, more targeted ads.

To enable this for a campaign all you need to do is create the sponsored ad, save it as a “Draft” and click the “Manage tracking” bullseye icon. Add both your impression and click Google tracking tags, and hit “Save.”

You can now add Snapchat filters on your desktop!

This week Snapchat has announced that it has created a Snap Camera; this is a desktop app that gives users the ability to use Snapchat lenses on video chats and live streaming apps such as YouTube, Skype, Twitch and Zoom.

This looks to be a good move by Snapchat, by moving their beloved filters on to both Mac and Windows, they are widening their horizons. This comes after its latest earning call showed that it had lost 2 million users in the last quarter. With this being said, the lenses are still very popular, as Snapchat still has a dedicated community of lens creators who have submitted over 250 thousand lenses through the Lens Studio Tool, with over 15 billion views.

Eitan Pilipski, head of Snap’s camera platform explains, “We’re trying to find new distribution channels for those creators to surface their work,” bringing the lenses to desktop will allow Snapchat to broaden their market to those who no longer use the app or those who have never had the app but are still interested in the lenses up for offer.

If users want to use the Snap Camera, they need to install the app and choose to use it as a camera output in the third-party app. Then all they have to do is pick from the thousands of Snap Lenses to use in their calls or streams.

The new app also has custom integration features when used on Twitch. It will allow streamers to add and swap lenses during their live videos. Alongside this, their fans can unlock lenses by scanning the Snapcodes on the streams. The custom integration also features lenses that are related to specific games and characters within them, i.e. League of Legends, PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds, World of Warcraft, or Overwatch.