To stay ahead on social media, you need to keep up with changes on the various social media platforms.

Did you know that Facebook now allows users to upload GIFs? Another change that Facebook has made is to the News Feed feature, which now encourages users to share high-quality links.

We will usually hear about big social media news from our colleagues and friends or read about it online the day it happens or the day after.

If a social media platform updates its algorithms or features, we might not hear about the change until later. Even though the changes might be small, they can still affect our social media strategy.

Is there a way to stay current with social media news without taking up too much time?

We’re going to show you how you can stay on top of social media news in just ten minutes a day. We’ll give you some tips and tools to make it easier.

Since we all have different preferences for keeping up with news, we have different options to choose from. Click on the link that represents you the most to get started.

You can feel free to check out all the sections that resonate with you.

If you like getting news direct from the source

The best way to get official news from social media companies is by checking the newsroom or company blog for announcements of updates and changes.

Here are the respective newsrooms and company blogs:

Facebook Newsroom: Facebook put their news into several helpful categories. You might be most interested in Product News, News Feed FYI, and Measurement FYI.
Instagram Business blog: Instagram tends to share business-related news (such as new business features or new ad options) on their business blog. While they share a mix of announcements, best practices, and case studies, you can opt to read announcements only.
Instagram blog: If you are more interested in new user features (such as archiving posts on your profile and organizing your saved posts), you can find such news on the Instagram blog under the “#Instagram News” tag.
Twitter blog: Twitter writes about top events, insights from their data, new features, and their company on their blog. If you are curious only about changes to the Twitter product itself, check out their product news section.
Snap News: Snap Inc. shares mostly product news about Snapchat and Spectacles and occasionally company news on their news page.
Snapchat for business blog: Snapchat shares insights and announcements that are relevant to businesses on Snapchat on this blog.
Oh, How Pinteresting!: Pinterest shares a mix of new features, Pinterest tips, trends on Pinterest, and company news on their blog. There doesn’t seem to be a way to see only their product news.
Google+ blog: Google also writes about the improvements and changes they make to Google+ on their Google+ blog, though they seem to have less frequent updates.

If you like getting news from reading news sites or blogs

Yay! We have the same preference. High five!

I like reading blogs and news sites like TechCrunch because the writers often add their personal opinions to the news stories. They share insights, such as how to use the new feature, whether there are any secret easter eggs or use cases, and what impact the new feature has on users.

Here are my six favorite social media news sites and blogs:

TechCrunch Social: TechCrunch tends to publish breaking news about social products before most other publications and provide a deep analysis in their report.
Social Media Examiner News: Every Friday, Grace Duffy of Social Media Examiner rounds up top social media news and provides a short summary of each piece of news.
WeRSM: WeRSM covers news on all well-known social media platforms from Facebook to WhatsApp to Tumblr and more. There’s also a breaking news section on the site.
The Next Web Social Media: The Next Web publishes a mix of social media news, trends, and interesting stories on social media.
Social Media Today: Besides marketing tips, Social Media Today has quite an extensive coverage on social media news.
Jon Loomer: Jon Loomer writes about advanced Facebook marketing and advertising tips. While his blog might not be a news site, he often shares how to use the latest Facebook ads features once the features are available to most people.

You’re more likely to learn about new features on social media than anywhere else before they’re widely available.

If you want to be the first to hear about breaking social media news, twitter is the best platform for you.

Here’re some amazing people and accounts that share helpful or breaking social media news:

Matt Navarra (@MattNavarra): Matt Navarra is the Director of Social Media for The Next Web, and he often tweets about new or beta features on the major social media platforms.
Josh Constine (@JoshConstine): Josh Constine is the Editor-At-Large at TechCrunch where he writes in-depth analysis of social products and their new features and tweets about them.
Jon Loomer (@jonloomer): Jon Loomer writes a blog for advanced Facebook marketers and regularly tweets Facebook and Instagram news.
Ryan Hoover (@rrhoover): Ryan Hoover, as the Founder of Product Hunt, is always on top of new products and features. While he tweets about all sorts of products, he is a great source for new social media products or features.
Mari Smith (Facebook Page): Mari Smith, perhaps the most well-known Facebook marketer, often gets early access to new Facebook features, which she shares with her fans.
Official Twitter accounts of social media platforms (@facebook or its Facebook Page, @instagram or @instagramforbusiness on Instagram, @Snapchat, @pinterestforbiz, and @LinkedIn): While all of them post a mix of news and tips, they are a great source for updates on their platform.

