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Google Analytics 4 audiences are rolled out on Google Ads

Written on December 6, 2023 at 9:26 am, by admin

Google Analytics 4 audiences can now be easily created and applied directly within Google Ads.

Marketers now have the capability to build Analytics audiences, including predictive audiences, using the Audience Manager feature and during the campaign creation process

Why we care. This new capability helps marketers understand their audience better through Google Ads. It allows them to make smarter decisions, tailor their efforts to connect with their audience, and optimize their strategies for better performance.

What is a predictive audience? A predictive audience is a group defined by at least one condition related to a predictive metric. For instance, you might create an audience named ‘likely 7-day purchasers’ consisting of users predicted to make a purchase in the next 7 days.

New dimensions. Google announced that it is also rolling out additional dimensions across GA4. Dimensions are descriptive texts that help explain your data, such as audience names, user locations, and transaction IDs. The new dimensions are being added to the following GA4 features:

• Audience builder.
• Segment builder.
• Custom reports builder.
• Data API.

Google has stated that the additional dimensions will enable you to “measure and activate using both pre-defined and custom item-scoped dimensions.”

What are pre-defined dimensions? Pre-defined dimensions are dimensions that are already available for use, such as “age”, “country” and “browser”, and usually don’t require additional code for data collection.

What are custom dimensions? Custom dimensions allow you to track and report on specific details about your users and their interactions with your website or app. They’re useful when the data you want to analyze isn’t available through the predefined dimensions and metrics, for example, “item-scoped custom dimensions”.

Additional custom dimension on GA4. Google announced that it is also adding item-scoped custom dimensions to GA4’s:

• Audience builder.
• Segment builder.
• Custom reports builder.
• Data API.

An item-scoped dimension is a descriptive text specifically about a product or service sold on your online store.

The following predefined item-scoped dimensions have been added to the segment builder on GA4:

• Item ID
• Item name
• Item brand
• Item variant
• Item affiliation
• Item category
• Item category
• Item category 2
• Item category 3
• Item category 4
• Item category 5
• Item promotion name
• Item promotion creative slot
• Item promotion creative name
• Item list ID
• Item list name
• Item list position
• Item location ID

The following predefined item-scoped dimension have been added to the audience builder on GA4:

• Item list ID
• Item list position
• Item location ID
• Item promotion creative name
• Item promotion creative slot
• Item promotion name

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Deep dive. Read Search Engine Land’s complete GA4 guide for more information on creating audiences and general best practice advice.

Courtesy of Search Engine Land: News & Info About SEO, PPC, SEM, Search Engines & Search Marketing

9 tips for aligning SEO with the B2B buyer’s journey

Written on December 6, 2023 at 9:26 am, by admin

The purchase journey of a B2B buyer differs greatly from that of a B2C shopper. 

With the proper strategy, SEO can become a strong acquisition channel for any organization in the B2B space.

Below are top tips for ensuring your SEO strategy is set up for success across every stage of the B2B buyer’s journey. 

Understanding the B2B buyer’s journey

The buyer’s journey can still be viewed through the traditional purchase funnel lens of awareness, consideration and decision.

However, in recent years, B2B purchasers have increasingly been exploring solutions and performing research well into the funnel. 

Awareness stage

• The beginning of the B2B buyer’s journey. 
• At this point, potential customers are just starting to recognize a problem or need and are seeking informational content to gain insights or answers. 
• SEO should focus on targeting broad, informational keywords that align with the general inquiries of your target audience. 

Consideration stage

• Potential buyers have clearly defined their problem or need and are now exploring different solutions, products, or services. 
• In this more focused time period, they compare options, read reviews, and delve deeper into the specifics of each solution. 
• SEO content should be crafted to highlight the unique selling points of your products or services and how they compare to competitors, leveraging case studies, reviews, and testimonials.

Decision stage

• The buyer has all the necessary information and is ready to purchase. 
• This stage is characterized by specific, high-intent searches that could include specific product names, pricing information, or implementation details. 
• SEO is critical in capturing high-intent searches and directing them to conversion-optimized pages. 

