Today in Digital Marketing - Meta Doesn't Understand the Assignment

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Starting point is 00:00:28 Get the Rakuten app or join at Rakuten.ca. R-A-K-U-T-E-N dot C-A. Do you have business insurance? If not, how would you pay to recover from a cyber attack, fire damage, theft, or a lawsuit? No business or profession is risk-free. Without insurance, your assets are at risk from major financial losses, data breaches, and natural disasters. Get customized coverage today starting at $19 per month at zensurance.com. Be protected. Be Zen. It is Wednesday, December 6th. Today, how safe is Instagram's latest attempt at goosing brand engagement?

Starting point is 00:01:08 Pinterest's trends are out and it's good news for grandpas. Meta's AI release today is underwhelming at best. And on the ad-free premium podcast, which you can sign up to by tapping Go Premium in the show notes, everything you need to know about brand safety and Google Ads. I'm Todd Mathen. That's ahead today in digital marketing. One of the easiest ways to get media coverage these days, it seems, is to find some ads next to bad content and write it up in a report. I mean, a new report about X comes out about every week. And perhaps surprisingly,

Starting point is 00:01:46 Google gets this kind of attention as well. One firm called Analytics has put out a couple of these, accusing Google of placing ads on sketchy sites like pornography and sites run out of countries subject to U.S. sanctions like Iran. In that case, those ads ran from within the Search Partner Network. So how dangerous is that network? And these days, the rest of Google. To find out, I'm joined by our Google Ads correspondent, Jill Saskengales. Hello, Jill. Hey, Todd. So let's back up. What is the Search Partner Network, first of all? The Search Partner Network is a collection of websites that use Google's search technology to partner their on-site search. So think of like your local newspaper, for example,

Starting point is 00:02:31 their website. Their website's search function is likely powered by Google, which would make them part of the search partner network. And for publishers, it's kind of like having AdSense on your website to show display or video ads. Actually, internally, a Google search partner network was referred to as AFS, AdSense for search. And so it's a similar idea. You can host ads in your on-site search. And it, for advertisers, expands the reach of your search campaigns beyond just Google search. So then the ad format, if this is essentially, I mean, is it safe to call it kind of like a private label search,

Starting point is 00:03:07 I guess, for certain websites? Yeah, it's a good thing to call it. So search ads can show there, shopping ads can show there, and apparently image and video ads can show there too. So says Google's help center, but I've never actually seen that before. In practice, this is primarily a search and shopping thing.

Starting point is 00:03:22 Of course, there are also video partners for video ads and the whole display network is all partner sites. So that's kind of the other part of Google ads. In our full conversation, we dove deep into how Google advertisers can keep bad things away from their brand, from negative keywords to account level changes and more. We also spent some time talking about the ad placements

Starting point is 00:03:43 that Jill thinks are problematic. All that in the premium version of today's podcast. Just tap Go Premium in the show notes or go to todayindigital.com slash premium. Jill's training program is called Inside Google Ads. You can find it at our affiliate link, b.link slash gatraining. A new Instagram feature meant to encourage engagement could be a trouble spot for marketers. The app is working on something they call hype, which are publicly visible comments overlaid on top of an Instagram story. Currently, as you probably know, any comments left on a story are sent via DMs.

Starting point is 00:04:21 But now those comments will be put on top of the story. So far, this has only been spotted in the wild as a test, and we can only assume there'll be some control over what appears over top of our brand stories. Instagram has been pushing out features at a pretty decent clip, collaborative posts, close friends sharing, a comment wall which is still in testing, and so on. Quoting socialmediatoday.com's coverage of this today, quote, Meta needs to find new ways to encourage original content sharing because while Facebook and Instagram activity has been rising in 2023, original posting has continued to decline. And without that, Meta's apps lose a significant aspect of their appeal and their power

Starting point is 00:05:03 as connective engagement services. I mean, hosting entertainment apps is obviously working out as it amplifies more video content. But Meta also gleans major value from interaction and facilitating participation among users. Unquote. It is the season for gift ideas, holiday sales, and year-end trend lists. Several platforms this week releasing what they say is coming next that marketers can take advantage of. I spent about 20 minutes reading TikToks, and it was really the most generic and unhelpful thing I've read. It went on about curiosity and discovery, and honestly, not a lot there helpful for marketers.

