Amazon’s AR push: The ecommerce giant has opened an in-person hair salon to show off its new augmented reality (AR) tools. Were Amazon to integrate AR into its site, it could make this experimental mode of shopping commonplace.

Facebook lays out its social audio plan: The tech giant is taking on Clubhouse, but with the space getting more crowded and the buzz dying down, it may be difficult to succeed.

On today's episode, we discuss what "going back to the office" may actually mean, the dawn of “tiered-access journalism,” video safe havens for brands, possible surges in travel plans, Facebook's new video speed dating app called Sparked, why the Rubik's Cube was invented, and more. Tune in to listen to the discussion with eMarketer principal analysts Jillian Ryan and Jeremy Goldman, and analyst at Insider Intelligence Blake Droesch.

US advertisers increased their investments on digital media by almost 15% last year despite a pandemic and recession, looking for flexibility and accountability.

IDFA isn’t dead yet: New AppsFlyer data suggests that tracking opt-in rates could be much higher than the industry’s expectations, a spot of optimism that could make it worthwhile to keep collecting Apple’s Identifier for Advertisers (IDFA).

Here’s how publishers are developing and expanding their ecommerce monetization strategies, and how brands and retailers can partner with them to drive purchases in the affiliate channel.

Facebook continues its pivot to video

In Q1 2021, Facebook and Twitter both made big moves to defend their beliefs about news and politics on their respective platforms.

Tipping comes to Clubhouse: The social audio app will now let users tip hosts, likely a play to keep creators on the platform as they’re in danger of being poached by bigger players like Twitter and Twitch.

As the pandemic drove consumers to move their spending online in 2020, Amazon benefitted in a big way. But it wasn’t just its ecommerce business that grew by double digits. Its advertising business grew by 52.5% last year, pushing Amazon’s share of the US digital ad market past 10% for the first time. This has only strengthened its position as the No. 3 ad publisher in the US.

Clubhouse has buzz, but social audio isn’t as simple as it looks. The most promising marketing use cases are for thought leadership, virtual events, and influencer marketing.

Facebook remains atop the social ladder

The major social platforms hit the ground running in 2021, making substantial investments into many of today’s top social trends: audio, influencers, and short video, to name a few.

On today's episode, we discuss Twitter's major initiatives and figure out what the platform will look like after it reinvents itself. We then talk about Facebook's cost-per-thousand (CPM) recovery, TikTok's ecommerce efforts, and a recent study about COVID-19 news on Facebook. Tune in to the discussion with eMarketer senior analyst at Insider Intelligence Jasmine Enberg.

Social networks will reach almost full penetration among adult Gen Zers this year, or 99.0% of users ages 18 to 24. The next-highest penetration rate will be among the 25-to-34 age bracket, younger millennials, at 90.9%.