A Brief History of Native Advertising

Meet with a MarinOne advertising professional today to seamlessly incorporate Yahoo! DSP ads into your marketing strategy.

Why Advertisers Should Utilize Yahoo! DSP

‍Yahoo! DSP stands out as a platform that offers advertisers a unique blend of technology, scale, and customer relationships. Here's why advertisers should consider Yahoo! DSP for their campaigns:

The Best of Both Worlds

Yahoo! DSP combines the benefits of a walled garden with the transparency of an independent platform. This means advertisers get the advantages of a massive scale, proprietary inventory, and unique data without feeling restricted.

Identity at its Core

In a post-cookie world, identity becomes crucial. Yahoo! DSP's best-in-class identity graph and first-party data ensure advertisers can connect the dots seamlessly. Even without IDs, Yahoo! DSP has got you covered.

Performance You Can Trust

With the power of machine learning, Yahoo! DSP drives performance without hidden fees or pricing inefficiencies. This ensures advertisers get the most out of their campaigns.

Exclusive Premium Content Access

Advertisers get exclusive access to Yahoo's premium inventory, which includes one of the largest premium native marketplaces. This ensures ads are placed in high-quality environments that audiences trust.

Attention-Based Advertising

Yahoo! DSP, in collaboration with MarinOne, allows advertisers to buy high-attention pre-bid segments. This move focuses on attention-based advertising, aiming to make ads more effective and improve the overall user experience. This can lead to higher revenues for publishers and better engagement for advertisers.

Direct Access to Owned and Operated Media Properties

Yahoo’s DSP provides advertisers with direct access to its owned and operated media properties. This means advertisers can buy inventory directly from Yahoo, ensuring better control and quality.

Unique Demand and ID Matching

Through its Connect ID, Yahoo’s DSP offers ID matching against deterministic first-party audience graphs derived from its owned sites, Yahoo Mail, and fantasy sports. This ensures advertisers can target their audiences more effectively.

A DSP Tailored to Your Needs

From planning and targeting to optimization and measurement, Yahoo! DSP is built to cater to the diverse needs of advertisers. Whether it's Advanced TV, Digital-Out-of-home, Audio, Native Ads, Video, Mobile, or Commerce, Yahoo! DSP has a solution.

A Shift Towards Direct Connections

Yahoo! DSP is part of a broader industry trend where DSPs are creating direct connections to publishers. This ensures better transparency, control, and efficiency for advertisers.

A Cautionary Tale for SSPs

Yahoo's decision to focus on its DSP and move away from its SSP is a clear indication of where the industry is heading. Advertisers need platforms that provide value, transparency, and direct connections. Yahoo! DSP is positioned to offer just that.

In conclusion, Yahoo! DSP offers a unique blend of technology, data, and content that makes it a compelling choice for advertisers. Whether you're looking to target specific audiences, access premium content, or leverage attention-based advertising, Yahoo! DSP has the tools and capabilities to drive success.

Retail Media Networks: A New Era for Marketers

Traditional advertising models are no longer meeting the needs of modern marketers. Audiences expect customized messages and advertising channels such as television, radio, and print are unable to deliver personalized marketing messages to highly segmented groups. Even digital marketing has become more challenging with third-party cookies being phased out. The rise of retail media networks has disrupted the advertising landscape, providing a new and innovative way for marketers to reach their target audiences.

By delivering precise, targeted advertising at scale, retail media networks offer numerous benefits to marketers looking to break through in the crowded digital space. As retail media networks become more popular, marketers need to improve their understanding of the system and how it can help them.

In this article, we will discuss the rise of retail media networks, explore their impact on existing advertising models, examine the benefits they offer to marketers, and provide best practices for success when working with retail media networks.

The Rise of Retail Media Networks: a New Era in Advertising

Before we get into the impact of retail media networks, let’s be sure to understand what they are. Retail media networks are advertising channels owned by retailers, which they can use to advertise their own products or offer to third-party businesses.

While retail businesses currently spend less than 10% of their marketing budgets on retail media, this number is expected to grow 5X by 2024. Retail media networks are expected to become as common and mainstream as social media advertising.

Retail media networks can help businesses deliver a level of personalization that third-party platforms could not. Especially in a privacy-conscious advertising space, retail media networks empower retailers with greater insight into their customers’ preferences without being unnecessarily intrusive.

Benefits of Working with Retail Media Networks

Retail media networks can deliver marketers significant benefits, from granular reporting to improved customer targeting. Here are the top five reasons why modern marketers should use retail media networks:

Targeted Advertising at Scale

By leveraging consumer data collected by retail platforms, retailers can offer precise targeting of advertising to specific audiences, improving the likelihood of engagement and conversion. In a recent survey, marketers shared that a key reason they use retail media networks is their ability to deliver access to difficult-to-reach customers at scale without compromising on personalization.

Increased Revenue

Retail media platforms provide an entirely new revenue stream for retail companies, enabling them to monetize their customer data by offering targeted advertising to marketers. There are multiple ways businesses can use this data to increase revenue. They can use the customer data themselves to encourage more purchases or they can offer targeted advertising to other companies that might be interested in reaching the same types of customers—or they can choose a combination of both.

Enhanced Customer Experience

Customer experiences are often used by retailers as a differentiating factor that helps them rise above the competition. Through personalized and relevant advertising, retailers can improve the shopping experience of their customers by presenting them with products that align directly with their interests and needs. This can be done at scale with first-party data and an advertising channel that is completely controlled by the retailer itself.

Pro tip: Deploy a composable CDP architecture. This architecture allows for unparalleled flexibility in collecting various data types, both in batch and real-time. Composable CDPs integrate the data and centrally manages it, making it readily available for downstream applications like Retail Media Networks.

Improved Performance Metrics

Retail media networks offer advertising solutions with tracking and measurement capabilities, enabling advertisers to monitor and optimize performance to increase return on investment. Since the retailer owns the advertising platform, they have unfettered access to extremely granular customer data. This allows them to build highly comprehensive profiles for each customer and adjust outreach to them to guarantee the best results possible.

Pro tip: Utilize a closed-loop measurement approach. Closed-loop measurement is a technique used to gauge the effect of advertisements on consumer buying behavior, encompassing both online and offline activities. By employing this approach, you can monitor the performance of your advertising media campaigns throughout the entire purchase process. Assess the success of an advertisement in leading to a sale, and understand how your investment in media correlates with actual customer purchases.

This method provides insights into the channels, creative content, and publishers that are most influential in boosting sales. Additionally, it aids in fine-tuning your media strategy to guarantee the maximum return on your investment in media.

Here's an illustration of closed-loop measurement at work:

Cost-effective Advertising

Traditional advertising channels have become less popular and effective with the introduction of social media and retailers have had to adjust their marketing strategies to reflect this. However, it is not enough for marketers to simply focus on digital marketing while ignoring other avenues available to them. By utilizing retail media networks, advertisers can build assets and avoid the high costs of traditional advertising channels such as TV, print, and radio, and instead benefit from more affordable and targeted advertising solutions.

How to Make Retail Media Networks Work for You

Once marketers have decided that they want to make use of retail media networks to reach their most important customers, they need to understand how that can be done effectively. Here are some tips that marketers should consider when using retail media networks in their campaigns:

Use Specific Ads for Each Target Audience

Retail media networks allow marketers to fine-tune their targeting efforts without being invasive. However, using the same advertising to reach out to disparate audiences can significantly hamper its effectiveness. Each customer segment has unique needs and preferences when it comes to how businesses communicate with them. Customers that prefer in-store advertising can be delivered advertisements designed just for them while customers on different social media platforms also have their own specially designed advertising.

Pro tip: Take advantage of location analytics. In-store retail media's challenge is accurately gauging promotional impact and ROAS, especially for non-endemic products. Brands want more than impressions; they seek tangible improvements in conversions and sales to justify advertising spend. Location analytics can enhance this assessment. For example, if a gym advertises at a health food chain, offering QR code discounts can track leads, while foot traffic data provides a broader evaluation. This data can analyze cross-shopping habits, track targeted demographic visits, identify specific campaign locations' most successful areas, and study visitation patterns and consumer profiles during the campaign, offering a comprehensive understanding of the promotion's success.

Build a Strong Data Foundation for a World without Third-party Cookies

Businesses need to transition from using third-party to first-party cookies but not every business has a system set up to enable that. Retail media networks can help plug this gap. These systems allow businesses to collect and organize first-party customer data. Retail media empowers retailers to learn more about their customers’ preferences and adjust in-store and online experiences accordingly.

Enable Omnichannel Access to Shoppers Who are Ready to Make a Purchase

Businesses typically have larger audiences in store than on digital platforms and marketers have been able to capitalize on shoppers who are ready to make purchases in-store. However, this ability hasn’t been as effective online. Retail media networks allow marketers to plan an omnichannel strategy and encourage more conversions across online and offline channels.

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Drive Customer Engagement Early in the Decision-making Process

Customers tend to research the products they want to buy before making the purchase. Marketers may ignore the role that their own retail site plays in engaging with the customer early. By leveraging the vast reach and targeting capabilities of these networks, businesses can place their products and advertisements directly in front of potential customers when they’re in the early stages of exploring and researching products.

This early and strategic engagement has several benefits for businesses:

Build brand awareness
Establish credibility
Capture the attention of customers who are actively seeking information and solutions
Effectively influence consumer purchase decisions
Foster brand loyalty
Create meaningful connections with customers from the very beginning of their buying journey.

Deliver a Consistent Experience Across Social Media Platforms and Retail Sites

In a bid to stretch marketing dollars, marketers can easily make the mistake of focusing on specific platforms while ignoring others completely. A combination of utilizing retail media networks and optimized social media marketing is the key to reaching the largest audience possible while still being targeted. These networks leverage advanced targeting and data capabilities to ensure that advertisements and brand messaging are consistently presented to consumers across various online channels.

By integrating with multiple platforms and sites, retail media networks enable businesses to synchronize their campaigns, creative assets, and messaging to create a cohesive brand experience. This consistency not only strengthens brand recognition but also helps to build trust with customers as they encounter familiar and consistent messaging wherever they engage with the brand. By delivering a seamless and unified experience, retail media networks empower businesses to reinforce their brand identity and effectively communicate their value proposition to potential customers, regardless of the platform or site they encounter.

Bridge the Gap Between Sales and Marketing

Marketers can be preoccupied with metrics such as views and impressions but this does not always translate into more sales for the business. Retail media networks can help provide the sales data that marketing teams need to adjust their strategies as necessary.

Why MarinOne is the Best Solution for Marketers in this new Advertising Environment

With MarinOne, marketers gain a holistic view of their campaigns across different retail media networks, allowing for better coordination, data analysis, and decision making. It simplifies the complex task of managing and optimizing advertising budgets, bids, and creative assets across multiple platforms and networks.

Additionally, MarinOne offers comprehensive reporting and analytics capabilities, giving marketers deep insights into the performance of their retail media campaigns. They can access unified dashboards, track key performance indicators, and measure the effectiveness of their advertising efforts across retail media networks.

Overall, MarinOne empowers marketers to evolve and thrive in a marketing environment where retail media networks are commonplace. It streamlines campaign management, enhances optimization capabilities, and provides powerful insights, enabling marketers to achieve better results and drive growth in this evolving landscape.

To get started today, schedule a demo with one of our MarinOne experts.

Analytics & Tracking

iOS17 Tracking Changes: What Marketers Need to Know

Summary

iOS 17 is here, and now tracking parameters that allow cross-site tracking will be removed from Safari private browsing and links shared in Apple messages and mail. UTM parameters are unaffected, but Safari will remove Google and Facebook click IDs.

Ok, tell me more…

Apple’s focus on privacy over the last few iOS releases is clear, and iOS17 is no exception. At WWDC in June, Apple announced that Private Browsing mode in Safari will be more private, adding Link Tracking Protection to remove some URL parameters.

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Safari doesn’t remove all URL parameters, only those that track an individual user across websites. Apple is not publicizing the list of affected parameters, but we believe that UTM parameters are unaffected. Click-specific parameters will be removed, like those added by Google and Meta upon an ad click. Here’s a site that reports on specific URL parameters but does not yet reflect Privacy Mode on Safari.

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In addition, users can opt-in to have Safari remove these tracking URLs even when not in Private Browsing, but most users will not enable this setting.

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What’s the impact?

iOS updates take time, so you should expect the effect to begin this week and ramp up as users upgrade their devices to ~90% adoption by the end of the year.

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These changes will not affect most paid traffic on Safari because that traffic comes through a publisher, not an email or message. While Safari private browsing will be affected, Marin estimates Safari private browsing is used by 20% of Safari users, but most users only use Private Mode occasionally. Google is more likely to be affected than Meta properties because ad clicks happen in the browser, not in an app.

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If you rely on publisher tracking and don’t want to experience data loss, you can look at a third-party tracking solution, like Marin Tracker, that doesn’t rely on Google Click IDs.

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You should also ensure there are no errors on your website if you rely on a URL parameter that Safari removes.

What’s next?

Private Click Measurement is Apple’s privacy-safe alternative if you need measurement that is blocked by Link Tracking Protection. Here’s a video from WWDC’21 giving an overview of the capabilities. As of iOS17, this is also available for Safari Private Browsing.

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Apple may start applying this logic to non-private modes. If this happens, advertisers can set up dedicated landing pages for each highly granular sub-topic and concentrate their traffic on fewer criteria (such as keywords). This approach will help provide accurate measurement without using parameters.

Marin can upload revenue based on the landing page and allocate it to the criteria on a click-weighted basis.
Marin can assist with the migration to parameterless criteria / ads
For selected customers, Marin can run an incrementality study to prove your ads' impact more reliably.

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We don’t expect Google to follow these changes, at least not anytime in 2024, as they are still working on the long-delated around cookie deprecation and blocking.

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Need help navigating these changes? Click here to set up time with one of our experts.

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Exploring the Effectiveness of Instagram Advertising with Influencers

According to DemandSage, Instagram is one of the most popular social media channels available, with over 2.35 Billion monthly active users. With such an extensive use case, especially for those in crucial customer demographics such as millennials and Gen Z, it's not surprising that many businesses try to harness the power of Instagram to facilitate growth.

One way that businesses try to grow on Instagram is through partnering with influencers. These are individuals with a large or highly-engaged audience, and often both. Companies can use influencers to promote their products, pages, and more, and it has many benefits to implementing this marketing tactic.

However, with things like costs and brand perception to consider, many people still question if using Instagram influencers to advertise your business is effective. Here's a deeper dive into the practice and why it can be a good idea for you.

What is Instagram Influencer Marketing?

Influencers exist on all social platforms, including Instagram, often serving similar functions and purposes. An influencer would have built a following by posting about a particular niche, lifestyle, or aspect of their life, with users engaging with the content because they find it entertaining, educational, or memorable.

Over time, these influencers have built credibility and trust by being authentic and, for many, a source of inspiration. This reputation makes them perfect for businesses to partner with, as soliciting a promotional post with an influencer can get your product recommended by someone with a huge reach and genuine influence over the followers.

One of the most famous influencers on Instagram is Kim Kardashian. With millions of followers, brands often pay for her to post content featuring their products in the hopes that some of those followers will be inspired to use the same products. You can follow a similar principle when partnering with an Instagram influencer.

Mark Pierce, CEO of Colorado LLC Attorney, says, "Influencers have already done the hard part and built an engaged audience that trusts them. Advertising with influencers allows you to borrow their influence to promote your products."

There are many different types of influencers you can use. They are broken down into:

Nano-influencer - 10,000 followers or fewer
Micro-influencer - 10,000 to 100,000 followers
Macro-influencer - 100,000 to 1 million followers
Mega influencer - 1 million or more followers

Regarding the different types of influencers, Stephan Baldwin, Founder of Assisted Living, says, "Don't disregard the potential of nano-influencers. Despite their small audience size, those followers are usually highly engaged and focused on that influencer's niche. Partnering with the right nano-influencer can help you find the best leads."

Does Advertising With Instagram Influencers Actually Work?

The states show that advertising with influencers can help your brand grow in audience size and revenue. Civic Science reported that 14% of Gen Z social users and 11% of millennials bought a product after seeing it promoted via influencer marketing. This may sound small, but it offers great potential when you remember that over 2 Billion users are on Instagram.

The benefits of influencer marketing can be huge. As influencers have built up a trusted persona, having your products featured and advertised on their content can make your brand appear more genuine, helping to boost your reputation. Furthermore, partnering with the right influencers that work well within your niche can position you as an essential brand among your target audience.

For example, if you run a sports equipment business, you can position yourself as an industry leader by having your products showcased by influencers within the sport niche.

By using Instagram influencers to build trust, your reputation will soar. Managing your brand's online reputation is critical for business growth, and working with influencers can help with that.

As well as that, influencer marketing can help you reach audiences you may not have been able to reach organically. Gerald Lombardo, Head of Growth at Popl, says, "It can be hard to penetrate a new market or demographic, especially if you want to expand in a new country. Using influencers can help you get a strong foothold."

The best-performing type of influencer content on Instagram is videos. Ironic for an app that started by focusing on image sharing, reels see the most use on Instagram. This means you can pair your Instagram influencer marketing with Instagram Video Ads to capitalize on and maximize your campaign's reach.

How to Effectively Use Instagram Influencers

Using influencers is one of the best strategies for sponsoring products on Instagram, but you have to use them effectively and in the right way. Here are a few things to do to make sure that your campaigns are the most effective they can be:

Know your audience

You need to do market research on your brand to determine the type of Instagram users you should target. Certain brands and products appeal to specific individuals, so to ensure you work with the right influencers, you need a good grasp of the demographic that best suits your product.

After that, you must research potential influencers to see if their audience suits your brand.

Jesse Hanson, Content Manager at Online Solitaire & World of Card Games, says, "We target a specific audience with our advertising. It can be a waste of effort and resources marketing to the wrong individuals, so fully understanding the type of audience influencers have can be super helpful."

Pro tip: Studying your competitors' Instagram audience can provide valuable insights about your target demographic. Analyzing their followers and post types can help shape your audience profile and identify any overlooked segments.

Sprout's Competitive Analysis Report allows you to track your competitors' Instagram performance, engagement, audience growth, and compare it with yours. This enables you to identify key competitors and scrutinize their audience composition.

Follow the rules

When working with influencers, there are clear rules that both of you need to follow. The main thing is that when an influencer posts content featuring your product that they're being paid or compensated for, they must disclose that it's an ad clearly. Usually, an influencer will showcase this by adding '#ad' to the content.

Although this is the influencer's responsibility, your business can get flack if they fail to follow these rules. That's why it's a good idea to draft up some guidelines and include this disclosure requirement in your contract so that they're more encouraged to do it.

Pro tip: Launching an influencer campaign may draw your attention to vanity metrics like likes and comments. However, the true measure of a campaign's success lies in its return on investment. One effective method is using UTM parameters to track website visitors and engagement from each influencer. By assigning unique UTM-coded links to each influencer, you can accurately assess the campaign's impact on your revenue.

Follow the three R's

The three R's principle can make choosing the right influencer easier for your business. The three R's represent Relevance, Reach, and Resonance. You want to make sure that your business is relevant to the influencer. For example, a home design influencer won't be relevant to a Crypto business and could alienate the audience.

The reach needs to align with your goals. This isn't just about trying to get an influencer with the most followers; those followers need to be engaged and suit your product. Resonance is all about ensuring that your product offers a solution many followers experience. For example, a male grooming business will resonate well with an influencer with a predominantly male audience.

Tim White, Founder of Milepro, says, "The three R's govern most businesses' approach to influencer marketing. The more that aligns with your business, the more effective the campaign will be.

Pro tip: Leverage an Influencer & Creator Database Solution – Without the appropriate resources, identifying the perfect collaboration can seem like a daunting task; but remember, you don't have to shoulder all the burden. By utilizing a dedicated platform such as Mavrck's influencer marketing solution, you can effortlessly find and establish connections with creators and influencers for your upcoming campaign.

Integrate Influencer Marketing into Your Advertising Strategy

Instagram influencer marketing can give your business a massive boost when done correctly. Influencers can get more eyes on your product and use their unique relationship with their audience to get them to trust your brand, making you more credible.

Not every influencer marketing campaign will work, and you will need to put the effort in to see results, but they can become an effective way to advertise on the platform. If you’d like to get into the weeds with an expert consultant on how to make your influencer marketing plan effective, or to tackle any advertising question, the team at Marin is ready to help you get started.

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Roman Shvydun is a guest contributor to the Marin Software blog.

Meg Madden: Connecting People and Transforming Marketing Strategies

In the digital marketing world, successful leaders possess a unique combination of strategic thinking, technical expertise, and a talent for connecting people. One such individual is Meg Madden, the Vice President of Products at Marin Software. With her vast experience and remarkable achievements, Madden has established herself as a trailblazer in the industry. In this article, we delve into Madden's professional journey, her accomplishments, and the values she holds dear.

A Journey of Growth:

Meg Madden's professional journey can be traced back to June, 2012 when she joined Marin Software, a leading provider of digital marketing solutions. Her tenure began as an Online Marketing Manager, where she excelled in activating social strategies for notable companies such as General Motors and PayPal. While working in the Austin office, Madden was instrumental in fostering team growth and spearheading global strategies for paid strategies, including collaborations with AT&T.

As a Pod Leader for the Austin team, Madden showcased her leadership skills by managing independent network agencies and overseeing account directors and customer managers. She also played a crucial role in breaking down silos within teams, facilitating cross-channel and cross-regional collaboration. Her efforts resulted in forming the Global Customer Engagement Team, further strengthening Marin Software's customer-centric approach.

Professional and Educational Background:

Before joining Marin Software, Meg Madden pursued an MBA at Yukon, where she honed her skills in business management. Prior to that, she served as a Social Media Manager for Quickluck, showcasing her expertise in leveraging social media platforms to drive brand engagement. Madden's educational journey began at Yale, where she earned a BA in American Studies, providing her with a solid foundation in understanding consumer behavior and cultural dynamics.

Beyond the Office:

Meg Madden's story is not just defined by her professional accomplishments. Growing up on the border of Texas and Mexico in Harlingen, TX, she was exposed to a multicultural upbringing. This experience instilled in her a deep appreciation for diversity and a strong sense of community. Madden's formative years were marked by active involvement in various activities, from playing softball and participating in color guard to volunteering at the Women's Crisis Center.

Even today, Madden continues to impact others' lives through her volunteer work positively. She regularly guest lectures at Stanford Business School, sharing her industry insights and experiences with aspiring business professionals. Additionally, she remains active in her church group, contributing to the children's ministry and participating in activities at the cowboy church located on the rodeo grounds.

Meg Madden's personal life revolves around her family. She is a proud mother to three children, aged 8, 6, and 3, comprising two boys and a girl. Her husband has taken on the role of a stay-at-home dad, allowing Madden to focus on her professional endeavors while balancing her responsibilities at home. Madden believes that being a mother is the most challenging yet rewarding role she plays, finding solace in her rural lifestyle on a farm, complete with chickens and ducks.

Values and Inspirations:

When it comes to personal values, Madden emphasizes the importance of continuous learning. She believes that staying curious and open to new ideas is key to personal and professional growth. Additionally, she has always learned to assume positive intent, realizing that it took her some time to truly understand the impact of this mindset.

Madden's unwavering commitment to her team's growth is one of her proudest achievements. She takes immense satisfaction in witnessing the professional progress of individuals who have worked under her guidance. Many of these talented individuals have either moved on to new opportunities outside of Marin or have climbed the ladder within the organization itself.

Conclusion:

Meg Madden's journey from an Online Marketing Manager to Vice President of Products at Marin Software is a testament to her exceptional skills, dedication, and ability to connect people. Throughout her career, she has prioritized breaking down silos, fostering collaboration, and building customer-centric solutions.

CRM

Marin Software

Unlock the Full Power of Your Search and Social Ads with HubSpot Data

Is your campaign optimization limited to what happens on your website or in your app? What about offline sales or repeat purchases? If you aren’t including this valuable data, you’re limiting the results you can expect from your online campaigns. That’s why you need to unlock the valuable data in your CRM and make it accessible to the publishers. And for those using Hubspot, this is easier than ever with Marin’s newest integration.

The Perfect Pairing

HubSpot, the inbound marketing powerhouse, provides businesses with tools to attract, engage, and delight customers. From lead generation to customer relationship management, HubSpot offers a comprehensive suite of solutions that foster meaningful interactions with target audiences. Marin Software, on the other hand, is a leader in marketing analysis and digital marketing optimization and automation. Integrating CRM data from HubSpot with Marin creates a powerful blend that can supercharge campaigns.

Unleashing the Power of CRM Data

For many businesses, what happens online or in the app is only the beginning. Do you have a longer sales cycle that begins with a form on the website? What about call centers or sales in physical stores? Even pure-play e-commerce sites should think about repeat purchases and customer lifetime value.

In each of these cases, the goal is the same: rather than measuring the effectiveness of your campaigns based on a single upstream event that happens online. You should be optimizing to the actual value of that customer. The CRM often holds this data which is not available to the publishers' tracking pixel. As a result, your ROI is not correct. You are likely making decisions based on incomplete data.

However, it’s possible to tie this customer-level data back to the data you get from the publishers–like Google, Meta, or Microsoft–to get the full picture. This will help you identify which campaigns drive the most business value and which are wasting money.

Marin’s integration with Hubspot makes this easy. We align the CRM data with the campaign data, giving you the complete picture. This means that marketers can now tap into a wealth of customer insights, behaviors, and interactions stored within HubSpot's CRM–and use these invaluable nuggets of information to refine their advertising strategies in Marin.

Top Benefits

All-in-One View: The integration creates a dashboard that brings together data from HubSpot and the entire publisher ecosystem. This way, it's easy to track performance in one AI-powered dashboard.
Less Hassle: No more manual data aggregation and normalization. The integration takes care of it, saving time and stopping mistakes.
Smarter Bidding: Knowing what customers are up to helps in setting bids. This means putting money where it makes the most impact.

A Bright Future

Blending the insights from HubSpot and Marin Software sets the stage for smarter campaigns. It's like making sure ads reach the right people at the right time. Businesses that jump into this new way of marketing can lead the pack in a world where personalization and profit go hand in hand.

Social

Do you feel like your search and social media campaigns are missing something? They might be if your optimization strategy is limited by the data from your website and/or app. If you’re not able to account for offline sales or repeat purchases, you’re limiting the results you can expect from your online campaigns. That’s why you need to unlock the valuable data in your CRM and make it accessible to the publishers. That’s why, here at Marin Software, we’ve been busy building the integrations to unite your complete campaign and customer data set. And we’re excited to welcome a new connection: HubSpot.

With our HubSpot integration, easily combine the power of your data and get these benefits:

All-in-One View: The integration creates a dashboard that brings together data from HubSpot and the entire publisher ecosystem. This way, it's easy to track performance in one AI-powered dashboard.
Less Hassle: No more manual data aggregation and normalization. The integration takes care of it, saving time and stopping mistakes.
Smarter Bidding: Knowing what customers are up to helps in setting bids. This means putting money where it makes the most impact.

Check out our latest press release to learn more and reach out to get started unifying your marketing data ecosystem today.