The post-pandemic world has seen a rise in digital events and communities (think webinars and social media groups) replacing in-person gatherings like conferences where B2B sales traditionally occurred. 

The result is an increased reliance on content consumption when making purchase decisions, underscoring the need for a strong SEO strategy. 

Dig deeper: Mapping the customer journey for SEO and marketing success

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B2B SEO tips for the Awareness stage

1. Begin your keyword research at the top of the funnel

Developing an effective B2B SEO strategy begins by identifying your target audience and understanding their needs, search behaviors and personas.

As you begin to tailor your content marketing and SEO initiatives to the B2B customer journey, it’s crucial to understand the kind of information they seek before they’ve even begun to think about your brand or the type of solution they want.  

Once you gain this solid understanding, explore how your buyer conducts online searches with keyword research. 

Identify broad informational keywords within your category and match your content (i.e., pricing information, product demos or category explainers) with the most relevant and popular user queries. 

If you’re an SEO professional working for an agency, now is the time to get to know your client’s products and industry-specific language if you haven’t already.

Understanding the intent behind prospective buyers’ searches – whether they aim to know, go, do or buy – is key in determining the appropriate type of content to provide at each stage of their journey.

Dig deeper: B2B keyword research: A comprehensive guide

2. Understand the B2B difference

The sales funnel for B2B purchases is often longer and more complicated than its B2C counterpart. There are multiple C-suite stakeholders and a greater focus on ROI and the bottom line. 

Additionally, keyword search volume and qualified leads are generally lower in B2B. This highlights the significance of quality top-of-funnel traffic over quantity. 

Even at these early stages, create relevant content that:

• Speaks to your product or service efficiencies and effectiveness.
• Is easily translatable to decision-makers who might be removed from the immediate process. 

The content focus at this stage should be building visibility and trust, which can be accomplished via ​​blog posts, guides and introductory videos. 

You can also demonstrate your expertise within the field with whitepapers and ebooks. 

3. Create content that guides buyers

When creating and optimizing content, keep your end-user in mind and envision their purchase journey. Topic clusters are an excellent way to move visitors from the awareness to the consideration stage. 

Structuring your website information like this lets you showcase deep expertise in a specific area. This is vital for B2B businesses, especially those operating in specialized or niche markets.

By thoroughly covering a topic, you provide valuable information to your audience and increase the likelihood of dominating search engine results pages (SERPs) for a range of related queries, not just isolated keywords.

For example, let’s consider a CRM software provider for small businesses. 

• A pillar page with the topic “Comprehensive Guide to CRM for Small and Medium-Sized Businesses” might capture awareness searchers with the relatively high volume “crm software” and “crm software small business” keywords. 
• From there, links to cluster pages like “Choosing the Right CRM for Your Small Business: What to Look For” and “Maximizing ROI from CRM: Strategies for SMEs” offer additional insights and product-specific information while moving the reader closer to purchase. 

B2B SEO tips for the Consideration stage

4. Target comparison and evaluation keywords

At this stage, focus on identifying keywords that potential customers use when comparing products or services. These keywords often include terms like: 

• “Comparison”
• “Versus” or “vs.” 
• “Features” 
• “Benefits”
• “Reviews” 

Use keyword research tools to find the specific phrases your target audience uses in the consideration phase. Subsequently, develop content that directly addresses the comparison queries.

Comprehensive comparison guides, blog posts that compare features of different products or services, and detailed cost-effectiveness analyses could perform well for an audience that is inching closer to converting. 

5. Leverage case studies and testimonials

These content types are powerful tools for demonstrating the effectiveness of your product. Optimize these case studies with relevant keywords, especially those your potential customers are likely to use when looking for real-world examples of your product or service. 

Users might also be drawn to interactive and product-specific features, like an ROI calculator, which can help develop a business case for stakeholders. This stage is where you might begin incorporating long-tail keywords alongside broader queries. 

Google’s E-E-A-T guidelines matter – especially “experience.” Your content should be unbiased, informative and valuable, helping readers make informed decisions. 

Real verified user reviews, guest posts from subject matter experts, and thought leadership-style pieces from company executives can all help connote experience to visitors.  

