What’s the news?

Lots of new features are coming to lots of social media platforms. The emphasis? Audio and video. And they’re coming out with new ways for creators to make money.

What does it all mean?

Well, it’s definitely exhausting. Last November, a headline on Axios read: Social Media Companies Are All Starting to Look the Same. It illustrated the laundry list of social channels – Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, TikTok, YouTube, Pinterest, etc., most of which possess similar features – direct messaging, live video, stories, photo filters, public follower counts, etc. 

The chart didn’t even list Clubhouse. And yet, in the past six months, the invitation-only audio-only platform for iPhone owners topped 10M members. Now, it’s rolling out to Android. Building on the popularity of audio, Twitter has launched Twitter Spaces, and Facebook is launching live audio rooms.

In the video arena, YouTube launched Shorts in response to TikTok’s popularity, and this past week, Pinterest tests livestream options, to name a few options.

The list goes on and on.

Isn’t that good?

Social media platforms are losing their identity. Every social media platform is adding new lanes (i.e., features). And now they offer almost the same thing to users. 

Take Twitter. Its new Tip Jar feature is only the latest addition. Remember when you could only type 144 characters. Now, you can write double that, have live audio conversations, and even host events through the platform. Doesn’t that sound a lot like a couple of other social media platforms you know?

But aren’t there more revenue opportunities for creators?

Yes. In the last month or so, we’ve written about YouTube’s rollout of the Shorts Creator Fund, Twitter’s Tip Jar, Substack’s expansion to allow podcast and other pages, and Instagram’s new feature letting creators recommend products and operate in a marketplace to connect with brands.

But all that can be fool’s gold.

The Tilt Talk and Advice

Why should content entrepreneurs care?

The jumbled features added by social media platforms create murky waters for content creators. Even if you’re up on the latest features, your audience probably isn’t. And they likely aren’t ever going to get up to speed on every new feature on every new platform.

Even if you're up on all the latest social media features, your audience probably isn't, says @AnnGynn #contententrepreneur #creatoreconomy #socialmedia Click To Tweet

What should you do?

Content entrepreneurs should focus on your audience, not the social media platform’s shiny new features. It can be enticing to stray off platform or to quickly offer a new feature when you see the revenue potential. Resist the temptation.

What does that mean?

Stick with the one or two social media platforms where your audience is. Use the new features only when it makes sense for your social media strategy. (You have a social media strategy, right? Your  why, who, what, where, when, and how.)

Stick to 1 or 2 social media platforms where your audience is. Only use new features when it makes sense for your strategy, says @TheTiltNews. #socialmedia #contententrepreneur Click To Tweet

For example, let’s say you host a regular Twitter chat. Use Twitter Spaces to see if chat participants prefer to talk out loud more than they want to type responses with the same hashtag at the same time.

However, don’t move your Twitter chat to a Facebook audio room or Clubhouse. That requires your audience to adapt to an audio format AND  leave their “home” to do it.

What else?

As social platforms lose what made them unique, it’s a good reminder to stick with what makes your content brand unique – your content tilt. That’s your unique perspective on your content niche that is so different that it gets noticed by an audience.

You also can use this as an opportunity to motivate your audience to avoid the clutter that is social media today. Promote and invite them to become subscribers (free and/or paid) so they can access your content directly in their inboxes or through a log-in section on your site.

Help your audience avoid social media clutter. Invite them to become subscribers, says @TheTiltNews. #contententrepreneur #creatoreconomy #socialmedia #subscribers Click To Tweet

About the author

Ann regularly combines words and strategy for B2B, B2C, and nonprofits, continuing to live up to her high school nickname, Editor Ann. An IABC Communicator of the Year and founder of G Force Communication, Ann coaches and trains professionals in all things content. Connect with her on LinkedIn and Twitter.