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Hello, geeks!

This week’s edition of Geekout is brought to you by ‘Matt Navarra Support Services’

More on that in a moment. 🙄

But first…

I love this free daily newsletter for marketers. ❤️

It’s a quick 7-minute read and is sent to 63,000 smart marketers like you every week.

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Will the real Matt Navarra please stand up…

Over on X, a hot new social media support service has launched. ‘Matt Navarra Support Services’. But not by me.

My Google Alert setup to spot any mentions of my name or social handles alerted me to this shady looking account earlier this week.

Reading the accounts tweets, you might think i’m about to launch my own cryptocurrency or NFT. Also, #recoversnapchatmemories is a super-niche hashtag 😆

Maybe I should be flattered? But mostly these impersonation accounts are a real pain in the ass.

I already get between 10-20 emails or messages per week from complete strangers asking me to help recover their suspended Instagram or Facebook account.

I also get people slamming me in my DMs for [insert Meta platform feature] not working properly, telling me “you should fix this!”, as they, for some unknown reason, believe I work for Meta or have some sort of hotline to Zuckerberg. ☎️

This is just one of the dozens of DMs i had this week alone:

Anyway…. I’m sorry to disappoint you, but despite what this account suggests, I do not have these social media super-powers.

I urge you to report such accounts as fake, to help save me from a new tsunami of desperate Meta platform refugees seeking my assistance. 🙏 

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P.S. DON’T MISS THIS…

Trust me… You’ll want to check out this FREE 2025 Social Media Benchmark report from the social media scientists at Dash Hudson.

ICYMI… It’s stuffed full of smart tips, actionable insights, and more. It’s worth unlocking the full report. Check it out 👇🔥

2025 Social Media Benchmarks Unveiled…

Are You Keeping Pace with the Competition? 😲 ⤵️

Social Media Managers, prepare yourselves…

The 2025 landscape is shifting FASTER than we expected! 🚀

🔥 3 MUST-KNOW INSIGHTS Before You Finalize Your 2025 Strategy:

• TikTok: Engagement has SOARED to 4.5%—top brands are posting 6x/week.

• Instagram: Carousels & images are BEATING Reels.

• YouTube: Shorts views up 153%, while long-form is DOWN by 15%.

…but there’s MORE 👇

✨ This FREE, data-backed report REVEALS:

• Which brands in YOUR sector are LEADING on TikTok

• How your brand’s engagement STACKS UP against the competition

• Industry engagement benchmarks for TikTok, Instagram & YouTube across 13 industries

Get AHEAD of the game…

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🔥 GEEKOUT HOT 5

Geekout’s pick of the hottest headlines in social this week:

2. X dodges EU regulation as bloc decides platform isn’t important enough [SICK-BURN-ING]

3. Instagram boss Adam Mosseri acknowledged ‘mistakes’ in Threads’ broken moderation [FIRE-FIGHTING]

4. Elon Musk's other companies could be on the hook for X fines in Europe [RETARGETING]

5. Social media faces big fines under incoming online safety rules, Ofcom warns [THREATENING]

63k of the World’s Smartest Marketers Swear By This FREE Daily Newsletter

Stacked Marketer curates the most useful and important digital and social media marketing news, trends and insights…

…Boiled down to a quick 7-minute read. ⏱️

Every weekday, you’ll get the must-know…

• Breaking news 🚨

• Marketing insights ✨

• Advertising hacks 🔥

…Plus the latest tips and tactics for all your digital marketing channels: Facebook, Google SEO, Snapchat, TikTok, email, and countless others.

If you’re a social media marketer looking to up your game, this is one free resource you need to be taking advantage of.

It’s one of my top news sources. Subscribe to Stacked Marketer for FREE.

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🚨 EVERYONE’S TALKING ABOUT…

Hooked in 35 minutes?

You know the story - we’ve seen it all before: politicians complain that social media is harmful to kids, and social media companies respond with denials or a few kid-friendly features to keep the regulators at bay.

But an allegation that emerged over the past week goes further. Poorly redacted court documents revealed that an investigation into TikTok by 14 US attorneys generals suing the company found evidence that TikTok knew it was addictive to kids.

As NPR reports, TikTok’s own data says watching just 260 videos can get you addicted to the platform. That means someone could become addicted in just 35 minutes, investigators argued.

Becoming addicted in 35 minutes certainly feels like it could be true (and if anyone has the data, it would be TikTok). But is a habit of watching short videos every day as harmful as smoking or abusing prescription drugs? That’s far more difficult to be sure about.

Still, whether this is a real health crisis or just a moral panic about how young people spend their time (have you heard about that new rock ‘n’ roll/punk/heavy metal/rave music sweeping the nation? 😱), these are serious charges that TikTok will have to answer in court.

Legal experts say the action from multiple attorneys general at once is similar to lawsuits against Big Tobacco and Big Pharma, where the opponents are “overwhelmed” with fronts on which to fight.

Meanwhile, a new UK bill could force social media firms to make content less addictive for under 16s.