6. Enhance your onsite experience for users and search engines

Ensure each product has a dedicated landing page optimized for search engines and users. 

These pages should be informative, easy to navigate, make logical sense within your greater site structure, and include clear calls to action (CTAs). Use targeted keywords in the page titles, meta descriptions, headers, and content.

Improve the site structure and navigation to make it easy for users and search engines to find relevant content. 

Follow the same organizational structure as your pillar and cluster content: as visitors learn more about your offerings, they should be logically guided toward a conversion event. 

When it comes to evaluating the success of your efforts, focus on engagement metrics like:

• Time on site.
• Bounce rate.
• Pageviews per session. 

B2B marketers often place a greater emphasis on “micro-conversions” compared to those in the B2C sector. 

SEO is pivotal here by steering potential customers to different stages of the funnel, where they can interact through actions like downloading an ebook or viewing a product demo. 

These interactions are incremental steps toward a high-value and hopefully long-lasting purchase relationship.

B2B SEO tips for the Decision stage

7. Focus on high-intent keywords

At this stage, it’s necessary to identify and target your bottom-of-funnel keywords with a concentration on queries that indicate a readiness to purchase. These include more specific branded terms, product names, or service-specific queries.

Optimize your content for featured snippets, “People also ask”, or knowledge graphs which can provide immediate information and enhance visibility.

8. Streamline conversion paths

Your landing pages should be finely tuned to encourage conversions. They should:

• Load quickly.
• Display well on mobile devices.
• Provide all the necessary information at a glance. 

Consider A/B or CRO testing to land on a clean and effective design, focusing on the product and driving conversions without unnecessary distractions.

CTAs should be clear, compelling, and strategically placed. They should naturally guide the user toward taking the next step, whether filling out a contact form, downloading a trial offer, or completing a purchase.

9. Build trust with valuable and validating technical content

Develop content that caters to visitors making the final decision and those looking to validate their purchase. This includes:

• Detailed product comparisons.
• Reviews.
• How-to guides addressing different use cases. 

Third-party reports or reviews demonstrating how well your offering stacks up to competitors can be especially effective here. 

Pay special attention to addressing popular branded queries. Searchers here are likely already deep in the decision stage, so you can capture attention (and get ahead of any potentially negative third-party pages) by posting your own reviews, comparisons and product feature guides. 

The accuracy and authority of your content are paramount for buyers in the decision stage. Regularly review your onsite technical information to ensure it is up-to-date, accurate and reflects the current state of your offerings.

SEO’s role in the B2B buyer’s journey

Each stage of the B2B buyer’s journey – awareness, consideration, and decision – demands a distinct approach, blending traditional SEO techniques with a deep understanding of the B2B purchasing process and a given business’s specific offering. 

Use these strategies to guide B2B buyers to make informed decisions effectively. Staying agile and informed will help you maintain a competitive edge and drive meaningful engagement with your target audience.

Courtesy of Search Engine Land: News & Info About SEO, PPC, SEM, Search Engines & Search Marketing

Google expands video requirements for “Video mode” where video must be main content of the page

Written on December 5, 2023 at 5:25 am, by admin

Google is expanding its video requirements where the video must be the main content of the page to show up as a video result in Google Search to also have that requirement with Google’s “Video mode” in search. Google said, “extending this change to search results in Video mode to better connect users with the video content they’re looking for.”

The change can take about a week to fully rollout but once it is done rolling out you should only see videos in Google Search and Video mode from pages that make their video the primary part of their content.

What changed. Google said it will only “show video thumbnails next to results on the main Google Search results page when the video is the main content of a page” and that it expanding this requirement for “video mode.”

Google explained “with this update, clicking a result in Video mode will only take users to a page where the video is the main content.”

