YOUTUBE
YouTube is testing product tags as the platform aims to become a shopping destination
Because another shopping platform is exactly what we all needed.
It’s being reported by Bloomberg that YouTube is starting to test some product-related features with its creators, which will eventually lead to a more comprehensive shopping experience on the app. Here’s the full breakdown:
- Some creators are now able to display product tags in their videos. These work like you’d expect – creators can tag products that are used in their videos, and the links then take users to a page where they can buy the product.
- YouTube x Shopify may soon be a thing. To help integrate product tags and e-commerce on the platform, it’s rumored that YouTube will be working with Shopify to create a system that allows users to buy products directly on YouTube.
The Crew’s take: Virtually every single social media platform has been trending this way lately. Instagram’s made Shopping more relevant (Facebook, too) and TikTok is beginning to add e-commerce features, so it comes as no surprise that YouTube’s looking to jump on board.
Why you might want to get your ads banned
Some hilarious marketing-related news went mainstream late last week when a seed company in Newfoundland had one of their Facebook ads banned for containing ‘overtly sexual content’.
The content? A couple of Walla Walla Sweet onions. Which, by the way, are some of the most delicious onions on the planet – but apparently a little too delicious for Facebook’s algorithm.
It’s been about a week since the ad initially got banned. Here’s what has happened since, and why it’s actually a great thing for the seed company in question:
- When the ad got banned, The Seed Company (yes, that’s actually the name) appealed the ban. When Facebook realized that their algorithm had made an error, they reinstated the ad.
- When the ad got banned, The Seed Company (still the actual name) also posted the news to their Facebook page. The post received a lot of attention (for obvious reasons), being picked up by platforms including the BBC and The Daily Show with Trevor Noah.
Here’s why it was a good thing: The Walla Walla onions ad is back up and running on Facebook for The Seed Company. But, it’s not the ad that’s driving sales currently – it’s the publicity.
Jackson McClean, store manager for The Seed Company, said that “we’ve sold more in the last three days than in the last five years.” Facebook advertising is good, but it can’t do that.
This is a funny-but-useful example of a business turning a bad situation into a profitable one. You might not be selling sexy onions, but always be ready to capitalize on situations when your ad campaigns don’t quite go as planned.
SPONSORED BY BUYERTOOL
Experienced Facebook media buyers use this tool to save 1060 hours and 40 minutes of work… without using AI, automation or any optimization rule
If you’re wondering what tool – the answer is BuyerTool!
It saves you time and money by integrating all your Facebook ad accounts into one single dashboard. This turns into a long list of benefits:
- With one refresh, you can see exactly what’s happening in all your accounts, and those of your media buyers.
- If you have multiple accounts for one client, you can aggregate all the data under one client profile.
- Scale up, scale down, start or pause campaigns, ad sets, and ads from BuyerTool’s dashboard.
- It aggregates all of the clients and ad accounts under each media buyer.
- And works even when Facebook’s UI is buggy.
And here are some results achieved by BuyerTool’s users:
- A media buyer managing 5 ad accounts uses BuyerTool to save 4 hours and 5 minutes of work per day (1060 hours and 40 minutes per year). You can see the breakdown here.
- BuyerTool connects to the Facebook API so you can identify problems, notice trends, and take action right away. This helped a user make an extra $10k from a campaign that was already performing well – in one hour!
Companies like Agency Y, DFO Global, VerveGlobal and Standard Conversions rely on BuyerTool.
Find how you can save time and earn more too.
MARKETING
What’s trending in your industry?
Google Trends is an invaluable tool for any serious marketer. But, it’s free. And for reasons unknown to us, free tools often get overlooked for premium ones.
That being said? Google Trends has a treasure trove of information that you probably won’t find elsewhere, and this Search Engine Journal post from Chuck Price delves into how you can make the most of Trends.
Chuck listed 12 ways to make the most out of this huge amount of free data. These were some of the most useful:
+ Keywords and related keywords: You can find a keyword by typing a specific term in Trends. The tool also helps you uncover related keywords that are trending. Just type a search term in the homepage, and it will give you plenty of suggestions for related trending keywords.
+ Context: When you research a topic, compare the data for different time ranges. This will help you give a bigger picture of what’s popular (and when).
+ Trend predictions: Relying on trends that are already happening is something that every marketer can do. If you want to stay ahead, though, use the current data to predict future trends. Extrapolating current trends allows you to create content around growing trends – and beat other marketers to the punch.
+ Search for long-tail keywords: Use and combine the related search queries Google Trends suggests to find long-tail keywords.
+ Identify blind spots, and don’t misread trends:
- Don’t ever trust a single snapshot. Always get a broader view of a timeline to see what else is happening.
- Look for context: An increased trend for a specific keyword might be dwarfed by a more important trend.
Now all that’s left to do is to arm yourself with a calendar, a computer, and start planning content!
ROUNDING UP THE STACK
E-COMMERCE: Dan Shure has some advice on Twitter for e-commerce brands – don’t overlook creating ‘how to buy [X product]’ pages, as they typically rank well for product-related searches.
GOOGLE: It’s being rumored that the U.S. government may attempt to force Google to sell Chrome as part of a breakup of what they claim is a monopoly. But, we’ve all seen how complicated forced sales tend to get…
SEO: Want to learn a little more about how Google’s algorithm works? Last week’s Search Off the Record episode explains how their indexing program, Caffeine, works.
TIKTOK: Is anyone in Pakistan reading this? If so, you can say goodbye to TikTok. The Pakistani government has announced they are banning the app over ‘immoral and indecent’ content.
AMAZON: Amazon Sponsored Display ads are now live globally. This format allows businesses to add their brand logo and customize headlines in Sponsored Display ads.
BRAIN TEASER
You know what time it is. What was our most-opened subject line last week?
POOLSIDE CHAT
Cool tech, (funny) business, lifestyle and all the other things marketers like to chat about while sipping cocktails by the pool.
What are you wearing?
Halloween is just around the corner (or día de los muertos, if you’re south of the U.S. border), and it’s generally the best time of year to dress up in a ridiculous costume.
As such, Google has launched a project, called Frightgeist, that makes use of Google Trends technology to identify which costumes are most popular in your area.
Want to see what people are wearing in your area? Just switch the tab to ‘locally’ and Google will tell you what people in your area are thinking about for this season.
In the northeast corner of the USA, people are excited about pirates, ninjas, and monsters. In the northwest, vampires and devils take the crown.
And, in Florida? Hot dogs, poison ivy, and rabbits are top contenders – can we really say we’re surprised?