Are You Ready for Skype's New Look and YouTube's Coolest Updates?

Discover Skype’s new AR filters, YouTube's latest features, and Amazon’s big AI investment! [image]( Hi {NAME}, First up, Skype is getting a fun upgrade with Snapchat-style AR Lenses. Imagine adding glitter beards or disco glasses to your video chats – now that’s a way to spice up your calls! Powered by Snap's Camera Kit and Lens Studio, this new feature promises to bring a whole new level of creativity to your conversations. YouTube is also on a roll, testing some cool new features. From QR codes for easy channel sharing to user-generated effects for Shorts, there’s a lot to look forward to. Plus, the AI-powered "Jump Ahead" feature lets you skip straight to the most popular parts of videos. These features are in the testing phase, so keep an eye out for when they go live! Lastly, Amazon is making a big push into the AI space with a whopping $230 million investment in generative AI startups. With a focus on their AWS Generative AI Accelerator program, Amazon is gearing up to compete with the big players. However, challenges with their Alexa division and past missed opportunities raise questions about their future in AI. Not to mention, there's growing scrutiny over Big Tech's AI investments. Read on and dive into the latest in digital marketing, tech, and AI Cheers, Jeff What you need to know this week... Social Media Skype gets a makeover with fun Snapchat lenses Skype is adding fun and creative augmented reality (AR) filters called Lenses to its platform, similar to those found on Snapchat. These Lenses will allow users to add things like glitter beards and disco glasses to their video chats, making conversations more fun and personalized. This feature is powered by Snap's Camera Kit and Lens Studio, which are also used to bring AR experiences to other Microsoft products. [Snapchat/Newsroom](=) WhatsApp calling gets a boost: More people, clearer audio (even on weak connections) WhatsApp recently improved its video calling features by allowing screen sharing with sound, automatically highlighting the speaker, and increasing the participant limit to 32 across all devices. This brings WhatsApp in line with FaceTime but still lags behind Google Meet and Zoom in terms of maximum call size. Additionally, WhatsApp is implementing a new codec to improve call quality even in low-network conditions. [TechCrunch]() [image] X wants you to like freely: Inappropriate content feared Social media platform X has made all user likes private, meaning that only the user who liked a post can see it. This change aims to encourage users to engage with more content without fearing judgment or retaliation, potentially leading to a rise in engagement with controversial topics. Some speculate that X might be planning to further monetize adult content through subscriptions, similar to OnlyFans. [X]() YouTube tests: QR codes, Shorts get fancy, skip to the good part YouTube is introducing several new features including QR codes for channels, user-generated effects for Shorts videos, and an AI-powered "Jump Ahead" feature for faster video navigation. QR codes will allow creators to easily share their channel with others, while user-generated effects aim to increase engagement on Shorts. The "Jump Ahead" feature uses AI to identify popular parts of videos and lets viewers skip to those sections. These features are currently being tested with a small group of users and may be rolled out more broadly later this year. [YouTube/Creator Insider]( Nail your next click: Test thumbnails with YouTube's new tool YouTube is finally rolling out its A/B thumbnail testing feature called "Test and Compare" which allows creators to upload and test up to 3 thumbnails for each video. This feature is currently available to channel managers with "Advanced Features" and uses watch time as the key metric to determine the best performing thumbnail. While still in early stages, this could be a valuable tool for creators to optimize their content and potentially increase viewership. [SocialMediaToday](=) [image] What's NEW at Side Hustle Strategies? Side Hustle Strategies is our exclusive membership community for launching and growing a side hustle. Here's a sneak peek into the latest content: Turn Your AI Art into Cash: The Etsy Seller’s Playbook Ah Etsy, the platform where side hustlers have the ability to rake in millions, but hey, I haven’t made a dime yet. Why, you ask? Well, selling on Etsy usually means you need a pretty neat skill, and between you and me, I’m not exactly the crafty type. But I’ve got a feeling that 2024 is going to be a game-changer for folks like me, whose greatest talent might just be typing away at a keyboard. Here’s the thing: AI is our new best friend. And it can churn out mind-blowing art pieces like it’s no big