What is video mode. The videos that show under the video tab are generally what is video mode. Google shared this illustration of video mode in the Google Search results:

Not primary video content. Google posted some examples of page types where the video is supplementary to the textual content, and not the primary focus of the page, they include:

• A blog post where the video is complementary to the text rather than the primary content of the page
• A product details page with a complementary video
• A video category page that lists multiple videos of equal prominence

Search Console changes. Google said this change may have an impact on your video reports within Google Search Console. “You’ll see the impact of this change in your Search Console video indexing report,” Google wrote. Videos that aren’t the main content of the page will appear as “No video indexed” in Search Console.

“Since these videos will no longer be shown in Video mode, you can expect to see a decrease in the number of pages with indexed videos,” Google added. This decrease will also appear in the number of video impressions in the performance report, video indexing report, and the video rich results report in Google Search Console.

Google will also add a new reason to the report to explain why these videos are not indexed: “Video is not the main content of the page”, which simplifies the report by replacing the following issues:

• Invalid video URL
• Unsupported video format
• Unknown video format
• Inline data URLs cannot be used for video URLs
• Video outside the viewport
• Video too small
• Video too tall

Why we care. If your pages have been ranking in video mode within Google Search, you’ll watch to watch the performance of those pages heading forward. This change also has implications for the video metrics you see reported in Search Console.

Courtesy of Search Engine Land: News & Info About SEO, PPC, SEM, Search Engines & Search Marketing

Google Local Service Ads roll out impression share data

Written on December 5, 2023 at 5:25 am, by admin

Google has rolled out impression share data for Local Service Ads (LSAs).

Impression share is the percentage of times your ad shows up compared to the total number of times it could potentially appear.

This data became available on LSAs in November, Ginny Marvin, Google Ads liaison officer, confirmed on X.

Why we care. Impression share is a key metric for assessing the visibility and effectiveness of an ad campaign, enabling marketers to better understand performance and optimize more efficiently.

First spotted. The impression share data for Google LSAs was first spotted by Google Ads expert, Ben Turner, who shared a screenshot of his findings on X:

As shown in the screenshot above, three new metrics can now be seen for Google LSA accounts:

• Ad impressions: How often your ad showed up in search results within a chosen time frame
• Top impression rate on Search: The percentage of your impressions displayed above unpaid results within a chosen timeframe.
• Absolute top impression rate on Search: The percentage of your impressions that appear as the first ad in search results with a specific time range.

Commenting on the screenshot, Turner wrote:

• “Seeing IS metrics in selected Google LSA accounts – could be useful. Metrics seem wildly different to an LSA ranking tool I briefly used. One of them must be off.”
• “If you’re looking at anything other than November 2023 there is no data.”

Reactions. Digital marketing expert Anthony Higman commented that the rollout of impression share data could help improve the accuracy of reporting. He explained on X:

• “[I] have been screaming for this. My whole thing since the intro of LSA is how can I accurately report on Google ads when LSA is in the mix and you have no idea how or when. I doubt this will actually help solve it but it’s a step in the right direction. Only took them 3 years.”
• “Also what’s cool is that these are metrics I haven’t been able to see before. You can see a lot of data in LSA accounts from the account level if you are creative but haven’t been able to see positioning metrics before.”

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Deep dive. Read the Google Local Service Ad guide for more information on how this product works.

Courtesy of Search Engine Land: News & Info About SEO, PPC, SEM, Search Engines & Search Marketing

Google officially drops Mobile Usability report, Mobile-Friendly Test tool and Mobile-Friendly Test API

Written on December 5, 2023 at 5:25 am, by admin

Google has officially sunset the Google Search Console Mobile Usability report, the Mobile-Friendly Test tool and the Mobile-Friendly Test API today. Google told us back in April 2023 that this would happen on December 1st and Google announced today on December 4th that it has been done.

“Today we’re sunsetting Search Console’s Mobile Usability report, Mobile-Friendly Test tool and Mobile-Friendly Test API. We believe these tools helped website owners make the web a better place – thank you for working with us on this journey,” Google posted on X.

What Google wrote. Google posted back then, “Also starting December 1, 2023, we’ll be retiring Search Console’s “Mobile Usability” report, the Mobile-Friendly Test tool and Mobile-Friendly Test API. This doesn’t mean that mobile usability isn’t important for success with Google Search. It remains critical for users, who are using mobile devices more than ever, and as such, it remains a part of our page experience guidance. But in the nearly ten years since we initially launched this report, many other robust resources for evaluating mobile usability have emerged, including Lighthouse from Chrome.”

