It’s not going ‘full TikTok’, however Twitter is trying to lean into rising video consumption developments, with two new updates designed to enhance the Twitter video expertise – and ideally, get folks spending extra time within the app.
First off, Twitter’s including a brand new choice that can expand tweeted videos to full-screen mode with a single click on.
And that’s not all:
“As soon as the video has been launched in full display mode, we’ve made video discovery simpler as properly. Simply scroll as much as begin looking extra participating video content material. If you wish to exit the viewer and return to the unique Tweet, click on the again arrow within the high left nook.”
Appears acquainted, proper? So now, you’ll have the ability to uncover extra video content material, particularly, within the app by coming into a vertical scrolling feed of clips, which can be sorted by Twitter’s algorithms, enabling it to showcase extra of the best-performing movies within the app.
Along with this, Twitter’s additionally trying to put extra emphasis on video content material in Discover, with a brand new ‘For you’ video carousel show.
“With our new video carousel, now you can simply discover extra movies you want alongside Tweets and Developments which may curiosity you. Simply open the Discover tab to find a number of the hottest movies being shared on Twitter.”
Notice the outline: ‘widespread and trending’ movies. That, once more, will allow Twitter to lean into the AI-recommended content material strategy of TikTok, which is the way it retains folks in its app for hours on finish.
Given the rise of short-form, full-screen video, it is sensible for social platforms to think about how they’ll align with evolving consumption developments, and adapt them for their very own means.
Twitter, as famous, might not have gone full TikTok like Meta, but it surely has been looking for methods to faucet into the identical for a while.
It started testing a full-screen video reply option earlier this yr, which iterates on the options that it had initially sought to maximise in its failed Fleets Stories clone, whereas some customers have additionally been given entry to an updated layout for Explore, which allows them to vertically scroll by means of full-screen tweets.
Its up to date video presentation format is one other effort to align with the TikTok-led shift. And whereas I wouldn’t predict this to be an enormous think about boosting video consumption within the app, it’s undoubtedly price noting that Twitter’s particularly trying to amplify video content material, which may make it a much bigger consideration in your content material strategy.
Although the largest issue working towards Twitter on this respect is probably going its algorithms, with its suggestions usually being fairly untargeted, resulting in a sub-optimal person expertise. TikTok’s algorithm is extremely attuned to person response, and seemingly iterates in real-time, which is the way it retains feeding you extra of what you’re eager about, and fewer of what you aren’t, each time you open the app.
Twitter’s Discover web page, a minimum of in my expertise, is usually a random spattering of trending content material, mixed with really useful subjects that aren’t curated, resulting in unengaging, uninteresting really useful tweets.
If Twitter can’t get this aspect proper, then I can’t think about its immersive video feed goes to maintain folks scrolling – however then once more, possibly, by merely highlighting the video clips which can be seeing essentially the most engagement total, that’ll be sufficient to assist showcase extra attention-grabbing video content material from throughout the app.
My guess, although, is that this feed will find yourself flooded with BTS video clips, it doesn’t matter what subject/s you’ve proven an curiosity in.
Perhaps I’m flawed, and once more, it’s price noting Twitter’s rising curiosity in video, and funding in new video presentation codecs.
Twitter’s immersive media viewer can be obtainable within the coming days to folks utilizing Twitter in English on iOS, whereas the brand new video carousel in Discover can be made obtainable to folks in choose international locations on each iOS and Android.