deal. So here’s my plan: I’m diving headfirst into creating some AI-generated artistic wonders and guess what? I’m going to flip them on Etsy for a sweet, sweet profit. If you’ve never heard of to Etsy, it’s this amazing online marketplace where creative people sell stuff they make. And my sleuthing on Etsy revealed that digital art prints are the hot ticket. According to the super credible sounding exportyourstore.com, you can sell these prints as either physical copies or digital downloads. The latter means less hassle with shipping and customer service – music to my ears! So, here’s the breakdown of my master plan: 1) Scout out opportunities on Etsy where there’s serious cash potential for these images 2) Harness a practically free AI generator to whip up these beauties 3) Upload them onto Etsy, and 4) Sit back and let Etsy do the heavy lifting in sales. Stay tuned, because we’re about to ride the AI art wave on Etsy! [image](=) [Join Side Hustle Strategies]() SEO Affiliate links: Friend or foe for SEO? During the SEO Office Hours in June 2024, a question was raised about affiliate links and their impact on search rankings. John Mueller from Google responded that having affiliate links on a page itself doesn't hurt rankings, but the focus should be on creating high-quality content that addresses user needs. [YouTube/Google Search Central]( Advertising Target viewers on the big screen: Google TV ads launch Google TV launched a new advertising network that allows advertisers to show targeted video ads on over 125 channels. This reaches viewers watching free, ad-supported streaming content on Google TV, which is a popular platform for streaming services and includes features like live TV and personalized recommendations. [Google Ads/Blog]() [image] LinkedIn Ads: Conversions, events, leads - Supercharged LinkedIn Ads are releasing new features to help marketers improve their campaigns. These features include easier conversion tracking, a one-stop solution for event promotion, lead generation through boosted organic posts, promotion of long-form content, and the ability to sponsor content from influential connections. These updates aim to streamline marketing efforts and achieve better results. [LinkedIn Business/Marketing Blog](=) [Buy TikTok Views with Fast Delivery]( eCommerce Google makes managing return policies easier Google simplified return policy management for online stores. Businesses can now define a general policy for their entire store using structured data markup, instead of for each product. This shows up in more search results and is especially helpful for businesses without a Merchant Center account (which already allows defining return policies). [Google Developers/Blog](=) Amazon amps up AI spending, but can it catch up? Amazon is investing $230 million in generative AI startups, with $80 million going to fund the second AWS Generative AI Accelerator program. This program offers startups compute credits for using AWS infrastructure and access to experts and tech from Nvidia. Amazon is making this push into generative AI to compete with other tech giants, but the company has faced challenges with its Alexa division and missed opportunities to invest in leading AI startups. There is also growing regulatory scrutiny over Big Tech's investments in AI startups. [TechCrunch](=) Technology Can AI breathe new life into Yahoo? Yahoo is adding AI summaries to its Yahoo News website and app, similar to a feature offered by the recently acquired and shut down news app Artifact. This is part of a larger push by Yahoo to use AI to improve its web products and services, but it's unclear yet if this will be enough to attract new users. [TechCrunch](=) Apple Intelligence: AI makes your Apple devices smarter Apple announced Apple Intelligence, a new system that uses AI to make iPhones, iPads, and Macs smarter. It personalizes your experience by understanding your habits and what information is important to you. Apple Intelligence offers new features like improved writing tools, smarter notifications, and the ability to create and customize emojis. It even makes Siri more helpful by letting it understand the context of your requests and take actions on your behalf. Apple promises all of this will happen while protecting your privacy. [Apple/Newsroom](=) Latest Podcast Episode [data for business growth]( [Listen Now]() Latest from JeffBullas.com - [WordPress Themes 101: Free vs. Premium and Everything in Between]() - [Are LinkedIn Ads the Secret Weapon Businesses Have Been Missing? (2024 Guide)]( - [Why Some Brands Get All the Facebook Likes: Secrets Revealed]() - [Is the Amazon Affiliate Program Worth the Hype? Let's Dive In]( Tool of the Week [UseViral]( [Unsubscribe]( Jeffbullas.com Pty Ltd PO Box 73 Lilyfield, New South Wales 2040 Australia +61413662620