Access removed. When you try to find the Search Console mobile usability report within Search Console, you won’t be able to. Also the mobile friendly testing tool, which is accessible over here, has been redirected to Lighthouse. And the API should no longer be returning results.

Why we care. If you have been using these reports for clients or internal SEO work, you will no longer be able to use them, as they are gone. Ensure your sites and webpages are mobile-friendly using other tools, such as Lighthouse.

Courtesy of Search Engine Land: News & Info About SEO, PPC, SEM, Search Engines & Search Marketing

ChatGPT turns one: How generative AI is revolutionizing PPC

Written on December 5, 2023 at 5:25 am, by admin

It’s hard to believe it’s only been a year since ChatGPT burst onto the scene and captured the world’s attention with its remarkably adept chatbot that generates human-like text on command.

Once users moved on from trying the chatbot for silly things like writing jokes or letters in Shakespeare’s voice, more useful applications emerged.

• Teachers figured out how to use large language models to teach complex topics to students.
• Hollywood writers negotiated new contracts to continue earning a living when genAI could use their ideas to create new plot twists.
• And software companies added genAI to their tools to simplify mundane tasks.

For PPC marketers, ChatGPT also unlocked game-changing potential. Here’s a look back at ChatGPT’s first year and what we can expect next from this transformative technology.

Looking back at ChatGPT’s debut

ChatGPT launched on Nov. 30, 2022, offering free access to what seemed like an impossibly smart AI chatbot. Built on OpenAI’s GPT-3.5 language model, it showcased an unprecedented ability to understand context, follow logical reasoning, and respond to prompts with coherent, convincing text.

Almost overnight, people began using it to write emails, blog posts, code, and ad copy. The hype amplified as users realized this wasn’t some narrow AI but a foundation for the next wave of computing revolution with implications across countless industries.

Since the introduction of ChatGPT and other genAI models a year ago, several industries have undergone significant transformations.

Our industry is among those impacted as generative AI has streamlined the process of producing various content, from blog posts and social media updates to landing pages, keywords, and ad copy.

The technology’s ability to quickly generate high-quality text has been a boon for marketers, saving time on ideation and execution of projects.

Google took things further and introduced a generative AI campaign creator in May.

Announcements like this reinforced the question that’s been on digital marketers’ minds for years: what will our roles look like as AI continues to do more of what we used to do manually?

To help answer that, let’s first look at what chatGPT has done for search marketers.

Early uses for GPT-3.5 in PPC

Naturally, PPC experts wondered how we could harness ChatGPT’s talents. Even in its initial form, I found plenty of uses:

• Generating keyword ideas from seed keywords or landing page URLs.
• Classifying long keyword lists into coherent ad groups.
• Composing compelling ad headlines and descriptions.
• Providing landing page optimization suggestions.
• Analyzing search query relevancy for improving ads targeting.

To do some of these tasks at scale in spreadsheets, I started using GPT extensions for Google Chrome. Also, I played extensively with the OpenAI API Playground, where all the settings that impact performance can be dialed in. 

For example, the temperature setting can be used by advertisers to make the system more or less creative, something that is important in regulated industries where more creative ad text ideas could violate regulations.

These early applications demonstrated the immense potential for ChatGPT in PPC account management and campaign optimization. But they were just a taste of what would soon become possible as the AI advanced.

Dig deeper: How to use ChatGPT to boost your PPC efforts

GPT-4 is a better but more expensive writer

In March 2023, OpenAI introduced GPT-4, which brought meaningful improvements. The model was trained on more input parameters, 25 times more than Meta’s Llama-2 model and five times more than Google’s PaLM-2 model. As a result, it produced higher-quality writing. 

It was also better at math, which matters greatly in PPC, where optimization decisions depend on a correct mathematical or statistical data analysis.

While earlier versions adequately handled simple PPC tasks like keyword generation, GPT-4 proved particularly useful for long-form text, like that used for email campaigns, blog posts, and landing pages.

