😎 Creators define Gen Z relations

🔥 Our top 40 Social Media Marketing stories this week

Joshua Parkinson
October 20, 2025 • Estimated Reading Time: 14 minutes

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YouTube's 2025 Trends Report: creators drive Gen Z shopping. 59% of Gen Z say YouTube influences their style and purchases, and haul videos racked up 1 billion views. Brand loyalty jumps when favorite YouTubers recommend products.

If you're not working with YouTube creators, Gen Z might be ignoring your brand entirely. 😲 ~TWISM

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Instagram

Instagram launches first Rings awards for creators. Instagram honored 25 boundary-pushing creators with a gold ring and a special profile halo, celebrating those who shape culture on the platform, not just influencers with big followings.

Instagram revamps navigation for Reels and DMs. Instagram is rolling out a new UI that moves Reels and DMs to more prominent spots in the bottom menu, letting you swipe between them for faster access.

Start putting Reels and Stories at the center of your content plan, because the classic Feed is taking the back seat! 👀 ~TWISM

Instagram might show share counts for Stories, Carousels, and Reels. Soon you'll be able to see how often your content gets shared as a story, giving you more insight into what's spreading beyond likes and comments.

Instagram works on big desktop updates. Expect a better web experience for posting, browsing, and managing your content soon.

Instagram favors low-effort trending Reels over quality content. One creator claims tracking 50 Reels: quick, trending videos got up to 50,000 views, while carefully crafted originals flopped.

Instagram launches new AI chatbot safety features for teens. Parents now get more control over how Instagram's AI chatbot interacts with young users, giving families extra tools to keep conversations safe and age-appropriate.

Facebook & Meta

Facebook adds AI-powered photo and collage suggestions. Facebook now recommends the best photos, videos, and creative collages from your camera roll to make sharing on Facebook and Messenger fast and fun.

This could save busy social media managers a ton of time. 👀 ~TWISM

Facebook lets private groups show 'highlights' publicly. Group admins can spotlight member posts for everyone to see, as long as members consent. Highlights might appear on group front pages, Facebook Search, or even Google.

Meta ends Messenger app for Windows and Mac. You'll need to use the Facebook website to chat from desktop, no more standalone app after a 60-day phase-out.

Meta steps away from brand safety audits on Facebook and Instagram. Meta has dropped out of MRC brand safety audits just months after getting accredited, losing its safety seals and stirring more ad transparency worries.

Meta's Instagram teen safety tools are called ineffective. Independent audits found that most protections don't work, and half of teens reported seeing sexualized or predatory content. Parents say Meta's focus is more on PR than real safety.

Threads

Threads adds a "Reply options" menu for posts. You'll soon be able to pick who can reply to each post, all from a single menu, making audience control way easier.

One less headache managing post privacy! 🙌 ~TWISM

Threads adds an option to rearrange photos. Now you can drag and reorder images before posting, no more deleting and starting over.

Threads tests custom group chat profile pics. Soon you'll be able to set unique images for each group conversation and make your chats stand out.

Threads pushes paid verification prompts. Users are seeing more nudges to pay for Meta Verified, as Meta looks to monetize Threads further.

Threads adds ad verification partners. You can now verify Threads ad placements with partners like Integral Ad Science, DoubleVerify, Scope3, and soon Zefr for better brand safety and reporting.

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YouTube

YouTube launches voice replies and interactive courses. Creators can now reply to comments with audio, plus sell structured ad-supported courses with badges and quizzes. The updated UI makes engagement and monetization smoother.

YouTube Shorts now lets you create your own track. Add custom-made music directly to your Shorts for a more personalized sound.

YouTube adds €7B to the EU's economy in 2024. The platform supported 200,000+ European jobs last year, with 15% more channels earning over €10K yearly. Most EU users lean on YouTube for knowledge.

