Instagram’s playing a new game with carousel posts, and it’s like giving each slide its own popularity contest. The platform’s testing a feature that tracks likes per frame, letting creators see which photo or video is the real crowd-pleaser. Is this a game-changer for your IG strategy or just another shiny metric to obsess over? 

We’re diving into the details, from what this means for your content to how it could shake up your ad spend. Plus, your weekly dose of digital and social updates, served hot by The Viral Venti from Akari & Co.

Social Media Marketing

Instagram’s Carousel Likes: Frame-by-Frame Fame or Algorithmic Game?

Remember when your entire carousel post got one like count, like a participation trophy for the whole team? Instagram said, "not anymore." The platform is testing individual like counts for each frame in carousel posts, and honestly, it's about to make your content strategy way more cutthroat.

Each image gets its own visible like count, helping marketers pinpoint which frames are performing best — at least in theory. In practice, it's about to turn every 10-slide carousel into an A-Z test for what stops the scroll.

Key Details

• Frame-Specific Metrics: Instagram’s test shows like counts for each carousel frame, based on what’s on screen when a user hits “like.” Think of it as a popularity poll for your slides.

• Limited Test Phase: Only a select group of users can see these per-frame analytics for now, so don’t expect it on everyone’s dashboard just yet.

• Carousel Power Boost: Instagram’s been pushing carousels hard, noting they get more reach than single photos due to extra interactions and a “second chance” algorithm that resurfaces unswiped posts.

What This Means For Creators and Marketers

• Content Perfectionism, Amplified: Your throwaway slide #6 can no longer hide behind the popularity of slide #1. Every frame is now accountable, which means either every slide needs to be fired, or you're about to learn some harsh truths about your content.

• A/B Testing Paradise: For creators and businesses, frame-specific like counts could streamline A/B testing within a single post, giving you real-time feedback on what hooks your audience versus what makes them scroll past.

• Data-Driven Slide Optimization: Finally, concrete data on which types of content (quotes vs. statistics vs. behind-the-scenes vs. product shots) actually drive engagement within your carousels.

• Quality Over Quantity Pressure: Recent updates, including expanded carousel limits to 20 frames, already let you post more — now you'll know if those extra frames are helping or hurting.

The Bottom Line

This analytics update is a data nerd’s dream — and a creative’s worst nightmare. If this feature goes global, marketers should treat it like a built-in A/B test for attention. The laziest ideas will flop. The sharpest will shine.

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Social Media Trends

The Weekly Scroll 📱

Instagram/Facebook/Threads

🎶 Facebook Adds Music to Text Posts Your Facebook text updates just got a soundtrack. Add music to your plain posts and make even your Monday rants sound dramatic. 👉 Try the tunes

🔁 Threads Tests Facebook-Based Signups Threads might soon let you sign up using your Facebook profile instead of Instagram. Meta's making sure you never leave the family tree. 👉 Watch the shift

📱 Instagram Tests Auto-Scroll for Feed Posts Instagram is testing auto-scroll for your main feed. Perfect for when you want to scroll endlessly... without even lifting a thumb. 👉 Let it scroll

🧠 Meta Puts AI Exec in Charge of Threads Threads just got a new boss: Meta’s VP of Generative AI. Expect more bots, less blah. 👉 Follow the shift

TikTok

⏰ TikTok Adds In-App Post Scheduler TikTok now lets you schedule posts right from the app. Because even chaos needs a calendar. 👉 Schedule it out

🎼 TikTok Adds Songwriter Credits to Profiles TikTok is giving songwriters their spotlight with profile credits. Finally, the beatmakers get some clout too. 👉 Check the credits

YouTube

Nada this week!

X / Twitter

Nada this week!

Other Platforms

🎥 Twitch Tests Vertical Video Streams Twitch is hopping on the vertical bandwagon, testing portrait-mode streams for your doomscrolling pleasure. TikTok, but make it sweaty gamers. 👉 Flip the screen

⚙️ LinkedIn Algorithm Gets a Refresh LinkedIn's tweaking the feed again—favoring recent, relevant content, less hashtag spam, and AI tools that add actual value. Time to rethink your posting playbook. 👉 Adjust your strategy

🛂 Reddit Adds Age Verification in the UK Reddit’s rolling out age checks in the UK to comply with new laws. Prepare to prove you’re old enough for spicy memes. 👉 Verify and scroll

Digital Marketing Trends/Ads

Tour de Headlines

Meta

ICYMI: Say goodbye to manual vs. Advantage Shopping Campaigns—Meta’s made the call for you. Advantage+ Sales Campaigns are now the default for sales objectives, bringing a cleaner structure (campaign and ad sets separated) and smarter tools like “Value Rules” that tweak bids based on user traits. More automation, less guesswork. Source

TikTok

🇺🇸 TikTok’s US Sale Hits a Speed Bump One of TikTok’s potential U.S. buyers just bailed, throwing a wrench into its “please don’t ban us” plan. Drama? Delayed. 👉 Stay tuned

