Today in Digital Marketing - Cookie Cancellation: Cancelled

Starting point is 00:00:00 It is Tuesday, July 23rd. Today, the great cookiepocalypse is cancelled. So what does that mean for marketers now? The two-letter solution to improving your Google search ranking, Europe is coming after Meta again, and Amazon plays hardball. I'm Todd Maffin. That's ahead today in Digital Marketing. But Google has never been hesitant to shut down products or plans. Hey, I'm still pissed about them disappearing Google Reader and that was like 200 years ago. Well, on brand, Google has canceled something else.

Starting point is 00:00:35 This time, it's plans to strip third-party cookies out of its Chrome browser. This was, of course, one of the biggest plans in the digital ad space, replace the aging tracking code with, well, they weren't sure. And turns out, that was part of the problem. Google tried lots of ways to claw back the data lost without those cookies. But it turns out, there wasn't really a way to do it that both satisfied advertisers

Starting point is 00:01:00 and maintained the privacy commitments that Google had promised and regulators had demanded. They were two sides of a teeter-totter that could never get in balance. Suffice to say, the decision took a lot of marketers by surprise. Google had been working on these plans for several years, delayed them three times. So what's next then? Nobody's quite sure. Even Google's not sure, though they did promise a vague new system. Quoting from their statement, quote, instead of deprecating third-party cookies,

Starting point is 00:01:32 we would introduce a new experience in Chrome that lets people make an informed choice that applies across their web browsing and they'd be able to adjust that choice at any time, unquote. What that ends up being could be as simple as the don't track me switch that other browsers have had for years.

Starting point is 00:01:50 Considering Google's primary revenue comes from ads, that's a switch they've been hesitant to offer. Well, when big Google news like this breaks, we turn to our Google Ads correspondent, Jill Saskengales, for analysis. And Jill, I want to get your take on this. I feel like I didn't really do a very good job explaining the basics here. What are third party cookies? Excellent question. Let's back up a step. What are cookies, right? So cookies are just little pieces of code that get dropped on your browser when you visit different websites. There are first

Starting point is 00:02:19 party and third party cookies. So firstparty cookies means the website you're visiting, like newyorktimes.com, is the one who drops that code, which means they can then recognize you when you visit their website again. That's first-party. Third-party means you're on the New York Times website, but Google drops a cookie on your browser to do things like track your behavior for Google Analytics or see if you convert for Google Ads. So because you're on the New York Times website, but Google's the one dropping the cookie, that is a third party cookie. And again, it's just like it's a very old and simple, but in a way kind of elegant technology that enables websites to recognize you the next time you come back because they'll check your browser, they'll see that cookie, that piece of code, and they'll say, aha, this person was

Starting point is 00:03:04 here before, let's log them in automatically, or let's make a note that they're a returning visitor. And why did Google want to get rid of them in the first place? Is it all about sort of privacy concerns? People just don't like to be tracked? Pretty much. I don't think Google wanted to get rid of them, as we can see now, but lots of pressure, understandably, from privacy groups. As I mentioned, it's an old technology. It can expose a lot of sensitive information to the browser, opportunity for that to be hijacked. So it just wasn't really safe. And there were a lot of drawbacks.

Starting point is 00:03:33 Like, for example, you can't do cross-device tracking with cookies. If someone visits on the phone and then opens up their computer, you know, that would be two separate cookies, two separate users. There's definitely drawbacks to them. Google has been trying for many years to find other solutions, but alas, given up now and we're sticking with cookies. They really have, haven't they? I mean, we've seen Flock, we've seen Topics, we've seen the Privacy Sandbox. Like every time they announced a delay of this, it seems like they were like, we're going to delay it. But look, we got a cool new thing we're going to try. Why are third party cookies so hard to replace? Well, in a way, because this technology

Starting point is 00:04:09 came out so long ago, it really is elegant in its simplicity. You know, it just makes it super easy to be able to track user behavior online. And so all these other solutions are very highly engineered solutions and they're modeling and predicting and AI and they just don't end up being as effective as good old-fashioned just tagging this person, tag your it, we could recognize you next time. So more engineering and more AI power does not always equal more effective results. And ultimately, all these tests fail to deliver the same quality of audience data needed, the same conversion-focused results that advertisers need. Have marketers moved past third-party? I feel like a lot of them have just kind of

Starting point is 00:04:55 gone past and moving to first-party now. Will this have any sort of day-to-day effect on advertisers? It absolutely will. Because the first thing to keep in mind is although Google Chrome is keeping cookies, there are other browsers out there like Safari, like Firefox that have killed cookies. So already your remarketing campaigns today are not as effective as they were a few years ago. Your conversion tracking today is not working as accurately as it was a few years ago. So you're already feeling that. And the second thing I'll say is because Google kept delaying and delaying and delaying, I would bet that most businesses out there, especially smaller businesses, have not implemented what we call the more durable solutions. Things like enhanced conversions or offline conversion tracking or server-side tracking. You may have heard these terms bandied about before, but I would bet most advertisers haven't implemented them yet. Now, that being said, even though third-party cookies are here to stay in Google Chrome,

Starting point is 00:05:48 because they're gone from other browsers, and look, Google could change their mind again at any time. We've seen that happen before. I would still recommend that if you have not looked into a first-party data solution, you know, gathering customer email addresses, feeding that to your conversion tracking through enhanced conversions. You should still do that even though third-party cookies are here to stay. All right. Good stuff, Jill. Thank you. Thank you. Well, if you're frustrated that Google isn't surfacing your brand's website as often as you'd like it to and are prepared to make big changes to fix it, you might try changing your