Google Ads: Keyword Matchtypes 101

If you’re considering spending money on ads to reach your target audience, you want to ensure that the money is well spent, and spent in the right place – somewhere like Google. With more than 92.5 billion visits per month, Google is one online opportunity that is virtually limitless in terms of reach and investment.

Most popular websites by unique monthly visitors, November 2022

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In this guide, we’ll discuss how to use Google’s keyword match types and everything you need to know to optimize your campaigns so you can achieve the best results from your ads.

Keyword match types

Keyword matching is an essential aspect of any successful Google Ads campaign. By choosing the right keyword match type, you can control which search queries trigger your ads to appear.

Broad match

Just as its name implies, broad match is…well, broad. As the default match type in Google Ads, these keywords cast a wide net, allowing your ad to show for any search query that includes the keywords you've chosen and related variations and synonyms. They can even match for searches that don’t include your exact keyword terms.

Because broad match keywords collect a wide range of search terms, you save time that might be spent brainstorming and manually creating a keyword list. In addition to its enormous reach, broad match has a very loose query match, meaning that search term variations are very likely. Broad match is effective, but it leaves you with little control over which searches trigger ads and increases the likelihood of your ad showing for irrelevant searches, leading to wasted impressions and clicks.

Another downside is that broad match keywords often result in poor quality scores and don’t guarantee traffic quality if you aim to maximize landing page traffic.

Broad match modifier

While similar to broad match, a broad match modifier is more refined. These modifiers allow you to reach a more targeted audience. To use this match type, you add a "+" before the word you want to bid on in the keyword phrase. Without the "+," the ad won't appear. In other words, your ad will show up only for the specific keywords you choose. For example, the keyword “coffee cup” might match with “coffee beans” or “mug,” whereas “coffee +cup” could compare with “teacup” or “cup holder.” On the other hand, selecting “+coffee +cup” requires both terms for your ad to appear, though they can be in any order and include additional text.

With broad match modifiers, the search query can be in any order as long as the keyword with the "+" is present. Broad match modifiers give you greater control over reaching a wider audience and improve the quality of leads you get from your ads.

Phrase match

Phrase match is a more restrictive match type that requires the search query to include the exact keyword phrase, with words before or after the term. This match type can help you reach a more targeted audience while allowing for some flexibility in the order of the words.

Exact match

Exact match only shows your ad for searches that exactly match your keyword phrase, with no variations or different words. While this match type limits your audience size, it can be helpful for very specific and targeted campaigns and gives you maximum control over which searches can trigger ads on the SERP.

The good thing about exact match is that it leads to high relevancy and quality traffic, and as a result, you will pay less for junk clicks. However, it’s time-consuming, and your reach is not very wide. Furthermore, there’s a chance you could miss valuable keyword-related traffic or long-tail keyword searches because exact match keywords only catch specified search terms.

Negative match

Even when your keyword list is thorough, chances are your ads will still appear for irrelevant search terms, making search term exclusions just as significant as inclusions. By adding negative keywords to your list and blacklisting them from your campaigns, you can avoid the “bad fits” most likely to waste ad spend.

Why keyword matches are important for your business

Selecting the right keyword match type ensures that your Google Ad campaign budget is used effectively to reach your target audience at the right time with the right message – without spending on irrelevant clicks. When you bring in the right type of traffic, you’re more likely to attract new customers, increase sales, gain higher click-through rates, better conversion rates, and ultimately maximize ROI.

How match types affect your search ad results

Match types play a crucial role in determining the success of your account as they control which search queries you bid on. When selecting match types for keywords, consider these factors:

Performance

The performance of keywords and similar keywords can give you an idea of the best match type for maximizing return on investment.

Competition

Observing how your competitors bid on terms and how they structure accounts can impact your return. Looking closely at how they have historically performed can also provide valuable insight.

Bids

Bids, including cost per click and cost per conversion, can be significantly influenced by match types and may determine the best match type to use.

Account structure and ad text

How an advertiser structures their account and creates specific ads for different match types can significantly impact the performance of varying match types.

4 Best practices for Google ads keyword targeting

Keyword targeting helps you reach the right audience, increase your visibility, and drive more conversions. With these four best practices, you can make the most of your advertising budget and reach your target audience more effectively:

Close variants

Close variants extend the coverage of your keyword match types to encompass similar searches. This means that searches including misspellings, singular/plural forms, derivatives, abbreviations, and accents can be matched with close variants. It’s crucial to be aware of the impact of keyword variations on your campaigns.

Negative keywords

Knowing that keywords can be ambiguous, it’s essential to consider adding negative keywords to your campaign. When you add them, use either broad or phrase match negatives or use exact match negatives to fine-tune your ad groups.

Display keywords and video keywords

Keywords on the Google Display Network, including display and video keywords, are all used in broad match form. You can use them to reach content related to your products or services. However, it's important to note that this targeting method is only sometimes precise, and your ads may appear on websites that are not directly related to your display keywords.

Test and adjust

Continuous testing and adjusting will make your Google Ads campaign successful. Regularly monitor the performance of your keywords and adjust your bids, ad copy, and targeting as needed. When you do, you’ll discover the best keywords for your campaign and optimize your results.

Supercharge your next search campaign

There’s no doubt that with Google Ads’ expansive reach and authority, adding it to your paid strategy will produce results. To get started, use the tips we covered, and iterate and refine as you go.

By teaming up with MarinOne, you can create a successful Google Ad campaign that will drive clicks and convert leads. To get started, reach out to one of our MarinOne team experts today.

Google Ads Conversion Value Rules, Explained

Google created conversion value rules to give advertisers more control over their ad spend. Essentially, they allow advertisers to tell Google what conversion factors result in the highest value. Conversion value rules enable strategic management to combine advertiser expertise with automation to get the best ROAS possible.

What are Conversion Value Rules?

Conversion value rules allow users to modify the value of conversions based on the category of the conversion action and the following three impression dimensions:

Audience membership
The physical location or location of interest
Device

Advertisers can use the Google Ads API to define conversion value rules, combine them into a conversion value rule set, and apply the rule set to either your whole Google Ads account or to your chosen campaign. The Google Ads API report presents a segmented breakdown of your conversion values' original, unadjusted, and adjusted portions.

Conversion value rules are comprised of two elements:

Conditions that determine when they are applied
The action is taken once they are applied

They are used in real-time to optimize target ROAS and maximize conversion value, utilizing smart bidding. Remember that smart shopping campaigns don’t support tCPA and max conversions.

Conversion value rule conditions

Conversion value rule conditions can be defined in a few fields:

Audience_condition

The audience_condition field applies the rule to impressions associated with a particular audience, which can be Google or first-party audiences. You can further specify resource names using the user_lists or user_interests fields. To retrieve the resource names of all available user lists or user interests, issue a search stream or request of GoogleAdsService where the FROM clause of the query is user_list or user_interest.

Audience_conditions containing multiple user lists and user interests will match impressions with any associated user lists or interests.

Device_condition

Device_condiiton applies to impressions that match specified device_types from the following list:

UNSPECIFIED: Not specified
UNKNOWN: Used for return value only. Represents value unknown in this version
MOBILE: Mobile device
DESKTOP: Desktop device
TABLET: Tablet device

Geo_location_condition

This applies to impressions that meet predefined location criteria.

Limitations

Each conversion value rule can have two conditions. Rules with no conditions apply to impressions that don’t meet the conditions of another rule in the set.

Conversion values created at the campaign level will not impact bidding performance or reported conversions for other campaigns.

Account-level campaign values rules: apply to Search, Display, and Shopping
Campaign-level value rules: apply to Search, Display, Shopping, Smart Shopping, and Pmax for retail
D&E test with value rules: apply to Search and Display only

Benefits of Using the New Conversion Value Rules in Google Ads

Using Conversion Value Rules is a no-brainer if you want to improve your Smart Bidding results. Conversion Value Rules help advertisers accurately portray the value of conversions for Smart Bidding so they can optimize toward the most valuable conversions. This is the most sure-fire way to take control of Smart Bidding results.

When you show Google which conversions hold the most significant value for your brand, ad spending will optimize according to what brings your brand the most revenue, profit, offline conversion value, or lifetime value– all in real-time.

Conversion Value Rules also simplify reporting and optimization by eliminating the need to change tagging code.

How do Conversion Value Rules work?

Here’s a quick rundown on the different elements of Conversion Value Rules and how they work:

Rule action

Every rule must have an action consisting of an operation and a value. This action shows Google how to adjust the conversion value for the rules that meet your conditions. You can use one of three values:

Add: Adds a value greater than 0 to the original conversion value.
Multiply: Multiplies the original conversion value by a specified value between 0.5 and 10.
Set: Sets the conversion value to a specified value greater than 0. It can only be used under certain conditions.

Creating a rule set

After making at least one Conversion Value Rule, you can create a Conversion Value Rule Set consisting of conversion action categories and Conversion Value Rules.

A conversion action category is the list of conversion actions the rule set applies to. If this list is empty, the rule set applies to all categories. If it isn’t empty, then it must contain a single store visit or sale.

You can only set the conversion action categories when creating the rule set.

The SET action can only be used in one of the following scenarios:

The account is allow-listed, and the conversion action categories of the rule set are empty,
The conversion action categories of the rule set contain a single entry of store visit or store sale, the set's dimensions only contain an entry for no condition, and none of the condition fields of the rule are set.

You can include each conversion value rule in just one conversion value rule set. If the Conversion Value Rules contain a resource name of a rule that is in the Conversion Value Rules of another rule set that is either enabled or paused, the operation will return a data constraint violation error.

Dimensions

The list of value rule set dimension values dictates which conditions the rules in the set can utilize. If dimensions contain geo-location and device, you can’t add rules with audience_condition. This list must contain 1 or 2 entries (it cannot be empty).

If the list contains an entry for NO_CONDITION, then:

NO_CONDITION must be the only entry on the list
The list of conversion action categories of the set can contain only a single entry of STORE_VISIT or STORE_SALE.
The list cannot contain any rule where audience, device, or geolocation conditions are set.

The first entry in the list dictates which value populates for segments.conversion_value_rule_primary_dimension in reports.

Attachment_type

The attachment_type can be set to CUSTOMER to create a rule set applying to the entire account or CAMPAIGN to create a rule set that applies only to a specific campaign.

If the attachment_type is set to CAMPAIGN, then set the campaign to whatever resource name the rule set applies to.

A rule set has an owner_customer and a status, but the status is read-only and will show PAUSED or ENABLED, depending on the status of its rules.

How are Rules Applied?

Only one rule per conversion: When more than one rule applies to an impression, Google chooses one rule based on either the most precise location match or the audience hierarchy below.

Customer match
Remarketing and similar audiences
Affinity and in-market audiences
Detailed demographics

In the case of a tie, Google defers to MULTIPLY logic over the ADD rule. If the tie remains, Google chooses the highest adjustment.

Additional rule attributes

Owner_customer: the resource name of the customer that owns the rule.
Status: shows whether the rule is paused or enabled.

Reporting in your Google Ads Conversion Value Rules

All Conversion Value Rules output is automatically included in your campaign-level conversion value reporting. You can view the adjusted and unadjusted values via value rule adjustment segmentation.

Removing Conversion Value Rules

Target ROAS and Maximize conversion value bidding account for active rules within your account to drive as much conversion as possible. When you remove a conversion value rule, Google will resume optimization for your current definition of value. This means you will have an obvious disparity between data pre and post-removal.

ConversionValueRuleSets must have at least one PAUSED or ENABLED conversion value rule. Otherwise, the rule set will fail. You can remove a ConversionValueRuleSet without altering the status of the ConversionValueRules referenced by the set. Once the set is removed, search, and searchStream requests for that set resource will stop returning the removed set.

How to estimate conversion value

Below are three equations to help estimate conversion value:

Short-term conversion value: To estimate short-term conversion value, multiply your average deal revenue by the profit margin, then multiply that by the percentage of leads that convert to a deal.
Lifetime customer value: To estimate lifetime profit per customer, add the average deal revenue to the repeat business over a lifetime and multiply that sum by your profit margin.
Word-of-mouth: Multiple the value per lead by the percent gain from word of mouth.
Lifetime value per conversion considering word of mouth: Multiple the lifetime profit per customer by the percent of leads that convert and the gain from word of mouth.

Conversion Value Rule best practices

The conversion value rule strategy is pretty straightforward. Follow these best practices, and you’ll be on your way to a better ROAS:

Look at customer lifetime value and the entire conversion path

To accurately identify conversion value, you have to examine the whole picture. Think about it– if a customer converts on a desktop but finds you on their mobile device, you won’t be able to assess the actual value of that impression unless you consider the full conversion path.

Get accurate data

Wherever you pull the data used to calculate conversion value, ensure it is accurate. Informing Conversion Value Rules with inaccurate data will skew your ad spend and harm your ROAS.

Be creative but conservative

Estimating conversion value can require a bit of creative guesswork, but it’s best to pair that creativity with a conservative mindset when you aren’t 100%. Consider taking a conservative approach to the riskier rules when choosing a rule action.

Don’t be too general

When Conversion Value Rules are too general, they either underestimate the value or catch impressions that shouldn’t apply. The best strategy is a careful balance between getting too specific and generalizing value for a big chunk of your audience.

Final thoughts

Conversion Value Rules are designed to give advertisers more control over their Smart Bidding strategy by highlighting high ticket impressions. One of the most important tidbits to remember here is that creating Conversion Value Rules to skew Smart Bidding directions is a waste of time. Conversion Value Rules do not influence the direction Smart Bidding optimizes in– they just prioritize spending on the impressions that will have the best return.

To get clearer insights for your conversion tracking not only on Google Ads but across all paid search, social, and display advertising…meet with a MarinOne expert today.

Our analysis and attribution solutions will give you a far more clear picture of your marketings' holistic ROI (return on investment), MER (marketing efficiency ratio), and more.

Maximizing Analytics Insights: Tracking Downloads with Google Analytics 4

Tracking website visitors' behavior is crucial for gaining insights into their engagement and optimizing digital strategies. One significant aspect of user interaction is downloading files, such as documents, software, or media files. Understanding how users engage with these downloads can provide valuable data for improving content offerings and measuring conversion rates.

As you probably know, Google Analytics released a new, updated version, and in this blog post, we will explore the best practices and insights for tracking downloads using Google Analytics 4 (GA4).

Understanding Downloads in GA4

In Google Analytics 4 (GA4), a download event is triggered when a user clicks a download link or button, signaling their intent to retrieve a particular file. GA4 tracks these download events by capturing relevant data, such as the file's URL, the user's session information, and other event parameters. Website owners can then analyze and measure the engagement levels of their downloadable content, gaining valuable insights into user preferences, content popularity, and conversion rates.

Before we dive into setting up download tracking, we first need to explain two fundamental terms: gated and ungated content. Both are types of downloadable content, but the difference is whether users need to provide personal information first..

Gated and ungated content

Gated content requires users to share their personal information (usually their email) to download the materials. This option is great if your downloadable materials are intended to be lead magnets. For example, every piece of content that benefits people interested in your service or product is a lead magnet.

You can probably guess where this is going - when users leave some information, it’s much easier to track them. Each download will be counted, you’ll be able to see it, and most importantly, you’ll know to whom it belongs. Additionally, you can use those emails for remarketing purposes and put your product or service in front of the eyes of your potential clients.

Unlike gated content, ungated content doesn’t require leaving any information. Users can download the materials by clicking on the download button. For instance, you can download coupons from a discount website by clicking on the corresponding icon. Unlike gated content, ungated content won’t allow you to trace your leads. If you know that a piece of content is an important step in the customer journey, then you can make it easily accessible. Sometimes users get put off having to share their personal information, so using this option has its own benefit.

Moreover, your internal team or a digital marketing agency can utilize gated and ungated content to achieve different objectives and cater to different customer journey stages. Now that you know the basics about downloadable materials let’s see how you can set download tracking in GA4.

When to use gated versus ungated content

Gating content is a common strategy for businesses aiming to build an email list or generate leads. When content is gated, users must provide their contact information, typically an email address, to gain access. The primary benefits of this method include lead generation, segmentation opportunities, and a sense of exclusivity for users. However, this strategy also carries drawbacks like reduced SEO benefits and limitations in audience building. Gated content could include reports with original research, eBooks, whitepapers, live demos, webinars, and newsletter content.

On the other hand, ungated content is freely accessible on the internet and doesn't require users to provide any contact information. While this approach doesn't directly generate leads, it can help build organic awareness, encourage audience engagement, and offer significant SEO benefits. There are also strategic ways to retarget page visitors and capture potential leads later in the funnel when they are more prepared for direct outreach. Examples of ungated content could be blog posts, videos, podcasts, infographics, and ungated PDFs. In deciding whether to gate or ungate content, businesses should consider their resources, marketing and business goals, industry expectations, and plans for managing collected information.

For our purposes today, we’ll go through why you want to track downloads in GA4; and then we’ll dive into the technical setup of tracking gated content.

Insights from Download Tracking in GA4

In a moment, we’ll go through how to get accurate download data, but first, you may be wondering what insights you can get from download tracking. The answer is simple - many.

Understanding user engagement

Understanding user engagement through tracking downloads in GA4 provides valuable insights into how users interact with downloadable content on your website. By analyzing metrics such as download frequency, duration, conversion rates, or sales forecasts, you can identify which files resonate most with your audience, optimize content offerings, and tailor your marketing strategies accordingly.

Identifying popular and underperforming downloads

When tracking downloads in GA4, you can easily identify popular and underperforming downloads by analyzing the metrics and data provided. By examining the number of downloads, engagement metrics such as time spent on the download page, and conversion rates associated with each file, you can gain insights into which downloads resonate well with users and drive desired actions.

Tracking downloads as part of a user journey analysis

Measuring the effectiveness of downloadable content is also very important. This will help you understand certain downloads' impact on further actions in the customer journey, such as starting a free trial, enrolling for a demo session, registering, or buying a product.

Setting Up Download Tracking in GA4

Download tracking happens autoamatically in GA4 if your Data Stream is configured properly. To set it up, go to the Admin section, and under Property, select Data Streams.

Once you click on Data Streams, your next step is to allow Enhanced Measurement.

After you enable the enhanced measurement, you need to visit the Settings section by clicking on the gear icon within the enhanced measurement field.

That will open another window where you need to enable File downloads. As you can see, File downloads are one of the options for the Enhanced measurement. Since you’ll probably be doing this for the first time, you’ll have to wait 24 hours before the results populate in the Analytics.

And that’s it; you’re all set! It’s not difficult at all!

The next logical step is to learn how to analyze the download data and create reports that will enable you to get to the next level when tracking downloads.

Analyzing Download Data in GA4

Standard reports

Once you set the download tracker, the results will automatically populate in the Standard reports once you set them up as events. They are called file_download events.

How can you find file_download? Easily, just click on the Reports - Engagement - Events.

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Standard reports have some flaws. If you’re tracking only one downloadable material, there will be no problems. But if you have more than that, Standard reports won’t be able to provide you with information.

First of all, all downloads will be grouped, so you won’t be able to see which file got the most downloads. Secondly, you won’t be able to see where the users are downloading those files either.

That’s why it is important to explain the power of Custom reports, which we’ll get to in a moment.

Adding a Secondary Dimension

The details report table inherently comes with a primary dimension and up to a dozen metrics. The primary dimension is labeled as such. For instance, in the given detailed report when, "Event name" is the primary dimension, metrics such as "Event count" and "Total users" are included. This arrangement allows for the analysis of each metric relative to one dimension:

The report can be appended by adding a secondary dimension, facilitating data analysis across two distinct categories. For instance, the table below showcases the page or screen where each event was initiated:

This secondary dimension is a temporary addition and gets removed once you navigate away from the report.

How to Append a Secondary Dimension Adjacent to the primary dimension, click on Add dimension [Plus].

Scan through the list of dimensions, or input the whole or part of the dimension name in the search box. Select the desired dimension name.

Custom reports

Custom reports will enable you to view each download individually by creating their respective views.

To enable this, go to the Explore section and select Blank - Create new exploration.

Your next step is to name your new report and add the dimensions that you find relevant. Click the + symbol, add the Event name and File name, and finalize this part by clicking Import.

Another thing that you need to select is the metrics. You’ll do that by again clicking on the + symbol and adding Event count and Total users, and again, finalize it by clicking on Import.

Once all of this is set, you need to add all these elements into your report by doing a simple drag-and-drop or a double click on them.

After this, there’s only one little thing to be done. You’ll need to apply a filter to exclude all the other events and limit this report to tracking downloads.

There you have it - only these steps are necessary to keep track of your downloadable materials.

Advanced Techniques for Download Tracking in GA4

Let's cover a couple of more advanced situations for those of you who are always interested in learning more.

Link attribution for tracking downloads from external sources

Once you have enabled Enhanced Measurements, GA4 will “fire” an event called click whenever someone clicks on the link on your website that leads them to another website. Such external links are called outbound links.

You’ll see all the link URLs and their respective clicks if you click on Click.

How to set outbound link tracking? Visit the Admin panel - Configuration - Data Streams and choose the web data for this configuration. Check that the Enhanced Measurement is on, and in its Settings section, ensure the Outbound option is enabled. Once all clicks are set, just save the changes.

Creating the reports works in the completely same way as we explained above. The standard report is the one that will show once you go to the Reports - Engagement - Events - Clicks, while the creation of Customized reports will require you to select again the metrics that you would like to include.

Tracking outbound links is important if you, for example, have two websites that link each other and want to know how many people navigated between those two.

Cross-domain tracking for downloads on multiple websites

If you, for example, have a website and a blog with separate domains, consider using cross-domain tracking. Cross-domain tracking allows you to identify users across different domains. This means that the system will be able to recognize the same user activity regardless of the domain they’re visiting.

When you set this option, and when you, for example, have an outbound link that leads to your other domain, the option for tracking outbound links will be automatically ignored. If this weren’t the case, you couldn’t follow the same user across your two domains because it would be recognized as a completely new user.

Let’s see how to set this up.

Again, go to Admin - Data Streams and select a website property you want to enable cross-domains.

After the new window appears, click on the Tagging Settings.

This will lead you to the next window, where you must select Configure your domains.

In the next window, click on the Add condition.

Here you will be offered many conditions, but in this case, you can select contains and add the domain link of the second website and click Save.

Now you’re halfway there. You will need to follow the same steps, and when you again come to the last one where you’re adding conditions, this time, you will need to insert the domain link of the first website.

To check if everything is set up correctly, just visit any of those two websites, and if in the URL you see a new parameter _gl just after the website link, it means that you’re good to go!

Conclusion

Tracking downloads with Google Analytics 4 (GA4) provides invaluable insights into user engagement and behavior on your website. By implementing the best practices discussed in this blog post, you can harness the power of GA4 to accurately measure and analyze downloads, optimize your content target strategy, and make data-driven decisions.

We hope this article will help you start tracking downloads more easily and understand your customer journey a bit more. To optimize your omnichannel advertising reporting, meet with a MarinOne consultant today.

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Tanja Adamovic is a guest contributor to the Marin Software blog.

Work with MarinOne and our team of advertising AI experts to get started with streamlining and scaling your B2B marketing campaigns.

Marin Software

Automating and Simplifying Pinterest Ads Management with MarinOne

While platforms like Facebook and Instagram dominate the landscape, one platform offers a unique opportunity for businesses to reach their target audience effectively and cost-efficiently: Pinterest. With 400 million monthly active users, Pinterest Ads have become a powerful brand exposure and sales tool. And now, with the integration of Marin Software, advertisers have access to enhanced insights and optimization capabilities to maximize the impact of their Pinterest campaigns. In this guide to getting started with Pinterest Ads in 2023, we will explore why your business should leverage Pinterest Ads, how to get started, and how the Marin Software integration can elevate your campaign performance.

Why Pinterest Ads?

Content Variety

Pinterest allows companies to share various kinds of digital content, making it ideal for product promotion and engaging customers with valuable and entertaining posts. Moreover, approximately 75% of users on Pinterest are continuously shopping while on the platform, indicating a highly engaged potential customer base.

Cost Effective Investment

In addition, Pinterest has proven to be a cost-effective marketing channel. In 2021, the average cost for Pinterest ads was $1.50 per click, significantly less than the $3.56 per click on Instagram.

Targeting

Another benefit of using Pinterest for e-commerce advertising is its advanced targeting options. Advertisers can create audience groups directly from existing customer lists, people who have already visited their site, or form a new audience with parameters similar to their existing customers.

Customization

The platform also allows the customization of ads according to users' interests, certain keywords, and demographic groups. Importantly, Pinterest ads have significantly boosted conversions compared to other channels, with rates ranging from 1.5% to 8.5%, depending on factors like target customers and content type.

Now, with the integration of Marin Software, advertisers can harness the power of machine learning and automation to improve their campaign performance further and gain better insights.

Getting Started with Pinterest Ads and the Marin Software Integration

To start using Pinterest Ads with the Marin Software integration, the first step is to set your campaign objectives. Once that is done, MarinOne--Marin Software's flagship platform--unifies leading AI bidding, budget pacing, forecasting, performance insights, and recommendations to help advertisers maximize the reach and impact of their Pinterest marketing investment.

By leveraging the advanced analytical grids MarinOne provides, advertisers can comprehensively analyze their campaign's performance across Pinterest and other social, search, display, and e-commerce platforms. This holistic view enables advertisers to make data-driven decisions and optimize their campaigns for better results.

Optimizing Your Pinterest Campaigns

Marin Software has been at the forefront of helping advertisers advance their digital advertising campaigns for almost 15 years. With extensive experience managing nearly $50 billion in advertising spend across various channels, Marin Software brings valuable expertise to the table. Integrating with Pinterest's Marketing API gives advertisers a competitive edge by providing better insights and campaign optimization through machine learning and automation.

Start Running More Efficient Pinterest Ads Today

Pinterest Ads have proven to be a valuable tool for businesses looking to reach their target audience effectively while driving brand exposure and sales. By following this guide and leveraging the Marin Software + Pinterest integration, companies can unlock the full potential of Pinterest Ads in 2023 and achieve remarkable results.

Get a free analysis of your paid social campaigns from one of the advertising consultants at Marin to start making better data-driven decisions, optimizing campaigns hands-free with AI, and driving higher efficiency in your paid marketing programs.

Best Marketing Conferences to Attend in 2023-2024

It’s safe to say a lot has changed in the digital marketing space over the last year. We entered an AI renaissance, gained not one but two new social media platforms (hello Lemon8 and Threads), and while personalization is trending, third-party cookies are on their way out. For good.

Keeping up with the latest trends and best practices with so many drastic changes on the table can be tough, which is why we love marketing conferences. They condense wisdom, experience, and research from industry experts into keynote presentations and breakout sessions that help marketers regroup and re-evaluate their strategies according to top-tier insights.

Without further ado, here are the best marketing conferences to attend in 2023 and 2024:

DigiMarCon

Date: Multiple

Location: Multiple

Ideal for: Digital marketers, marketing managers, SEO specialists, and professionals interested in overall digital marketing strategies and trends.

DigiMarCon is a comprehensive digital marketing conference series that takes place in 40 cities across 18 countries (and one international cruise), making it arguably the largest digital marketing conference in the world.