The downside was that it was significantly slower and more expensive than previous models. But as more models become available, it opens the door for optimizations. People can evaluate each model’s strengths and weaknesses and decide which LLM and version to use for various tasks.

I found that GPT-3.5 is equally adept as GPT-4 at suggesting keywords. Hence, deploying that model for keyword-related tasks is more cost-effective and faster.

GPT-4 performs better for writing, so the extra cost and latency are worth it when I need to write a landing page copy or a report to be shared with a client.

Dig deeper: ChatGPT for PPC marketers: 15 strategic prompts to use today

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ChatGPT launches beta features

In July 2023, OpenAI introduced new beta features for ChatGPT, like Code Interpreter – which was later renamed Advanced Data Analysis. These made entirely new PPC use cases possible.

Advanced Data Analysis helps advertisers gain new insights

A huge upgrade for the sometimes mathematically challenged GPT-4 was its new capability to write and execute Python code.

By uploading campaign performance files directly into ChatGPT prompts, we can now have it do a statistical analysis and create graphs to provide new insights and optimizations. 

Plugins let advertisers connect GPT with live data

One of the most powerful upgrades ChatGPT has gained is support for plugins, which are special add-ons that greatly expand its capabilities. Plugins allow ChatGPT direct connectivity with external datasets, documents, and live websites rather than just its own fixed indexed knowledge. 

This means you can feed ChatGPT a raw .csv file of PPC campaign statistics for advanced analysis, upload your entire catalog of product descriptions to improve copywriting relevance, or even have ChatGPT scrape and summarize a landing page you’re optimizing in real time. 

Would these new capabilities start humans down the path of irrelevance in digital marketing? Not quite.

Generative AI as an assistant, not a replacement

It’s easy to envision generative AI wholly automating digital marketing tasks. But in practice, these tools function best as assistants augmenting human capabilities, not replacing them.

As I first explored in 2017, well before the dawn of generative AI, humans play three essential roles in digital marketing: 

• The teacher.
• The doctor.
• The pilot. 

Even though AI has changed from mere pattern recognition to generating content, I believe these roles still apply.

• The teacher curates data and fine-tunes models like ChatGPT to align with an organization’s objectives and industry context.
• The doctor prescribes solutions, like the right LLM for the business challenge.
• The pilot vigilantly monitors performance, intervening when generative AI goes off course.

Generative AI takes over tedious tasks like writing repetitive ad copy and landing pages. This frees up teachers, doctors, and pilots to operate more strategically.

For instance, an account doctor can now invest time previously spent copywriting into data analysis and consultation. Or they can prompt ChatGPT to summarize key account insights in client-ready reports. The tool generates content, while the human provides creative direction and quality control.

So, don’t view generative AI as a threat. See it as a collaborative assistant amplifying human strengths. The marketing teams that embrace this human-AI partnership will pull ahead of the competition. But it requires accepting that the future remains human, with AI merely lending a helping hand.

What’s next: OpenAI Dev Day Announcements

At OpenAI’s DevDay on Nov. 6, 2023, they revealed major upgrades that give a glimpse into the future potential for PPC professionals.

Most notably, OpenAI launched GPT-4 Turbo, which supports much longer prompts of up to 128,000 characters. That means you can now submit the equivalent of around 300 pages of text to better help the AI understand what you want – to give it in-context learning: the data it should use to formulate its response to your prompt. 

This massively expanded context window could empower ChatGPT to handle more advanced PPC analysis and optimization tasks.

From whiteboard to ad script

Additionally, OpenAI announced new modalities like vision, allowing GPT-4 Turbo to ingest images.

In one cool example illustrated by PPC scripts expert Nils Rooijmans, he gave GPT a photo of a whiteboard sketch of an optimization decision tree and asked GPT to write a script to handle that use case.

It understood the logic from the whiteboard drawing and suggested the relevant Google Ads Script code to automate that task. 

Reduced pricing for GPT

OpenAI also reduced pricing across the board. Input tokens for GPT-4 Turbo are now 3x cheaper at $0.01, while output tokens are 2x cheaper at $0.03.