Starting point is 00:06:25 domain name. Google search engineer Gary Ilias recently did a Q&A and confirmed that the search engine gives a ranking boost to domain names that end in country codes like.ca for Canada or.in for India or.kr for Korea. But there is one big catch. That ranking boost would only apply to people searching from that region. In other words, if your site ends in.ca and it's someone in Canada that's searching, you'll benefit, but only a little. If you want to double down on this strategy, Ilya says what gives national results even more of a boost is using the language of that country as the language on your webpage. Quoting from him, quote, if the more of a boost is using the language of that country as the language on your web page. Quoting from him, quote, if the language of a site matches the user's query,

Starting point is 00:07:10 that probably has more impact than the domain name itself, unquote. A search engine journal noted today, quote, using a top level domain from a country can inspire user trust from searchers whose country matches the country that the domain name is targeting. And because of that, searchers on Google may be more inclined to click on a search results that uses the geo-targeted top level domain. 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, and more.

Starting point is 00:07:57 It's super easy. And before you buy anything, always go to Rakuten first. Join free at Rakuten.ca. Start shopping and get your cash back sent to you by check or PayPal. Get the Rakuten app or join at Rakuten.ca. R-A-K-U-T-E-N dot C-A. Google has released version 2.7 of the Google Ads Editor. That's its downloadable desktop version of the Ads Manager.

Starting point is 00:08:21 Adding new features and removing some old ones. A few of the new additions in version 2.7, users can now add AI-generated headlines and descriptions to asset groups using final URLs and prompts. Video partners can now be included in demand gen campaigns. And there's a new customer acquisition goal set at the campaign level for search and performance max campaigns. Some things removed, smart shopping campaigns are now fully deprecated and feed-based location assets and groups

Starting point is 00:08:50 are no longer supported. We have a list of all of the updates in today's email newsletter, which is free to sign up to. Just tap the link at the top of the show notes or go to todayindigital.com slash newsletter. The European Commission has moved to block Meta's plan to charge users a subscription fee for privacy on its platforms. But the action wasn't taken under the Digital Services Act, the Digital

Starting point is 00:09:17 Markets Act, or the General Data Protection Regulation, the GDPR. Instead, the European Commission cited EU consumer laws. It warned Meta of possible sanctions if it doesn't address concerns about its pay or consent model. Meta's plan forces users to either pay to use Facebook or Instagram or consent to personalized ads. The EC says this pressures users to quickly choose, fearing loss of access to their accounts. The EC also said that Meta's complex terms could confuse users. For its part, Meta defended its model, saying it complies with European regulations. If no agreement is reached, Meta could face fines of up to 4% of its annual turnover under the EU's Unfair Contract Terms Directive.

Starting point is 00:10:13 Amazon and the Better Business Bureau have filed a lawsuit against ReviewServiceUSA.com for allegedly selling fake positive reviews. The lawsuit claims the site used fake customer accounts to boost product and business ratings on Amazon and BBB profiles. This is Amazon's first joint lawsuit against fake review brokers. Review Service USA did not respond to requests for comment. In 2022, Amazon sued AppSally and RebaTest for allegedly coordinating free items or money in exchange for false reviews. In late 2022, it also launched a campaign to help shoppers spot scams in the holiday season. Amazon has also introduced an AI tool last August to summarize product reviews for customers. Still have not cracked this damn puppy code, I swear. So I think we're getting closer. I think we're figuring out the puppy stuff a little bit more. If you miss all this, we adopted a puppy a few months ago and we have been having a hard time convincing her where to poop or to be more specific, where not to kind of a day calendar. And I looked for like, you know, is it like early in the morning?

Starting point is 00:11:26 She tends to do it late at night. I think what we're learning is that it's not time based. It's activity based. Right after she eats, she should go out. Right after she plays, she should go out. So and I know puppy owners, dog owners, hell, even parents probably laughing at us saying, you know, like, oh, you sweet summer child. But my wife has been through puppy training once, and that puppy apparently was a dream. So now the hard part.

Starting point is 00:11:54 My wife goes away this afternoon for three days for a business trip, and the puppy and I will be on our own. I don't know who's going to be more frustrated with who, but there will be frustration. Anyway, that's it for today. Thanks for listening. I'm Todd Mathen. See you tomorrow. It's called the cellular phone. It's being heralded as a revolution in technology. Cellular phones are still expensive. Apart from the airtime, you pay a basic monthly service charge around $15. But by far the single largest expense is the hardware. You can lease a cellular phone set, but you won't be able to buy one for less than $2,500. That's for a mobile model. The phone runs on your car's electrical system with an encyclopedia-sized transducer in the

Starting point is 00:12:37 trunk. The antenna can glue onto your rear window, and a speaker attachment is available for your visor if you don't like the idea of driving with one hand on a phone. 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, and more. It's super easy. And before you buy anything, always go to Rakuten first. Join free at Rakuten.ca. Start shopping and get your cash back sent to you by check or PayPal.

Starting point is 00:13:18 Get the Rakuten app or join at Rakuten.ca. R-A-K-U-T-E-N dot C-A.

Today in Digital Marketing - Cookie Cancellation: Cancelled

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