Starting point is 00:05:45 Pinterest's report, which came out today, was a bit more helpful. They outlined 23 topics they see gaining traction for next year. Three examples. Eclectic Grandpa. They call out retro streetwear, cardigans, and customized clothing, saying Gen Z and boomers lead the growth in searches for Grandpa style. Another trend they're calling be jelly. Jellyfish apparently are also capturing some interest, especially among Gen Z and millennials.

Starting point is 00:06:11 They are increasingly searching for jellyfish lamps, jellyfish hats, and even, God help us all, jellyfish haircuts. And cafe core, where people are trying to remake the coffee shop vibe at home. Things like cafe chalkboard and coffee shop vibe at home. Things like Cafe Chalkboard and Coffee Station Decor are trending. As I mentioned, those are only three of the 23 topics they have in their report. A link to that report is in today's newsletter, which you can subscribe to for free by tapping the link in the show notes or going to todayindigital.com slash newsletter. Do you have business insurance? in digital.com. Be protected. Be Zen. Both Meta and Google announced some big AI news today. Google's was the introduction of Gemini, which they say now makes their barred chatbot smarter. There's not a lot of marketing related stuff there, so I won't spend any more time on

Starting point is 00:07:22 that one. Meta, though, does have some implications for our work, kind of. First, they're adding a text-to-image tool called Reimagine inside group chats. Meta's AI will generate and share the initial image you request. Then someone else in the chat can press and hold on the picture to riff on it with a text prompt, and Meta AI will generate a new image. Clearly the developers there think that this is the most fun you could possibly have. This is a direct quote from their news release. Quote, now you can kick images back and forth, having a laugh, as you try to one-up each other with increasingly wild ideas, unquote.

Starting point is 00:08:03 Or, if past history is any guide, people will kick the tires, send a laughing emoji, never use it again, and Meta will quietly sunset it in two years. They also opened up an image generator at imagine.meta.com. Some of the early reviews so far have been

Starting point is 00:08:19 less than generous. Gizmodo called it a flop today. I actually think it's broken. When I tried to use it, I got some weird prompt telling me I had to merge my VR account with my Meta account or some other typical Meta nonsense. Like literally any time I try to do anything these days on Meta, it tries to make me connect other accounts or merge usernames or some weird shit that you know is probably going to go horribly wrong. So I just back out and don't do it. Also, inside chat sessions, you will now be able to ask their AI to recommend videos and reels. The example they're giving is to ask it for best places to visit on a trip to Tokyo.

Starting point is 00:08:58 The app then returns a shelf of matching reels. This is, of course, more a search tool than anything specifically AI-based. They are also adding text generation for people too lazy to write status updates on their personal profiles. Somewhat depressingly, the example they showed was someone asking Meta to write a post saying how grateful they were for their family. You'll start to see this as suggested replies in Instagram DMs as well, aimed at getting brands and creators to reply to their messages faster. This is all in-app, of course. None of this is in the API, meaning that functionality is automatically crop a wide image to a tall image

Starting point is 00:09:46 and try to figure out the best place to do that crop based on what's in the image. One final note, most of these releases are available only in the US for now. And finally, the head of the region covering the Amazon rainforest says he'll demand royalties from Jeff Bezos for using the Amazon rainforest's name as the e-commerce company. He says he plans to raise the issue at the upcoming climate summit in Dubai. If you are trying to reach marketing decision makers, consider an ad on this podcast or our newsletter. Some ad slots are currently just five bucks.

Starting point is 00:10:34 Tap the link at the top of our show notes or go to todayindigital.com slash ads. On the show tomorrow, a big update for a little known LinkedIn tool. Thanks for listening. See you tomorrow.

Today in Digital Marketing - Meta Doesn't Understand the Assignment

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