Broader access to lower-cost capabilities like fine-tuning could help PPC managers train custom AI tools tailored to their unique accounts.

Between upgraded foundation models, new modalities like vision, and more affordable building blocks, OpenAI’s offering paints an exciting picture.

The next level of PPC optimization will be AI-assisted, thanks to innovations in the tools you already use that can leverage the latest innovations in generative AI. 

The future of generative AI for PPC

The future looks incredibly bright if ChatGPT can accomplish so much in just one year. Here’s what I expect next:

• Improved accuracy in analytics and math computations.
• Integration with PPC platforms through plugins for simplified access to account data.
• Capability to dynamically write scripts and rules compatible with your PPC tool of choice to streamline optimization.
• Easier access to personalization through GPT, “fine-tuning,” and longer prompts to help align responses better with your goals.
• Low-code tools for building custom AI models tailored to clients’ businesses.

ChatGPT in PPC: A year of innovation, integration and impact

The past 12 months have transformed our expectations of what AI can do. As the algorithms continue advancing, our job is to push the boundaries of AI to boost PPC performance beyond human limitations.

In a world of AI assistants, the answer should never be that you can’t do something but rather that you haven’t yet tried something. AI can teach and help you execute your projects faster than ever. 

Courtesy of Search Engine Land: News & Info About SEO, PPC, SEM, Search Engines & Search Marketing

Google Merchant Center Next will soon support rules and supplemental feeds

Written on December 1, 2023 at 5:22 pm, by admin

Google Merchant Center Next will support rules and supplemental feeds early next year. The predecessor version, Google Merchant Center, is still used by some advertisers and already supports these new features.

Google Merchant Center Next (GMC Next), a simplified version of Merchant Center, was unveiled in May.

Advertisers that haven’t transitioned to GMC Next and want access to the rules and feeds should not upgrade to GMC Next.

Those who have already migrated to GMC Next and need access to these tools can revert to classic mode. Google will not invite merchants using rules and feeds to migrate to GMC Next until the features are available in that platform.

Why we care. For those who migrated from GMC to GMC Next, and were unpleasantly surprised to find rules and feeds unsupported, there’s now a path to restore those features. Reverting isn’t ideal, but it offers a way to restore functionality that is integral for optimizing Google Shopping ad performance.

Switching back to Classic Mode. To revert from GMC Next to classic mode and gain access to rules and supplemental feeds, follow these steps:

1. Sign in to Merchant Center.
2. At the top of the screen, click the Help & feedback icon.
3. Click “Use classic Merchant Center”.
4. A disclaimer will appear. If you’d still like to continue, click Use classic Merchant Center.
5. A box will appear allowing you to give feedback on why you’d like to switch. When you’re done, click Submit.
6. Another disclaimer will appear. Check the box, and click Switch now.
7. Classic Merchant Center experience will now be available to use.

Warning. Switching from Merchant Center Next back to the classic Merchant Center may result in the loss of previously added business details and in-store product details. Consider this potential impact before making the switch.

No return to GMC Next. If you switch back to the classic Merchant Center, you won’t have the option to return to the Merchant Center Next until the classic experience is retired next year.

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Deep dive. Read Google Ads Liaison officer Ginny Marvin’s announcement on X in full for more information.

Courtesy of Search Engine Land: News & Info About SEO, PPC, SEM, Search Engines & Search Marketing

Meta to launch Threads in the EU within weeks

Written on December 1, 2023 at 5:22 pm, by admin

Meta is reportedly planning to launch Threads in the EU before the end of the year.

The news comes after X’s biggest advertisers – including Disney, Paramount and Sony Pictures –boycotted the Elon Musk-owned platform following his endorsement of an antisemitic conspiracy theory

Why we care. Although Threads isn’t serving ads just yet, brands can still grow their audiences on the platform through influencer partnerships. It’s worth noting that ads on Threads are inevitable and will likely be a significant contributor to the app’s overall revenue when they do launch.

