ADVERTISING
Microsoft wants migration, Google wants better ads
One of these ad policy updates feels like a nudge, the other feels like a pound on the table.
Guess which one is which…
Microsoft is urging marketers to migrate from Expanded Text Ads to Responsive Search Ads (RSA).
They’ve extended the deadline to February 1st 2023.
If you’re still in the migration process, Microsoft recommends including at least one RSA in all your ad groups for better performance.
Google wants you to “make better ads”: Starting in October, Google is rolling out a policy that requires ad experiences on destinations—like websites and landing pages—to conform to Coalition for Better Ads standards.
Oh, and Google Play isn’t playing around: On September 30, the company is cracking down on “unexpected” ads to improve “experiences for users.”
… And starting November 1, Google is tackling VPN-based ad blockers, tracker apps, and user data collection.
Why we care: According to Microsoft, merchants using RSA have already seen a 7% increase in conversion rates on average. So if you haven’t migrated yet, you could be missing out.
If you’re running Google Ads, find out if these policy updates impact you, and make any necessary tweaks sooner than later.
Better to limit inconveniences before you head into the holidays, you know?
BUSINESS
High income shoppers are still spending big
… but you can’t say the same for people on the lower end of the income chart.
The highest inflation in 40 years has mostly hit the spending habits of lower and middle-income US consumers.
Between July 2021 and July 2022…
- Shoppers earning more than $100,000 increased spending by 20%.
- Shoppers earning between $50,000 and $99,999 spent 8% more, remaining almost consistent with inflation rate.
- Shoppers with incomes of less than $50,000 decreased spending by 1%.
Also, according to Morning Consult data, just 39% of those earning less than $50,000 had money left over after paying essential living expenses each month.
Why we care: If you’re in a non-essential niche and you’re targeting medium to lower-income consumers, your conversion rates will likely drop as the struggle continues.
Pivoting to higher-income consumers during tough economic times could lift your ad performance and keep those conversions coming.
SPONSORED BY JAMF
The easiest and most affordable way to secure and manage your company’s Apple devices
Buying MacBooks and iPhones for your team is part one of the tech equation…
Now the question is…How do you manage, empower, and secure your end users on those devices?
Jamf Now is a mobile device management solution that deploys apps, secures sensitive company data, enforces passcodes, handles remote wipes, and locks lost or stolen devices…all while managing operating system updates.
… which means you can accomplish all these tasks without relying on a tech team!
You can acquire new devices for your team without spending hours setting them up.
Need to go beyond the basics? The Jamf Fundamentals Plan has more advanced features that keep your company devices secure and protected, including Lost Mode, two-step verification, and disk encryption.
Secure your first three devices now for free.
SEO
Sure, you’re closing content gaps. But shouldn’t you be creating them?
If you’re like most SEO experts, you’re probably aware of the “content gap.”
With the help of certain tools, you can find websites that link to competitors but not to you. And you can try to close this gap.
But Rebecca Moss from Moz believes you should flip the script.
Instead of reacting to your competition, why not create link gaps that they have to chase instead?
Rebecca recommends taking an audience first approach and focusing on websites that are:
- Topically relevant to your brand’s industry.
- High quality without spam or irrelevant content.
- Aren’t linking to any of your competitors.
Let’s widen those gaps…
Identify your audience by asking relevant questions. Step into their shoes. What drives them? What do they care deeply about? What problems do they have?
Next, identify the primary and secondary audiences. Let’s take the UK Holiday industry for example.
Your primary targets could be topics like vanlife, backpacking, and work from anywhere. But now take a step further. Work from anywhere > side hustles, freelancers, creators.
These are the not-so-obvious, yet related topics you can include in your niche.
Find site and link targets. Before you start creating content, you’ll want to see whether there are enough quality websites to target, and whether you can add value to them.
You can either do manual research on Google based on relevant terms and trends, or use tools that can help you find more websites for your niche.
Create relevant content. Rebecca recommends using the “Three R framework” to fine tune your strategy: research, react, and relevance. You can read more about it in the full article.
Now, instead of filling gaps, you can make them and get a headstart on your competitors. Good luck!
SPONSORED BY BLACK CROW AI
This DTC brand is looking forward to their best performance this holiday season. Is yours?
Prospecting and retargeting for e-commerce are just tougher these days. Many brands are worried their campaigns won’t deliver this holiday season.
That’s not the case for DTC brand alleyoop.
alleyoop used Black Crow AI last holiday season and saw a 50% incremental increase in sales from Facebook alone. And they’re looking forward to more amazing results this year, too.
Don’t be like most companies. Be like alleyoop.
Start a trial with Black Crow AI today and be ready when the holiday season starts.
THE CREW’S INSIGHTS
How Cunningham’s Law can help you make more sales
Cunningham’s Law: “The best way to get the right answer on the internet is not to ask a question; it’s to post the wrong answer.”
Ever heard of this law before?
It’s true. And if you’ve been on the internet for any amount of time, you’ve figured this out.
A better question for marketers, though, is why is it true?
The answer is simple: We love feeling like the smartest person in the room.
We like one-upping other people. We don’t mind if someone lacks knowledge about something, but we do mind when someone has incorrect knowledge that we know we can correct.
It hurts to say, but it’s true.
So what does this mean for marketers? Well, if you give customers the chance to be one-uppers, you can make more sales.
Here’s an example: A popular—but not so ethical—tactic is sending out pre-holiday “internal test” emails about upcoming sales.
These emails are designed to look like a mistake—like something meant for the internal team. And they often convert very well.
You look in your inbox, you go, “Ha! They made a mistake! They weren’t supposed to send this out!”
You open the email… and all of a sudden you’re spending $500 on a premium Japanese rice maker.
Engineered “mistakes” are one way to use Cunningham’s Law—but there are other ways to do it… without necessarily tricking your customers.
If you want to learn more about this and other psychological principles you can use in marketing, check out our latest report.
But be careful. With great power comes great responsibility…
ROUNDING UP THE STACK
CONTENT WRITING: You already know crafting that perfect piece of content can make or break your SEO. But you might not have the time or the skills to write it. That’s where Panda Copy can help. Not sure? Check out their free writing samples.*
ADVERTISING: Put on your poker face. Google is updating ad platform serving capability to allow gambling ads on additional platforms. The policy will roll out sometime in September.
META: WhatsApp’s first end-to-end shopping experience just launched in India. Users can browse popular e-commerce app Jiomart’s entire grocery catalog, add items to cart, and make purchases without leaving WhatsApp. A sign of things to come?
SEO: Google’s helpful content update is out… and they want your feedback. The search giant opened a form so you can share whether you think your website was wrongly affected, among other things.
*This is a sponsored post.
BRAIN TEASER
I scream. I can be mostly any shape or color, but everyone seems to talk about screaming when they talk about me.
What am I?
You can find the answer here.
POOLSIDE CHAT
Cool tech, (funny) business, lifestyle and all the other things marketers like to chat about while sipping cocktails by the pool.
This guy inflates balloons… with his nose
Who needs an electric pump when you’ve got this kind of nasal power?
Last week an Idaho man broke a Guinness record for inflating 10 balloons in less than a minute using—in physics terms—pneumatic energy from the lungs via his nostrils.
Talk about dedication.
Can you imagine how many balloons you’d have to go through to master this unique skill?
Now we’re wondering what he’ll inflate next. A basketball? A bicycle tire?
Hey, we’re marketers. We can’t help but think about the next level!