Welcome to this week’s Rachel’s Social Snippets #70 – The first issue for 2026 and boy has there been a lot happening since we broke up for the Christmas break.
Meta’s™ – Threads Adds Native Podcast Previews to Boost Engagement
Meta is enhancing Threads with native podcast previews, allowing users to play episode snippets directly in feeds, aiming to make it a central hub for discussions and community building around audio content.
“Useful for discovery if you already have a podcast, but only worth using if the clip genuinely invites conversation.“
Meta™ – Is Considering Charging Business Pages To Post Links
Meta could be set to make a big push to increase Verified uptake.
“This maybe a little old (Dec) but it’s certainly a potential ‘big one’ and another reminder that platforms favour native content over links, so relying less on link-heavy posts is sensible.”
Instagram’s™ – Chief Says Authenticity Is Dying
As platform prepares creators for major AI content shift.
“Authenticity isn’t disappearing, it’s just becoming more important as AI content increases.”
Instagram™ – Says There Was No Data Breach Over the Weekend
The platform has moved to reassure users after many received password reset emails.
“A good reminder to review your account security, but no need to panic.”
X™ – Faces Bans In Several Regions Over Grok-Produced Images
Grok is reportedly producing over 6,500 sexualized images every day.
“This highlights why businesses need to be cautious and considered when using AI-generated content.”
TikTok™ – Shop Launches Digital Gift Cards to Challenge Amazon & eBay
TikTok Shop launched digital gift cards back in December, enabling users to buy and send vouchers for in-app products, aiming to challenge Amazon and eBay by boosting impulse purchases through viral content. This follows a U.S. joint venture for stability, positioning TikTok as a full-fledged retail powerhouse.
“TikTok is moving quickly from entertainment to ecommerce, especially for impulse-led purchases.”
Pinterest™ – Reports Suggest That OpenAI May Be Looking To Acquire The Platform
Rumours are swirling that the AI company may be interested in Pinterest as part of a data push.
“If true, it underlines Pinterest’s value as a long-life visual search platform.”
WhatsApp™ – Tests Usernames As Primary Connection Display
WhatsApp is preparing users for the switch to usernames instead of phone numbers.
“This could make WhatsApp more appealing for business by improving privacy and boundaries.”
Instagram™ – Hashtags
With AI algorithms now playing a bigger part in highlighting the most relevant content to each user Instagram have made it very clear that hashtags are not as relevant as they once were and they’ve been testing limited hashtags on posts for the past year.
Now, they have finally settled on limiting tags to five per post, which will become the new universal restriction in the app. So keep in mind, hashtags matter far less than clear captions and relevant keywords now.
A few upcoming sessions you might find useful:
WORKSHOPS:
Creating Videos With OBS Studio (Interactive) – Clockwork Eye Video
Creating Video For Business (Interactive) – Clockwork Eye Video
WEBINARS:
Camera Confidence & Presentation Skills (FREE) – Clockwork Eye Video
LINK
Setting Up Your Home/Office Studio for Video Production (FREE) – Clockwork Eye Video LINK
MY OWN
LinkedIn 10 Week Online Visibility & SSI Sprint
Starts 21st January 2026 – last few places remaining
January Special – LinkedIn™ Profile Review, Renew & Reset – LINK
If you’ve been thinking that your LinkedIn profile needs a bit of 2026 tlc then now is a great time to do it. Better still I’ve got a super little January Special running and if you don’t have time to do it in January, that’s no problem as you can pay for your session now and take it to suit your schedule.
If you’d like to subscribe to further Snippets, please do so here.
So there you have it for this week, hopefully you found something helpful or of interest.
Have a great week.
Warmest regards.
Rachel x
Rachel Moore Social Media Trainer, Consultant, Manager & Speaker
Award Winning Social Media Trainer & Consultant
07904 007 660 | 01423 529 708