News

 

10 Second Takeaway: Google changes its search ranking factors fast, but perhaps never as fast as in 2016. This week, I was testing local search by using Twitter to send an emoji to Google. The response I received in seconds was an abbreviated local search for the emoji. Try telling that to someone 15 years ago. Search is irrevocably changed when an emoji gives you results. If you’re not strategizing about that or voice search or social search, you need to start right now. Here is the full scoop from Mashable.

 
 

Have you used Houseparty yet? The company says that it is receiving 1 million daily active users (DAU). That would put the video group chat app comfortably within the top 1,000 websites in the world. That means you need to start thinking about it for your organization.

Here are 11 other fascinating marketing facts about today’s digital landscape.

Here is what making me think about Google. I looked at previous issues of Spotlight from earlier this year and saw a clear trend. Changes so far in 2016:
  • At least two sets of results, including the main one, for mobile!
  • Removing the ads from the right side of the page and changing the number of ads and “organic” results on each page.
  • Warnings about mobile-friendliness and overall page speed.
  • New emphasis on local search
  • More focus on original content. If you just publish manufacturer specs or other generic information, your site will not receive as much search traffic as others who publish unique content.
 

Global WebIndex is adding mobile surveys in 40 countries to its research data.

They created a benchmark to start, and the results skewing to younger consumers was just one finding. In this chart, you can see that nearly half of “mobile-only users” are aged 16-24.

This is a tricky stat that’s worth over-explaining since it’s early and it’s Monday. Of the mobile-only, nearly half are 16-24. This does not mean half of 16-24 year olds are mobile-only users, although that day is coming too.

 

Lights. Camera. Search.

Google is experimenting with a thumbs-up and thumbs-down measurement of movies and television shows right on the search results page. 

Remember our caution about unique content? IMdb and Rotten Tomatoes will eventually be dwarfed by the number of ratings left by billions of Google users worldwide. Remember it’s nothing complicated–thumbs up or thumbs down. 

Think about what changes you could be making to give your organization that kind of unique data. Have a look at the details by clicking this link to Search Engine Land or by clicking their snazzy graphic above.

The Most Useful Thing I Read This Week: Google’s news isn’t all gloom-and-doom and we’re-taking-over-the-planet info this week. They’ve released a new service called “Trusted Contacts” that lets you choose loved ones or friends who can learn your whereabouts without having to call or text you. The feature can be turned on or off at your discretion, and you’ll always see a message when someone has used the feature to find out where you are. It isn’t just for the chronically tardy, but I’ll use it too. Lifehacker has all the details.

News

santa-claus

Winter holiday sales season is in full swing. Christmas carols began playing on November 1st before the Halloween candy went on sale. But this is also the two month period where many retailers and every nonprofit make their revenue numbers for the year.

Facebook and LinkedIn are contributing by creating new advertising opportunities. Both will now allow companies to send you advertising in their messaging systems. If you’ve written a company on Facebook’s messenger service–maybe for customer service–the company may now advertise to you on Facebook Messenger. LinkedIn is taking things a step further, allowing anyone with an advertising account to send you a message on the site.

These new programs come amidst news that Facebook may be chasing down LinkedIn’s job advertising business. The social media network is now showing a “Jobs” tab on some business pages. We know that job advertising works on Facebook even if that sounds counterintiuitive. We’ve advertised for employees for one of our nonprofit clients on Facebook for  years. Consider getting ahead of the curve like they did 

We also have news this week of missteps by digital companies acting aggressively in the market. That includes Facebook allowing advertisers to  target consumers based on a “deduced” ethnic demographic and Yahoo apparently not making public the news of its massive email breach.

The Christmas season has 35 shopping days left and nonprofits have only a week longer to get 2016 dollars in for tax credits for their donors. If your organization isn’t going full throttle right now, don’t delay any longer. Get your plan in market today. If you don’t have a plan or need help creating one, there are ways to quickly launch campaigns. Contact us to find out how.

Your Digital Marketing Spotlight for November 14, 2016

Here’s Yahoo saying it was hacked much earlier than previously reported — and it is being sued 23 times so far for the breach.
Here’s Yahoo saying it was hacked much earlier than previously reported — and it is being sued 23 times so far for the breach.

Its regulatory filing dropped on Election Day, the better to keep it hidden. Yahoo! has made a lot of mistakes in recent years, and this may be the straw that breaks the camel’s back.

92 Percent of Amazon Shoppers Would Not Consider Purchasing a Product That Received Less Than Three Stars
92 Percent of Amazon Shoppers Would Not Consider Purchasing a Product That Received Less Than Three Stars

Feedvisor’s Amazon User Study 2016 reveals insights into shopper research and purchase behavior, and provides recommendations for eCommerce sellers.

Facebook To Ban 'Ethnic Affinity' Targeting For Housing, Employment, Credit-Related Ads
Facebook To Ban ‘Ethnic Affinity’ Targeting For Housing, Employment, Credit-Related Ads

After weeks of push back from U.S. lawmakers, media and civil rights leaders, Facebook on Friday announced it will stop allowing advertisers to use ‘ethnic affinity’ to target the reach of employment, housing and credit-related ads.

Facebook Will Let Brands Send You Ads If You've Messaged Them Before
Facebook Will Let Brands Send You Ads If You’ve Messaged Them Before

Earlier this year, Facebook announced it was building bots that would let companies chat with you in Messenger. Now, the company has announced sponsored messages. They’re like ads, but for your chat app.

LinkedIn Opens Up Sponsored InMail to All Marketers
LinkedIn Opens Up Sponsored InMail to All Marketers

Businesses and brands can now use Sponsored InMail messages via LinkedIn’s Campaign Manager to engage their target audience.

Facebook Testing Jobs Tab on Pages
Facebook Testing Jobs Tab on Pages

Does Facebook have LinkedIn in its crosshairs?

Digital Life

The Hidden Meanings Inside 27 Famous Logos
The Hidden Meanings Inside 27 Famous Logos

Did you know that the three ellipses in Toyota’s logo include every letter of the company’s name? There’s more to many logos than a pretty picture.