Google appears to be a generous benefactor in the morning and debt collector by lunch.
The first-party data push got real. Data Manager is now built into Google Analytics and DV360, alongside a new Data Strength Uplift metric.
Google’s figures say 26% average lift in incremental ROAS from connecting offline and app data, 14% conversion uplift with the tag gateway, 20%+ on Demand Gen.
Bricks-and-mortar gets a holiday gift. Performance Max store-goal campaigns now have a Local Customer Optimization toggle, pushing budget toward nearby shoppers.
That means Maps, Waze, and local Search. Store Sales moves into Data Manager in the coming weeks so you can connect CRM or Sheets, skip the upload gymnastics.
It’s not all good news, though.
Your developer token is on death row. API access now hangs off your Google Cloud project instead. Two jobs for you:
- Reapply if your Basic access application was pending because those got closed
- Update your Cloud IAM contacts, since that’s where Google’s mandatory notices land now
And then the other hand. Google invalidated promo credits after advertisers spent against them, including one consultant’s $3,200, with no appeal route. Ouch!
Timely, then, that law firms are recruiting advertisers to claw back up to 30% of spend since August 2016, riding two DOJ antitrust rulings.
Better data, thinner trust. And the warning that now you have to also audit your credits, not just your ROAS. Ooof!