YouTube unveils auto lip-sync for AI dubs. AI will match mouth movements to dubbed languages, making international videos look more natural. Limited to five languages and 1080p, with disclaimers and watermarks for transparency.

TikTok

TikTok is now Gen Z's top search platform. 86% of Gen Z start their searches on TikTok, mainly for inspiration and product research, not just quick facts.

If you're not optimizing content for TikTok search, you're missing where buying decisions start! 🤯 ~TWISM

TikTok unveils AI-generated avatar stickers. Just type a mood or prompt and instantly create custom stickers for your videos.

TikTok opens voting for the 2025 UK & Ireland creator awards. Users can vote for top creators and check out ad campaign winners right in the app until late October. It's a big stage for both creative talent and brand campaigns.

TikTok tops U.S. teens' favorite app rankings. New Piper Sandler survey finds 46% of teens love TikTok most, leaving Instagram (31%) and Snapchat (14%) far behind. For daily video, Netflix barely edges out YouTube among teens.

TikTok-first Gen Z strategy is launched by the Daily Mail. The publisher unveiled two new social arms with 55 creators posting 100+ videos per day for 150M+ followers. Creators drive both content and brand deals—social really is the main stage now.

LinkedIn shows off new video trends carousel. U.S. users can now spot trending video topics, like career tips, right in their feeds. Plus, LinkedIn shares practical tips to boost your video content's performance.

More video features = more ways to stand out! Let the LinkedIn video era begin. 📹 ~TWISM

X/Twitter

X replaces its feed algorithm with Grok AI. All X recommendations will soon come from xAI's Grok system, aiming to better match users with posts they'll actually care about, especially smaller creators.

This could shake things up, but only if people actually use the "For You" feed! 😅 ~TWISM

X tests in-app link browser to boost post visibility. Links now open inside X instead of sending users off-site, aiming to increase engagement and reduce link post penalties.

X handles reverts if you stop paying. If your X Premium subscription ends, you lose your custom handle and your username switches back.

X Android testers get speed, content, and control upgrades. Enjoy a faster timeline, new "Not Interested" option, shimmer loading, and smarter haptic feedback for a smoother user experience.

Musk admits X underpays creators. Musk says X's payment system shortchanges creators and isn't as accurate as YouTube's, sparking new debate about X's monetization issues.

Buffer study: links now dead on X. Buffer analyzed 18.8M posts, finding link posts get almost zero engagement now. Even Premium users see more reach with native content like images or video.

Et cetera

Snapchat reveals how users shop for beauty. Snap's new study finds its audience is far more likely to try new trends, trust AI recommendations, and talk to friends about purchases than other platforms. Social media drives 90% of beauty buying journeys.

If your beauty brand isn't using AR or creator reviews on Snapchat, you're missing out big time! 😲 ~TWISM

Microsoft Copilot adds a new "Imagine" tab. Desktop users can now quickly generate images using AI directly from the Copilot web version.

Pinterest launches GenAI content controls. Users can now limit AI-generated images in categories like beauty, art, fashion, and home decor with an updated tuner.

People want real over artificial, and platforms are finally listening! 👀 ~TWISM

WhatsApp limits how many messages you can send without replies. Unanswered messages will now count toward a monthly cap for both people and businesses. WhatsApp hasn't shared the exact limit, but it will warn you if you're getting close.

OpenAI suspends MLK deepfakes on Sora after 'disrespectful' videos. After negative backlash and a request from Dr. King's estate, OpenAI now lets public figures and their reps opt out of Sora's AI-generated videos.

Telegram drops five big new features. You can now add Comments in Group Calls, use Liquid Glass design on iOS 26, leave Notes for Contacts, pick New Profile Colors, and enjoy Threads & Streaming Responses for AI Bots.

Reddit cofounder claims much of the internet is 'dead'. Alexis Ohanian says bots and AI-generated junk are taking over, urging a move to platforms where real humans can be verified. He points to group chats as one of the last places for authentic social media.