Today in Digital Marketing - 177: Is Google the Next Pinterest?

Starting point is 00:00:00 Google nudges into Pinterest's world. Apple prepares some changes to its podcast app. YouTube finally adds a critically important attribution metric. And ever wanted to know how to exploit TikTok's algorithm so your brand message gets in front of more people? Well, someone's leaked how their code works. And that someone is TikTok itself. It's Friday, June 19th, otherwise known in the U.S. as Juneteenth,

Starting point is 00:00:29 which marks the day in 1865 when U.S. federal troops arrived in Texas to take control of the state and ensure that all enslaved people be freed. I'm Todd Maffin, and here's what you missed today in Digital Marketing. YouTube is adding some nice features for digital marketers like you and me, including a new way to make your video ads more shoppable. They call them video action campaigns. These complement your ad with browsable product imagery to hopefully inspire the next purchase.

Starting point is 00:01:00 What you need to do is sync your Google Merchant Center feed to your video ads, and then you can expand your call to action button with the best sellers that you want to feature and drive traffic to specific product pages. Also, the new campaigns appear to default to a group of placements, including the home feed, watch pages, and Google Video Partners. As well, and this is almost a bigger deal, they're now providing more transparency around your customer's path to purchase by including YouTube in their Google Ads attribution reports.

Starting point is 00:01:31 Honestly, it should have been in there all along, of course, but still, very solid addition. Reports say Apple is poised to introduce a new podcast app in the next version of their smartphone operating system. iOS 14 is expected to be revealed Monday, and a handful of Apple news sites say they're expecting a kind of For You tab that will suggest new podcasts to listen to based on your past history. This would be similar to the tab of the same name that they have in Apple Music. Also, and this feels a tiny bit creepy, a new user profile would let you see what your friends who also use Apple Podcasts are listening to.

Starting point is 00:02:11 From a marketing perspective, they're said to be adding a way for podcast creators to offer bonus content like a director's commentary on a DVD or a bonus digital track to an album. 9to5Mac.com reports that, quote, Spotify is surpassing Apple in more countries now that it offers podcasts, as the company has been investing millions of dollars to acquire original content. It's no surprise that Apple is trying to keep its podcast app attractive to users with these expected changes. Looks like Google wants to get into Pinterest space.

Starting point is 00:02:48 A new project from Google's testing lab launched today called Keen. Quoting TechCrunch, the app is like a modern rethinking of the Google Alert service, which allows users to monitor the web for specific content. Except instead of sending emails about new Google search results, Keen leverages a combination of machine learning techniques and human collaboration to help users curate content around a topic. To use Keen, which is available both on the web and on Android, you first sign in with your Google account and then enter in a topic you want to research. This could be something like learning how to bake bread, birdwatching, or learning about typography. When you return to the Keen, you will find a pinboard

Starting point is 00:03:29 of images linking to web content that matches your interests. So I guess a kind of automated Pinterest? I tried this with the phrase porch design since my wife and I just added a nice pergola to our house and within a of seconds, it did indeed find some articles, but they were basically variations of the same listicle. These were the actual headlines. 116 best porch design ideas. 40 porch decorating ideas. 75 beautiful front porch design ideas.

Starting point is 00:03:59 You get the idea. So probably too early to know if there's a marketing opportunity here, but interesting for sure to see them edging into Pinterest's world. We don't often see social media platforms providing full details of their algorithm. I mean, we get some information, but these days they all seem to come down to a version of what gamers would call get good. In other words, better content gets better distribution. But TikTok, which is trying to fight concerns over its Chinese ownership with a kind of transparency campaign, they have pushed back the curtain a little bit of their own content feed.

Starting point is 00:04:34 And as you'd expect, doing things like sharing or following a creator will act as a signal to the platform. But also, quoting from TikTok here, a strong indicator of interest, such as whether a user finishes watching a longer video from beginning to end, would receive greater weight than a weak indicator, count nor whether the account has had previous high-performing videos are direct factors in the recommendation system. Unquote. One thing I thought was interesting, almost refreshing really, was this. Quote, One of the inherent challenges with recommendation engines is that they can inadvertently limit your experience,

Starting point is 00:05:21 what is sometimes referred to as a filter bubble. By optimizing for personalization and relevance, there's a risk of presenting an increasingly homogenous stream of videos. To keep your For You feed interesting and varied, your For You feed generally won't show two videos in a row made with the same sound or by the same creator. We also don't recommend duplicated content, content you've already seen before, or any content that's considered spam. However, you might be recommended a video

Starting point is 00:05:50 that's been well-received by other users who share similar interests, unquote. So for us marketers, it seems that jumping on hashtag trends will help you get more views. And if you can get your viewers to watch to the end of each clip, that too appears to be a positive signal.

Starting point is 00:06:05 There's more information about how TikTok surfaces content in their blog post. You will find a link in the notes. Check your email. Google may be giving you free money in the form of ad credits. At the start of the pandemic, Google said they would be giving out these credits as a way to help out small businesses in this economic downturn. The credit is automatically applied to your promotions tab in your Google account and is valid until December 31st. How much money you'll get depends on your past ad spend, but some people are reporting that, in some cases, it's not insignificant. If you're getting this, you will get an email saying a Google Ads credit has been applied to your account for future ad spend, or just check the promotions page in your Google Ads account.

Starting point is 00:06:53 If you've got a marketing position you're trying to fill, or maybe just looking for the next great gig, consider a classified ad right here. It's just 20 bucks. You can book it online. Link in this episode's description. Our theme was composed by Mark Blevis. Ad sales by Podcorn. I'm Todd Maffin.

Starting point is 00:07:10 I'm off to farm lead and violet flux for my wife and then share my plus two charisma card because that's what real spouses do. Have a restful weekend. I'll see you on Monday. It's the season for new styles and you love to shop for jackets and boots. So when you do, always make sure you get cash back from Rakuten. And it's not just clothing and shoes. You can get cash back from over 750 stores on electronics, holiday travel, home decor,

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Today in Digital Marketing - 177: Is Google the Next Pinterest?

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