Attendees can expect to learn about social media marketing, SEO, content marketing, data analytics, and customer experience via the event’s expert insights, best practices, real-world case studies, interactive workshops, panel discussions, and networking sessions.

MozCon

Date: August 7 & 8, 2023

Location: Seattle Convention Center Summit in Seattle, Washington (two livestream pass options available)

Ideal for: SEO specialists and digital marketers

MozCon is a hub for SEO enthusiasts. The conference features presentations from leading SEO experts. Attendees can expect the latest on search engine optimization and ranking strategies, complete with guidance on how to make data-driven marketing decisions and future-proof your business. This year’s conference is all about the future of search, with a special focus on ChatGPT, E-E-A-T, and TikTok.

Digital Summit

Date: August 16-17, 2023

Location: Minneapolis, Minnesota

Ideal for: All digital marketers

Digital Summit is a series of conferences held throughout the United States. The conferences cover digital marketing, content marketing, and social media topics. Dates and locations vary per conference. View the full schedule for 2023 here.

Digital Summit is also holding an online conference titled “Deep Dive into Social 2023” on September 7, 2023. The one-day virtual conference is jam-packed with a masterclass, breakout sessions, and how-tos with actionable resources.

2023 AMA Summer Academic Conference

Date: August 4-6, 2023

Location: San Francisco, CA

Ideal for: Digital marketers, business leaders, and content creators

The 2023 AMA Summer Academic Conference features research that highlights the role of marketing in the broader business ecosystem.

AMA is also holding virtual content marketing conferences on August 23-24 and October 18-19 of this year. Register for free to access this two-day conference packed with all the tools and strategies you need to build a compelling content strategy in 2023.

Inbound

Date: September 5-8, 2023

Location: Boston Convention and Exhibition Center, Boston, MA

Ideal for: Marketers, sales professionals, and business leaders

Inbound 2023 by HubSpot offers three curated agendas to help attendees maximize their experience– one for marketing, one for sales and business development, and one for growth acquisition marketing. The conference features inspiring keynote speakers, educational breakout sessions, networking opportunities, and hands-on workshops.

Digital Marketing World Forum Global

Date: September 14-15, 2023

Location: Miami, FL

Ideal for: Digital marketers, marketing managers, content creators, and professionals interested in the latest digital marketing trends and best practices.

The Digital Marketing World Forum Global is an international event series that explores the future of digital marketing technologies through keynote presentations and interactive sessions. The conference features the following content tracks:

Content and digital brand strategy
Data and insights
Digital experience and e-commerce strategy
Influencer marketing world
Social media and community marketing

AdExchanger's Programmatic I/O

Date: September 26-27, 2023

Location: Hilton Midtown, New York, NY

Ideal for: Programmatic, data-driven professionals from brands, marketing agencies, publishers, and technology companies.

AdExchanger's Programmatic I/O is a conference centered around advertising and ad tech. Attendees can look forward to educational discussions on programmatic buying, data-driven marketing, and the future of advertising technology.

MarTech (Marketing Technology Conference)

Date: September 26-27, 2023

Location: Online

Ideal for: Digital marketers and business leaders interested in MarTech.

If you’re interested in learning more about the intersection of marketing and technology, the MarTech conference will be right up your alley. Attendees will explore the latest tools, technologies, and techniques in marketing strategy, including advertising automation. It’s also completely free to register.

Content Marketing World

Date: September 26-28, 2023

Location: Washington, D.C.

Ideal for: Content marketers, writers, editors, and marketing managers

Content Marketing World is the place to go for all things content. Event attendees will learn the newest best practices for content marketing strategy, creation, distribution, and measurement.

LavaCon Content Strategy Conference

Date: October 14-17, 2023

Location: Manchester Grand Hyatt, San Diego, CA

Ideal for: Content strategists, content marketers, technical writers, and content creators

LavaCon covers all things content. Attendees can expect in-depth sessions on content planning, storytelling, content SEO, and best practices for delivering valuable content to target audiences. The conference also explores emerging content marketing trends like interactive content, visual storytelling, and AI.

Advertising Week New York

Date: October 16-19 2023

Location: New York, NY

Ideal for: Advertising professionals, brand marketers, media buyers, and marketing executives

Advertising Week New York hosts a hefty lineup of 12,000+ industry peers, 600+ speakers, 400+ sessions, and 20+ content tracks. The event unites the brightest minds in marketing, advertising, media, and tech. Attendees will learn from industry leaders, uncover new trends, and network with peers from all over the world. Virtual sessions are available online for 30 days post-event.

Social Media Strategies Summit

Date: October 25-27, 2023

Location: Online

Ideal for: Social media managers, content creators, digital marketers, and business owners interested in optimizing their social media presence and campaigns.

The Social Media Strategies Summit is a virtual conference designed to help senior-level social media marketers audit and revitalize their social media strategies to promote brand awareness and customer loyalty. Pre-summit workshops take place on October 25, 2023, and the General Summit will happen in the days that follow.

Attendees can expect keynote presentations, panel discussions, case studies, and interactive workshops on subjects like content creation, influencer marketing, community building, and social media advertising.

SMX (Search Marketing Expo)

Date: November 14-15, 2023

Location: Online

Ideal for: Search marketing professionals, SEO specialists, PPC managers, and digital marketers.

SMX is a conference on all things search engine marketing, both SEO and PPC. Attendees can expect in-depth sessions on search engine marketing with valuable insights into top advertising platforms.

Traffic & Conversion Summit

Date: January 9 - 11, 2024

Location: Caesars Forum, Las Vegas, NV

Ideal for: Digital marketers, growth hackers, and e-commerce pros

Known for its emphasis on digital advertising and conversion optimization, the Traffic and Conversion Summit teaches digital marketing strategies specifically designed to drive traffic and convert.

Expect sessions covering new traffic channels, customer-centric marketing, new conversion breakthroughs, and ultra-current breakout sessions.

Social Media Marketing World

Date: February 18-20, 2024

Location: San Diego, CA

Ideal for: social media marketers, content creators, community managers, and business owners

Social Media Marketing World features top-notch social media marketing strategies, expert-led sessions, case studies, and networking with fellow social media professionals. Attendees can expect to learn the latest on creating successful social media advertising campaigns.

LeadsCon

Date: April 8 – 10, 2024

Location: Paris Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas, NV

Ideal for: Lead generation specialists, digital marketers, sales professionals, and business development managers interested in improving their lead acquisition strategies

LeadsCon is a conference for marketers interested in improving their lead generation and customer acquisition strategies. The event bundles the latest trends, tools, and techniques for converting leads into expert-led sessions, case studies, and interactive workshops.

Los Angeles eCommerce Summit

Date: May 16, 2024

Location: JW Marriott LA LIVE, Los Angeles, CA

Ideal for: e-commerce marketers, online retailers, and digital marketing professionals in the e-commerce industry

The Los Angeles eCommerce Summit is a local gathering of LA’s top ecom experts and decision-makers. It focuses on e-commerce strategies, digital advertising, user experience, and customer retention for online retailers. Attendees can expect to hear industry experts share insights into website optimization, digital advertising campaign implementation, and data analytics.

Gartner Marketing Symposium/Xpo

Date: June 3-5, 2024

Location: Denver, CO

Ideal for: Marketing leaders, CMOs, marketing strategists, and professionals responsible for marketing technology decisions and customer experience optimization

The Gartner Marketing Symposium/Xpo features new research and actionable insights on topics like AI, marketing strategy, multichannel marketing, and brand strategy. Attendees can expect keynotes from Gartner analysts, expert-led sessions, workshops, and networking opportunities.

Gartner Data & Analytics Summit

Date: March 11-13, 2024

Location: Orlando, FL

Ideal for: Data analysts, marketing analysts, data-driven marketers, and marketing strategists

The Gartner Data and Analytics Summit is a conference tailored to challenges faced by data and analytics professionals. It covers topics like data management, predictive analytics, customer segmentation, and data visualization. Attendees will learn from Gartner analysts, industry leaders, and case studies. The most recent summit prioritized the following topics:

Delivering digital business success
Attracting the right talent and skills
Dispel the myths of AI
Understanding data ecosystems
Optimizing intelligent decisions with competitive differentiators

Wrapping up

The marketing conferences above are great opportunities for learning and networking, but they aren’t the only way to learn about new advertising technologies. MarinOne’s experts can help you supercharge your paid search, social, and e-commerce advertising efforts. Book a personalized demo to get started.

Best TikTok Ad Examples for 2023

TikTok is quickly becoming a popular choice for e-commerce advertising, as evidenced by its high number of monthly active users and downloads. With more than one billion monthly active users and three billion downloads, it has surpassed other popular social media platforms such as Twitter, Telegram, Reddit, Pinterest, and Snapchat.

As its reach and popularity continue to grow, so does the interest in advertising on the platform. For e-commerce retailers looking to build a strong marketing strategy, including TikTok ads for e-commerce should be a consideration. For inspiration for your next campaign, let’s take a look at some of the best TikTok ads of all time, and what has made them so successful.

Common features of the best TikTok ads

Understanding the essential components that constitute a well-optimized TikTok advertisement can help your ad attract more views. These features will help you get more views:

Clear messaging

As a fast-paced platform, on TikTok, users tend to scroll through their feeds quickly, which means that you only have a few seconds to grab their attention. To do so, craft a clear message that will resonate with them quickly and encourage them to take action. Without a clear message and a single, unambiguous objective, your ads simply won't make an impact.

Create your ads with eye-catching visuals that are high quality and relevant to your product or service. Additionally, they should be optimized for mobile viewing to ensure the best user experience.

Entertaining and engaging, never boring

TikTok can be a marketing powerhouse for capturing the attention of millions of users. However, since the platform is saturated with endless videos, entertainment, and other content, you need to create ads that are entertaining and engaging if you want to stand out. Aim to make your ads fun, creative, and memorable. Your ad should evoke emotion and create a connection with the user, making them more likely to share it with others.

TikTok videos are short—most are between 60 seconds and three minutes—but the most effective ads are often much shorter. To leave a lasting impression, get your message across quickly and effectively without wasting any time.

Use of TikTok influencers and creators

TikTok influencers can help direct high-quality, loyal traffic towards your brand, so collaborating with them can be an effortless approach to gaining brand recognition. In fact, collaborating with creators to produce TikTok-specific branded content generates 65% higher 2-second view rates and increases engagement by 83%.

Using branded hashtag challenges, influencers and creators can enhance your brand’s visibility without hard-selling. Influencers and creators are also often sought after because of their ability to connect with their audience in an authentic way. Make sure, however, that the influencer or creator you choose truly aligns with your target audience.

Selection of the right ad type

To achieve success with your TikTok ad campaigns, it's important to understand the unique advantages and disadvantages of each ad format. Once you’re familiar with the six different options, you can determine which one will work best for your specific goals and audience so you can maximize your results on TikTok:

In-feed ads

In-feed ads are very similar to watching stories that you see on Instagram or Facebook, except they happen to be embedded in the “For You” feed. These ads are skippable for users and they have a maximum length of 60 seconds, but 9–15 seconds is optimal. However, you can include multiple CTAs (calls to action) to prompt users to click on the ad.

Brand takeover

When a brand takeover ad is displayed, it appears immediately after the app is opened, as either a static image for 3 seconds or a 3–5 second video without audio. While this ad type can give you quick traction, it’s more expensive than the others.

TopView ads

TopView ads consist of 60-second videos that play automatically as soon as the user opens the app. This ad type and its strategic placement ensures that viewers will be exposed to your ad, making it a dependable and efficient method for connecting with your intended audience.

Spark ads

Spark ads are a unique ad format that allows brands to target their audience with customized ads tailored to their interests. They consist of a single image or short video clip that can be used to showcase a product or service. However, what sets Spark ads apart from other ad formats is that they're displayed in a user's "Following" feed, which makes them feel less intrusive and more organic.

Branded hashtag challenge

The hashtag challenge ad format is unique to TikTok and promotes user-generated content. The audience is prompted to generate themed content that features the designated branded hashtag, which is subsequently compiled on a hashtag challenge page. In addition, these challenges yield an average engagement rate of 8.5% and provide creative direction to brands interested in participating.

Branded effect

Comparable to Snapchat lenses and Instagram filters, these brand-sponsored visual effects compliment hashtag challenges. They can be found on the first page of the effects panel, and remain there for 3 days.

Winning TikTok ad examples and why they work

e.l.f Cosmetics

To reach their relevant audiences on the platform and improve conversion rates, e.l.f. Cosmetics used an in-feed ad. The video they created was entertaining and genuine and successfully illustrated the brand’s personality while advertising products in an engaging and professional format.

Why it worked

The beauty brand heightened awareness and brand recognition by ensuring their video was appealing while simultaneously highlighting their brand, making it clearly visible in the beginning and ending frames.

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Aerie

The intimate apparel brand, Aerie, achieved TikTok success by leveraging in-feed ad campaigns alongside branded hashtag challenges. Most recently, they became the first to experiment with TikTok's Dynamic Showcase Ads (DSA), and were able to increase conversions through personalized advertising.

Why it worked

With DSA, consumer packaged goods (CPG) brands can advertise thousands of products with minimal effort spent on creative production. By using dynamic ads on TikTok, not only did Aerie automate their advertising efforts, but they significantly increased conversions and freed up time for more strategic initiatives.

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KIND

In just 24 hours, KIND's hashtag challenge generated a staggering 20 million views. In their effort to promote their Simple Crunch Bars, the snack brand giant gave users the chance to win a flight to New York along with a year’s worth of KIND products in exchange for posting videos about the bar’s loud crunch.

In conjunction with user videos, KIND strategically positioned influencers to create sponsored posts. By collaborating with Zach King, for example, the brand gained a record 1.7 million likes and more than 18k shares.

Why it worked

KIND’s campaign was successful because it tailored its messaging to reach Gen Z by using influencers to promote their product. In addition, KIND encouraged video shares by giving their intended audience a motivational incentive, one that guaranteed a trip and some free products. Who could turn that down?

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Garnier

Garnier turned to TikTok to promote a new line of vegan hair care products to its Gen Z and millennial target audience. Using a branded hashtag challenge combined with a 2-D branded effect, they enabled users to test the product line by creating a before-and-after transition video.

In addition, Garnier tapped influencers to help push their brand further in conjunction with a One Day Max in-feed ad and a TopView Lite. A subcategory of TopView ads, TopView Lite ads include a 3-5 second-long video with no sound. To top off their efforts, the brand compiled a mash-up of the best user-generated videos, which they later promoted through Brand Premium In-Feed Ads.

Why it worked

Using a mix of different TikTok ad formats, Garnier was able to reinforce their brand’s message and appeal to their audience. Encouraging a viral challenge also allowed their users to become a central part of Garnier’s bigger story, helping the brand gain more traction.

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Netflix

To gauge the attention of users for a new release titled “Sing On! Germany,” Netflix launched a TikTok ad campaign that would increase awareness. They used a Branded Effect paired with a Hashtag Challenge that enabled target viewers to participate in a virtual karaoke booth. Using this strategy, Netflix was able to incentivize submissions, and in turn, improve engagement levels.

Why it worked

Netflix promoted the Branded Effect through influencer marketing and by using tunes from iconic songs that got users to sing along. Because so many people were able to use the filter and emotionally connect with classic tunes, the campaign became wildly popular and generated over 600m total video views.

Create a revenue-driving strategy with MarinOne’s TikTok advertising experts

To create a winning TikTok ad campaign, it’s important to analyze what aspects successful ones got right. Pay close attention to the various approaches used, identify successful hooks, and note which influencers generate the most engagement so you can determine how to establish a connection with your own target audience.

If you’re ready to begin your TikTok advertising strategy, MarinOne is here to help. Our TikTok advertising pros will advise you in creating trendy, on-brand TikTok ads that work for your business and industry.

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To grow your business with TikTok, contact us today.

Maximizing Revenue Potential with Mobile Advertising and App Advertising

Many of the tasks that used to be done on a desktop have become just as easy on a phone. Shopping, as an example, is accessible the second a consumer thinks of something they want or need to buy. They can look it up on their smartphone, check out without even needing to grab a physical credit card, and have the peace of mind that the item will be delivered to them within just a few days.

Over the past several years, we have seen more and more consumers make purchases right from their phones, and e-comm businesses are responding with company apps, an influx in SMS marketing, and various promotional initiatives associated with a mobile-first consumer experience. Because of this, mobile advertising and app advertising are a must in many industries if you want to maximize revenue potential.

Tips for Creating a Great Mobile Experience

Creating a mobile ad will be different than creating a desktop ad. Here's what you need to know to start an impactful and effective mobile ad strategy:

Design Your UX to be Touch Screen Friendly

Mobile users have different patterns and utilize other features than desktop users. Touch screens are a big part of this user experience as a touch screen inherently creates a different way of navigating your site, such as zooming in or swiping side to side.

Some ways to do this effectively include:

Placing primary content and actions in the center of the screen, using the edges for secondary activities and tabs, and incorporating tertiary functions behind menus.
Consider how the user interacts with their device and what is on the screen as a part of that device, such as the grip of their hands, what fingers they use to complete various tasks, and the context of your website, app, or advertisement within the greater UI. An Apple user may have different needs than an Android user. The size of a tablet could change how prominent your design features need to be.
When in doubt, remember that recent studies have shown users predominantly touch the center of the screen and use their devices in various ways, challenging the assumption of the "Thumb Zone" designers once had. All these nuances will change how the user interacts with your brand and will have a powerful subliminal effect on how that individual perceives your brand.

Make Creative and Visually Engaging Mobile Ads

Mobile advertisements have a lot of potential to showcase your company creatively. There is a lot of opportunity to show off products and services. Here are a few ways you can ensure the design of your ads is as impactful to potential customers as possible:

Size matters: Any images will need to be sized correctly, and they will need to be of high quality to draw your audience’s attention.
Keep it short and sweet: Attention spans can be short, so you must catch the consumer's attention within seconds. Knowledge of your ideal customer persona is crucial. Know what your customer will like about the product and immediately showcase that feature. Or, if it is a video ad, add a hook at the beginning of your message to draw immediate attention.
Stay on top of trends: You can even use current trends and use that to come off as organic entertainment. Just ensure the message clearly and accurately represents what your company is all about while employing a catchy trend.
Use every design or content tool you have at your disposal: There is a huge opportunity in both mobile and in-app advertising to push the envelope in creativity. The best marketers are doing this by leveraging augmented reality (AR) to create immersive experiences, using creative GIF animations to boost engagement, incorporating location data for personalized targeting, and employing personalized messaging for effective communication.

Diversify Your Advertising Placements to More than one Platform

To effectively advertise on mobile, it's crucial to understand the different types of mobile ads, such as app ads, social media ads, mobile banner ads, in-app display ads, interstitial ads, SMS ads, native ads, video ads, and audio ads.

Mobile ads on platforms like Spotify, TikTok, Facebook Stories, and Instagram Stories have proven effective in reaching and engaging audiences. Implementing interactive mobile ads and utilizing formats like Facebook Collections ads can also boost user engagement. Next, we'll dive more into mobile and app advertising specifics on each social media platform.

Paid Social for Mobile

Social media has become a popular pastime for adults, with growing numbers of daily users. This presents a valuable advertising opportunity, allowing you to reach large audiences, increase visibility, and engage with users through your social media presence. Look at some of the complexities that go into each social media platform's available advertising placements.

Instagram story ad

This is a great example of creating an ad that goes along with the patterns of smartphone users. If a user clicks through stories and your ad comes up, they will most likely pay attention to it since they anticipate something new with each click. Some ways to make a great story ad include: maximizing fullscreen usage, highlighting your call-to-action, incorporating text overlays, using audio enhancements, making your ads interactive, consistently branding your ads, and incorporating motion.

Snapchat ad and filter

Snapchat ads are a great way to introduce your organization to a new audience. Snapchat may have different users than other platforms, which is beneficial for retargeting. You can also have your own filter showcasing your brand or product. Many users look through filters to find new or creative ones, and if they choose to use them, they create more reach when they share their image paired with the filter on their personal profile.

Recently Snapchat has introduced a set of instructions for devising potent Snap Ad campaigns to assist businesses in connecting with its 375 million daily users, primarily composed of Gen Z and millennials. Essential advertising principles the company highlighted involve prominently displaying products, adopting a sound-on design, and employing goal-oriented bidding. In reaction to Apple's iOS 14 update, Snapchat suggests widening targeting scopes, underlining the importance of suitable content for the most valuable leads.

YouTube ad

YouTube has a large audience reach, and people use YouTube for many different reasons. Video ads can help you connect with your audience as you show more about your brand. There are also options for retargeting.

The best strategies to creating an effective Youtube ad are: surprising the viewer with unexpected content; improving on competitors' ad concepts; continuously testing and adjusting content; using storytelling to draw in viewers; incorporating user-generated content; emphasizing the benefits of the product or service being advertised; and optimizing content for different viewing devices.

Facebook story ad

Like any other story ad, you can increase reach significantly with Facebook story ads. This type of story ad will take up most of the smartphone screen, just like Instagram. By creating an immersive experience, the goal is that your content will captivate the audience's attention.

Creating story content is quite straightforward, involving choosing the type of content, customizing it, adding custom links and buttons, and sharing it. Businesses can further optimize their use of Facebook Stories by creating exciting, time-sensitive content, making it interactive and actionable, sharing third-party content, and regularly tracking performance to polish their strategy.

Website display ad

For this ad type, you will want a high-quality, interesting image to draw in your audience. You can create custom audiences by using pixels and tags to target the same people across different platforms.

Keep the design simple and instantly readable, use buttons wisely, and ensure a clearly defined frame for your ad. Animations can improve performance, but they should not distract from your message. While your ad should complement the website it is on, it still needs to be distinctive. Consistency with your brand is crucial, as is instilling a sense of urgency. Images, if used, should be directly related to your product, and the colors chosen should evoke the right emotions in your audience. Keep the file sizes small for faster loading and use appropriate formats such as JPG, PNG, GIF, or HTML5.

Twitter ad

You can grow a larger audience on Twitter by promoting your tweets. This should boost your followers, and then these users will continue to see your organization's tweets over time.

To effectively use Twitter Ads, it's essential to follow five critical steps. First, research your competitors to understand which strategies have been successful for them, and take note of the types of offers that generate the most engagement. Second, gather social proof by initially advertising to less expensive audiences to increase engagement before targeting your primary audience. Third, use A/B testing or split testing to determine which elements of your ad perform best, testing one variable at a time. Fourth, avoid including hashtags or mentions in your promoted tweets to ensure your call to action remains the only clickable element. Lastly, create a specific target segment for mobile users, as they comprise about 80% of Twitter's monthly active users. Remember, the goal is to create ads that attract attention and encourage user interaction.

App Advertising Placements

Apple Search Ads

Apple Search Ads (ASA), first introduced in 2016, have recently expanded significantly. The new ASA inventory includes two additional placements: the Today tab and the bottom of individual app product pages. The Today tab is the landing page for users upon opening the App Store, and the new ad placement allows developers to promote their apps alongside daily editorial content. The guidelines for these ads are comprehensive, including a limitation on promotional messaging to 50 characters or three lines of text. Also, the ads must use app screenshots as their main feature. These new placements are expected to increase exposure due to their visibility and broad reach.

The second new ad placement is located directly within the product pages of individual apps, appearing under the “You Might Also Like” section. This provides developers the opportunity to place ads on the pages of other apps. Unlike the Today tab ads, these do not require a custom product page for ad creatives; they are created using the assets already uploaded on the App Store product page. However, due to their location at the bottom of the page and considering that many users download apps directly from search results without visiting product pages, the impact of these ads might be less than those on the Today tab.

Google's Universal App Campaigns

Universal App Campaigns (UAC) is an automated ad type offered by Google Ads, providing an efficient way to advertise mobile apps across Google's extensive ad networks, including search, display, YouTube, and the Google Play Store. UACs utilize machine learning to showcase the most relevant and high-performing ads to users, driving conversions and app installs. The ad campaigns are generated using supplied text lines, images, videos, or HTML5 assets, and over time, the best-performing combinations are identified and displayed to users. UAC ads can run across different Google properties such as Google Search, Google Play, YouTube, and the Google Display Network, as well as on both iOS and Android devices.

Creating a UAC requires manual inputs, including a daily budget, a target cost-per-install (CPI) or cost-per-action (CPA), target location and languages, and up to four text lines. Further, optional media assets can be added to aid in the creation of the ad. When setting up a UAC, selecting the right campaign objective is crucial: "Install Volume" for attracting new users and "In-App Actions" for users likely to complete actions within the app. Google suggests different budget strategies depending on the chosen goal. Finally, setting up UAC involves selecting a device type, adding text ideas, setting location and language targets, defining the campaign goal, budget, and bid amount, and establishing a campaign run date.

Test ads across multiple platforms and determine what works best for your marketing strategy. Advertising across multiple platforms can help increase brand awareness. As mobile devices have become more needed for day-to-day routines, it has created a great opportunity for phone ads. Mobile advertising and app advertising strategies have made it easier for marketers to make ads more personalized for consumers. It can give consumers insight on the brand and what they have to uniquely offer.

To optimize your mobile and app advertising strategy, start working with a MarinOne expert today.

The Impact of Artificial Intelligence on B2B Sales and Marketing

Today, one of the biggest technological advancements is Artificial intelligence (AI), which has immense B2B sales and marketing potential. That's why enterprises have transformed their marketing strategies by adopting full automation via smart AI technology.

Around 87% of businesses plan to use AI for sales forecasting. Whether it's engaging more website visitors or managing predictive analytic campaigns, AI is quickly becoming an integral part of the success of B2B marketers. In this article, we'll take an elaborative look at the impact of Artificial Intelligence on B2B sales and marketing and the challenges and opportunities that come with it.

Impact of AI on B2B Sales & Marketing

With AI technology, B2B sales and marketing have witnessed significant and transformative growth, revolutionizing various aspects of the industry by enabling businesses to enhance their whole business process.

AI helps businesses and encourages customers to have a more personalized experience. Through this, marketers use their software to get insights and provide the customer with smart purchase decisions.
AI has made predicting customers' future purchase choices and shopping patterns easier using predictive analytics blended with the natural language process.
We have all seen how Amazon uses AI-powered product recommendations using tags like 'recommended for you' or 'customers also bought' while purchasing or adding something to your cart. This works amazingly for the brand by encouraging customers to increase the value of their carts.

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Similarly, HubSpot used AI-powered chatbots to engage with visitors and generate leads through conversation.

With automation tools, it has become quite easy to facilitate repetitive and time-consuming tasks in AI-driven B2B marketing. Automating email outreach, lead nurturing, and follow-up activities can be managed by robots so that high-value activities, such as building relationships, could be prioritized by real human beings.
AI in B2B sales and marketing has also influenced competition in business. It has worked to many organizations' advantage by enabling them to deliver optimized marketing campaigns, provide a superior customer experience, and generate more qualified leads.