GMV Max or Bust
As of July 2025, GMV Max is the only campaign type for TikTok Shop ads using the Sales objective. Legacy formats like LIVE and Product Shopping? Dead for new campaigns.
👉 Upgrade your ad game

Legacy Ads Still Run—For Now
Old TT Shop campaigns still work, but you can’t create or duplicate them. TikTok’s nudging everyone to switch to GMV Max, with past ROI goals ported over.
👉 Make the switch before it’s forced

AI Everything
TikTok’s World Event unveiled smarter tools: AI ad creation, Smart+ automation, and Market Scope for deeper audience insights.
👉 Let AI dial it in

Free Ad Credits (Seriously)
New advertisers (except Vietnam) get bonus ad credits now through Sept 30. A little sugar to make the GMV Max pill go down.
👉 Claim your free ad credit

Google / YouTube

Google Auto-Upgrades Video Action Campaigns
Starting July 2025, Google is force-migrating all Video Action Campaigns (VACs) to the newer Demand Gen format. The upgrade brings access to Discover, Gmail, and Display, along with creative A/B testing, AI-generated assets, and better reporting. VAC creation was already locked back in April.
👉 See what Demand Gen unlocks

Bye MaxCPV, Hello Impressions
Google’s Video Ad Sequencing is ditching MaxCPV bidding. From now on, all new VAS campaigns must use Target CPM instead. Legacy MaxCPV campaigns can still run—but Google’s clearly favoring impressions over views.
👉 Prep your bidding strategy

Shared Ads Are No More
The Shared Ads format officially retires this July. Google is doubling down on AI optimization, campaign simplification, and backend API updates.
👉 See what’s being sunset

YouTube Tightens Monetization Rules
As of July 15, YouTube is cracking down on low-effort, AI-heavy, and repetitive content. While these were technically ineligible before, enforcement is getting much more aggressive.
👉 Get the monetization memo

X (Formerly Twitter)

🚫 X Limits Emojis in Ads X is cracking down on emoji spam in ads. So if your promo looked like 🍕🔥💯👀🚀🥵 before… time to chill. 👉 Simplify your pitch

🤖 X Launches AI Companions for DMs X is testing xAI-powered chatbot companions for your DMs—because talking to real people is so 2022. 👉 Meet your bot buddy

💰 X Sees Ad Gains from xAI Projects Musk’s AI play might finally be paying off. With Grok + xAI in full swing, X is seeing a little green with a side of machine. 👉 Follow the money

Other Platforms

📊 Snapchat & Triple Whale Share Ecomm Ad Intel Snapchat teamed up with Triple Whale to drop new insights on ad performance for ecomm brands. TL;DR: creative still crushes and retargeting’s your BFF. 👉 Peek the data

Interesting Stats

Show these to execs when they question you

🟣 GenAI in Video Ads: 86% of advertisers are already using or plan to use generative AI for video ad creation — this could account for 40% of all video ads by 2026.

🎥 Video Ad Spend Boom: 93% of marketers plan to maintain or increase their video ad investment in 2025, driven by its ROI and engagement boost.

👥 Influencer Spending Spike: 59% of marketers plan to partner with more influencers this year, a strategy tied to a global social ad market growth of 12%.

🧠 AI in Content Strategy: 71% of social media marketers incorporate AI tools into their strategy, with AI-generated content outperforming traditional content. 

🎓 Education Video Engagement: Education-focused videos enjoy a high play rate of 46%, one of the top-performing content categories on social platforms.

Recommendations/Resources

Tools & Apps We’re Loving Right Now 🛠️

Best AI Image Creator – Leonardo AI is blowing our minds. We’re ditching clunky design tools because this one’s got the magic touch.
👉 Give it a go

Best for Tracking TikTok Metrics & Competitor Benchmarking – TokBackup has become our secret weapon for TikTok insights. If you’re not using this, you’re flying blind.
👉 Explore TokBackup

See Competitor Ads in Real-Time – Meta Ads Library lets you spy on your competitors' strategies and campaigns. Lurking in here is basically a full-time job.
👉 Peek inside

Google Ads Campaign Insights – Google Ads Transparency Center lets you see where ad dollars are flowing. If you like data with a side of snooping, this tool’s for you.
👉 Go snoop

Best AI voiceovers - So, your talent flubbed a line, or you changed your script after recording? ElevenLabs lets you turn text into hyper-realistic voiceovers so seamless, no one will ever know.
👉 Fix it

Best AI Video Generation- HeyGen is this cool AI tool that lets you create videos with super realistic avatars that talk just by typing a script. It’s great if you hate being on camera or want to make content fast—plus, it can speak over 40 languages, so it’s perfect for reaching a global audience. Super easy, saves you time and money, and the results actually look professional.
👉 Try It

Ad Creative Analytics - Beautiful creative reporting to help your team generate more revenue from your paid social ads.

👉 Try it out

Shower Thought  🚿💭

The next cheating couple caught on a jumbotron is going to get away by playing it off as a joke. Context