Welcome to another episode of Creator Daily - I'm your host Michael, covering the top news stories, latest strategy, and emerging trends in the overall creator landscape. Today, we're diving into a report that suggests X might not be the go-to spot for news it once was. We'll also talk about TikTok's new feature allowing users to search images in their TikTok Shop, which is shaking up the e-commerce game. Plus, X is stepping up its data game with advanced analytics for premium subscribers. We'll take a peek at what YouTube's brewing with a test run of their own Community Notes. And for those in the business sphere, get ready; TikTok is set to launch a feature for creating your very own virtual characters. Stick around for a jam-packed episode full of insights!

According to a recent report by the Reuters Institute Digital News Report, it seems that the social media platform X is losing its grip as a preferred source for news among social media users. Even though there's been a push by Elon Musk to establish X as the most truthful and trustworthy news source, it appears that TikTok is now overtaking X in many regions as a more prominent news provider.
This shift isn't entirely unexpected for Facebook, since its parent company Meta has been intentionally reducing its news coverage footprint. However, for X, this change is particularly notable since it undermines claims of its ascent as a premier news app, a stand frequently defended by Musk as a rationale for why traditional media might view his project negatively.
The report, which is based on responses from more than ninety-four thousand participants across forty-seven countries, indicates that while YouTube and Facebook are still the most used platforms for news, both are seeing a decrease in users relying on them for news content, with TikTok's popularity on the rise.
One reason behind TikTok's growing prominence is causing concern among authorities in the United States and elsewhere; TikTok's association with the Chinese Communist Party raises fears about the potential seeding of pro-China coverage to Western audiences.
The document also highlights difficulties users face in determining the credibility of news on X, suggesting a need for X to work harder to gain trust from news consumers. Overall, these trends paint a revealing picture of online news consumption and how social platforms are adapting to, or falling behind in, their roles as news sources.

TikTok is enhancing its search capabilities with a nifty new feature that allows users to find products in TikTok Shop using images. This was discovered by social media analyst Jonah Manzano, who came across a pop-up tab that prompts users to find items using an image search.
Here's how you do it: Simply take a photo of the product you're interested in with your camera, making sure it's well-centered and against a plain background. This makes searching for products quicker and easier, as you don't have to rely on typing out text descriptions anymore. 
This type of image search technology is something that Google Lens already offers, and now TikTok users in the United States and Southeast Asia can access it too. If you have the latest TikTok app version and you're in these regions, you'll see a camera icon in the TikTok Shop search bar which you can tap to use the new image search feature.
While TikTok has been seen by some as a potential search engine, particularly among Gen Z and young Millennials, interest has waned according to a CivicScience report in 2023. Despite that, TikTok has several incentives to continue developing its search functions. For one, the app introduced search ads last year, which is a valuable revenue source for brands. Also, creators can use TikTok Search Insights to discover the most-searched topics, helping them to target their content more effectively.
The drive towards more refined search capabilities could mean a big win for TikTok's ecommerce, where over 500,000 sellers in the U.S. could see a spike in sales. With these new additions, TikTok is bolstering its tools to help users seamlessly find and purchase products right on the app.

X is rolling out new advanced analytics features exclusively for its Premium subscribers. This latest development in X's subscription strategy places important user analytics behind a paywall. Premium users will now have detailed insights into a range of performance metrics like engagement rates, profile visits, and link clicks.
Previously, account analytics were more widely available, but with the update, users who try to log into analytics.twitter.com are prompted to sign up for X Premium. The upgrade provides an improved interface with a large bar chart display for easier understanding of performance over time, but it moves yet another feature under institutionalized monetization. 
Elon Musk's takeover of X aimed to diversify the platform's revenue sources, with aspirations for subscriptions to generate half of its total income. However, efforts like selling blue checkmarks haven't been as successful as expected. Right now, X hasn't reached its subscription revenue goals. The push towards Premium may indeed hold value for businesses looking to grow on X and for those whose audiences remain active there. Regardless, X’s overall subscription offerings may have been diminished by initial misdirections, and it's uncertain how many businesses are willing to pay for this service considering the reduced ad clientele and engagement.
X also promises more capabilities for creators in the near future to bolster platform engagement and insight. But whether these moves will be enough to bolster subscribers remains to be seen.

YouTube is now experimenting with a feature quite similar to something we've seen on X, the social media service formerly known as Twitter. The platform is rolling out what they call Community Notes, an option allowing users to attach their own notes to videos to provide context and information. Now, this isn't just a free-for-all, as you might be picturing. Users will be able to rate these notes based on helpfulness and cite high-quality sources. YouTube will then use an algorithm to sort through these ratings to decide which notes will appear under a video.
This feels very much like the Community Notes—or as it was initially called, "Birdwatch"—on X, doesn't it? Community Notes have been one of X's main strategies to tackle misinformation by crowdsourcing the truth from its users, an initiative that gained more traction when Elon Musk took over the company. Although he didn’t create it, Musk has been a fan of it as it potentially reduces the need for paid moderators.
However, unlike X, YouTube doesn’t plan to lean heavily on this user-generated content, but rather, it's considering it as another tool in its arsenal to provide more background on subjects discussed in videos. They are starting this test exclusively on mobile and in the Unitedsizei States with just English language support, for starters. YouTube acknowledges there'll be a learning curve here, expecting mistakes and inaccurate information as part of the process, but they're inviting feedback from viewers and creators to finetune the feature.
It’s going to be quite interesting to see whether YouTube's Community Notes will enhance the platform's content credibility and if this might just be another case of Elon Musk's ideas influencing social media features—even if indirectly. Stay tuned to see how this one turns out!

TikTok is stepping up its digital marketing game with the upcoming “Symphony” marketing management platform, which allows businesses to deploy their own virtual influencers in the app. These influencers are designed to sell products through TikTok live streams, functioning 24/7. Brands have two options: they can use Stock Avatars, which are pre-built and feature paid actors for commercial use, or create Custom Avatars that match their creators or brand spokespeople complete with the ability to communicate in multiple languages.
These aren't just simple, robotic characters. In the Chinese version of the app, called "Douyin," AI hosts have already been widely accepted and are incredibly popular, selling significant amounts of merchandise daily. It's a cost-effective model too - brands can create a deepfake avatar for e-commerce livestreaming, scripting and responding to live comments.
With TikTok incorporating this technology, we're seeing a shift toward virtual characters in social media marketing. Instagram, for example, is also experimenting with AI chatbots in the likenesses of creators. As AI technology grows more sophisticated and these avatars become more realistic, the digital influencer trend is expected to rise, potentially changing the landscape of how brands interact with audiences online. Remember when real people would pretend to be digital characters on TikTok streams? Turns out, they may have been ahead of their time, paving the way for this next wave in digital marketing.

That's a wrap on today's episode of Creator Daily. I'm your host, Michael, and I just want to say a huge thank you for joining me as we dove into the latest in the creator landscape. If you're hungry for more details or you want to delve a little deeper into any of the stories we covered, be sure to check out the show notes. You'll find all the links and extra information you need right there.
And hey, if you've got questions, comments, or you just want to chat about today's episode, we'd love to hear from you. Shoot us an email at creatordaily@podcraftr.com. We're always looking to connect with fellow creators and podcast listeners, so don't hesitate to reach out.
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