5 Ways How AI will transform B2B Sales and Marketing

Enhanced Lead Generation and Scoring

AI in B2B marketing has started overcoming some of the biggest challenges marketers face, including generating high-quality leads and increasing leads. The labor intensity of data collection, analysis, and management plays quite a significant role in marketing problems. That's why data collection and analysis can be automated by incorporating AI into lead generation processes. This results in an increased number of quality-generated leads. Lead generation is a time-consuming manual task, so when automation came into this area, it became a powerful business process optimizer and a strong IT business strategy.

Pro tip: Focus on the call to action. Ensure your call to action button requests the user's details and stands out from the background. The button text must be clear; for instance, 'Download Free eBook' tells users the result of a click. The button's location should be eye-catching.

Increased Engagement

Your content can be amazing and optimized, but it will only succeed if you publish it right. And that's where the implementation of AI in the B2B space works the best. It helps drive maximum engagement by providing the right content at the right time and in the right manner.

Simply put, the best time to publish any written or social media content is in the evening or afternoon. Similarly, the best time for sending marketing emails is in the morning, when your audience wakes with a fresh mind. AI monitors your customer's behavior to determine the optimal publishing times. This way, it schedules your content and publishes it accordingly on its own.

Optimized Website Functionality

Usually, in B2B businesses, marketers miss out on scrutinizing their website performance data to identify any issues or improvement areas. But with AI-powered analytics tools, machine intelligence can shorten complex data into easy and actionable insights.

And the best part is that if there is any sudden or unauthorized data transfer, AI can immediately notify the marketers about it. The same goes for when there is an abrupt spike in a critical metric, like the percentage of the audience that leaves your website just after a single page session. This way, businesses can improve their website's functioning and performance.

Simplified SEO

The main problem with SEO optimization manually isn't just the time consumption; it's far more than that. And AI recognizes that and helps inform the new content by identifying trendy content, making keyword predictions, and discovering competitive gaps. Moreover, AI optimizes your website's old content for SERPs using dynamic keywords strategy and link updates. This way, your old content stays fresh, and the new one stays ahead of the curve.

Although AI cannot be that reliable when it comes to actually creating engaging content, with its marketing tools, writers can surely use it to enhance and optimize their content according to SEO best practices. AI-powered tools will help you make more optimized, professional, and error-free content.

Pro tip: Remember, SEO isn't just about keywords anymore; it's about providing valuable content. Research Google's recent "Helpful Content Update" to ensure your content is on the right track. This update emphasizes a people-first strategy and encourages SEO experts to focus on search intent, relevant subtopics, and content demonstrating expertise and depth. SEO is a lot more than just adding keywords; you need to deliver substantive value.

Improved Customer Insights

To keep your business at a competitive advantage, it's essential to conduct personalized targeting from the minute a customer enters your sales funnel. This is essential to developing accurate buyer personas and ideal customer profiles (ICP). And this is where AI benefits most through social listening and analysis tools that help businesses achieve their goals.

Challenges and Opportunities in AI Implementation

AI has played a significant and transformative role in strengthening the B2B sales and marketing industry. By improving business-customer relationships and streamlining sales processes, AI has enhanced the multi-segment marketing strategies of B2B businesses. However, the new technology also comes with certain challenges as well as opportunities, which we have discussed below:

Data Quantity and Quality: One of the biggest challenges B2B marketers face with AI implementation is data quantity and quality. The thing with AI algorithms is that they require large amounts of data to make more accurate predictions.

Skepticism: Another major challenge with AI implementation is skepticism in people's minds about its capabilities. Customers often hesitate to interact with the AI-powered system, making it quite difficult for businesses to adapt to AI usage.

Incorporation into existing systems: Incorporation of AI into the existing sales and marketing methods can also be challenging for businesses, as they have already invested in implementing these systems. So, incorporating AI would become more difficult and time-consuming as well.

Outmoded Infrastructure: As AI delivers the desired results, it also requires much information to process within seconds. And that becomes quite difficult with the outdated infrastructure many companies still use. To learn and develop methods with machine learning, one needs to be prepared to invest in its tools, infrastructure, and application, which becomes very challenging for marketers.

Requires Good Investment: Implementing AI in your business takes time to come cost-efficiently. You need to collaborate with an AI expert and launch an ongoing AI training program for your employees to get comfortable with AI and the requirement for machine learning tools. And all of this requires a good investment.

Conclusion

With the help of AI-powered tools and insights, businesses are boosting their sales by meeting the demand and needs of customers, generating more leads, and giving them a personalized experience. And as marketing is known to have the best usage of AI thus far, in the coming years, the B2B sales and marketing industry will be revolutionized on a whole new level.

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Kamna Saini is a guest contributor to the MarinOne blog.

The Evolution of Native Advertising

Modern consumers are becoming increasingly adept at tuning out aggressive, disruptive advertising. This has led digital marketers to seek new and creative ways to engage their target audience. Amongst the most promising of these emerging strategies is native advertising—a format that seamlessly blends into the user's natural viewing experience.

But native advertising isn't some shiny, brand-spanking-new strategy cooked up in a digital marketing laboratory. In fact, it has a long and colorful history – one that spans decades and crosses a range of different platforms, mediums, and industries.

From the days when people relied on black-and-white newspapers for their daily fix of information, to the golden age of radio when catchy jingles ruled the airwaves, all the way up to the digital dominion we now inhabit, native advertising has always been around, transforming and adapting with each passing epoch.

In this blog, we'll first take a journey through time to explore the rich history of native advertising and how it has continuously adapted to the demands of each era. Following that, we'll examine the current state of native advertising and discuss a few of the techniques that publishers and brands are using in a bid to make their native ads as successful and effective as possible.

So, without further ado, let's start at the very beginning of the native advertising story.

A Brief History of Native Advertising

As the wheels of time turned and advertising evolved, native ads took on various forms, captivating audiences across different mediums. Let's take a journey through the evolutionary tapestry of native ads:

Advent of Advertorials

The roots of native ads can be traced all the way back to the early 1900s when advertorials – ads that masquerade as editorial content – first began appearing in print magazines. Advertorials were a clever concoction of marketing and journalism, allowing advertisers to promote their products or services in the guise of an informative article.

Cadillac's 1915 advertorial in The Saturday Evening Post was a shining example of this format. Created by Theodore F. MacManus, the ad was an impassioned ode to the spirit of progress and advancement, with nary a mention of Cadillac or even the automotive industry. The only giveaway that it was an advertisement was the subtle logo placed in the corner. But despite its lack of overt branding, the ad was deemed radical for its time – and even today, advertising professionals consistently hail it as one of the best ads ever created.

Radio Revolution

In the roaring 1920s and 1930s, a time when radio and TV ruled the infotainment sphere, native advertising began to take a more audible shape. Businesses would regularly fund radio programs to propagate their marketing message.

A momentous event in this advertising revolution was the debut of the renowned "Eveready Hour" in 1923. This groundbreaking radio program, sponsored by the National Carbon Company, swept the airwaves via the illustrious WEAF radio station in New York. Beyond captivating the audience with its selection of entertainment, the program also weaved in advertisements for the company's prized Eveready Batteries into its segments.

Television Takes the Stage

As television emerged as the dominant medium in the mid-20th century, native advertising followed suit, adapting to the visual storytelling potential of the small screen. Early adopters of this brave new world of television advertising included multinational consumer goods company, Procter & Gamble.

P&G's pioneering strategy involved underwriting a slew of drama series, such as 'The Guiding Light,' in exchange for subtle product placements of their soaps and detergents, hence coining the term "soap operas." Families gathered around their televisions, eagerly following the trials and tribulations of their favorite characters, in the process, absorbing the sponsored messages seamlessly woven into the storylines.

Infomercial Madness

The 80s were a pivotal moment in the history of native advertising. This was when the iconic infomercial– an advertisement structured as a program – first made its debut. Late-night television became a breeding ground for enthusiastic hosts and pitchmen hawking everything from kitchen gadgets to exercise equipment in an entertaining, educational format.

Leading the charge was Soloflex, the first-ever company to air an infomercial. The ad revolved around a common scenario – how to get in shape without joining an expensive gym. The infomercial was a tremendous success, thus giving birth to a wave of "as seen on TV" products.

Native Advertising in the Digital Age

When native advertising stepped into the digital age, it took on a whole new level of sophistication and relevancy. Although the basic premise of native advertising remained the same, digital media opened up a multitude of possibilities for brands to enlist in their quest to reach potential customers. Some of the biggest developments in native advertising's digital evolution include:

Paid Search

The rise of search engines in the early 2000s ushered in a new era of native advertising, as brands capitalized on Google's sponsored ad slots to promote their products and services. This gave birth to the concept of contextual targeting, allowing advertisers to reach out to users based on their interests and search queries.

Branded Content And Sponsored Articles

The proliferation of digital publishing in the 2010s led to the emergence of sponsored content, as brands began partnering with publishers to produce articles and videos in sync with the native content of their favorite websites. Digital media powerhouses such as BuzzFeed and Mashable, for instance, have made sponsored content an integral part of their business models.

One of BuzzFeed's most iconic examples is their "11 Reasons Why The Year 2000 Was The Best" article, which was sponsored by Tic Tac and featured a vote for the company's next flavor at the end. This article perfectly encapsulates how Buzzfeed and its brand partners have managed to meld sponsored content with their regular posts, creating an immersive native advertising experience for the reader.

Traditional publications like The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal have also recognized the potential of sponsored content, catering to advertisers by crafting specially-branded articles and videos for their readers. This move further solidifies native advertising's position as a mainstream advertising medium, as even the most venerated news sources join in on the fun.

Programmatic Native Advertising

Sharpening the targeting abilities of native ads even further is programmatic advertising, which uses algorithms to automate the process of buying and selling ads. This has allowed marketers to personalize native ads based on the user's browsing pattern, resulting in higher engagement and better ROI. Programmatic native ads have also enabled brands to target a much wider audience, making their content more effective and relevant at scale.

Video Ads

Video is the next big frontier in native advertising. Viewership of digital video content has grown exponentially over the past few years, and wise brands are already capitalizing on this trend through native video ads.

In fact, a survey by eMarketer revealed that in 2022, native video advertising accounted for a whopping 56% of all digital video ad spending in the United States. Furthermore, projections indicate that native display spending will experience a robust 12% year-over-year growth in 2023.

The power of native video ads lies in their ability to captivate viewers with compelling content while keeping them engaged with their interactive nature. Just take a look at Taco Bell's "Belluminati" campaign—an ingenious example of a native video ad that used humor and a conspiracy-theory narrative to promote its new $1 menu items.

Techniques for Native Advertising Success

A study conducted by Kantar and Taboola reveals that the inclusion of native advertising in the marketing mix led to a 25% increase in brand awareness. But as digital native advertising matures, getting your ads seen and acted upon is becoming harder and harder. Here are some of the key tactics that you can use to make sure your native ad campaigns hit the mark:

Research, Research, Research

A fleshed-out understanding of your target audience is the first step in executing a successful native ad campaign. Knowing who your target audience is and what they like allows you to craft an advertisement that resonates with the viewers, increasing the chances of them taking action.

Once you've identified your audience, you can start getting familiar with the platforms that will host your ad. Each platform comes with its own nuances and restrictions, so it pays to do your research beforehand.

Be Authentic

Your ad should be engaging, approachable, and interesting – but above all, it should be authentic and relevant. If your ad looks too much like a blatant sales pitch than an exciting read, it will turn the viewers off.

People want to be informed and entertained – not sold to. So, focus on creating an ad that's helpful and educational. Frame your message in a way that adds value to the viewer's experience, and ensure that the ad fits in seamlessly with the content of its hosting platform.

Measure Your Success

It's not enough to simply create an ad and put it out there. Just like how your employees need regular performance evaluations to know if they're doing well, your native ad campaigns also demand frequent audits to ascertain their success.

Continually analyze metrics such as engagement, CTR (Click Through Rate), CPC (Cost Per Click), and CPA (Cost Per Acquisition). These metrics will indicate how well your ads are performing and how effective they are at driving conversions. Then, refine and optimize your campaigns based on the insights gathered from these evaluations.

Leverage Digital Tools

The digital advertising toolkit is brimming with powerful resources that can give your native ad campaigns a much-needed boost. Some note-worthy tools include:

Workflow Automation. These tools empower you to automate repetitive tasks, optimize collaboration between team members, and ensure seamless project management. All you have to do is find an automation system that integrates with your current tech stack. Additionally, prioritize tools with a low learning curve or, even better, ones that offer a low-code or no-code config, making them accessible to users with varying technical backgrounds.
File Management Systems. File managers play a crucial role in preventing the organizational chaos that can arise when dealing with creative assets and collaboration documents, especially when working with large teams. Proper file management systems allow you to share documents in real-time and ensure everyone is working off the same page. Most filing tools also provide granular permissions control, making it easy to protect sensitive information.
Ad Management Software. With a full-suite ad management tool like MarinOne, you can optimize the delivery and performance of your ads in real time. Comprehensive solutions like ours reduce the need for manual interventions while providing end-to-end visibility into your ad campaigns. Advertising automation tools allow you manage budgets, bids, and placements and help you pull reports to analyze the performance of your ads, all in one place.

Future of Native Advertising

Native advertising in the digital age is only going to get more sophisticated. As machine learning and artificial intelligence (AI) continue to evolve, marketers will be able to leverage these technologies to create more contextual and intelligent native ad experiences. It’s also likely that native will continue to expand beyond the current platforms, with more interactive and personalized formats appearing over the next few years.

No matter what the future holds for native advertising, one thing is certain: the adaptability and scalability of native ads will keep them at the forefront of digital marketing for years to come. So, if you haven't hopped on the native ad bandwagon yet, now is the perfect time to do so. Embrace native ads and make them an integral component of your overall marketing strategy.

Meet with an advertising expert from MarinOne today to get started.

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Yoshiro Kichiro is a guest contributor to the Marin Software blog.

Mobile

Cut down your efforts and ramp up results with MarinOne's automated solutions and analytical tools.

Ad Personalization Tips for Paid Media Experts (While Respecting User Privacy)

Consumers appreciate personalized offers. According to research carried out by Adlucent, 71% of consumers prefer ads that are tailored to their interests and shopping habits while 75% prefer ads that are aligned with their needs.

You can achieve effective ad personalization by leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) to recognize patterns in your target audience data and use the insights generated to increase the relevancy of ads served to each user.

What is Ad Personalization?

Ad personalization is a strategy that involves tailoring and delivering relevant advertisements to your target audience based on hyper-specific information such as their demographic, geo-location, preferences, niche interests, or buying intent.

In an article for AdWeek, Christopher S. Dean, a VP at Salesforce refers to personalized ads as a “digital concierge” that anticipates customers' needs and directs them to what they want. Essentially, ad personalization is when ads are customized to appeal to the specific interests or buying behavior of an individual consumer.

How Does Ad Personalization Work?

Ad personalization leverages data, analytics, artificial intelligence (AI), and machine learning (ML) tools to understand and engage customers based on the context of their behaviors.

In short, companies specializing in advertising such as pay-per-click (PPC) collect user information from various sources, then use algorithms to analyze all that data and serve ads relevant to each user. The process of ad personalization involves:

Data Collection: A large amount of user data is collected by the two largest ad providers, Google and Meta. Google typically collects contextual data from search queries, location data from Google Maps, and app data from the Google Play Store. Meta collects social media data like personal profile information, liked pages, and posts. Advertisers then draw from this data using pixels, cookies, and other tracking tags.
Data Analysis: This involves using machine learning algorithms and analysis tools to process the data collected, identify patterns and derive insights. This analysis helps in predicting users’ behavior, preferences, and interests as well as identifying the best ad format for a particular user.
Ad Targeting: Advertisers use insights from analysis to show relevant ads to specific users. This sometimes includes retargeting ads to users who have previously interacted with their brand.
Ad Delivery: Using various platforms, programmatic advertising, and the right messaging framework, advertisers automatically deliver targeted display ads, social media ads, search ads, or video ads to individual users.
Ad Performance Monitoring: Advertisers track the performance of their ads and use the data to improve their targeting and optimization strategies. They also use other optimization techniques like A/B testing to experiment with different ad formats and targeting options that improve the ad's effectiveness.

Is Ad Personalization Effective?

Personalized advertising is a “powerful tool” states Google AdSense, adding that it improves the relevance of ads for users and “increases Return on Investment (ROI) for advertisers.” A 2021 article by IBM Watson Advertising also mentions that 66% of customers expect companies to understand their unique needs. According to the article, personalized ads boost engagement, help with product discovery, and “make online searching faster for those looking to buy”.

Based on these insights, as well as data showing that up to 81% of Gen Z and 57% of millennials like personalized ads, it’s safe to say that ad personalization is highly effective. However, with growing concern about privacy, it has become important to explore transparent and ethical methods to collect data and deliver effective personalized ads.

Benefits of Ad Personalization

Some benefits of ad personalization for you as an advertiser include increased click-through rates, improved conversions, and higher ROI. Ad personalization can also lead to better user experiences, which can in turn lead to increased brand loyalty and customer lifetime value

Higher Engagement

People understand that personalized ads reduce their search time and help them find options and value for their wants or needs. This means that users who see ads that are tailored to their interests are more likely to click on them and learn more about your product or service.

Increased Conversions

Conversion means that after viewing an ad, or part of it, a consumer takes a particular action that benefits a brand. This can include clicking on the ad to finish reading or watching, opening the website, and ultimately buying the product advertised. Generally, more people are likely to take action if the ad they see is personalized.

Higher ROI

Ultimately, personalized ads can increase ROI. Since more people are likely to engage with the ad and complete a beneficial action, you will get higher returns for the effort and spending involved in advertising.

Challenges of Ad Personalization

Risk of Spooking the Customer

Many people already believe that their phones and other smart devices are listening in on them. While this may be unverifiable, personalized ads can fuel that fear, especially when over-emphasized.

Probability of Failure

Ad blockers on phones, browsers, and sites are becoming increasingly common. If a user has an ad blocker enabled, ads will not reach them, personalized or otherwise. In fact, some people may be more specific by turning off personalized ads, ensuring that advertisers cannot collect their data and include it in the ads shown to them.

Privacy Concerns

Privacy is a rather sensitive concept. As such, while advertisers may decide to collect data to improve ad experience, they may go about this unethically, buying unauthorized information from analytics companies. People also fear that their information may be sold for much more than creating personalized ads. This leads users to distrust personalized advertising.

Different Types of Ad Personalization

There are different ways to personalize ads. Let's take a look at a few of the techniques you can use to create the best experience for your prospects possible.

Direct Personalization

With direct personalization, you can target a specific user by using their name or sending them reminders about that their shopping journey. An ad copy that reads “Dear John, don’t forget that the promo for the wristwatch in your shopping cart ends in two days.” is directed at John, a single user. This gives the feel of a one-on-one interaction. Direct personalization can be achieved by personalizing emails or enabling a bot to have a relevant conversation with users.

Automatic Optimization

Here, you can decide to personalize ads by showing customers the ad that has had the highest engagement, conversion, and ROI rates. This way, you don’t have to create multiple ads to suit every single user’s taste.

Demographic Targeting

Ads for a product can be tailored differently for different demographics. Let's talk through the example of a banks' personalized advertising. Opening a bank account is essential for anyone, meaning that there is a wide range of demography involved in advertising for easy ways to open a bank account. With age, for instance, you can decide to create separate ads for each age range. This will appeal to different demographics, while still maintaining the core advertising message.

Dynamic Advertising

Here, special attention is given to the search history and stage in the consumer’s journey. So, ads are personalized based on what the user has searched for (possibly recommending similar products), as well as what they seem most likely to do (if they have abandoned their cart, the ad would attempt to steer them back to the site and convince them to purchase the product).

In addition to the types of ad personalization mentioned above, you also need to know the six levels of ad personalization which signify the degree to which ads can be personalized and are broadly classified as follows:

Level 0: Users are targeted based on their needs or wants, as well as their country or state.
Level 1: Ads in this level are personalized based on needs or wants, and city location.
Level 2: Ads in this level are personalized based on need or want, city location, zip code, and demographic info (age, gender, income).
Level 3: Ads in this level are personalized based on need or want, city location, zip code, demographic info, and general interests (sports, beauty, fashion, technology).
Level 4: Ads in this level are personalized based on need or want, city location, zip code, advanced demographic info (brand loyalty, political preference), niche interests (favorite music, hobbies), and buying intent (search keywords).
Level 5: Ads in this level are personalized based on need or want, city location, zip code, advanced demographic info (brand loyalty, political preference), niche interests (favorite music, hobbies), buying intent (search keywords), and historical behavioral patterns.

How to Achieve Effective Ad Personalization

Many people ignore, close, or skip ads that are irrelevant to them. Forbes states that 49% of people are likely to ignore an ad if it appears irrelevant. In order to create personalized ads that deliver results, your ads need to add value to the user experience and also meet the requirements listed here.

Collect Relevant Data About Users

Data about users and consumers drive ad personalization. You have to collect data about target users based on the levels mentioned before. This information can range from simple things like what the user needs and where they live, to their behavioral patterns and political interests.

Know Where Users Are in the Marketing Funnel

Understanding where a user is in the marketing funnel helps you personalize your ad content and improve ad selection for users. For example, if a consumer is in the conversion stage, showing them an ad for similar products can convince them to return to your site and buy.

Use Retargeted Ads

This is a strategy directed at users who have visited a website but have not made a purchase. People may visit a website, and even fill their cart, and never really get to check out.

Retargeting helps to bring the site, and the browsed products, back to the attention of the user, and may convince them to make that purchase. Dynamic ads (personalized based on search history and items in the cart) and Google Display Network (which allows you to determine the time and location your ads are shown, based on features determined by the advertisers) are ways to achieve retargeting.

Choose KPIs to Measure Success

For every advertising or creative campaign, it’s important to measure performance, analyze, and refine your strategy.

After creating and implementing personalized ads, you must evaluate results, which helps you identify what is working and what needs to be re-evaluated. You can include surveys and forms for users to share feedback on the ads shown to them.

Be Ethical With Your Approach

Privacy is a major concern for users who are served personalized ads. They are aware that it requires a large amount of their personal information to deliver these tailored ads and as an advertiser, you should be mindful not to spook them further.

Offer voluntary ad transparency in order to build trust, be open about why personal data is collected, and lean more towards other forms of first-party data collection as opposed to third-party cookies and tracking codes.

To Sum it Up

Ad personalization is a good way for you as an advertiser to improve the effectiveness of your advertisements and increase ROI. By personalizing ads, you can make sure that your message is relevant to the individual and more likely to be of interest to them. This can result in higher click-through rates and conversions, and ultimately, more customers and sales.

To get started developing your omnichannel personalization ad strategy, reach out to the experts at MarinOne. We will help you set up the automation needed to make personalization a stress-free experience for your marketing team.

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Bernard Aguila is a guest contributor to Marin Software.

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Calculating Effective Amazon ACOS or ROAS Targets

When it comes to advertising on Amazon, two key metrics that sellers and advertisers need to pay attention to are advertising cost of sales (ACOS) and return on ad spend (ROAS). Understanding and optimizing these metrics can be crucial in maximizing profits and achieving business goals. In this blog post, we'll take a closer look at Amazon ACOS and ROAS, how they’re calculated, and how to improve them to drive success on the Amazon platform.

Understanding Amazon ACOS and ROAS: key metrics for success on the platform

As one of the largest online marketplaces in the world, Amazon has become a crucial platform for businesses of all sizes to reach and engage with customers. One of the most important aspects of success on Amazon is the ability to advertise products and services effectively. That's where metrics like ACOS and ROAS come in:

ACOS represents the percentage of ad spend compared to the total sales generated from that spend.
ROAS measures the revenue generated for every dollar spent on advertising.

Both ACOS and ROAS metrics play a critical role in helping businesses understand the effectiveness of their advertising efforts and make informed decisions to optimize their advertising strategies. A lower ACOS indicates that a seller is spending less on advertising to generate a sale, which is generally a positive sign for the success of the campaign. In contrast, a higher ROAS indicates that the seller is generating more sales revenue for every dollar spent on advertising, which is also generally a positive sign for the success of the campaign.

Maximizing your advertising budget: how to improve Amazon ROAS

Improving your Amazon ROAS is key to maximizing your advertising budget. Here are some strategies to consider:

Focus on high-converting and long-tail keywords

By targeting high-converting keywords, you can maximize your chances of generating sales from your advertising spend. In addition, long-tail keywords are more specific and less competitive than broad keywords, which means they can be more cost-effective to target. By focusing on long-tail keywords that are relevant to your products, you can attract more qualified traffic to your listings and improve your ACOS.

Optimize product listings

A well-optimized product listing can improve click-through rates and conversion rates, leading to higher ROAS. For example, if you have a product with a low conversion rate, improving the product listing by adding better images or a more detailed description can lead to more sales without increasing your ad spend.

Monitor and adjust bids regularly

Regularly monitoring and adjusting bids for your ads can help you optimize your budget and improve ROAS over time. When you identify areas for improvement, you’ll achieve better results. For instance, if you notice that a certain campaign is consistently generating a high ACOS, you may need to adjust your targeting or bidding strategy to improve the efficiency of your spend. Tools like MarinOne have AI-driven features that automatically update bids and take away the manual work for paid media managers.

Leverage Amazon's targeting options

Amazon offers a range of targeting options, including keyword targeting, product targeting, and interest targeting. Trying different targeting options can help you find the best approach for your business.

Pro tip: Prioritize profitability at the product level. Delve into detailed data to understand the profit margins of individual SKUs before introducing paid advertising. This will spotlight the products that could gain the most from advertising, thereby mitigating risk.

Amazon ACOS: how to optimize your ad spend

Optimizing your Amazon ACOS is crucial to maximizing the effectiveness of your ad spend and driving profitability on the platform. Here are some tips to help you optimize your ACOS:

Set realistic goals

Before you start optimizing your ACOS, it's important to set realistic goals based on your business objectives and industry benchmarks. An optimal ACoS is not universally applicable, as it depends on numerous factors like product category, profit margins, competition, and product price. Therefore, sellers should aim for an ACoS tailored to their specific circumstances, generally between 15-20%. While a low ACoS might seem ideal, striving for as low as 1% is nearly impossible and may not be desirable depending on the business's advertising goals and product specifics. Understanding the break-even ACoS, where ad spend equals profit, is also essential in campaign planning.

Experiment with different ad formats

Amazon offers a range of ad formats, including sponsored products, sponsored brands, and sponsored display ads. To discover which one is right for your business, experiment with all of them and see which one yields the best results.

Continuously monitor and adjust your campaigns

Regularly monitoring and adjusting your campaigns can help you optimize your ad spend and improve your ACOS over time. When you consistently watch your campaigns’ performance, you can determine which patterns are working, and which ones aren’t.

Pro tip: Focus on enhancing product convenience. This significantly impacts Amazon usage. Factors like lengthy shipping times or unexplained higher costs can reduce convenience, leading to fewer sales and conversions. Remember, pricing and shipping are key for customers.

Use negative keywords

Negative keywords are keywords that you don't want your ads to show for. By adding negative keywords to your campaigns, you can prevent irrelevant or low-converting traffic from clicking on your ads, which can improve your ROAS.

For example, if you sell high-end products and don't want your ads to show for searches related to "cheap" or "discount," you could add these keywords as negative keywords to your campaigns.

