Here are three things you can learn from this edition of our monthly news wrap-up:
- Is Wikipedia really building an open source search engine?
- A new way to test and tweak your AdWords campaigns.
- How to get the most from Facebook marketing.
We’re packing all of that (and more) into this month’s update on the breaking news and top stories related to digital marketing.
1. NO MORE GOOGLE ADS IN THE SIDEBAR FOR DESKTOP SEARCHES?
Topic: [highlight type=”dark”]PPC[/highlight]
Key Point: Look for more ads on the top (and bottom) of your search results and fewer (or no) ads in the sidebar. Google says only Product Listing Ads (PLA) and Knowledge Panel Ads will soon inhabit the right side of your search results page. It’s a story still unfolding, and Search Engine Land is doing an excellent job of covering it. Read more here: Google Sidebar Ads Going Away.
[line]2. WIKIPEDIA BUILDING AN OPEN SOURCE SEARCH ENGINE?
Topic: [highlight type=”dark”]Online Advertising[/highlight] [highlight type=”dark”]SEO[/highlight]
Key Point: Wikipedia says their Knowledge Engine isn’t being built as another Google, rather the vision is “to make the sum of all human knowledge available to everyone.” That rather ambitious announcement fueled a considerable stir in the digital world, prompting a Wikimedia spokesperson to further state: “We do not have plans to build a new search engine: our objective is to improve people’s ability to find content across Wikipedia and the Wikimedia projects.” Which way is it? Looks like we’ll have to wait and see. Read more here: A Little Confusing.
[line]3. AMIT SINGHAL IS LEAVING GOOGLE
Topic: [highlight type=”dark”]SEO [/highlight]
Key Point: The Googler in charge of the infamous Google search algorithm announced his retirement, choosing his Google+ profile as the place to let friends and fans know of the plan. Said Amit, “I love Google. It is a company that believes in doing the right thing, a company that believes in doing good in the world, a company… that cares.” He ended the message with “As Chief Si’ahl said ‘Take nothing but memories, leave nothing but footprints!’ I am taking so many fond memories with me, and hopefully, I’ve left a small footprint here.” One thing is certain: Amit Singhal made a huge impression in the world of search engine optimization. Stukent wishes him the very best.
[line]4. GOODBYE TO THE ADWORDS DESTINATION URL
Topic: [highlight type=”dark”]Online Advertising[/highlight]
Key Point: Google says the new AdWords Upgraded URL format will make your work easier and quicker. Before the move, changes to tracking data required a pause in the ad, a review by Google, and a loss of information. With the new format, you can enter the destination URL and tracking data separately. That means you won’t have to pause ads for a review in order to make adjustments. In their coverage of the topic, WordStream says the change is “welcome” and “long overdue.” We agree.
[line]5. CHANGES FOR THE TWITTER TIMELINE
Topics: [highlight type=”dark”]Social Media Marketing[/highlight]
Key Point: They initially said the timeline change would not include advertising, but it turns out ads ARE included when you choose to see your “most important” tweets on top of the Twitter timeline. Don’t panic, it’s an optional feature (for now). Twitter says tests show users tweet and retweet more when the new look is activated. Could this help Twitter get back on top of their game? Here’s the announcement: Never Miss Important Tweets.
[line]6. LOOKING AT ANALYTICS TRENDS FOR 2016
Topic: [highlight type=”dark”]Analytics[/highlight]
Key Point: It’s a fascinating read, with ramifications that could very well affect your work and future. Writing for the Informatica Blog, Roger Nolan describes “6 Trends That Will Move the Needle on Analytics.” Topics range from cyber security and “The Internet of Things” to problems with finding and properly utilizing people with the appropriate knowledge and skills. Don’t miss this relatively short article. It packs a ton of punch, especially for enterprise-level organizations (but not exclusively for enterprise).
CLICK TO TWEET: Kudos to @rogernolan for an excellent look at #analytics in 2016 @StukentApp
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7. WHAT CAN WE LEARN FROM 13 BILLION EMAIL OPENS?
Topic: [highlight type=”dark”]Email Marketing[/highlight]
Key Point: Talk about a blockbuster study, Litmus released data collected from 13B + email opens and released those findings in the 2016 State of Email Report. John Bonini used information from Litmus to look at how users are engaging with email. Here’s one tidbit from that article: The list of top email clients was headed by iPhone (33% of users), then Gmail (15%), iPad (12%), and Google Android (10%). Find out more here: Email Engagement Study.
[line]8. INTRODUCING CAMPAIGN DRAFTS AND EXPERIMENTS
Topic: [highlight type=”dark”]Online Advertising [/highlight]
Key Point: Running A/B tests for your AdWords accounts will soon be a whole lot easier. Google is rolling out two new features: Drafts and Experiments. You’ll be able to set up multiple changes to a campaign, then run a budget-controlled experiment to see which variation works best. Performance can be evaluated at both the campaign and ad group level. The launch includes Search and Search Network with Display Select campaigns in AdWords. Here’s the announcement from Google: Test With Confidence.
[line]9. HOW TO WIN ON FACEBOOK
Topic: [highlight type=”dark”]Social Media Marketing[/highlight]
Key Point: A BuzzSumo study analyzed a billion Facebook posts from 30,000 brand pages for another deep-dive look at what’s working in 2016. Crazy Egg founder, Neil Patel, reviewed that data and pulled eight primary take-aways for social media marketers. Neil covers the best time to post, the best types of posts to use, why you shouldn’t use YouTube videos, and more. Even if you’re not a Facebook marketing fan, don’t miss this article. There’s plenty to learn here.
CLICK TO TWEET: 8 huge lessons for #Facebook marketers. @neilpatel @StukentApp
[line]
10. GOOGLE LIKES IT FAST (SO DO YOU)
Topic: [highlight type=”dark”]SEO[/highlight]
Key Point: Page load speeds can’t be fast enough for us impatient surfers. We want instant results. It turns out that Google does too. The Accelerated Mobile Pages Project (AMP) is something you’re likely to be hearing more about. It’s a Google-backed plan to boost the UX (user experience) for mobile search. AMP-enabled pages may even get a special label AND a page-rank boost. Read all about it via this Search Engine Land article: AMP’d.
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11. POLITICAL CAMPAIGNS AND TARGETED DATA
Topic: [highlight type=”dark”]Analytics[/highlight]
Key Point: If you think visiting a retailer’s page or searching for a particular product, then seeing related ads pop up everywhere you go online, is a bit intrusive… you’re going to love the new wave of political marketing boiling up this election year. Borrell Associates predicts an online ad spend of $1 billion in the race to the White House – that’s about four dollars for every voting-age person in America. It’s not just the amount of spend that’s remarkable, though, it’s the nature of the tools now available. MediaPost looks at the current state of targeting and segmentation in this article on their Red, White & Blog.
[line]Congratulations! You’re all caught up on your digital marketing news and updates for the month! Tweet your excitement!
Do you ever feel like you’ll never “learn it all”?
Guess what: You’re right!
What we can do, though, is keep studying and growing.
Did we miss something you think should have made the list this month? Let us know in the comments section below.
Your recommendations are always appreciated.