Whether social media is truly harmful or not, the powers that be certainly want kids doing less of it. If it means they do their homework on time, maybe that’s not a bad thing…

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✨ NEW & NOTEWORTHY

Everything else you need to know from the past seven days…

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🤖 SOCIAL AI

The newest social media A.I. features spotted this week:

• TikTok now lets you create an AI image using just a selfie 🤳🏻

• YouTube is testing AI-powered comment reply suggestions

• YouTube has announced a broader launch of its ‘Dream Track’ AI audio generator

• Facebook has added the ability to use AI to create image posts for engaging with new fans

• LinkedIn launched new AI enhancements for its ad tools

• Reddit has rolled out AI-powered keyword targeting improvements for advertisers

• CapCut now has the ability to generate AI videos using images or text

• Adobe has launched its own AI video generator

• Adobe Photoshop is also getting a bunch of new AI tools

• Adobe’s AI experiment instantly turns a sketch into a full-fledged design

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💬 YOU CAN QUOTE ME ON THAT

When I’m quoted in the news, you’ll find it here:

Some creators are making thousands of dollars a month through Meta's bonus programme.

I spoke to Engadget about some of the challenges creators face using Threads

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😆 LOL

Influencers might be pretty powerful in tight niches these days, but The Hollywood Reporter went further and unveiled what it called ‘Hollywood’s new A-list’ this week.

…but are you really in the A-list if hardly anyone has heard of you?

Also LOL week: 💀

• The 'Visit North Yorkshire' X account asked its followers to show them 'British scenes'
  

• The best / most on-point / funniest reactions to X’s dumb changes to its block functionality

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📈 MEMES

Temu appears to have spent a LOT of its ad budget on X recently asking people to buy a horrific pig shirt.

But hey, at least the memes were good…

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🌡️ VIRAL

Proof that literally anything can go viral…

“The Beverly Hills mansion where Erik and Lyle Menendez blasted their parents to death with shotguns in 1989 has become all the rage on TikTok, with many users going viral for posts that feature the house’s exterior or interior.”

😶

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🪧 BRANDS

“Food influencers are transforming LA’s food scene. But their praise can be as much a curse as a blessing…”

Also:

• A restaurant chain that trademarked their brand name 'pho' has responded to the TikTok backlash

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🙊 WHAT DID YOU SAY?!

“We're trying to provide a safer experience, and we need to do better”

– Instagram boss Adam Mosseri responds to the anger about bonkers Threads moderation decisions. Apparently humans were involved, not just AI, but software glitches meant they made bad decisions.

• Stephen Fry was asked what he makes of Elon Musk 

• We still love you Elon Musk, says UK government

• Elon Musk is a ‘promoter of evil’ EU rule-of-law chief says (ooof!)

• Meta's AI chief says world models are key to 'human-level AI' — but it might be 10 years out

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👀 MY FAV READS

The Verge had a ‘2004 Week’ this week, looking back to the tech of 20 years ago (I feel old!).

Its piece about Digg and the birth of the social web is well worth reading - and check out the retro way they’ve presented it!

Also:

• Social media tells you who you are. What if it's totally wrong?

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👌 PRO TIPS

Meta has shared new advice for Threads creators about how often and when to post content. 😮

They’re not earth-shatteringly insightful, but may help bump up your engagement a notch

Even more pro-tips and platform insights spotted this week…

• Instagram’s boss recommends posting carousels to improve reach

• YouTube has shared insights into what viewers seek from content on the platform

• Want more engagement on your social media post? Look at colour complexity 

• Check out these 15 TikTok analytics tools that do the math for you

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😮 WTF?!

Mark Duckerberg? This week Zuck posted a video of himself riding the wake of a giant rubber duck 🐤 🌊.

It was created with Meta's new Movie Gen AI.

Also in WTF news this week…

• X rival Mastodon has started selling toys 🧸 

• Meta fired staff for allegedly using free meal vouchers to buy household goods 

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🤦 FAIL

Meta might have impressive AI tools, but promoting them like this was a bad idea…🤦🏻‍♂️

Also:

• WHOOPS!… TikTok had a corporate blog post fail this week

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👔 YOU’RE HIRED!

Hot new social media jobs worth checking out this week:

• Amazon Web Services in looking for a Senior Social Media Manager [Seattle, WA or New York City, NY, USA]

• Crocs is hiring a director of social media [Hybrid: Broomfield, CO, USA]

• Thames Water wants a Social Media Content Designer [Reading, UK]

• Tate is on the hunt for a Senior Social Media manager [London, UK]

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📊 SOCIAL STATS

500,000

– The number of new users Bluesky says it received in one day, straight after X changed how blocking works

• SOCIAL A.I: The median engagement rate for non-AI generated social posts is 4.82%, while AI-assisted posts have a higher rate at 5.87% [Buffer]

  … The most significant difference was on THREADS with engagement on non-AI posts at 5.56% vs 11.11% for AI-assisted posts

• TIKTOK: For every $1,000 TikTok makes, creators are estimated to receive just $6.25

• LINKEDIN says US C-suite users are up 35% and UK C-suite users are up 30% in past five years

• LINKEDIN: Live events on LinkedIn are up by 14.4% in the past year

• INFLUENCER MARKETING: Only 7% of consumers holiday shop based on influencer recommendations