How to calculate Amazon ACOS or ROAS targets

To calculate your Amazon ACOS, you'll need to have access to your Amazon Advertising account and the following information:

Total ad spend
Total sales generated from ad spend

Once you have this information, you can use the following formula to calculate your ACOS:

ACOS = (Total ad spend ÷ Total sales generated from ad spend) x 100

For example, if your total ad spend is $500 and your total sales generated from ad spend are $2,000, your ACOS would be:

ACOS = ($500 ÷ $2,000) x 100 = 25%

This means that you're spending $0.25 on advertising to generate each dollar of sales.

Calculating ROAS is simple, you can use this formula to calculate your ROAS:

ROAS = (Total sales generated from ad spend ÷ total ad spend)

For example, if your total ad spend is $600 and your total sales generated from ad spend are $2,200, your ROAS would be:

ROAS = ($2,200 ÷ $600) = 3.6

This means that you're getting a ratio of 3.6 return on ad spend.

Navigating the world of ACOS and ROAS with MarinOne

ROAS and ACOS determine the efficiency of your PPC campaigns. Knowing these formulas is helpful — but only if you truly understand how they can be applied to different scenarios. When you do, you’ll be able to achieve your business goals and scale to greater heights.

By following our tips and strategies outlined above, you can maximize the effectiveness of your ad spend, drive profitability, and achieve your business goals and objectives on Amazon.

Need help navigating the world of Amazon ACOS and ROAS metrics? The MarinOne team is here to guide you. Contact us for more information or to schedule your demo today.

Step-by-Step Tutorial: How To Find Keywords In Google Analytics for Your Website

Are you struggling to find the right keywords to optimize your website's content? Do you want to improve your search engine ranking by discovering the most relevant and effective keywords?

With the help of Google Analytics, you can gain valuable insights into the keywords that are already driving traffic to your website. By analyzing this data, you can optimize your content and target new keywords to attract even more visitors.

In this post, we'll guide you through the process of finding keywords in Google Analytics. Our step-by-step instructions will help you identify the most effective keywords to boost your website's SEO strategy.

So, if you want to improve your website's search engine ranking, keep reading to learn how to find keywords in Google Analytics and optimize your content for success.

How to Find Keywords in Google Analytics: Step-by-Step Tutorial

In Google Analytics, you cannot directly find specific keyword information within the platform itself. Due to privacy reasons, Google Analytics does not provide keyword data. However, you can gain valuable insights about the keywords driving traffic to your website by utilizing integration with Google Search Console.

How to Connect Google Search Console with Google Analytics

To connect Google Search Console with Google Analytics, follow these detailed instructions:

1. Access Google Analytics: Open your web browser and go to the Google Analytics website (https://analytics.google.com). Sign in with your Google account credentials.

2. Navigate to Admin Settings: In the bottom-left corner of the page, click on the "Admin" option. This will take you to Admin Settings.

3. In the "Property" column, click on "Search Console Links" at the bottom of the list. Then click on the "Link" button to link Google Search Console to GA4.

4. Click on the "Choose Accounts" button. You will see a list of websites that you have verified in the Google Search Console

Select your property in Google Analytics

5. Select the data stream that is used to collect data for the website and click "Submit". Click "Next" to proceed.

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Confirm your website in Google Analytics

6. Select the data stream that is used to collect data for the website. If you have multiple data streams, ensure that you choose the one associated with the same website you are linking from Google Search Console. Hover over the stream and click "Select." Click "Next" to continue.

7. Review the details to ensure that you have selected the correct property from Search Console and the corresponding data stream. Then click "Submit" to finalize the linking process.

Note that it may take up to 48 hours before you start seeing data from Google Search Console in your Google Analytics reports.

Close the linking dialogue and navigate to the "Reports" section in Google Analytics. Select "Acquisition" and then "Acquisition Overview" from the menu. Scroll down to the bottom of the report, and you will notice two new cards added: "Google Organic Search Traffic" and "Google Organic Search Queries." These cards provide insights into your website's performance in organic search results on Google.

You can click on the links within each card to access dedicated reports for landing pages, organic impressions, search queries, and click-through data.

How to Customize the Reporting Menu in Google Analytics and Find Your Keywords

Additionally, you can customize the reporting menu by accessing the "Library" section in Google Analytics. There, you can locate the new "Search Console" collection and publish it to make the Search Console reports readily accessible from the main reporting menu.

Here’s how to customize the reporting menu in Google Analytics and publish the new "Search Console" collection:

In the "Library" section, you will find a new collection named "Search Console" that is not published yet. Click on “Edit collection” to edit it.

Edit Google Search Console collection in Google Analytics's library

Inside the "Search Console" collection, click the "Save" button to save the changes you made.

Now, navigate back to the main reporting menu by clicking on the "Reports" link in the left-hand menu. In the reporting menu, click on the three vertical dots (more options) located at the top right corner of the page.

From the dropdown menu, select "Publish" to make the Search Console reports accessible in your GA4 property.

Publish your Google Search Console collection

If you encounter any issues during the publishing process, wait for a few minutes and then refresh the page. This step can resolve any potential problems. Once the reports are published, you will see the Search Console reports available in the main reporting menu of your GA4 property. Now you can easily access your website's top-performing keywords right in Google Analytics.

Exploring Other Options: Alternative Tools for Keyword Research

While Google Analytics is a popular choice for tracking website metrics, there are several smooth alternatives available specifically designed for finding keywords and gaining valuable insights. These alternatives offer unique features and functionalities to help optimize your content and improve your organic search performance. Consider the following alternatives:

Google Site Kit

One option is to use Google Site Kit. This is a free plugin for WordPress that allows you to connect your website to various Google services, including Google Analytics, Google Search Console, and Google Ads. Once you have installed the plugin and connected it to your Google account, you can view your site's keyword data directly within your WordPress dashboard.

This includes information such as the keywords driving traffic to your site, the page ranking for those keywords, and how your site is performing in search results. Google Site Kit also provides insights into other areas of your site's performance, such as page speed and mobile usability.

See your keywords with the help of Google Site Kit

Google Search Console

This is a free tool provided by Google that allows you to monitor your site's performance in search results. Once you have verified ownership of your site, you can view data such as the keywords that are driving traffic to your site, the pages that are ranking for those keywords, and how your site is performing in search results.

You can also use Google Search Console to submit sitemaps, monitor crawl errors, and view other data related to your site's performance in search results.

Third-party Keyword Research Software

There are many third-party tools available that allow you to research keywords and analyze your site's performance. Some popular options include Ahrefs, SEMrush, and Moz. These tools allow you to research keywords that are relevant to your site and your target audience, and provide insights into how your site is performing in search results.

They also offer features such as competitor analysis, backlink analysis, and site auditing, which can help you improve your site's performance and visibility in search results.

Here is an example of how you can use SEMrush to view your site’s ranking keywords:

1. Log in to your SEMrush account. Click on the "Domain Overview". Enter your domain name in the search bar and click "Search".

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2. Scroll down to the "Organic Search Traffic " section and click on the number that indicates the number of keywords you’re ranking.

3. In the "Organic Search Traffic" report, you will see a list of all the keywords that your website is ranking for in search results. You can then sort the list by different metrics such as search volume, position, and traffic percentage by clicking on the relevant column header. You can also filter the list by various parameters such as keyword difficulty, search volume, and position by using the filters at the top of the page.

How to Use Keyword Data to Improve Your Website

Google Analytics provides valuable keyword data that can help you improve your website's performance. By analyzing this data, you can optimize your existing content, create new content, and improve website navigation and user experience.

Optimize existing content

By using keyword data, you can easily identify which pages on your website are performing well and which ones need improvement. Once you've determined which pages require optimization, you can take several steps to improve their performance.

One way to optimize your pages is by adding relevant keywords to your content. Tools such as Page Optimizer Pro can help you identify which keywords to use and how to use them effectively. You can also improve the page's structure and update the existing content to make it more engaging and up-to-date, which can help attract more traffic to your website and improve your website's overall performance.

Optimizing your existing content not only improves its relevance to your target audience but also increases its visibility in search engine results pages (SERPs). This means that your website will rank higher in search engine results, making it more likely that people will find your website and engage with your content.

Tip: If you want to see faster results after updating content, consider republishing the article and submitting it to Search Console. By doing this, you can signal to search engines that your content has been updated and is worth revisiting.

Create new content

Keyword data can also help you identify high-performing keywords and create content around those topics to complete the topic cluster.

For instance, suppose you run an online store that sells fitness equipment, and you notice that the keyword "best home gym equipment" is driving a lot of traffic to your website. In that case, you can create more blog posts or landing pages that target that keyword. You could create a blog post that provides a detailed review of the best home gym equipment available on the market, or you could create a landing page that showcases your store's selection of home gym equipment.

By creating more content around high-performing keywords, you can attract more traffic to your website and increase engagement with your audience. This can also help you establish your website as an authority in your industry, which can help generate more leads and revenue.

Improve website navigation and user experience

Keyword data can also help you improve the navigation and user experience of your website. By analyzing the keywords that people are using to find your website, you can identify areas where your website may be confusing or difficult to navigate.

For example, if you notice that people are using certain keywords to find a specific page on your website, but they're not finding it easily, you can improve the page's navigation to make it more user-friendly. This can help reduce bounce rates and improve the overall user experience of your website.

Conclusion

Knowing how to find keywords in Google Analytics is crucial for understanding your website's traffic and enhancing your SEO performance. By using the methods outlined in this article, you can gain valuable insights into which keywords are driving traffic to your website, and which ones you may need to focus on optimizing.

Keep in mind that keyword rankings can fluctuate over time, so it's important to regularly monitor and analyze your website's keyword performance. By doing so, you can make informed decisions about your SEO strategy and make adjustments as needed.

And don't forget to use a variety of tools and resources to supplement your keyword research. Google Site Kit and other third-party keyword research tools can provide additional insights into your website's keyword performance and help you identify new opportunities for optimization.

Overall, by taking a comprehensive approach to keyword research and analysis, you can improve your digital marketing strategy and drive more traffic to your site.

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Millie Pham is a guest contributor to Marin Software.

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Unleashing the Power of TikTok Advertising: Secrets to Skyrocketing ROI

In an unprecedented global frenzy, businesses across the planet are plunging headfirst into the vibrant realm of TikTok advertising. In the heart-pounding first half of 2022, titans of industry like Amazon and HBO claimed the throne as TikTok's most monumental advertisers, with a jaw-dropping investment of $22.5 million and $19 million respectively, as per Statista's report.

Curious about why they're all flocking to TikTok? The answer's simple yet exhilarating: TikTok is a colossal coliseum of brand exposure and skyrocketing sales, buzzing with over a staggering billion monthly active users!

The introduction of TikTok for Business and Ads Manager has been a game-changer, simplifying the route for brands to zero in on their target audience in this dazzling social media universe. The plot thickened when TikTok forged a groundbreaking alliance with Shopify, unlocking a new realm of marketing possibilities for e-commerce and retail.

For small businesses, TikTok is akin to a treasure-laden galleon. A whopping 78% of SMBs proudly attest to harvesting a positive return on investment (ROI) from their foray into TikTok advertisements. Are you ready to discover the secret sauce of the best-performing ads on TikTok and sharpen your strategies to surpass all expectations and reap an extraordinary ROI? Let's dive right in.

Revealing the Magic of High ROI-Generating TikTok Ads

Let's first unveil the TikTok ad formats leveraged by brands:

- TopView Ad

- In-Feed Ad

- Brand Takeover Ad

- Dynamic Showcase Ad (DSA)

- Video Shopping Ads (VSA)

- Deeplink Ad

- Branded Effect

- Branded Hashtag Challenge

- Spark Ad

Surprisingly, the dark horse, Spark Ads, despite being last on our list, claims a staggering 157% higher view-through rate compared to the typical In-Feed Ads. Yet, the crown for the highest click-through rate (CTR) belongs to TopView adverts, with a phenomenal 12–16% among all other TikTok advertising variants.

Knowledge of the different TikTok ad types is just the first stage of this thrilling journey. To truly unravel the power of TikTok advertising and catapult your ROI to unseen heights, it's time to master the art and science of maximizing the efficacy of your TikTok ads.

Master the Art of TikTok Advertising to Skyrocket ROI

Mastering the art of TikTok advertising - and it is as much art as science - boils down to a few foundational best practices. Let’s dive into each of those best practices and find the best way to maximize return on your investment in TikTok advertising.

Know your audience

Who are you aiming to captivate with your riveting TikTok ads?

"Unlocking the magic of TikTok marketing commences with pinpointing your dream customer," advises Ryan Hammill, Co-Founder and Executive Director of the Ancient Language Institute. "You must craft an intricate, quasi-fictional avatar of your ideal consumer to meticulously align your marketing efforts with the right individuals. This involves sketching out an in-depth portrait of your target demographic, complete with their preferences, quirks, and tendencies."

To resonate with the core ethos of your most valued consumers and delve into their TikTok behavior, Hammill prescribes taking into account the following multifaceted aspects:

- Age

- Gender

- Income

- Lifestyle

- Personality traits

- Aspirations

- Interests, and more.

While TikTok reigns supreme as the quintessential social media marketing hotspot for Gen Zers, the scales are slowly tipping. The echo of Millennials and Gen Xers footsteps is growing louder, as they make their presence felt on the platform. As of 2021, a significant 36% of TikTok's audience fell within the 35–54 age bracket, a notable leap from 2020's 26%.

Beyond this demographic dimension, you should also uncover your audience's expectations from your brand. Could it be a tantalizing discount they seek? Observe how The Farmer’s Dog brilliantly wooed American dog owners with a Spark ad, promising an irresistible 60% off.

Ensure your ads shine a spotlight on the most relevant content, meticulously curated to cater to the distinct desires and needs of your TikTok audience.

Join Forces with Influencers

TikTok reveals a mind-boggling statistic - advertisements born out of a dynamic synergy between brands and influential content creators boast a staggering 91% higher six-second view rates. Moreover, these fruitful partnerships trigger a 27% leap in ad recall.

Consider Babbel's strategic move, who tapped into the enormous popularity of Ben Hanlin, a TikTok sensation with a thriving community of over 1.3 million followers. He regaled his audience with his journey of mastering a new language with Babbel, painting a vivid picture of his expeditions in foreign lands.

Why not chart your own course and craft a robust influencer marketing strategy for TikTok? Identify and connect with influencers whose ethos aligns with your brand.

Take the innovative example of SearchKibble, a search engine provider with a heartwarming mission - feeding shelter animals with every search. They partnered with powerhouse influencers who share a deep bond with their pets, such as Moca Cho Dien and Mason Glasco, boasting 8.9M and 6.6M TikTok followers respectively. These influencer collaborations propelled SearchKibble to phenomenal success, with a ROI of 2.3x, over 273,000 views, and a staggering 954,000 impressions.

Let's not forget Michael Kors' ingenious back-to-school campaign. By harnessing the power of Spark Ads to promote influencer content, they struck gold. The campaign reached an awe-inspiring 8.3 million people, amassing a whopping 58 million impressions.

@tamarasevao the mk bundle is still going on🙌🏽 #mk #fyp #michaelkors #retailtherapy #shopping #viral #deals #purses #lifestyle #seattle #fashion ♬ original sound - Daisy Darvill

Incorporate a Powerful Call-to-Action (CTA)

A compelling call-to-action woven into your TikTok ad could be the catalyst that drives a tsunami of clicks and conversions. As per TikTok's insightful research, advertisements that incorporate on-screen text and a crystal-clear CTA are 55.7% more likely to steal the spotlight with increased impressions compared to those that abstain from text.

The TikTok Ads Manager is your secret weapon, allowing you to concoct Recommended and Dynamic CTAs:

Recommended – Cherry-pick a suggested CTA from an array of options on the drop-down list.
Dynamic – Craft a versatile collection of CTA texts, primed to present the most fitting message to each TikTok user who lays eyes on your advertisement.

A sterling example is PepsiCo Australia's masterstroke of deploying a 'Learn More' CTA button in their Brand Takeover ad. On the very first day, the campaign's CTR hit a blistering 24%. Overall, they reaped a solid 17% CTR and accumulated a staggering 10M+ impressions.

Harness the Power of Hashtags

Hashtags are the unsung heroes of social SEO on TikTok. Long used on other platforms, many TikTok advertisers have not yet caught on to the effectiveness of hashtags on this platform. Savvy advertisers see this as a golden opportunity to expand their reach on TikTok. Hashtags serve as a beacon, guiding each user to their perfect ad match.

"To catapult your brand reach and ignite engagement, concoct a potent cocktail of trending and niche-specific hashtags," advises Carson Lang, Co-Founder and COO of Test Prep Insight. "If we were to promote ourselves, we'd sprinkle niche hashtags like #LSAT, #LSATexam, #LSATexpert, #LSATprepcourse, #lawschooladmission, #lawschoolexam, and trending ones like #lawyersoftiktok, #examprep, and #study."

As for the number of hashtags to feature, TikTok hasn't set a definitive cap, but a 100-character limit for the caption provides guidance.

For hunting down the most impactful hashtags, Lang suggests: "The Trending section on TikTok is your treasure map to the most popular hashtags. Alternatively, hashtag tracking tools like Tiktokhashtags or TikBuddy can also serve as valuable aids."

One fashion and beauty brand, Isle of Paradise, hit a home run with their custom hashtag #WakeUpandGlow in their Spark Ads to amplify brand awareness and promote their Glow Drops.

Their ad campaign returned a dazzling 500% ROI and an impressive 68% weekly revenue uptick.

Unleash Your Brand Power

Branded elements, from stickers to hashtag challenges on TikTok, can elevate your brand's presence and etch your name in the minds of potential customers. Dress your content in your brand's unique style to amplify visibility on TikTok, reel in new customers, and skyrocket sales.

We love the example of how ASOS exemplified this. The company devised an engaging Branded Effect and Branded Hashtag Challenge dubbed #AySauceChallenge. They strategically promoted this content through In-Feed and TopView ads, sparking their audience's creativity to showcase their favorite outfits. This clever initiative culminated in an astounding 488,000+ UGC videos and over 1.2 billion video views in a mere six days.

@lukettrotman 3 sauce looks…which is your fave? A, B or C? 🔥🔥 @asos #AySauceChallenge #ASOS #Ad ♬ Ay Sauce - Cashino

Even LG Electronics tapped into the power of a Branded Hashtag Challenge with their #lifeisgooddance and complemented it with a unique Branded Effect. This combination supercharged their brand visibility, generating 100M+ total ad impressions, 7B+ video views, and 2M+ video creations.

@katttrod Check out the #Lifeisgooddance challenge ! Life has been real good since this song came into my life 😭💫 @lg_lifeisgood #lg #charlieputh #ad ♬ Life’s Good (feat. Stacey Ryan, Sade Whittier, Dani Kim, and Stacy Capers) - Charlie Puth X LG

Don't Craft Ads – Create TikToks

TikTok echoes this mantra time and time again.

Jesse Hanson, Content Manager at Online Solitaire & World of Card Games, emphasizes: "TikTok is defying the norms of traditional advertising. It's critical to embrace a revolutionary approach to advertising on TikTok. Break the mold, infuse fun into your content, don't shy away from humor, and create awe-inspiring TikToks."

According to Hanson, your TikTok ads should be:

- Concise (9–15 seconds)

- Engaging

- Authentic

- Entertaining

- Immersive

- Fun-filled

- Creative

To hit the bullseye with your TikTok ad creation, incorporate high-quality videos/images. Moreover, use an eye-catching hook (like a catchy sound, vibrant color, meme, trigger word, or other TikTok tactics) within the first three seconds to outshine the mundane.

Consider how Itsu seized attention with contrasting colors in their In-Feed ad.

@itsuofficial anything goes 🍜 #keeptothebeat #instantnoodles #itsu #easyrecipe #fyp #noodles ♬ original sound - RaveCentral

Automate, Analyze, and Amplify

Why not simplify the process and engineer automated, easily scalable campaigns? Consider using MarinOne + TikTok for Business to steer your campaigns and glean reports automatically with minimal effort. Plus, with creative A/B testing and advanced optimization, you can smartly allocate your budget and anticipate the impact of your TikTok ads.

TikTok Sales Funnel Strategies: Pro Tips (Amir Farrokhi)

Acquisition strategy

Influencer marketing on TikTok has proven to be incredibly effective in reaching and engaging with the platform's active user base, particularly for discovery and acquisition purposes.

The effectiveness of influencer marketing on TikTok stems from influencers' ability to build trust and credibility among their followers. These influencers have amassed large followings and possess the skills to create engaging and authentic content that resonates with their audience and, if chosen wisely, with your brand's target audience. When collaborating with TikTok influencers for acquisition, it is crucial to select individuals whose content aligns with your brand and target demographic. Seek influencers who hold a strong presence in your industry or niche and whose followers match your desired demographics. By partnering with influencers, you can leverage their existing fan base and tap into their influence to promote your products or services. When influencers recommend or endorse a brand or product, their followers are more likely to take notice and consider making a purchase.

The content produced by influencers for your product or service can take various forms, such as product/service reviews, unboxings, tutorials, challenges, or simply incorporating your brand into their entertaining videos.

Retargeting

Pixel Implementation: Install the TikTok Pixel on your website or app to track user behavior and capture relevant data. The pixel enables you to build Custom Audiences based on specific actions taken by users on your digital properties.

Define Retargeting Segments: Analyze the actions and behaviors of your website visitors or app users to segment them into different retargeting groups. For example, you can create segments based on users who abandoned their carts, visited specific product pages, or engaged with specific content.

Create Custom Audiences: Utilize TikTok's ad platform to create Custom Audiences based on the defined retargeting segments. Upload your customer lists, sync with your app data, or utilize pixel data to create these audiences.

Develop Engaging Ad Content: Craft compelling ad content specifically tailored to each retargeting segment. Personalize the messaging and creative elements to resonate with the audience's previous interactions with your brand.

Frequency Capping: Set frequency caps to control the number of times your retargeting ads are shown to users. This ensures that the ads don't become overwhelming or repetitive, leading to ad fatigue.

Ad Sequencing: Consider creating a sequence of ads to tell a story or provide additional information to users who have previously engaged with your brand. This sequential approach can help reinforce your messaging and drive higher engagement and conversions.

Continuous Optimization: Regularly monitor the performance of your retargeting campaigns on TikTok. Optimize your ads, adjust bids, and refine your targeting to ensure maximum effectiveness and return on ad spend.

Retention

User generated content(UGC) campaigns on TikTok can be highly effective in engaging and retaining your existing user base while also attracting new users. UGC campaigns involve encouraging TikTok users to create content related to your brand, products, or services.

Here are some key steps and considerations for implementing a successful TikTok retention strategy using UGC campaigns:

Create a Branded Hashtag: Develop a unique and memorable hashtag that represents your brand or campaign. This hashtag will serve as a rallying point for users to participate in the UGC campaign.

Define Campaign Goals: Clearly outline your campaign objectives and what you hope to achieve with the UGC campaign. It could be increasing engagement, generating user testimonials, showcasing product experiences, or fostering a sense of community.

Promote the Campaign: Spread the word about your UGC campaign through various channels. Utilize your social media platforms, email newsletters, website banners, and other marketing channels to inform your existing users about the campaign and encourage their participation.

Incentivize Participation: Offer incentives to users who participate in the UGC campaign. This could include giveaways, exclusive discounts, or featuring selected user-generated content on your official TikTok account or other marketing channels.

Showcase User-Generated Content: Regularly feature and highlight the best user-generated content on your TikTok account. This recognition can motivate participants and encourage others to join in. Consider creating compilation videos or showcasing individual content creators to amplify their impact.

Engage and Interact: Respond to user-generated content, comments, and messages to foster a sense of community and connection. Engaging with your audience shows that you value their contributions and encourages ongoing participation.

Continuously Refresh and Evolve: Keep the UGC campaign fresh and exciting by periodically introducing new themes, challenges, or opportunities for users to contribute. This helps maintain user interest and engagement over time.

Measure and Analyze: Monitor the performance and impact of your UGC campaign. Track metrics such as engagement rates, reach, and user sentiment to assess the effectiveness of the campaign and make necessary adjustments.

Turbocharge Your ROI with TikTok Ads

TikTok's reign in social media marketing is indisputable. The platform is revolutionizing business advertising in breathtaking ways. By harnessing the potent TikTok advertising techniques shared in this article, you can fuel positive ROI, sharpen your competitive edge, and smash your marketing objectives.

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Rachel Melegrito is a guest contributor to Marin Software.

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Use Email Automation to Streamline Customer Journey Mapping

Email automation is the way to go in 2023. But don’t just take our word for it. Take Hubspot’s. They say that 71% of B2B marketers use it to grow their business. And they are not alone. Statistica says that by 2025, there will be 4.6 billion people using email. That means a lot of opportunities for you to connect with your audience. You can also use automation to deliver your messages at the right time, increase conversions, analyze their behavior, and optimize the customer journey across different channels and touchpoints.

In this blog, we will show you how email automation can help you align your email campaigns with your customer journey-mapping strategies and how that can lead to more trust, loyalty and action from your customers.

What is Email Automation?

Email automation is like having a magic wand that lets you send emails to your customers without lifting a finger. It uses smart rules that tell your emails when, how, and to whom to go to based on what your customers do or don’t do. Plus, you can save time, make your customers happy, earn more money and customize your messaging for each point of the nurturing funnel.

Email Automation Campaigns You Ought to be Running

When it comes to email automation techniques, there are different types of campaigns or automation series that are simple to execute and very effective for virtually any industry, such as:

Welcome Email Campaign: A series of emails introducing new subscribers to your brand.

Standard Promotional Campaign: A single or multiple emails that offer discounts, deals, or incentives to your subscribers.

Seasonal Campaign: A series of emails that aligns with a specific season, holiday, or event.

Triggered Email Series: A series of emails sent based on specific actions or events your subscribers take.

Post-Purchase Drip: A series of emails that follows up with your customers after they purchase.

Connect-Via-Social Campaign: A series of emails encouraging subscribers to follow you on social media platforms.

Newsletter: A regular email that provides valuable content, updates, or news to your subscribers.

Cart Abandonment Followup: A series of emails reminding subscribers of the items they left in their shopping cart.

Re-Engagement Campaign: A series of emails that tries to reactivate inactive or unresponsive subscribers.

High Level Phases of Email Customer Journey Mapping

Before we dive into how email automation works in customer journey mapping, let’s understand what customer journey mapping means. It may sound fancy, but it’s just a way of showing how customers interact with your business. We can break this down into three steps: How they discover you, buy from you, and get your support.

To connect your email automation campaign to customer journey mapping, you need to focus on the following phases of user engagement:

Onboarding

Onboarding is the first step of an email automation campaign. You can “Greet and Welcome” your new customers, show them what you offer, and help them get started. For instance, if they signed up for a free trial, email them tips and resources.

Nurturing

Create a nurture campaign that increases trust between you and your customers and converts them from potential customers to customers. For instance, if they download a brochure, email them exclusive content and a special offer related directly to that brochures' content.

Retention

Retention is the last phase of your email automation funnel. Customer retention relies on customer satisfaction and engagement. A retention email, or series of emails, is sent to existing customers to maintain their loyalty. These emails vary in form but share the goal of enhancing education about your brand and deepening customer loyalty. Moreover, they aim to minimize effort for the customer over time and provide exceptional service with easy calls to action.

