Instagram Updates Mimic Snap and TikTok

The DL: Instagram is pushing out a handful of updates, including a reposting feature, a tab for exploring reposted content, and a messages-embedded map function for users to see their friend's locations. In a blog post, Instagram said the product additions are meant to make it “easier for you and your friends to stay in touch through the content you’re enjoying on Instagram.” The reposting feature lets users reshare feed posts and Reels from other users. The content that users reshare will be recommended to their friends and followers—a feature Instagram bills as a way for creators to extend their reach on the app.

Digital Ad Budgets Changing in 2025

The DL: Brands are redirecting their advertising budgets at an unprecedented pace. The move toward digital isn’t new, but this year’s strategies highlight a deeper recalibration — one defined by AI adoption, measurement precision, and the diminishing relevance of traditional media. AI-powered automation, ROI-focused performance marketing, and booming retail media networks are the primary forces reshaping marketing strategies. Consumers are experiencing more personalized, embedded, and privacy-conscious ads, reflecting broader trends in commerce-driven and automated advertising. The days of paying for reach alone are fading. In surveys of brand leaders representing over $66 billion in global advertising spend, marketers cited performance-driven media, such as paid search, social, and retail, as top priorities. Return on investment now outweighs impressions as the primary metric of success. Calls from marketers for transparent, accountable attribution tools are gaining momentum. These are indicators of how digital media is evolving in real time. The platforms, tools, and tactics brands invest in today will shape how people experience the internet tomorrow.

Are Digital Audio Ads Effective?

The DL: Digital audio continues to be a part of the ideal media mix, with many marketers planning to increase spend on platforms like Spotify, podcasts, and music streaming. While audio ads currently perform slightly below average per exposure, this is largely due to creative misalignment rather than the medium itself, meaning formats like host-read ads and tailored creative can greatly improve results. Pairing audio with visual elements, such as static images, has also been shown to significantly boost engagement and persuasion, making digital audio an increasingly valuable channel for advertisers.

MediAI Minute

Meta's New AI Powered Tools

DL: Meta is rolling out a suite of new AI-powered ad tools just in time for the holiday season, with updates spanning creator collaborations, shoppable video formats, and smarter product matching through Advantage+. From enhanced creator marketplace filters to new “show products” optimizations for Reels and partnership ads, brands now have more ways to showcase products, integrate testimonials, and reach the right audiences with less manual effort. Flexible Media placements and fresh creative insights also give advertisers performance-driven adaptability, while global expansion of Shops Ads and email sign-up offers create new paths to conversion. For advertisers, these updates mean more efficient targeting, higher engagement, and stronger ROI during the most competitive shopping season of the year.