EU regulation difficulties. Threads was not rolled out to EU countries upon its global launch in July because of the EU’s strict privacy regulations. To comply, Meta modified its product to enable users to use the app without creating a profile. A profile is required if the user wishes to publish posts, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Threads users can now delete their Threads profiles without having to delete their associated Instagram accounts, Adam Mosseri, the head of Instagram, said.

Active subscribers. Threads now has just shy of 200 million monthly active users, according to Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg. He predicted that figure could rise to one billion within the next few years.

By rolling out to EU countries, Threads could see up to 40 million extra monthly active users, according to independent tech analyst, Aho Williamson.

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Deep dive. Read our Threads FAQ guide for more information on how the platform works.

Courtesy of Search Engine Land: News & Info About SEO, PPC, SEM, Search Engines & Search Marketing

Reddit launches new Conversation Placement ad formats

Written on December 1, 2023 at 5:22 pm, by admin

Reddit has launched two new ad formats within Conversation Placement: Carousel Ads and Product Ads.

Conversation Placement sits within a Reddit conversation thread, appearing below the original post and above the first comment. The rollout of the new ad formats within this placement is intended to offer advertisers the opportunity to interact with high-value users in a high-focused environment.

Why we care. Marketers now have more options to promote products through Conversation Placement, giving them more control over how they reach their target. These ads also offer a valuable opportunity to connect with new audiences, especially as many users in Reddit conversation threads come directly from organic searches.

Carousel Ads: This ad format has been revamped for Conversation Placement, enhancing the experiences for both users and advertiser. With the new design, brands can showcase up to six images or GIFs, each with its clickable link leading to respective landing pages.

Product Ads: After introducing Product Ads earlier this year, the format is being extended to Conversation Placement. This expansion enables advertisers to connect with high-value consumers who are actively engaged in research, providing a strategic opportunity to influence their purchase decisions.

Accessibility. Carousel Ads and Product Ads are now available to all advertisers globally.

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Deep dive. Read Reddit’s announcement in full for more information.

Courtesy of Search Engine Land: News & Info About SEO, PPC, SEM, Search Engines & Search Marketing

Google will pay Canadian publishers $73m a year to keep news links in search

Written on November 30, 2023 at 1:21 pm, by admin

Google has agreed to pay publishers in Canada $73.6 million a year to keep links to news articles in its search results.

The search engine had threatened to stop serving news links in response to a new law that forces tech companies to pay for news content.

However, Google was able to strike a deal with the Canadian government before the rollout of the Online News Act, which is planned for Dec. 19, 2023.

Why we care. This landmark deal will come as a huge relief for news publishers in Canada. Had Google followed through with its threat to remove links to news articles in search, organic traffic would have been severely impacted, which in turn would have negatively affected the value of the publishers’ ad space.

Terms and conditions. Canadian Heritage Minister Pascale St-Onge said in a statement that the “single collective” paid by Google would be distributed to “a wide range of news businesses across the country, including independent news businesses and those from Indigenous and official-language minority communities.” He added:

• “A sustainable news ecosystem is good for everyone.”
• “The health of the Canadian news industry has never been more at risk.”

Although the Canadian government and Google have agreed to solutions to make both parties happy, the final regulations have yet to be confirmed.

What Google is saying. Alphabet president of global affairs, Kent Walker, said in a statement:

• “Following extensive discussions, we are pleased that the Government of Canada has committed to addressing our core issues with Bill C-18.”
• “While we work with the government through the exemption process based on the regulations that will be published shortly, we will continue sending valuable traffic to Canadian publishers.”

Meta maintains its opposition. Despite Google’s announcement, Meta is standing firm on its decision to remove news from Facebook and Instagram in Canada. Meta spokesperson, Lisa Laventure, said in a statement:

• “Unlike search engines, we do not proactively pull news from the internet to place in our users’ feeds and we have long been clear that the only way we can reasonably comply with the Online News Act is by ending news availability for people in Canada.”

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Deep dive. Read Google’s concerns about Canada’s Bill C-18 in full for more information.

Courtesy of Search Engine Land: News & Info About SEO, PPC, SEM, Search Engines & Search Marketing