Know the Difference Between Customer Personalization and Marketer Segmentation

Though the terms are often used interchangeably, personalization and segmentation are different concepts. While segmentation is all about marketers, personalization is about the customer.

Segmentation refers to dividing your customers into smaller groups, while personalization means tailoring your messages to each customer’s needs, preferences, and behavior. Here’s how it can help you transform your email automation strategy to address both your needs as the marketer and the users' needs as the customer:

Email automation tools can be used for personalizing triggered email sequences, cart abandonment emails, and re-engagement email series to grab your customer’s attention.
Personalization helps you create a better customer experience and loyalty by expressing to your customers that you know, value, and care about their needs.
With properly personalized and segmented emails, you can reduce your costs and increase your return on investment by sending your customers fewer but more effective emails.
When emails are relevant, users engage. A majority of marketers agree that subscriber segmentation (78%), message personalization (72%), and email automation campaigns (71%) are the most effective strategies for email marketing campaigns, based on a recent Hubspot survey.

Some ways you can personalize and segment your email automation campaigns are:

Dynamic content

Dynamic content is a game-changer for email marketing, adding a special touch and increasing conversion rates. With dynamic content, you can personalize your newsletters, delivering exclusive information tailored to specific subscribers. This customization improves click-through rates as people engage with content relevant to their interests. Additionally, by utilizing subscribers' shopping behaviors, targeted cross-sales campaigns can be created, boosting sales. Not only does dynamic content save time by consolidating multiple marketing messages into a single email, but it also enables the sending of ultra-personalized emails that drive conversions. Change the email content based on the customer’s data, such as name, gender, interests, etc.

Merge tags

Merge tags are placeholders that represent contact data in your CSV file. These customizable variables, such as First Name, Last Name, and Company, allow you to personalize the emails you send in your campaigns. By utilizing merge tags, you can increase customer engagement and improve email open rates. These tags are automatically created from the column headers in your CSV file, ensuring that each contact in your campaign receives a personalized email.

Behavioral data

Create your email based on the recipient’s actions or inactions, such as clicking a link, visiting a page or opening an email, etc. Once you've collected and organized behavioral data, you can create segments of subscribers based on their behavior. Segment options include purchase behavior (frequency, recency, value, product category), website behavior (pages visited, time spent, bounce rate, conversions), and email behavior (opens, clicks, replies, unsubscribes). Utilizing this data, you can send targeted offers like loyalty programs to frequent buyers, re-engagement campaigns to inactive customers, content offers to engaged blog visitors, or win-back emails to unsubscribed subscribers. These segments provide valuable insights for improving email campaigns and informing stakeholders.

Buying history

Order history provides valuable insights for boosting sales and making informed decisions. By analyzing data and trends, you can accurately manage inventory, ensuring stocked shelves and avoiding missed sales opportunities. Understanding what sells well allows you to plan promotions and feature popular products both in-store and online, while discontinuing less popular items. Additionally, order history enables targeted marketing campaigns by allowing you to send relevant messages and offers to specific customer groups based on their past purchases. Segment and personalize your email based on the recipient’s previous purchases, such as product category, price range, frequency, and more.

Location

Location-based email marketing utilizes customer location data to send targeted and personalized emails. While mobile marketing focuses on real-time location using GPS, email marketing relies on broader location information such as zip codes. Location-based email marketing takes advantage of static data points like city, state, country, and zip code to create region-specific content, zip code-centric emails, and city-based emails. These emails can provide personalized experiences based on the customer's location and can be combined with location-based mobile marketing for a seamless customer journey. By leveraging available location data creatively, marketers can deliver highly relevant and engaging location-based email marketing messages that enhance the customer experience.

Why Timing and Triggers are Essential for Successful Email Automation Campaigns

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“#1 — TIMING. Timing is everything when it comes to email marketing. If you send too many promotional emails or run too many sales…..You’ll burn out your list.” ~ Vlad| Direct Response on Twitter.

Timing and trigger-based automated emails are sent to your customers at the right time and based on the right action or event. According to SmartInsights, general trends indicate that Tuesdays and Thursdays are the most popular days for trigger emails, and one should send them at 10 AM and 2 PM for the best results.

To measure the effectiveness of your email automation triggers, and the timing thereof, several metrics can be used. Take a look at the total number of emails sent, open rate, click-through rate, unsubscribing rate, site traffic, and conversion.

Common mistakes marketers make when executing email automation triggers include buying third-party email lists, not syncing the right triggers, sending too many emails, and not analyzing performance metrics continually over time.

If you want to do it the right way, and we assume you do, utilize opt-in forms to collect interested users' emails, add value to messages, provide clear call-to-action buttons, keep messages personalized and humanized, and check triggered email performance against set metrics that align with company objectives.

How to Measure and Optimize Performance for Email

The phrase "Data is King" holds true, emphasizing the importance of measurement and optimization for your email campaigns. To ensure success, it's essential to analyze email performance effectively. Here are some compelling reasons why measurement and optimization matter and how you can approach them with excellence.

You can track how your clients interact with your emails. Use Google Analytics to measure email traffic, bounce rate, and conversions.
It is easy to find out the loopholes in your customer journey. For instance, surveys, feedback tools, or heat maps can help you find pain points and opportunities to keep contacts moving through the sales funnel.
The use of interactive email marketing tools can help you assess how campaigns affect consumer behavior, loyalty, and satisfaction.
You can use data analysis to experiment with different email elements over time, such as design, content, and personalization. For instance, use multivariate testing to find the best design version of an email.

The right blend of all these steps can help you enhance the customer experience and boost your email revenue. Many email automation providers, like MailModo, have templates available for email design, automation funnels, and common audience segments to help you get started. Customize these elements for your company in a few clicks and you'll have boosted conversions and retention in no time at all.

How to Craft the Ideal Email

Email automation campaigns are some of the best ways to deliver personalized and timely messages to your customers based on their actions and preferences. Here's how you can create great email funnels that nurture and convert:

Pay Attention to the Structure

Crafting a perfect email requires attention to various elements. Starting with the "from" name, it's crucial to choose a familiar and recognizable name for better open rates. Creating an engaging subject line that focuses on the benefits and has around 28-39 characters can significantly improve open and click-through rates. Utilizing a cohesive preheader that complements the subject line adds value and provides a snippet of the email's content. Clearly explaining the purpose of the email establishes trust and helps readers decide whether to continue reading. Keeping the email short, concise, and visually appealing is important to capture and maintain readers' attention.

Visualize and personalize your audience

Design and write your email with a picture of your target audience in mind. Use catchy subject lines, compelling copy, strong Calls-to-Action(CTA), and attractive images. DemandSage claims that emails with personalized subject lines increase open rates by 35%. Personalized subject lines show that you care about your audience and their interests, and they can help you stand out from the crowd.

Test your email campaigns regularly

A/B testing is a crucial practice in email marketing to improve campaign performance. It involves sending two different variants (A and B) to your email list and analyzing which one performs better. A/B testing allows you to make evidence-based decisions. Common elements to test include subject lines, preview text, sender name, email timing, call-to-action text, landing pages, email length, design, subscriber greetings, and new ideas. By consistently testing your campaigns, you can maximize engagement and drive better results. With user-friendly email apps available, conducting A/B tests is convenient and highly recommended.

Key takeaways

Despite being the oldest digital marketing channel with a long history, email marketing is going strong and continues to deliver great performance for marketing teams across the globe. With the right email marketing strategy, companies are improving their customer journey mapping and getting the best ROI on all their omnichannel efforts. To sum it up, here’s a reminder of how you can leverage email automation to improve your customer journey mapping:

Segment your customer based on their behavior and interests.
Create personalized and interactive email campaigns for each audience segment you have.
Measure and optimize your email performance.
Use customer feedback, heatmapping, and unsubscribe rates to know if you're on the right track.
Execute proper implementation of different types of campaigns to build rapport, satisfaction, loyalty, and business amongst your customer base.

Email automation can be complex and challenging, with multiple campaigns needed to nurture contacts throughout the customer journey. Simplify this process with the right combination of AI assistance, best practices as outlined in this guide, and content that captures your target audience. This combination has the potential to grow your business exponentially.

The right email strategy is an important part of any company's omnichannel marketing efforts, but we know you have much more than just email to worry about. Work with MarinOne today to streamline your advertising and make sure all your marketing channels are working together effectively.

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Aquibur Rahman is a guest contributor to Marin Software.

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How to Optimize Your E-commerce Product Descriptions for SEO

It's no secret that the e-commerce industry is highly competitive. In today's e-commerce landscape, it's vital to leverage the best practices to gain any edge you can over competitors. This means having a strong online presence and getting eyes on your e-commerce products.

One key aspect of this is optimizing your e-commerce store for maximum visibility ensuring that your product descriptions are search engine optimized (SEO). Through strategic optimization, you can enhance your website's visibility in organic search rankings which ultimately will attract highly targeted traffic to your site, and drive significant growth in sales and conversions to your e-commerce store.

In this comprehensive guide, we will explore the essential strategies, real-life examples, and best practices to optimize your e-commerce product descriptions for SEO success. Whether you're a seasoned online retailer or just starting your e-commerce journey, this article will provide valuable insights and actionable tips to help you create a successful e-commerce website and ultimately get more eyes on your store and products.

What is SEO?

Before we get into the best SEO optimizing tips, let's ensure there is no confusion about what SEO is. SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization. It refers to the practice of optimizing your website and its content to improve visibility and organic search rankings on search engines like Google.

Essentially, SEO helps your website or e-commerce store appear higher in search engine results pages (SERPs) when users search for relevant keywords or phrases. By aligning your e-commerce product descriptions with the ranking factors that search engines consider, you can increase your online visibility, drive targeted traffic to your site, and ultimately grow your business.

Why Should You Optimize Your E-commerce Product Descriptions for SEO?

When potential customers are searching for products online, where do most people turn? Most often users turn to search engines like Google to find what they need. So why is this important?

It is reported that 2.64 billion people made online purchases in the year 2023 and this number is expected to grow around 10.4%. By strategically optimizing your product descriptions for SEO, you enhance the visibility of your offerings in relevant search results, enabling potential customers to effortlessly find and explore your online store, ultimately increasing the likelihood of conversions and driving business growth.

By crafting keyword-specific, compelling, and informative product descriptions, you can not only improve your search engine rankings but also enhance the overall user experience, leading to higher engagement and conversion rates.

Imagine you are looking up a product on Google and you see a list of ten options from your search. You're more likely to click on the articles that are positioned near the top of the page right? That's ultimately where you want your products to appear. SEO helps you achieve this.

8 Tips to Optimize Your E-commerce Product Descriptions for SEO

In the following section, we will share seven effective tips to optimize your e-commerce product descriptions for SEO. These tips will enhance the visibility and relevance of your product pages, attracting organic traffic and boosting conversions.

Understand Googles Algorithm

If you are looking to dip into the SEO world then it is critical that you understand Google's guidelines on what their algorithm looks for when ranking content. Familiarize yourself with key factors that influence search rankings, such as relevance, user experience, and website authority.

By understanding Google's algorithm, you can align your e-commerce product descriptions with the search engine's preferences, increasing the chances of higher visibility and organic traffic. Regularly research industry trends, follow reputable SEO resources, and adapt your e-commerce strategies accordingly.

Keep in mind that algorithms can change, so continuous learning and adaptation are crucial to maintaining optimal SEO performance. Below is an excerpt sharing some of the key factors Google looks for within SEO.

Conduct Keyword Research

Begin your optimization journey by uncovering the most relevant and specific keywords that resonate with your target customers and align with their search intent while seeking products akin to yours. Incorporate these keywords strategically throughout your product descriptions to improve search engine visibility and attract qualified traffic.

Keyword research is one of the biggest factors on the list of SEO best practices. If your keyword research is off then the user's search intent won't match your product. This ultimately leaves your pages with minimal traffic and low conversions.

Write Unique and Compelling Descriptions

No one likes reading boring, robotic text that is less engaging than the dictionary. Your goal as an e-commerce seller is to effectively showcase the unique features, benefits, and selling points of your products in a manner that compels customers to make a purchase.

You should use persuasive language to entice customers and differentiate your offerings from competitors. It’s also important to note that you should always try and avoid duplicate content to maintain SEO integrity in the eyes of Google.

Optimize Title Tags and Meta Descriptions

Pay attention to title tags and meta descriptions, as they appear in search engine results pages (SERPs), and influence click-through rates. The title tag is nothing more than the title of a page or article that shows up when users search in Google.

Include keywords that are specific, researched, and accurately describe the product to ensure when people scan over your text it resonates with their search intent. Your meta description should always have your keyword within the text to show Google and readers what the overall theme or topic of the page is.

User-Friendly Readability and Formatting

Break down your product descriptions into easily scannable sections with headings, bullet points, and concise paragraphs. Use clear and descriptive language, avoiding jargon or complex terminology.

You should Incorporate relevant keywords naturally while maintaining readability. No one likes giant walls of text. Readers typically like to skim. So, if you have relevant keywords, a heading, and a user-friendly format, it allows users to quickly understand your product.

Leverage User-Generated Content

One of the best ways for readers to easily gauge trustworthy and quality products is by using customer reviews and ratings for your products. This can also increase your AOV when customers buy your products. You might be wondering why this is included in SEO-friendly product descriptions.

Well, displaying user-generated content on your product pages not only enhances credibility but also provides additional keyword-rich content that can improve SEO performance by touching on Google's E.E.A.T factors. E.E.A.T is the system Google readers use for ultimately deciding the validity of the content. Your compliance within these criteria can increase or decrease search results for your e-commerce products.

Monitor and Update Descriptions

Lastly, it’s vital that you continuously monitor the performance of your product descriptions and make necessary updates. Stay updated with keyword trends, search engine algorithm changes, and customer feedback. Regularly refreshing and optimizing your product descriptions ensures that they remain relevant and effective in driving organic traffic and conversions.

Leverage AI Tools

If you are struggling to create engaging SEO product descriptions for your e-commerce store then you may want to look at utilizing AI tools like ChatGPT or Jasper. These tools can generate SEO-friendly product descriptions, meta descriptions, as well as any other written content.

John Elder, owner of The Business Blocks had this to say about how they utilize ChatGPT for product descriptions.

“We’ve found ChatGPT to be invaluable in optimizing our Etsy product descriptions, enhancing our SEO efforts, and improving our e-commerce listings. It’s a powerful tool that has positively impacted our online business presence.”

Examples of Optimized E-commerce Product Descriptions

Here are two varying examples of E-commerce product descriptions. The first example is one that has some sign of strength in the eyes of SEO while the second needs a lot of work…

Good SEO Product Description (Could Be Better)

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As you can see, the description above not only has varying target keywords in the title, but it also provides a description that could help Google place this page in front of users who may be searching for clothing with those keywords.

Bad SEO Product Description

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It doesn't take an SEO expert to see why this page needs a lot of work from an SEO perspective. Ultimately, there is not much to this page that can help Google put this in front of users. You need to do everything in your power to give Google the necessary information it needs to effectively place your page in front of potential customers.

Key Considerations For Successfully Optimizing Product Descriptions

Below is a recap of some of the most critical factors when focusing efforts on product descriptions that are optimized for SEO.

Keywords: The pillar of any SEO strategy is strategically using relevant keywords throughout your product descriptions to enhance search engine visibility and attract targeted traffic. If this is not focused on first then the rest will fail.
Unique and Compelling Content: Craft engaging and original descriptions that highlight the unique features, benefits, and value propositions of your products to capture the attention of potential customers.
Regular Updates: Continuously monitor and update your product descriptions to reflect any changes in product features, pricing, or availability, ensuring accuracy and relevancy over time.
A/B Testing: Try different tests, fail, and try again to determine which ones perform better in terms of click-through rates, conversions, and user engagement. Don't be discouraged if you don't see great results right away. Just keep trying new things that align with the tips we have discussed.
Customer-Centric Approach: Write product descriptions that address the needs, pain points, and desires of your target audience, not what you think looks or sounds good. Showcase how your products can solve their problems and why users should choose your product.

Final Takeaways

In conclusion, e-commerce can be a great avenue for those who are looking to start a business or bring in additional income, but this cannot be achieved if no one sees your products… Optimizing your e-commerce product descriptions for SEO is a critical step in enhancing your online visibility, attracting more organic traffic, and driving conversions.

By following the tips provided and understanding the key considerations, you can create compelling, keyword-rich, and customer-centric product descriptions that not only appeal to search engines but also resonate with your target audience.

With the right SEO strategies in place, your e-commerce store can stand out from the competition, build trust with customers, and ultimately drive success. Start implementing these techniques today and unlock the full potential of your product descriptions in maximizing your online presence and driving business growth.

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Luke Lovelady is a guest contributor to Marin Software.

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Driving E-Commerce Sales with Meta Ads: 12 Actionable Hacks

Despite some claims that Meta (Meta) is a dying platform, it continues to hold its position as the third most visited website globally, just behind Google and YouTube. This fact alone highlights the immense potential and reach that Meta still offers. Additionally, Meta Ads remain a formidable part of the digital advertising ecosphere, utilized by millions of businesses worldwide to effectively tap into this extensive user base and drive sales.

For e-commerce stores, in particular, Meta advertising plays a crucial role in securing the majority of their revenue. Therefore, it becomes imperative for businesses to invest time and effort in mastering Meta Ads to unlock their full potential and maximize e-commerce profits.

Why Are Meta Ads Important for E-commerce?

Since e-commerce relies almost entirely on online channels to drive sales, Meta Ads become the lifeblood of the brand’s revenue. Here are some powerful features that position Meta Ads in this light as one of the best marketing channels:

Massive User Base. Advertising on Meta has the potential to help you reach billions of users spread over Meta, Instagram, and WhatsApp. Most of them are frequent online shoppers who wouldn’t resist purchasing a product that interests them.
Targeting and Retargeting. Meta allows you to target and retarget users who share the same interests and behaviors and reside in the same demographics as your ideal avatars.
Multiple Ad Formats and Detailed Analytics. Not only does Meta support multiple ad formats, but it also provides you with detailed analytics on your advertising campaigns to help you decide which ad format brings the most results.

Meta allows you to place your ads in a variety of spaces, including Instagram, Facebook, the Meta Audience Network, and Messenger. However, to drive traffic to your store and maximize results, you’ll need to use the right strategies. Here are 12 suggestions.

12 Ad Hacks to Run the Best E-Commerce Campaigns

These techniques cover the most sensitive aspects of a successful ad, including copywriting, targeting, design, and rewarding users through giveaways or referral programs.

Craft an Irresistible Offer

With no enticing offer, you can’t expect to have a successful ad. Your offer needs to be so good that the potential customers feel like they’ve found the best bargain and it would be dumb not to take it. So how can you achieve that? Follow these points for a good offer:

Unique Selling Points. Show your audience the particular elements that make your products different from what the competition is offering. These might include high-quality materials, rare customer service, or continual discounts.
Infuse a Sense of Urgency. Push your audience to take action as soon as possible by adding timed discounts, countdowns, or a limit on the number of products.
Personalize Your Offer. Meta allows you to segment your audience and run ads for more than one specific demographic. Build campaigns that target different segments of your audience and introduce them to different offers.

Now, since we’re talking about targeting different audiences, let’s see how you can accomplish this detailed targeting, which characterizes the best Meta campaign types.

Compile a Targeted Lookalike Audience

After you’ve run your first Meta campaign, you’ll have gathered enough data to target new audiences by using the lookalike audiences feature. Meta allows you to compile a list of potential buyers based on the current profiles of existing interested customers.

All you have to do is either upload a copy of a list of users found on your database, which can be email subscribers or simply interested leads, or you can build a custom audience from people who have used your app or visited your website. For the latter, you’ll need to have activated the Meta Pixel.

Retarget Users Who Didn’t Finalize Their Purchases

Retargeting is a smart way to convince your interested audience that your product will add value to their life. All those people who visited your website and selected products but didn’t finish their purchases can be targeted with Meta Ads. Chances are that they are highly interested buyers, so they’re worth pursuing.

The issue we are discussing is known as cart abandonment, and statistics show that a dreadful $18 billion is flushed down the toilet for e-commerce brands because of abandoned carts. By using Meta Ads, you can retarget these users with new discounts and better offers to convince them to finalize their purchases and maybe select more products.

Build and Promote a Referral Program

Referral programs are highly beneficial because they automate the marketing process for your brand, making it completely hands-off. Once you set up a referral program and the industry influencers start talking about your brand, the potential for your products to go viral is high.

Also, you’ll get UGC (User-Generated Content), which you can import into your marketing tools to post highly engaging organic posts as well as build converting paid campaigns. There are several benefits of having a referral program for your e-commerce business:

You receive credible reviews and testimonials, which make your products appear trustworthy.
Referred customers tend to be more valuable and loyal than those acquired via traditional ads.

Build a Custom Audience with Product Page Viewers

We spoke about lookalike audiences, which Meta finds and targets from an existing list of potential buyers that you upload. Now, what if you could directly target people on that uploaded list with your ads? Then, you’ll be using Custom Audiences.

Since you’re selling products on your e-commerce store, you can build a custom audience with those who viewed your products. Once you’ve implemented event tracking or the Meta Pixel on your website, you can retarget product viewers with dynamic ads (now Meta Advantage+ catalog ads) to reintroduce them to the products they saw or new similar ones.

Integrate Interesting Video Ads

Videos are much more engaging than text or image-based ads. They powerfully capture the audience’s attention and increase conversions since they appeal to multiple senses at once. In a Meta ad with video content, you combine several elements, including:

A visual appearance of the product
Guiding and compelling captions
People using the product in real life

Produce a few videos with your products and use them in your ads. You’ll notice a measurable increase in sales and product views.

Compose Irresistible Copy

There are tons of articles on this topic, but if you’ve tried running ads by yourself without copywriting expertise, you’ve probably learned its importance the hard way. Compelling copy requires research and the use of proven tactics. But, in short, great ad copy should include:

Attention-grabbing and metrics-driven headlines
Body copy that emphasizes benefits over features
Clear calls to action that drive readers to your store

If your copy holds these traits, it’s highly likely to attract buyers.

Link to Your Published Articles

Meta Ads can be used to drive more sales, but this doesn’t mean all of your ads should be used to showcase your products directly. Instead, you can build authority and establish yourself as an expert in the niche by publishing well-written articles, such as product reviews, and then driving your readers to your products from there.

This strategy works because you’re educating your users first and selling to them after. Once they see you as an expert, there won’t be any resistance between your products and their desire to buy. Blogging is a fantastic way to appear trustworthy and build credibility around your brand.

Use High-Quality Visuals

You can tell whether an e-comm store is professional or not just by looking at its website design and social media posts. For your visual assets to be captivating, have your designer collaborate with the copywriter on your team to produce visuals that include:

Captivating headlines blended seamlessly with the visuals
Appealing designs that touch on customers' pain points
Visualizations of products’ use or their benefits

Steer away from stock photos and instead use real-life pictures to make your ads more authentic and trustworthy. Also, don’t forget to brand your visuals for a professional look.

Put Customer Testimonials to Work

Customer testimonials are fantastic to build trust and convince customers about the value of your product. When you share other people’s experiences through testimonials in their own words, you’re stimulating a word-of-mouth conversation that is highly convincing.

Social media tools make it easy for you to monitor your brand and find what customers are saying about you online. Find your most loyal customers and use their testimonials in the form of quotes, videos, or user-generated content to create better Meta ads.

Create a Meta Product Catalog

For e-commerce stores, it’s essential to have a product catalog. By building a product catalog, you put all of your products into a single catalog, which makes it easier to advertise these products on Instagram and Facebook.

Once you’ve uploaded your products with your descriptions, titles, and respective images, you can run Meta Advantage+ catalog ads (previously known as dynamic ads). The Meta Advantage+ catalog ads feature gathers data from your audience and shows them personalized ads based on the products they view on your website or app.

Plan an Exciting Giveaway

People won’t ever get tired of winning free stuff. Giveaways are one way of leveraging this desire to increase the performance of your Meta ads and get more sales. There are a dozen reasons why you shouldn’t skip using giveaways for your e-commerce store:

By integrating lead generation tools into the participation process, you can turn giveaway participants into new email subscribers and potential customers.
Giveaways encourage word-of-mouth sharing of your brand, which has no limits.
You can increase engagement, reach, and sales at the same time while encouraging participants to like, comment, and share your brand.

Adopt email account management software to help you monitor new giveaway sign-ups, nurture relationships with your subscribers, and oversee other email activity with ease.

Final Thoughts

Creating exceptional ads is a matter of experimentation. However, by employing these battle-tested tactics, you can increase your conversions. Supercharge your ad copy, use compelling and high-quality visuals, and win the audience’s trust through testimonials and promotion of your blog content before driving them to your store.

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Roman Shvydun is a guest contributor to Marin Software.

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Embracing Amazon's New Frontier: An Introduction to Sponsored Display for Non-Endemic Brands

In the ever-evolving world of e-commerce, it's the companies that adapt and innovate that find success. Amazon, already a dominant player in the digital ad publishing space, has made a substantial stride to broaden its advertising horizons. With their new advertising offering - Amazon Sponsored Display for non-endemic brands, they are paving the way for a whole new marketing strategy.

This is a game-changer for "non-endemic" brands, a term used to describe companies that do not sell physical goods on Amazon, but would benefit from advertising on Amazon's platforms. Some examples include car manufacturers, insurance companies, and even restaurants. This expansion heralds a bright future for these brands, offering fresh opportunities and creating a new way for non-endemic brands to engage with potential customers.

Amazon’s New Offering: Sponsored Display Advertising

At the heart of this initiative is the Sponsored Display advertising type, unveiled during Amazon's 'Unboxed' conference. A unique offering in Amazon's growing ad ecosystem, this is a completely self-serve ad type that requires no minimum spend. It's impressively simple to set up, deploy, and manage, especially when compared to Amazon's programmatic ad platform, the Amazon Demand Side Platform (DSP). This effectively eliminates previous barriers, opening the floodgates for non-endemic brands to dive into Amazon’s vast ad ecosystem.

For brands seeking a deeper understanding of their ad impact, Amazon offers a powerful duo of tools. The Amazon DSP allows for more sophisticated ad buys, using the rich, first-party data to target audiences more accurately. Keep in mind also that Amazon display ads' inventory includes amazon.com, twitch and freevee, so there are many ways to put messaging in front of the specific audience you need.

Amazon Marketing Cloud, on the other hand, provides robust reporting capabilities. These tools can be used in combination, enabling brands to link their own sales data with DSP impression data. This reveals which ads have been most effective in guiding customers along their purchase journey.

Non-endemic advertising on Amazon isn't just a passing trend—it represents a pivotal shift in Amazon's strategy and potentially in the advertising industry as a whole. It brings with it exciting opportunities, but also challenges. Endemic brands—those that do sell their products on Amazon—may experience increased competition for ad slots, which could drive up their advertising costs.