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📈 CHARTED

Instagram and TikTok are the top platforms, for brands and agencies, working with creators in 2024, according to a new report by CreatorIQ… 🏅

• CREATOR ECONOMY: Investment in creator marketing is increasing with 74% of organizations increasing their creator marketing investment this year

• GEN-Z spend more than double the amount of time on TikTok, Instagram, and Snapchat vs. the general population

• GEN-Z also makes up more than half of Snapchat users

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• Meta has been accused of misusing the term ‘open source’ to describe its Llama AI models. [Financial Times $$$]

• WhatsApp may expose the OS you use to run it – which could expose you to crooks. [The Register]

• Meta has teamed up with Blumhouse and filmmakers like Casey Affleck to test its new Movie Gen AI tool. [Variety]

New features and tests:

Facebook:

• Facebook has combined the ‘Tag’ and ‘Collaborate’ features in Reels. [@JonahManzano]

Instagram:

• Instagram now lets you attach a song to a note straight from the song’s page. [@oncescuradu]

• Instagram is testing a new crop preview feature for image stickers in stories. [@theahmedghanem]

• Instagram’s ‘Memories’ feature for Instagram Stories appears to have rolled out more widely. [@oncescuradu]

• Instagram is testing a new interface for the action buttons available for messages. [@oncescuradu]

WhatsApp:

• WhatsApp is testing a deeper dark theme for the app and chats. [@WABetaInfo]

• WhatsApp is working on a feature to let you react to messages using recent emojis.

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• An AI-powered bot army on X spread pro-Trump and pro-GOP propaganda, research has found. [NBC News]

• Westminster’s reliance on X is ‘totally wrong’ a Labour MP in the UK has argued. [The Guardian]

• X objected to a new request from Turkish authorities to block a news organisation in the region, but will comply with the order while it fights it in court. [Social Media Today]

• X has claimed victory in an Australian eSafety Commission case. [Social Media Today]

• X plans to make it clearer to users in the EU that they have the right to appeal decisions under the bloc’s Digital Services Act. [TechCrunch]

New features and tests:

• X has added an “Under Review” label to profiles to indicate that they are being reviewed after any changes, such as updating the profile picture. [@theahmedghanem]

• X now lets you create audio and video Spaces in a community. [@oncescuradu]

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• Sony and Disney marketing execs on collaborating with influencers and leaning into TikTok’s algorithm. [Variety]

• TikTok has launched an ‘It Starts on TikTok’ campaign, celebrating the people thriving on TikTok. [TikTok Newsroom]

• TikTok Shop and Free Soul have teamed up for a ‘Super Brand Day’. [TikTok Newsroom]

New features and tests:

• TikTok has added a new ‘Add to Story’ button for posts. [@oncescuradu]

• TikTok's desktop creator tools now include four key features: View Analytics, Promote post, Live Studio and Live Centre. [@jonahmanzano]

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💥 EVEN MORE SOCIAL MEDIA NEWS & UPDATES

• The UK Prime Minister is being urged to support a ban on smartphones in schools to stop kids doomscrolling. [Sky News]

• Australia's planned social media ban has raised fears of teen isolation. [Reuters $$$]

• Discord is feuding with a video game company that wants to unmask users. [The Verge]

• Semrush has acquired Search Engine Land. [Search Engine Land]

• Apple has been accused of illegally restricting employee Slack and social media use. [TechRadar]

• Twitch introduced new mental health resources on World Mental Health Day. [esports.gg]

• Twitch will celebrate ‘Twitch Fright Fest’ later this month, by showcasing horror content all week long. [Twitch blog]

New features and tests:

• CapCut now lets you apply to access beta business features. [@jonahmanzano]

• BlueSky has added pinned posts, language filtering in search, and more. [@bluesky_social]

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📰 WEEKEND READS

Geekout’s pick of the best longer reads to sink into over the weekend:

• Facebook turns 20: how the social network changed the way we socialise

• Facebook, X and TikTok: How social media algorithms shape speech

• Hurricane Milton proves Elon Musk’s X is useless in a crisis

• Everything we know about ‘shadowbans’ on social media

• How Instagram hides your political posts

• Is OnlyFans catfishing its users?

• Rumours on X are becoming the right’s new reality

• How Meta brings in millions from political violence

• I read all the community notes on Elon Musk's X account. Here's what I learned

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😳 AND FINALLY…

Never let it be said that James Blunt doesn’t commit to a bit.

Will his next album really be released under the artist name ‘Blunty McBluntface’?

@jamesblunt

Well, your choice is clear – if a little predictable... If the 20th Anniversary Edition of Back to Bedlam is Number 1 next Friday, my new ... See more

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📅 BACK NEXT WEEK…

… I want James Blunt to be my social media manager. 🙏

Right folks, that’s everything you need to know this week.

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Time to shoot… I’m heading off to see Becky Hill in concert (again!) in Exeter, UK. 

My girlfriend got tickets for it as a gift and has roped me into going with her.

I’m not having a mid-life crisis and trying to get down with the kidz.

Goodbye, geeks!

p.s. This newsletter is edited by Martin SFP Bryant