I probably don’t have everyone I should on this list. Who do you follow for social media news, especially when it comes to Pinterest, LinkedIn, and Google+? It would be great to hear from you in the comments.

If you like getting news as emails

Wouldn’t it be nice to wake up in the morning and find your inbox already full of engaging content that you can’t wait to read? I know I would love that!

One way to stay current on social media news is to subscribe to newsletters from respected sources. This way, you can scan headlines and quickly get caught up on the latest news.

If you subscribe to newsletters, the creators will often do the work of finding social media news for you and send you the most important stories.

Here are some social media news newsletters that you can subscribe to:

Social Media Current: Social Media Current is daily (or weekly if you prefer) newsletter of the top social media news curated by a team of editors.
TechCrunch Social Media Week In Review: This weekly newsletter is delivered every Sunday and contains the top seven to 10 social media stories of the week.
SmartBrief on Social Business: Editors at SmartBrief go through thousands of publications and blogs every day to find the most important news. In this newsletter, they cover a range of social media marketing news, including a section on platform news.
Nuzzel: Nuzzel is a unique newsletter. It scans through the things your friends shared on Facebook and Twitter and emails you the top three stories. A hack we do is to create a fake Twitter account, follow just the accounts that we want to monitor (such as accounts in our Social Media News Twitter list), then connect Nuzzel to this account. This way Nuzzel will recommend stories only from those accounts. Top social media news from social media in your inbox!

If you like getting news from listening to podcasts or shows

I couldn’t find many social media podcasts or shows that focus on the latest social media news.

The show covers a wide range of topics and you can watch the most recent show or access the archives. The Social Media Marketing Talk Show by Social Media Examiner is the best I found. It is a weekly live video talk show where the Social Media Examiner team and guest experts discuss the latest social media news from the past week. The talk shows are usually about an hour long. The show covers a wide range of topics and you can watch the most recent show or access the archives.

We discussed the latest social media news and trends in our mini-episodes that are about 10-minute long.

If you could share any podcasts or shows that cover breaking social media news, that would be great!

Social Media Updates You May Have Missed

1. Twitter’s 280 Character Count

This update refers to the expansion of Twitter’s character count from 140 to 280, which occurred about a year ago. This expansion has made it easier for users to express their thoughts on Twitter, as they no longer have to worry about running out of characters. This is a big trend in social media for 2019.

2. Instagram launched IGTV

In the last few years, social media users have produced more video content than before. For example, Instagram Stories, 1-minute video posts, and the newest video feature “IGTV” all allow for videos to be produced and uploaded. IGTV is a separate video app that allows users to produce videos up to one hour long, which are then uploaded onto the app. By having the IGTV app downloaded, an IGTV icon appears on the left-hand side of one’s profile by their story highlights. This allows users to watch vertical videos from their favorite brands and users without having to leave the app.

3. Facebook Adds a News Feed Feature

Although Facebook has never given an explanation for why users might see certain posts on their News Feed before, they have recently announced a new feature called “Why am I seeing this post?” which should clear up any questions users might have about the algorithm. If users click on the right-hand corner of any post in their News Feed, they can access information on why they are seeing that certain post, as well as the option to unfollow and edit News Feed preferences.

As a business owner, you can use this update to your advantage by reminding users to engage with your content if they want to see more of it in their News Feed. If consumers interact with your content, they are likely to see more of it in their News Feed.

4. Checkout on Instagram Feature

Instagram is introducing a new process that allows you to purchase a product without leaving the app. Consumers will be able to shop through your business’s Instagram feed and purchase directly from a photo.

Instagram is a great platform for companies to showcase their products, as 60% of users discover new products on the site. The new feature could help customers purchase products they discover on the site, streamlining the path to purchase.

5. Instagram Tool for Branded Content

In case you missed it, Instagram recently announced a new way to address the lack of transparency around sponsored posts on the platform. Now, when an influencer works with a business, they can post their content and tag the business partner by going into advanced settings and selecting “Tag Business Partner.” Once the business is tagged, “Paid Partnership with [business]” will display below the influencer’s name.

If you spend just ten minutes a day keeping up with social media news, you can stay ahead of the curve on all the new features and trends.

5 Ways of Staying Up to Date with Social Media News