Getting Started with Amazon Sponsored Display

So, how should non-endemic brands navigate these new waters? It begins with a mindset shift. Amazon is no longer just a place for consumer product brands to advertise. With a deep understanding of its users' purchasing habits and interests, Amazon can provide other companies with valuable insight into customer behavior and preferences.

Non-endemic brands also need to understand and embrace Amazon DSP. This programmatic media buying platform boasts rich audience targeting capabilities, allowing brands to reach their desired customers more effectively. And let's not forget the ad creative options, which are more diverse and flexible than you might think.

The first step for non-endemic brands is to challenge their existing perceptions about Amazon Ads. Start with the basics: familiarize yourself with the platform's features, its targeting capabilities, and its variety of ad formats. Experiment with these tools and make data-informed decisions. By leveraging the insights provided by Amazon DSP, you can create more precise and effective ad campaigns.

Lastly, it's important to start small, test, and learn. By investing modestly in new ideas and strategies, you can gather valuable feedback and refine your approach as you go. The goal is to build expertise and stay ahead of the competition, capitalizing on these new opportunities before they become the norm.

Embracing non-endemic retail media advertising presents a golden opportunity for brands not traditionally selling on Amazon to tap into the benefits of Amazon Ads. It provides a wealth of ways to reach diverse audiences, mix sales data with impression data, and engage a highly receptive audience more likely to convert.

Bringing it All Together with Marin Software

Here at Marin Software, we're committed to helping your brand navigate this new frontier. Our advanced technology and deep expertise can help you make the most of Amazon’s new Sponsored Display for non-endemic brands.

Harness the potential of non-endemic advertising with Amazon Sponsored Display. Learn how your brand can use Amazon's vast audience and advertising tools to unlock new growth avenues and engage with new customers.

Start by challenging the status quo. Embrace the power of Amazon's rich, first-party data to understand and reach your target customers at different stages of their buying journey. Develop creative, outside-the-box strategies to pair your products or services with Amazon users' shopping behaviors.

With the right approach, non-endemic brands can effectively leverage Amazon's vast ecosystem to establish meaningful connections with potential customers, boost brand visibility, and ultimately drive business growth.

Welcome to the future of e-commerce advertising. With Marin Software at your side, navigating this new landscape can be an exciting and fruitful journey. Let's explore these new horizons together.

How to Optimize Your Microsoft Advertising Campaigns for Better Results

While it’s considered the underdog of paid search advertising and can often fly under the radar, Microsoft is still an effective platform for generating conversions. Like any ad platform, the key to achieving high-performing campaigns is with optimization.

For over 10 years of running DataFeedWatch and having helped over 17k retailers optimize their product feeds for various channels - including Microsoft (formerly known as Microsoft Advertising), I’ve witnessed countless approaches to this marketing channel. Some less and some more successful. And today, I’d like to focus on the latter.

In this article, I am breaking down 13 tips on how to optimize Microsoft Advertising campaigns to generate the best possible results for you or your clients. The optimization tips will feel familiar for those experienced in managing Google Ads campaigns, however, there are subtle differences of which you must be mindful.

Why Microsoft Advertising

Microsoft's market share varies from country to county and can be anywhere from 2% to 25%. If you want to break it down by search engine, Bing accounted for 8% of the global desktop search market at the start of 2023, and Yahoo accounted for less than 2% of the global search market in 2022. While we don’t need to tell you who took the #1 spot for market share, 10% is still a lot of people. In fact, since launching their AI chatbot, Bing now has 100 million daily active users.

This is why including Microsoft Advertising in your paid search strategy makes sense…the actual volume of people that use the platforms has shifted significantly and seems to be growing. And the consensus among advertisers is that Microsoft's new features and placements make it a solid addition to your paid search strategy.

Some advertisers use Microsoft Advertising as a secret weapon in gaining a competitive advantage, especially if it’s a space where their competitors are less active. Others claim lower CPCs and higher conversion rates, which can mean better performance in comparison to Google Ads.

So there are a good number of reasons why advertisers choose Microsoft Advertising - the next question is, how to optimize those ads to ensure you are maximizing your ROAS.

13 Tips to Optimize Your Microsoft Advertising Campaigns

Let’s explore 13 practical tips on how to optimize Microsoft Advertising campaigns to generate the best possible results. Work through each of the tips below and prioritize them based on what will have the biggest impact on your account.

Import High-Performing Google Ads Campaigns

The vast majority of advertisers running Microsoft Advertising campaigns will already be using Google Ads. If this is you, then this step is a breeze. Import your Google Ads campaigns into Microsoft using the Import feature. It can be found along the top panel once you’ve logged in.

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If your Google Ads campaigns are high performing and you are happy with how they are set up and structured, then even better. Go ahead and import your campaigns into Microsoft as soon as possible. If you anticipate some larger Google Ads campaign optimizations or structural changes shortly, it might make sense to import once that work is complete.

Having said that, this feature is extremely handy, and anytime you’ve made changes to your Google Ads campaigns, whether it’s adding in new campaigns or ad groups, or updating ads and ad copy, then import those changes straight into Bing in a few simple steps.

I recommend doing an advanced import to have more control over what gets pulled into your Microsoft Advertising account. For example, you can customize bid strategies, bids, budgets, and naming conventions (and so much more), tailoring these aspects to the individual needs of your account.

Right before starting the import, click on the advanced import button seen in the screenshot below:

You’ll then get the choice on a wide selection of settings:

Experiment With Bid Strategies

There are six bid strategies to choose from in Microsoft Advertising. The most optimal bid strategy depends on several factors and should be looked at on a case-by-case basis. Not only does your objective need to be considered, but other things such as conversion tracking set-up, how much budget you’re spending, and having enough data in the account for some bid strategies to work effectively should also factor in.

Here are the 6 bid strategies that you are currently available to choose from:

Enhanced CPC
Maximize Clicks (automated)
Target Impression Share
Maximize Conversions
Target CPA
Target ROAS

Three common scenarios that would indicate Enhanced CPC, Maximize Clicks or Target Impression Share would be the best choice are the following:

The objective is brand awareness or to drive traffic
Conversion tracking hasn’t been set up
You have had less than 15 conversions in the past 30 days

If any of the above reflect your situation, then the first 3 bid strategies on the list above will likely be the best choice, but there’s still an opportunity to experiment with Microsoft Advertising bid strategies. If you start with Enhanced CPC, experiment with Maximize Clicks to see how an automated bid strategy impacts performance, or with Target Impression Share to see if that bid strategy drives an uplift in results.

If the objective is to generate conversions or you are working towards a Target CPA or Target ROAS, then the latter three bid strategies on the list above will probably be the best option. When starting, it’s recommended to use Maximize Conversions and allow the campaign to collect as much conversion data as possible. Following that, experiment with Target CPA or Target ROAS, which are considered more optimal, taking into account your goals.

Track Your Conversions

Microsoft Advertising tip #3 follows nicely from the previous tip on bid strategies. Setting up conversion tracking is a key way to improve the performance of your Microsoft Advertising campaigns. Not only will this allow you to use the more advanced bidding strategies - Maximize Clicks, Target CPA, and Target ROAS - it’ll provide you with more optimization options.

For example, without conversion tracking, you can still optimize your campaigns and keywords to drive as much traffic as you can. However, with conversion tracking, you’ll be able to pinpoint the exact campaigns and keywords that drive action on your site, whether that’s sign-ups, purchases, or other actions, and double down on those keywords and campaigns. It’ll also enable you to reduce waste in the account by pulling back from areas that are underperforming from a conversion perspective.

Although setting up tracking requires some initial analytics work, tracking conversions will make all the difference when it comes to your Microsoft Advertising optimization.

Optimize Keywords Using Data

Keyword optimization on Microsoft Advertising is really important and something that can be added to the weekly to-do list. Some of the key metrics to keep an eye on are CTR, average CPC, impression share, quality score, conversion rate, CPA, and ROAS. This sounds like a lot, and they may not all apply, but being mindful of these metrics and striving to make them as efficient as possible is a great way to optimize your account.

Here are some practical steps I follow when optimizing keywords in Microsoft:

Navigate to the keywords section of the left-hand panel, either on a campaign-by-campaign basis or looking at all campaigns
Choose a date range. When choosing the date range, ensure there is enough data to make well-informed optimization decisions.
Add the key metrics you are monitoring to your columns so that you can view these metrics on a keyword-by-keyword basis
Filter keywords either by ‘keyword text contains/doesn’t contain’ or by metric, for example, ‘Quality Score is less than 6/10’. Doing this will allow you to single out the best and worst-performing keywords based on your criteria
Once keywords in need of optimization have been identified, take the necessary steps to optimize them, whether that means adjusting bids, pausing or moving them, qual. score work, etc.

Following the above process regularly is a surefire way to optimize your Microsoft Advertising keywords using all of the data that’s available to you.

And should you want to skip the hustle of manual keyword optimization of your search ads, DataFeedWatch's Feed-Based Text Ads software will soon be able to do that for you. It’ll automatically pull in the keywords from your product feed and create unique ads for each and every product you have in your store – even if you sell thousands.

Monitor Search Terms

Search terms should be monitored and optimized in the same way as keywords, detailed in the previous tip. Follow the same process, this time in the ‘Search Terms’ section of the account, to find non-relevant search terms that can then be excluded from your ad groups and campaigns. Doing this will focus your budget on more relevant searches, have higher intent, and are more likely to drive better results.

For example, in the screenshot below, for a pet-friendly holiday business, searches relating to ‘home rentals’ and ‘houses to rent’ are not relevant and are a waste of budget. Filter by ‘Search Term contains home rental/houses to rent’ to isolate all search terms that relate to this, and then exclude them from your campaigns.

This is also a great exercise to uncover new keywords that can then be added to ad groups and campaigns accordingly. For example, let’s say the ‘pet-friendly travel lodges’ search term is showing up in a ‘Pet-Friendly Hotels’ ad group. This term could be added as a new keyword in its own ad group, which means it can be better managed, and the ads and landing page can be tailored to this specific search.

Add Negative Keywords

Negative keywords are a vital way to optimize Microsoft Advertising campaigns by excluding certain words and phrases that are not relevant. Doing so will mean saving budget, reducing waste, and instead focusing on only relevant searches. Adding negative keywords is especially important for phrase and broad match keywords, in fact, they are a good optimization technique for any campaign and campaign type that doesn’t use exact match keywords.

Start by blocking out keywords you know are not relevant from the start. It could be a particular product or service you don’t offer, competitor brands or other non-relevant searches, such as people looking for jobs, or people searching for locations you don’t operate in.

Next, following on from the search term analysis, identify new negative keywords that can be added based on non-relevant search terms that are cropping up. Using the example in the previous section, ‘home rental’ was identified as a non-relevant search term, so this could be added as a negative keyword in phrase match to block out any future searches that include this term.

Monitor/Improve Quality Score

Your Microsoft Advertising quality score indicates how competitive your ads are by measuring keyword, ad, and landing page relevance concerning customers' search queries.

The quality score can range from 1 to 10, with 10 being the highest. You can see the quality score on the Keywords, Campaigns, and Ad Groups tables. If your keywords, ads, and landing pages are particularly relevant, you can expect a higher quality score. If they are not relevant, it’ll be low. As a general rule of thumb, a quality score of 1-5 means you are underperforming, and it could be improved. 6 is competitive but still fairly average, and a quality score of 7-10 is highly competitive and what we should aim for.

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Image Source

Improve quality score by focusing on three key areas - improving expected CTR, ad relevance, and landing page experience. Practically speaking, this could mean enhancing ad copy to improve expected CTR, or making the ad more relevant to keywords and searches. Separate keywords into ad groups by tight themes to improve ad relevance. Or make improvements to your landing page, such as page speed, including keywords on your landing page or page navigation.

Quality score optimization will translate to more competitive CPCs and ad delivery, helping to drive better results.

Write Effective Ad Copy

Writing impactful ad copy plays a crucial role in optimizing your Microsoft Advertising campaigns. The primary objective of ad copy is to capture your audience's attention and increase the likelihood of them clicking on your ad. To achieve this, address your audience's needs while highlighting the unique aspects of your offering.

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Make sure to incorporate attention-grabbing headlines that clearly communicate the value your product or service brings. Emphasize the benefits and USPs to entice your audience and then prompt them to take action with clear call-to-actions. Finally, including relevant keywords throughout your ad copy enhances its relevance and quality score, as discussed in the previous section.

To further improve the effectiveness of your ads, use as many ad extensions as possible, such as site links, callouts, and structured snippets. Ad extensions provide searchers with additional information, making your ads larger in the SERPs and enhancing their visual appeal.

Use Bid Adjustments With Targeting

In Microsoft Advertising, a bid adjustment is a percentage you want to increase or decrease the bid for particular targeting elements. Bid adjustments are a handy way to optimize Microsoft Advertising based on performance and finetune how your budget is spent.

Bid adjustments can be applied to audiences, demographics, locations, ad schedules and devices, and within these categories, there are a lot of things that can be adjusted. For example, you may have identified that desktop devices far outperform mobile and tablets. Therefore, it could make sense to add a +50% bid adjustment to desktop devices, to increase competitiveness for that device since it performs so well. Or perhaps a particular age group, day of the week, or in-market audience underperforms. In this case, use a negative bid adjustment of -20% (or how much makes sense for you) for these elements, so that when someone who’s part of this target searches, you’re spending less and bidding less competitively.

Bid adjustments provide an extra layer of Microsoft Advertising optimization and are considered an effective way to enhance performance.

Experiment With All Match Types In The Same Ad Group

Mixed-match type ad groups are now the recommended approach to structuring your campaigns. Historically, separating ad groups by keyword match type had been the recommended approach, to better manage spend and keep a close eye on phrase and broad match searches. However, a lot has changed. Thanks to machine learning, phrase, and broad match keywords can perform just as well as exact keywords, and in some cases, better.

If your ad groups currently contain single match type keywords, try broadening them out by adding in other match types. Remember relevance is key, so ensure the keywords are still really closely related.

A final note on this, proceed with caution. Phrase and broad match can quickly spend your budget on things that are not relevant. Therefore, ensure you use a robust negative keyword list and monitor search terms daily when experimenting with phrase and broad match keywords.

Maximize Your Impression Share

Impression share is measured as a percentage. It’s the number of times your ad is shown out of the total available impressions in the market you were targeting. In simple terms, if there were 100 impressions available, and your campaign achieved 80 impressions, you would have an 80% impression share.

This metric is important because it highlights how much visibility you have relative to your market. As well as that, it tells you how much growth potential there is. 80% impression share perhaps means you are really competitive, but there’s also an opportunity to achieve another 20% impression share. Optimize your Microsoft Advertising campaigns by maximizing impression share for the top-performing campaigns, ad groups, and keywords.

Use Ad Recommendations

Navigate to the ‘Recommendations’ section of your Microsoft Advertising account. Here you will find a list of recommendations relating to repairs, bidding, budgets, keywords, targeting, ads, and extensions. It’s essentially the same tool that’s used in Google Ads, for those that are familiar with Google.

Consider each of the recommendations that are provided and work through them based on your account. Not all of them will be relevant, but apply those that are. For example, in the screenshot above, setting up conversion tracking would hugely benefit performance, so this recommendation should be actioned to better optimize campaigns. However, fixing campaigns that are limited by budget essentially means increasing campaign budgets, which isn’t possible due to the fixed monthly budget that’s in place.

Although a lot of the recommendations won’t be relevant and applicable, some of them will be so it’s a great way of staying on top of housekeeping tasks and discovering new ways to optimize your Microsoft Advertising account.

Optimize Your Landing Pages

Last but not least in our 13 tips on how to optimize Microsoft Advertising campaigns is landing page optimization. Campaign set-up and management can only go so far. The effectiveness of a landing page has equal importance in generating conversions and will therefore impact performance. Therefore, landing page optimization can help in the following 3 ways:

Improve user experience by providing them with a seamless and positive experience
Increase conversion rates, which will in turn, improve CPA and ROAS
Improve quality score and ad relevance, as discussed previously

Poorly designed, slow, and tricky-to-navigate landing pages will more likely lead to poor performance, and vice versa. Although this tip doesn’t relate to Microsoft Advertising itself, optimizing landing pages will improve the performance of your Microsoft Advertising campaigns.

Here’s a list of some potential landing page optimizations to consider:

Clear and compelling headlines
Persuasive messaging and the use of keywords
Strong call-to-actions throughout the page
Visuals that resonate with your target audience
Mobile-friendly landing pages
A streamlined conversion funnel or form
Testimonials, reviews, and ratings to build trust and authority
Page loading speed

A final thing to consider when optimizing landing pages is setting up a/b testing and experimenting with various elements from the list above, as a way to get better results.

Conclusion

By following the 13 Microsoft Advertising optimization tips in this article, your account will be in with a good chance of successful results. Take the time needed to go through each aspect of account optimization, and remember that optimization work is ongoing. It’s vital that weekly, fortnightly, and monthly processes are in place and strictly followed, to stay on top of performance and to ensure your campaigns stay healthy.

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Jacques van der Wilt is a guest contributor to Marin Software's blog.

Content Marketing

Employee Advocacy on LinkedIn: Empowering Your Team to Amplify Your Brand

Undoubtedly, social media has become an integral part of our lives. With that in mind, businesses are constantly seeking ways to leverage social media as an innovative way to amplify their brand and connect with their target audience.

One powerful and often overlooked tool in this realm is employee advocacy on LinkedIn. This platform combines the power of professional networking with the authenticity and reach of personal connections.

Did you know that companies with active employee advocacy programs experience a 30% increase in employee engagement and a 39% increase in brand awareness? This statistic highlights the tremendous potential within your team when it comes to amplifying your brand's message in the digital landscape.

In this article, we will explore the ins and outs of employee advocacy on LinkedIn, uncovering its benefits, the strategies for effective implementation, and how it can transform your brand's digital presence.

Benefits of Employee Advocacy on LinkedIn

When you empower your team to become brand advocates, you unlock many benefits that can amplify your brand and propel it to new heights. Let's dive into the exciting world of employee advocacy and explore the remarkable advantages it offers.

Expanded Brand Reach

Imagine your brand's message reaching your immediate audience and their extended networks. That's the magic of employee advocacy on LinkedIn. When your employees share content, insights, and experiences related to your brand, they tap into their connections, exposing your brand to a broader and more diverse audience.

Each like, comment, and share has the potential to cascade through networks, increasing your brand's visibility and exponentially expanding your reach.

Authenticity and Credibility

In an era where consumers crave authenticity, employee advocacy on LinkedIn has become a powerful tool for humanizing your brand. Employees sharing personal experiences, expertise, and success stories lend credibility and authenticity to your brand's messaging. Their personal touch builds trust and fosters meaningful connections with the audience.

Jim Pendergast, Senior Vice President at altLINE Sobanco, adds, "It's no secret that people trust recommendations and insights from their peers more than traditional advertising. This makes employee advocacy an invaluable asset in cultivating trust and loyalty."

Thought Leadership and Industry Influence

LinkedIn is a breeding ground for thought leaders and industry influencers. By encouraging your employees to share their knowledge, insights, and opinions, you position your brand as a leader in your field.

Morgan Taylor, Co-Founder of Jolly SEO, explains further, "When employees contribute to industry discussions, publish thought-provoking articles, or engage in meaningful conversations, they establish themselves as experts and ambassadors of your brand. This elevates your brand's reputation, attracts top talent, and opens doors for collaboration and partnership opportunities."

Enhanced Employee Engagement

Employee advocacy on LinkedIn is not just about boosting your brand; it also profoundly impacts your team. When employees actively participate in promoting your brand, they feel a more profound sense of belonging and pride in their work.

Their engagement levels rise as they become more invested in the organization's success. Employees receive recognition and validation through sharing their achievements and contributions, fostering a thriving work culture and a positive feedback loop that fuels motivation and productivity.

Recruitment Magnet

Jerry Han, CMO at PrizeRebel, says, "Your employees are your brand's best recruiters. When they share their positive experiences, highlight company culture, and showcase the impact of their work, they become potent magnets for top talent."

Potential candidates get a genuine glimpse into your organization's values, work environment, and growth opportunities, making your brand an attractive choice for aspiring professionals. A strong employer brand cultivated through employee advocacy sets you apart in a competitive talent market and helps you attract and retain the best and brightest.

Implementing an Employee Advocacy Program on LinkedIn

Now that we've established the incredible power of employee advocacy on LinkedIn, the next step is knowing how to implement it.

Cultivate a Culture of Advocacy

Implementing an employee advocacy program begins with cultivating a culture where employees feel inspired, motivated, and empowered to champion your brand. Start by aligning your organization and employees' values, creating a strong sense of purpose and connection.

Encourage open communication, provide training and resources, and recognize and reward employee contributions. When employees genuinely believe in and feel proud of their organization, they become natural advocates who willingly share your brand's message.

Define Clear Objectives

Defining clear objectives for your employee advocacy program is crucial to drive success. Consider what you aim to achieve, whether it's increased brand visibility, enhanced thought leadership, or improved employee engagement.

Anthony Martin, Founder and CEO of Choice Mutual, adds, "Align these objectives with your overall marketing and business goals, ensuring that every advocacy effort contributes to your larger strategy. You can measure the program's effectiveness and make data-driven adjustments by having well-defined objectives."

Provide Training and Guidelines

Equipping your employees with the necessary knowledge and skills is essential for a successful employee advocacy program. Offer comprehensive training on LinkedIn best practices, including optimizing profiles, creating engaging content, and effectively leveraging the platform's features.

Provide brand voice, tone, and messaging guidelines to ensure consistent representation across all employee advocates. Encourage continuous learning and provide ongoing support to help employees grow and refine their advocacy skills.

Foster Content Collaboration

Encourage employees to participate in content creation and collaboration actively. Foster a culture of knowledge sharing and creativity, where employees can contribute their unique perspectives and expertise.

Empower them to create and share content that resonates with their professional network, positioning them as industry thought leaders and amplifying your brand's reach. Facilitate collaboration through content calendars, brainstorming sessions, and platforms that allow employees to contribute and provide feedback.

Amplify Employee Success Stories

Highlighting and celebrating employee success stories boosts morale and enhances your brand's authenticity and credibility. Share stories of employees making a positive impact on LinkedIn, both within and outside the organization.

These personal narratives humanize your brand and create meaningful connections with your target audience. Encourage employees to share their experiences, insights, and achievements, demonstrating the real-world impact of your organization's work.

Measure and Adjust

Andrew Pierce, Founder of Real Estate Holding Company, explains, "To gauge the effectiveness of your employee advocacy program, establish key performance indicators (KPIs) aligned with your objectives. Monitor metrics such as engagement, reach, and content performance to track the impact of employee advocacy efforts."

Leverage analytics tools and feedback mechanisms to gather insights and make data-driven adjustments. Regularly evaluate the program's progress, iterate on strategies, and recognize and share successes to motivate and sustain employee participation.

Overcoming Challenges and Mitigating Risks

While the concept of employee advocacy on LinkedIn may seem promising, it is essential to recognize that this strategy does come with its fair share of challenges and potential risks. By understanding and addressing these obstacles head-on, you can ensure a smoother and more successful implementation of your employee advocacy program.

This section will explore the key challenges you may encounter and provide valuable insights on overcoming them while mitigating associated risks.

Alignment of Brand Messaging

One of the primary challenges in employee advocacy is maintaining alignment between the brand's messaging and the content shared by employees. Ensuring your team consistently communicates your brand's values, mission, and key messages can be complex.

Linda Shaffer, Chief People Operations Officer at Checkr, offers a solution, "To overcome this challenge, establish clear guidelines and provide training sessions that educate employees about the brand's voice, tone, and core messaging. Encourage open communication, allowing employees to ask questions and seek clarification, which fosters a deeper understanding of the brand's vision."

Regularly communicate updates and changes in messaging to ensure everyone is on the same page. You can align their advocacy efforts with your brand's identity by empowering employees with the necessary knowledge and tools.

Ensuring Authenticity and Credibility

In the digital landscape, authenticity and credibility are paramount. While advocating for your brand, employees should remain genuine and transparent to build trust with their networks. However, balancing personal expression and brand guidelines can be a delicate dance.

To overcome this challenge, emphasize the importance of authenticity and encourage employees to infuse their perspectives and experiences into their advocacy efforts. Provide them with a framework that allows flexibility while adhering to brand guidelines.

Empower employees to share their unique insights, stories, and expertise within the context of the brand's messaging. By striking this balance, you can ensure that employee advocacy remains genuine and credible, resonating with your target audience.

Managing Risks and Reputation

As employees become vocal advocates of your brand, it is crucial to have measures in place to mitigate potential risks and safeguard your brand's reputation. Mistakes or inappropriate behavior by employees can have a detrimental impact on your brand's image.

To mitigate these risks, establish a clear code of conduct and social media policy that outlines acceptable behavior, content guidelines, and disclosure requirements. Educate employees on the importance of responsible advocacy, emphasizing the need to respect confidentiality, avoid controversial topics, and exercise discretion when representing the brand.

Regularly monitor employee advocacy efforts, providing feedback and guidance to ensure compliance. By proactively managing risks, you can protect your brand's reputation while empowering employees to advocate effectively.

To Sum it Up

Effective employee advocacy on LinkedIn goes beyond simply sharing company updates. It empowers individuals within your organization to build genuine connections, leverage their networks, and establish themselves as trusted industry experts. So, embrace the power of employee advocacy on LinkedIn, empower your team, and amplify your brand's message in a way that resonates with your target audience.

Let your employees be the driving force that propels your brand to new heights of visibility, credibility, and success. With the right strategies and a commitment to authenticity, your organization can truly make its mark in the digital realm.

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5 Tips for Getting Started with Meta Ads Manager

Meta, formerly Facebook, is one of the most powerful ad platforms on the planet. If you want to increase sales online with ads, the best place to start is with Meta and their nearly 5 billion active users between Facebook and Instagram. The Meta Ads Manager system was precisely tailored and designed by the social media giant for businesses so that regular accounts can be differentiated from personal ones.

Meta Business is the platform that lets businesses use Facebook and Instagram’s vast customer base to sell to. In short, Meta business manager is where effective monetization of your digital presence begins. Meta Ads Manager simplifies life for digital marketing professionals with its capabilities of creating and monitoring separate accounts for each business they manage. This allows them to easily distinguish between different organizations and assign distinct roles based on the user's job function.

Furthermore, administrators can gain centralized control over multiple users' accounts by setting specific permissions from one easy-to-use platform. This article will dive into everything you need to know about Meta Ads Manager.

What is Meta Ads Manager?

Meta Ads Manager is a platform that allows advertisers to manage and optimize their online advertising campaigns across multiple channels. It provides a centralized system for creating, launching, and tracking advertising campaigns, making it easier for marketers to manage their campaigns efficiently.

What Will You Get Out of This Guide?

This quick guide aims to provide an in-depth understanding of the best practices for using Meta Ads Manager to maximize advertising campaign performance. We will cover the essential steps for setting up and optimizing ad campaigns and provide insights into common pitfalls to avoid.

Overview of the Best Practices for Meta Ads Manager

This guide will provide a comprehensive overview of the best practices for using Meta Ads Manager, including setting up an account, creating and launching ad campaigns, optimizing campaigns for better performance, measuring ad performance, scaling campaigns, and avoiding common pitfalls. By following these best practices, advertisers can ensure their campaigns are performing at peak and delivering the best possible results.

