You can learn about all the latest social trends at our Festival of Marketing event in November. But for now let’s look at what August had to offer. 

#iLookLikeAnEngineer

Software engineer Isis Anchalee sparked a trend on Twitter after posting a picture of herself holding a placard with the hashtag #iLookLikeAnEngineer, highlighting the gender stereotyping issues that exist in and around the industry. 

Anchalee posted the tweet after a recruitment ad she featured in received a strong social media reaction after her firm published it.  

The hashtag soon caught on, with hundreds of female engineers around the world posting their own tweets. 

Facebook hits 1bn users in a single day

According to founder Mark Zuckerberg, over 1bn people used Facebook on a single day for the first time since its creation.

In a recent post, Zuckerberg described it as “an important milestone” and highlighted the fact that “one in seven people on Earth used Facebook to connect with their friends and family.”

Instagram introduces new photo sizes

The weekend brought good news for anyone who struggles with the extraordinarily first-world problem of having to decide which parts of their beautiful photos to cut in order to fit the signature Instagram square.

The Facebook-owned photo-sharing platform has announced it will be introducing more layout options for pictures and videos, enabling users to upload in full portrait or landscape. 

Airbnb gives fans the chance to stay on Ramsay Street

The enlightened among you will not have needed further explanation to know that Ramsay Street is the iconic setting of student-friendly soap opera Neighbours. 

Ramsay Street

Airbnb ran a competition in August in which fans had to explain in 25 words or less why they would like to spend a night on what is arguably the famous street in Australia. 

Winners will receive return flights to Melbourne, free accommodation through Airbnb and an overnight stay on set. 

Here’s a video of Dr Karl Kennedy explaining the competition and singing a little ditty. 

Virginia shooting: Facebook and Twitter told to rethink autoplay video

Following the on-air murder of two journalists in Virginia which was filmed and published on social media by the culprit, MPs have urged Facebook and Twitter to take action after users were confronted by autoplaying videos of the act. 

Virginia shooting Twitter

The group of MPs said that users should be warned about graphic content before it plays and that the social media sites should automatically sift for this type of content.  

McDonald’s spurns Burger King’s advances

Burger King approaching McDonald’s and asking to collaborate is like me asking Louise Theroux if he fancies writing an article together. Of course the answer is going to be no (can you tell which side of the fence I’m on yet?).

Personal opinions aside, it does make for an interesting social media story.

Burger King ran a campaign calling for the two rivals to put their ‘beef’ aside and create the McWhopper, with proceeds being donated to charity Peace One Day. 

McDonald’s CEO Steve Easterbrook subsequently declined the offer with a healthy dose of subtle and well-deserved snark. 

McDonald's responded to Burger King

Facebook introduces ‘Donate’ buttons for charitable causes

Facebook has been instrumental in some of the most high-profile charity campaigns in recent years, and now the social network has created new buttons that encourage users to donate to non-profit organisations and charities. 

A Facebook statement read: 

Every day, people use Facebook to raise awareness and support for causes they care about and to motivate others to do the same.

We’re inspired by how much good comes from these connections, so we’ve added a ‘Donate Now’ call-to-action on Pages and link ads to make those connections easier than ever.

Dogs Trust launches canine keyboard

The Dogs Trust has taken advantage of the popular emojis trend and created a canine keyboard to raise awareness of dogs in need of a new home. 

The keyboard consists of 23 of the most popular breeds in the UK including pugs, dachshunds, great Danes, Shar-Peis and huskies.

Dogs Trust canine keyboard

Twitter bans services recording politicians’ deleted tweets

We’ve all posted stuff we regret on social media. But when you’re a publicly scrutinised politician rather than an unknown digital marketing writer living in zone 6, those gaffes can come back to haunt you.  

Ed Balls found this out the hard way when he bizarrely tweeted his own name on what will forever go down as one of the most glorious days of the internet. 

Ed Balls tweet

But politicians can rest a little easier now because Twitter has just banned two social media management platforms designed to track their deleted tweets. 

Twitter says the decision was made because everyone “has the right to express themselves without fear that their tweets are to become permanent record.”

Google embeds Tweets into desktop searches

Following the success of embedded tweets within mobile searches, Google is extending the partnership to the desktop. 

When something is searched for on Google, a list of the latest tweets relating to that search term will appear. You can also generate a list of tweets by typing a hashtag into the search engine. 

Coca Cola’s #ShareaCokeSG campaign for SG50 in Singapore

This year saw Singapore celebrate its Golden Jubilee, named SG50. Coca Cola cashed in on the festivities by running its #ShareaCokeSG campaign on Twitter. 

The drinks brand released a number of limited edition cans featuring various Singaporean nicknames and terms of endearment and then urged fans to share pictures on social media under the hashtag. 

You can learn even more about engaging customers on social at our two day Festival of Marketing event in November. Book your ticket today and head to the Social stage to learn how to manage brand perception and reach new audiences.