If you’re an active Twitter user, you may have noticed that earlier this month, the top of your feed looked a bit different–gone are the “Fleets,” replaced with active Twitter Spaces instead. Or maybe, like many others, you haven’t noticed at all because Fleets were never an integral part of your Twitter usage. So what happened to Fleets, and what do you need to know about the end of Twitter Fleets for your marketing? We’ll try to address what Fleets were, why Fleets have been discontinued, and whether or not the end of Fleets should change how you approach marketing with Stories on other platforms.
What are Twitter Fleets?
Fleets were full-screen images or videos that could be edited easily in-app and displayed for 24 hours before disappearing. Rolled out to the general public less than a year ago, Twitter Fleets were a response to this more ephemeral, less permanent style of content pioneered by Snapchat’s “Stories” feature and popularized by Instagram (and later Facebook and LinkedIn’s) features of the same name.
The intention was for Fleets to make it easier and less overwhelming for new Twitter users to create content, as well as provide another avenue for advertisement on the platform. But the feature never caught on as much as Twitter anticipated–the platform never saw a notable increase in content creation from newer users as intended, and the feature was discontinued at the start of August 2021.
Should I Be Worried About Twitter Fleets Being Discontinued?
In all honesty, very few Twitter users need to be worried about this feature being canned. While this is certainly disappointing for those of us who did use the Fleets feature regularly, its discontinuation is due almost entirely to low interest and low engagement, so odds are you (like most others) never saw or used Fleets as an integral part of your social media marketing campaigns.
But what if you’re an advertiser? Those who invest heavily in social media advertising may be scared to see potential ad placements go away, but the truth is, advertising in Fleets only started two months ago, and was only ever rolled out to a limited number of participating advertisers on an experimental basis. So unless you’re one of the few advertisers who got in on the ground floor of the Fleets advertisement experiment, you’re not losing anything from the feature’s disappearance. Don’t sweat it!
Are Social Media Stories Still Important For Marketing?
Now here’s the real question: If Fleets are being discontinued because of low interest, what does that mean for Stories and similar content on other social platforms? Will Instagram or Facebook Stories disappear too? While it is true that some of these “legacy” social media platforms are declining in popularity due to the rise of new platforms like TikTok, they’re far from dead or even dying, with about 500 million Instagram users using the Stories feature each and every day.
Instagram is still one of only 6 social media platforms with over 1 billion users, and Stories remain an incredibly popular feature. As of 2021, nearly 90% of all Instagram users post to their Stories, and over 25% of Millenial and Gen-Z users actively find new products and services to buy via Instagram Stories. Stories are considered one of the best tools for increasing engagement on Instagram and Facebook and should remain a staple of your social media marketing/advertising plan. Because posting many Stories per day is considered the norm, Stories continue to be a great opportunity to keep eyes on your business page all throughout the day without running the risk of being muted or gaining a reputation as “spammy” like you might if you make regular posts at the same accelerated rate.
While Instagram may be the current king of the “Stories” feature, other platforms are still worth your time and attention. Facebook Stories offer a huge opportunity for growth as the relatively slow adoption rate by business keeps your competition low, and a much-higher-than-usual organic reach puts your Story content in front of so many more of your followers than a topical post. Anybody who does any business marketing on Facebook knows how organic post reach is practically dead, so if you can get great organic reach via Stories, why not take advantage of that opportunity? Even LinkedIn Stories can be beneficial as a way of keeping your network up-to-date on your latest successes, humanizing your personal brand, and making sure everyone knows when you’ve got big news to share that might help drive your business.
Goodbye Fleets, Hello (Again) Stories
Fleets may now be gone and fading into the rearview mirror, but that doesn’t mean you should dump Stories from your marketing plans. It’s still worth your time to double-down on your Stories across various platforms, and if you haven’t even started to use them yet, now’s the time to jump in and potentially see a boost to your reach and engagement.
Don’t have the time, energy, or know-how to keep up with all the comings and goings of various social media features? Skol Marketing’s team can help you with everything from social media marketing strategy to content creation, scheduling, and advertising. If you’d prefer one-on-one guidance or would like to discuss how our assistance can help you improve your social media presence, please don’t hesitate to contact the local social media experts at Skol Marketing.