Now, let’s dive into what you need to know about Meta Ads Manager.

Setting up Meta Ads Manager

We've covered what you need to know here about getting set up on Meta Ads Manager.

Creating an Account

The first step in using Meta Ads Manager is to create an account. This involves:

Providing essential information about your business
Name
Contact details
Setting up payment methods for ad spend

Once the account is created, you can start adding campaigns and setting up targeting parameters.

Adding Ad Campaigns

The next step is to add ad campaigns to the Meta Ads Manager account. This involves selecting the type of advertising you would like to run. You will then need to select the platform or channels where you want to run your ads.

Setting up Ad Budget and Targeting

Once your ad campaigns are added, it's time to set up the ad budget and targeting parameters. The ad budget will determine how much you are willing to spend on each campaign, and the targeting parameters will decide who will see your ads.

Targeting can be set based on demographics, interests, behaviors, or other criteria. It's essential to carefully consider these parameters and set them correctly to ensure your ads reach the right audience and achieve the desired results.

Optimizing Ad Campaigns

Optimization is essential for your ads. You must ensure that your ads will perform as effectively as possible.

Ad Copy Writing and Testing

Ad copywriting is an art and science. Your ad copy should be attention-grabbing and relevant while including a clear call to action. It's also essential to test different ad copies to determine which ones perform best. A/B testing can help you determine which ad copy is most effective in achieving your desired results.

Artificial intelligence has recently come onto the scene in a big way. To create the best ad copy, consider using AI writing tools when appropriate.

Choosing the Right Ad Format

Choosing the proper ad format is another important factor in optimizing ad campaigns. Different designs, such as display ads, video ads, or carousel ads, have different strengths and limitations. Consider the target audience, message, and desired outcome when selecting the correct ad format for your campaigns.

Landing Page Optimization

The landing page is the first impression potential customers will have of your brand. It's vital to ensure that the landing page is optimized for conversions. This means it should load quickly, be easy to navigate, and include a clear call-to-action. Ensure that the messaging and design of the landing page align with the ad and that it's optimized for the target audience.

Measuring Ad Performance

Next, you need to know how to measure your ads. Like the stock market, you must learn how to ride the winners and ditch the losers. Meta has advanced analytics you can use to track all your ads' performance.

Understanding Ad Metrics

To effectively measure the performance of ad campaigns, it's essential to understand the critical ad metrics. Metrics such as cost per click (CPC), click-through rate (CTR), conversion rate, and return on ad spend (ROAS) can provide valuable insights into how your ads are performing and how they can be improved.

Setting up Conversion Tracking

Conversion tracking is a critical component of measuring ad performance. By setting up conversion tracking, you can see which campaigns drive the most conversions and optimize your campaigns accordingly. Conversion tracking can be set up using tools like Google Analytics or a conversion tracking pixel provided by Meta Ads Manager.

Analyzing Ad Performance and Making Data-Driven Decisions

Once you have a solid understanding of the vital ad metrics and have set up conversion tracking, it's time to analyze ad performance and make data-driven decisions. Regularly reviewing ad performance and making adjustments based on data can help improve the outcome of your campaigns over time. This can include adjusting the budget, adjusting targeting, or improving ad copy and landing pages.

Scaling Ad Campaigns

Now that you have found some ads that work, it’s time to scale them up to reach the most people and bring in maximum revenue.

Managing Ad Spend

As ad campaigns scale and reach a wider audience, managing ad spending is essential. You must:

Set a clear ad budget
Monitor ad spend regularly
Make adjustments as needed to ensure that spend aligns with the desired results and priorities

Expanding Targeting and Geographies

Once ad campaigns are performing well, advertisers can consider expanding to new markets with updated targeting. This can include targeting new demographics, interests, or behaviors or reaching new geographic locations. By increasing the overall reach of ad campaigns, advertisers can increase impression share in their competitive space and drive more conversions.

Common Pitfalls to Avoid

While the Meta Ads platform has many positive attributes, it does have some downfalls and things you should avoid, or consider using a third party tool like Marin Software to layer on top of Meta and push advertising possibilities even further.

Overcomplicating Ad Campaigns

One of the biggest pitfalls in Meta Ads campaign management is overcomplicating the account structure. Ad campaigns can quickly become complex, with multiple ad formats, several different audiences, and many important metrics to consider. It's crucial to keep ad campaigns focused and straightforward to avoid adding unnecessary complication that can negatively affect overall campaign performance.

Failing to Optimize Ad Campaigns Regularly

Ad campaigns need to be optimized regularly to ensure they continue to deliver the best possible results. Failing to optimize ad campaigns regularly can diminish returns over time as ad performance gradually deteriorates. Regular optimization can include adjusting ad budget, targeting parameters, ad copy, and landing pages and testing and refining strategies as needed.

Final Thoughts

Advertising is a dynamic and ever-evolving process that requires constant fine-tuning to maximize your ROI. That's why it pays off to be knowledgeable about best practices when using Meta Ads Manager, from setting up campaigns correctly in the first place to optimizing them continually for more efficient performance.

With careful attention paid to avoiding common pitfalls along with testing, refining, and analyzing data regularly - you can reach new heights of success by taking advantage of all this platform has to offer!

Whether you're a seasoned advertiser or just starting with Meta Ads Manager, it's never too late to optimize your ad campaigns. So take action today and implement these best practices in Meta Ads Manager.

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Andrew Dunn is a guest contributor to Marin Software's blog.

Capitalizing on Native Advertising: 5 Essential Benefits

In a world where traditional advertising methods abound but struggle to capture audiences, it becomes crucial for businesses to remain authentic and unique in their prospect-facing messaging. Native advertising offers a professional and authoritative approach to engage and convert your target audience. This article will delve into the 5 key benefits of native advertising for businesses, uncovering how this marketing tactic can revolutionize your approach and amplify your success.

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Benefits of Native Advertising For Businesses

What Are The Benefits Of Native Advertising?

Non-disruptive and Can Encourage Users To Engage With Content

Running native ads as a media buyer or entrepreneur brings significant benefits, and one standout advantage is their non-disruptive nature. Native ads smoothly blend in with the surrounding content, adopting similar visuals and context, resulting in a less intrusive and more natural advertising experience. This seamless integration makes it challenging for users to differentiate native ads from regular content, maintaining a cohesive and uninterrupted browsing experience.

The success of these ads lies in their ability to match the form and function of the platform on which they are displayed. By doing so, native ads become an organic part of the user's content consumption journey, providing valuable information and enhancing engagement.

One successful example of this approach is Spotify's partnership with Netflix to create playlists for every Stranger Things character. By integrating these playlists within its platform, Spotify effectively combines the worlds of music and entertainment, offering users a unique and immersive experience.

Spotify and Netflix collaboration with native ads — (Image: Deseret News)

This collaboration not only enhances engagement for both companies but also demonstrates the power of native advertising to seamlessly blend content and advertising in a way that adds value to the user.

As a result, businesses that utilize native ads can expect improved click-through rates and increased time spent on content, leading to higher conversions and overall campaign success.

According to Meetanshi, native ads boast a click-through rate of 0.16% on desktop and 0.38% on mobile, which is a significant improvement compared to the 0.11% click-through rate for traditional banner ads.

Drive brand awareness

You need a powerful solution that delivers exceptional results to drive brand awareness effectively. Native advertising, combined with market analysis, is precisely that solution. What sets native ads apart is their ability to target specific audience segments. With precise targeting options encompassing demographics, devices, geography, customer intent, etc., native ads empower you to enhance brand awareness or boost sales strategically.

According to a 2015 study, native ads generated 9% more brand affinity responses when compared to banner ads. This finding underscores the effectiveness of native ads in fostering positive brand connections.

You can utilize the flexibility of native ads to create upper-funnel content that educates your audience about your brand or lower-funnel content that drives action, seamlessly aligning with your marketing funnel.

By delivering tailored content that resonates with your customers' unique interests and identities, you can effectively reach them at the right moment with the right message.

Cost-Effectiveness and Efficiency

One major advantage of native advertising is its scalability, which sets it apart from platforms like Facebook. Scaling campaigns on Facebook often comes with increased costs, making it challenging to maintain profitability. However, native ads offer a much smoother scaling experience without drastic cost increases.

You can significantly increase your daily budget, and the cost per action (CPA) remains consistent. Whether you spend $1,000 or $10,000 per day, the impact on CPA is minimal.

This scalability significantly transforms businesses. It allows you to expand your advertising efforts and reach a larger audience without sacrificing profitability. By leveraging native advertising's smooth scaling capabilities, you can effectively and efficiently achieve your growth objectives. It provides flexibility and cost-effectiveness that can significantly impact the success of your campaigns.

Improve Reach to Your Target Audience

Ad-blockers have become increasingly popular as users are actively seeking ways to avoid intrusive and irrelevant ads. This poses a significant challenge for businesses trying to reach their target audience. In fact, globally, 42.7% of internet users use ad-blockers.

Fortunately, native ads offer a solution to this problem. By blending into the user experience, native ads bypass ad-blockers and ensure that brand messages successfully reach the intended audience.

Two highly effective native ad formats are in-feed ads and sponsored content. In-feed ads naturally fit into content feeds, looking like regular posts, while sponsored content provides valuable information with subtle brand promotion.

Real Alternative to Other Traffic Sources

When it comes to online advertising, companies often turn to popular platforms like Facebook and Instagram. However, there's a growing frustration among users with the structure and controversies surrounding these platforms.

Many people are deleting their Facebook accounts or choosing not to create them in the first place. This is where native ads offer a significant advantage. Unlike Facebook or Instagram, native ads are not tied to a single dedicated traffic source. They encompass the entire internet, leveraging various players and traffic sources.

While you may be familiar with big players like Taboola, Outbrain, or Microsoft Advertising, there are numerous smaller and larger traffic sources scattered throughout the web. Let's take the example of a clothing brand that wants to reach fashion-forward millennials who are passionate about sustainable fashion.

While Facebook and Instagram are popular choices, the brand can also consider exploring alternative traffic sources such as fashion blogs, eco-conscious lifestyle websites, or niche fashion communities. By advertising on these platforms, the brand can effectively target a specific audience that aligns with their values and interests. This approach allows them to expand their reach beyond the major social media platforms and connect with individuals who are more likely to be interested in their sustainable fashion offerings.

What Are The Disadvantages Of Native Advertising?

While native advertising offers numerous benefits, it's important to be aware of its potential drawbacks. Here are three key disadvantages to consider:

Disclosure and Transparency

Native advertising can sometimes blur the line between editorial content and advertising, causing confusion among consumers.

When there is a lack of clear labeling, it becomes difficult for users to differentiate between sponsored content and organic editorial content. This lack of transparency erodes trust and credibility. Failure to disclose sponsored content properly not only leads to negative brand perception but also carries potential legal consequences.

To avoid these issues, you must prioritize clear and conspicuous labeling, ensuring transparency and fostering trust with your audience. Transparent disclosure helps consumers make informed decisions and demonstrates a commitment to ethical advertising practices.

Making native ads transparent through clear disclosure. — (Image: BuzzFeed)

Ethical Concerns

One significant risk associated with native advertising is the potential for biased or misleading information. When native ads prioritize brand messaging over objective reporting, publishers compromise their integrity and credibility.

This prioritization of brand promotion over providing unbiased information erodes the trust that consumers place in publishers as reliable sources of content. These ethical concerns highlight the importance of careful consideration and balance in native advertising practices.

Advertisers and publishers should prioritize maintaining the integrity of their content and ensure clear differentiation between promotional messages and editorial content. By doing so, businesses can preserve audience trust and uphold ethical standards in native advertising.

Limited Control over Placement

In native advertising, you often have limited control over where your ads are placed as publishers determine specific ad placements within their platforms. You may have little say in the exact placement of your ads, which can lead to unintended association with unrelated or controversial content.

This lack of control poses a risk to brand image and reputation. To mitigate these risks, you should carefully select publishers and platforms that align with your brand values and target audience, and maintain open communication regarding ad placements and content guidelines. By doing this, you can minimize the chances of unintended associations that may harm your brand.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the benefits of native advertising are abundant, offering businesses seamless integration, precise targeting, cost-effectiveness, ad-blocker resilience, and an alternative to traditional platforms.

Despite challenges such as disclosure and limited control, native advertising remains a powerful tool for engaging audiences, increasing brand visibility, and driving meaningful results in today's advertising landscape.

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Millie Pham is a guest contributor to the Marin Software blog.

Data Taxonomy Best Practices

Data continues to be an increasing driver for businesses of all sizes and the need to effectively manage and organize that data has grown almost exponentially. Data taxonomy provides a framework for understanding how different types of data are related. It's then used to improve decision-making, strengthen the customer experience, and minimize costs.

All of this adds up to making it a critical tool for any company that wants to maximize its data asset value. New insights, analysis and actual business intelligence rely on data structures and models that are clean, accurate, and logical,

This growing role has increased the importance of having effective strategies for organizing information. A proper taxonomy helps to better understand customer requirements and preferences. This is accomplished by grouping similar pieces of information into coherent categories. Both from an internal perspective (i.e., categorizing sales leads) as well as from an external one (i.e., segmenting users).

By taking into account the various relationships between different types of information, valuable insights are gained. Additionally, having a clear structure makes it easier to find specific data. This helps conserve resources while also improving accuracy across multiple teams.

In this post we will explore the role of data in business and offer some best practices for structuring data in the future.

The Big Picture of Data in Business

Data plays an increasingly important role in helping organizations achieve their strategic initiatives. Different types of data can be utilized to inform and guide such initiatives. This includes customer demographics and behavior, market trends, financial indicators, performance metrics, and competitor activity.

Customer data can help companies understand their customers and how they behave. This can then be used to zero in on new customers and track the performance of existing ones. Market trend data can provide insights into the broader industry landscape. Financial and performance metrics can inform strategies around budgeting and resource allocation.

Competitor activity is also an important factor in business decision-making. Knowing what they're doing and how well they’re doing it allows you to adjust your strategy accordingly, either by leveraging their strengths or exploiting their weaknesses.

By having a clear taxonomy in place, companies can get the most out of their data. They can also ensure that they're using the data to effectively drive the continued growth of the business. Successful data taxonomy requires careful planning, thoughtful organization, and ongoing maintenance.

The Importance of Data Taxonomies

Data taxonomy helps companies understand their customers and the market, track their performance, and compare what they do with competitors.

What is a data taxonomy?

A data taxonomy is a system of organizing data into categories. It helps to structure information so that it can be located quickly and easily understood. Data taxonomies are made up of terms, which can be hierarchical or related in some way (such as “customers”, “leads”, and “opportunities”).

By structuring data in this way, companies can gain insight into the behavior and preferences of their customer base and betting insight into current market trends.

The positive impact of well-categorized data

Data taxonomies help with data governance. They provides a framework for how information should be collected, stored, and accessed to ensure it remains secure and compliant with regulations. Having an established taxonomy makes it easier to keep track of where data is located and who has access to it.

This practice also makes it easier to understand customer needs and preferences. By segmenting customers into different categories, companies can hone their marketing efforts and improve the overall customer experience. This can increase engagement and loyalty, which helps drive revenue growth. Additionally, data taxonomies help reduce costs by streamlining processes such as inventory management.

The negative impact of poorly categorized data

Having a poor data taxonomy can have damaging consequences. Without proper categorization, important information or insights may go unnoticed. This could lead to inaccurate predictions or decisions, which in turn could result in losses for the company.

In addition, having an inadequate data taxonomy can make it difficult to find information quickly and accurately. This increases time spent on tasks and can lead to errors or delays. It can also be difficult to track the origin of data when there’s no clear structure in place.

Finally, a lack of data taxonomy can make it hard to monitor access and ensure regulatory compliance. This could have serious legal and financial consequences if confidential customer information is mishandled or exposed.

Data Taxonomy Best Practices

When implementing a data taxonomy, there are some best practices you need to be aware of. Following these guidelines will put you and your organization on the way to clean data sets that are accessible, usable and capable of powering your business towards its strategic initiatives.

Start with desired outcomes and goals

You should work hard to craft specific criteria for what you want to achieve, both with your data and how it will be used. Develop a framework that fits your needs and tailor it to meet your unique goals and objectives.

Additionally, you should involve stakeholders in the process. Make sure everyone who is involved in data management is on board with the taxonomy. This will help get everyone familiar with the structure and that it works for all departments.

Determine how to measure against those goals

Metrics and goals are essential when it comes to developing a successful data taxonomy. When planning your taxonomy, it's important to determine how metrics will be used to measure its success.

Are you looking for data sets that integrate easily with tools and applications? Are you structuring data to be used cross-functionally without much hand holding? Whatever goals you set at the start of your taxonomy journey, it is crucial to measure progress and, ultimately, success.

Evaluate data integrity and completeness

It’s important to keep data integrity and completeness in mind when creating a taxonomy. This means making sure you have the necessary information to accurately categorize your data, as well as regularly checking to ensure that your categories are up-to-date. The data set itself should be qualified for both accuracy and completeness. A gap in either will ultimately render the insights provided by the data unreliable or even inaccurate.

Decide how you will categorize the data

Next, you need to decide which categories and subcategories will be used. Choose the ones that align with your plan and are easy to understand. Consider using industry standards if possible, as this can help ensure consistency across departments.

Apply the categorization to each data set

Applying categorization to data sets involves more than simply assigning labels. It also requires understanding the context and meaning behind each piece of data. Each data set should be thoroughly analyzed and categorized based on its purpose, source, format, and other relevant factors. This ensures that the taxonomy is accurate and complete.

Choose functionality over everything else

Functionality should be a primary focus. It’s important to keep in mind that your categorization will be used by people, so it needs to be intuitive and user-friendly. Consider the language and terminology you use, as well as how easy it is for users to find what they need.

Implement in stages

Creating a taxonomy for an entire company or organization can be a daunting task. To make the process easier, it’s best to break it down into smaller chunks and implement it in stages. This allows you to focus on one area at a time and adjust as needed based on feedback from stakeholders.

Test along the way, course-correct as needed

Testing is key to ensuring your taxonomy is effective. Gather feedback from stakeholders and test the categorization over time to make sure it meets all of your goals. If necessary, course-correct and refine your categorization as needed.

Finally, document each step in the process. This includes creating a detailed record of all the categories, sub-categories, and overall structure. This will help ensure that everyone is on the same page and familiar with the taxonomy when changes need to be made.

Conclusion

Developing a successful data taxonomy requires careful planning and consideration. It's important to:

Involve stakeholders
Determine metrics for success
Evaluate data integrity and completeness
Decide how to categorize the data
Implement in stages
Test along the way

Documenting each step in the process is also essential for ensuring everyone is familiar with the structure of the taxonomy when changes need to be made. With a well-structured plan in place, businesses can leverage their data more effectively to drive better decisions and long-term success.

Marin Software enables businesses to manage and optimize their online campaigns across search, social, and display networks using advanced analytics tools. We will ensure your data taxonomy is well utilized by tying categories to real business outcomes within your advertising initiatives.

With our powerful platform, marketers can easily measure the performance of their campaigns, identify areas for improvement and make informed decisions quickly. This helps to maximize returns on advertising investments while improving customer engagement and satisfaction. Marin also provides training resources to help users get the most out of their software products. With our comprehensive suite of services, we provide a complete solution for all your digital marketing needs. Contact us today to learn more about how Marin Software can help you take your digital marketing efforts to the next level.

5 Power Moves to Ignite Your LinkedIn Account-Based Marketing

Are you looking to drive more leads, build better relationships, and develop an air-tight strategy with key accounts through LinkedIn? If so, then LinkedIn account-based marketing (ABM) may be exactly what your business needs. With the popularity of ABM on the rise, not overlooking its benefits could help set your organization apart from competitors. In this blog post, we'll dive deep into five power moves that are sure to ignite engagement across your ABM strategy on LinkedIn!

Getting Started with Account-Based Marketing

If you're not familiar with ABM, it stands for Account-Based Marketing, which is a highly-targeted approach that focuses on specific accounts rather than casting a wide net to a larger audience. By taking the time to get to know your target accounts, you can create a personalized approach that resonates with those specific stakeholders and decision-makers at the companies that you want to work with. It also flips the traditional lead generation methods on their head. Sales and marketing teams no longer cast wide nets with a hit-and-miss approach, instead, they start to sniper in on key targets.

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Leveraging LinkedIn for ABM

Ok so first things first, let's talk about why ABM on LinkedIn is important. There are many ABM strategies out there so why should you care about Linkedin? Well, although events and conferences are still great to get prospects' details, getting much more specific is winning the day in the prospecting world right now.

LinkedIn is the world's largest professional network, with over 700 million members. This makes it an unrivaled platform to target specific accounts and engage with decision-makers in a professional setting. But with the rise of personal branding and ways to automate this it is more important than ever to stand out when creating ads and content.

ABM on LinkedIn allows you to personalize your messaging and content for each account, persona, or industry. This stacks the cards in your favor and drastically increases the chances of getting a conversation going and ultimately converting them into a sale. So, here are the five ways to ignite your LinkedIn ABM strategy and make sure you are using the platform most effectively. Let's get started!

Refining Target Audiences

The success of your ABM campaign relies heavily on your initial planning - know what specific slice of the market you want to target. It hinges on identifying and refining your target audience. It may sound obvious but if you don’t get your message in front of the right people at the right time, you won’t be able to sell.

Research your existing customer database. What patterns do you see if deals that have closed successfully? What do your most valuable customers have in common? Don't only analyze current customers, also research audiences for new customers you're hoping to convert. Luckily (or perhaps by design), the LinkedIn account targeting features offer a wealth of filters and criteria that can be used to narrow down and refine your audience effectively.

LinkedIn Sales Navigator is a rock-star tool when trying to target specific individuals and companies. If you aren’t familiar with its benefits then definitely check it out. Now let's get into some of the demographics or characteristics that you should consider when defining key customer personas on LinkedIn.

Job Title and Role

Pay close attention to the job titles and roles within your target accounts. Identify the decision-makers, influencers, and key stakeholders who are involved in the purchasing process. This enables you to tailor your messaging and content to resonate with their specific needs and pain points.

Company Size and Industry

Take into account the company size and industry of your target accounts. This information can provide insights into their unique challenges, preferences, and buying behaviors. Then you can customize your approach to address the specific pain points and goals associated with their industry or company size.

Growth Potential and Revenue

This one is key. Look beyond the surface-level criteria and assess the growth potential and revenue of your target accounts. Consider factors such as recent funding rounds, expansion plans, or mergers and acquisitions.

Accounts with high growth potential or substantial revenue can indicate a greater opportunity for partnership or business impact so you can focus your resources effectively.

Tip: Consider grading accounts so you have your high, mid, and low targets. I have even seen some companies hand the top targets to the top sales reps and the low targets to the reps that are struggling. Sound unfair? It kind of makes sense from a business perspective though right? It certainly lit a fire under the struggling reps to try and break through to get better accounts!

Recent News or Events

Stay up to date with the latest news and events surrounding your target accounts. This is a great sales technique as you can identify and leverage any company announcements, product launches, leadership changes, or industry trends. This information can provide valuable context and enable you to tailor your messaging to align with their current initiatives or challenges.

Use LinkedIn Insights

Leverage the insights and data provided by LinkedIn to gain a deeper understanding of your target audience. LinkedIn offers valuable analytics and demographic information that can inform your audience refinement strategy. Use these insights to validate and adjust your approach based on real-time data.

Example

Let's say you are an IT Cloud Service vendor targeting the technology sector. You may want to refine your target audience to include accounts with specific job titles such as "Chief Technology Officer" or "IT Manager" in companies of a certain size range that would need your services.

That narrows the pool down but you may want to get a bit deeper. Try and understand what those prospects use already, or identify issues with existing products or vendors. In this example, finding out which companies are aggressively hiring and which ones are struggling will also help to identify and grade accounts.

Couple this with the LinkedIn analytics, you can be sure that your ABM efforts will be focused on the right companies and individuals who have the decision-making power and influence you need to conquer to sell.

Ad Creative

So now you have your target audience, what’s next? The LinkedIn ad campaign of course, and this is where you need your creative marketing team to generate spot-on ad creative.

LinkedIn offers a variety of ad formats, including Sponsored Content, Sponsored InMail, and Dynamic Ads. Each format has its unique features and benefits. We have covered that in depth in our LinkedIn Advertising 101 article.

But here’s a quick graphic to help you understand the options aligned with the campaign objectives.

Choosing the right one depends on your campaign goals and target audience but no matter what one you choose, you will need LinkedIn ads that are creative and speak to your target audience.

Here are some tips for creating an engaging ad creative that will resonate with your target audience:

Keep it simple: Avoid using too much jargon or complicated language. Use simple and concise language that your audience can understand.\
Be visually appealing: Use eye-catching images or videos that capture your audience's attention. Make sure they are relevant to your message and align with your brand.
Highlight benefits: Focus on the benefits of your product or service rather than just its features. Show your audience that you understand them and their problems. Make sure you also show them you can solve their problems or make their lives easier.
Include a call to action: Tell your audience what you want them to do after seeing your ad. Whether it's to visit your website, fill out a form, or request a demo, make sure your call to action is clear and compelling.

By following these tips, you can create ad creative that not only captures your audience's attention but also resonates with them. This is fundamental to getting people to follow your CTA.

Optimizing ad spend

One of the most important aspects of any ABM campaign is optimizing the ad spend. With so many different types of businesses and people on LinkedIn, you want to make sure that your budget is as targeted as possible.

Luckily (or maybe by design!), LinkedIn provide a range of tools and metrics to help you achieve this. So, let's explore some of the ways you can optimize your ad spend and maximize your ROI.

Set Realistic and Measurable Goals

Before you start investing in LinkedIn ABM campaigns, it's crucial to establish clear financial goals and metrics for success. What is your target cost per lead (CPL)? What is your desired click-through rate (CTR)? By setting these metrics upfront, you'll have a clearer idea of what success looks like and you can adjust your strategy accordingly.

Once your campaigns are up and running, you'll need to regularly monitor performance to ensure you're on track to meet your financial goals. LinkedIn's Campaign Manager provides a range of metrics to help you do this, including impressions, clicks, CTR, and cost per click (CPC).

Adjust Your Ad Spend to Maximize ROI

Based on the performance data you gather, you can adjust your ad spend to maximize your ROI.

For example, if you notice that certain accounts or campaigns are performing poorly, you may want to reduce your spending on them and focus on the ones that are generating the most leads and conversions. But how can you actually do that I hear you ask? A couple of ways.

Use a Bid Management Strategy - This involves setting bid caps for each account and adjusting them based on their performance. By setting bid caps, you can control how much you're willing to spend on each account and ensure that you're not overspending on those that are not generating results. It also allows you to set limits based on the account grade which is super important.

As shown below, the bid cap feature is available for the campaign formats, Ad formats, and optimization goals.

[Source: LinkedIn]

Leverage LinkedIn's Cost-Per-Click (CPC) Bidding Model - LinkedIn's CPC bidding model allows you to set a maximum bid for each click on your ad. This means you only pay when someone clicks on your ad, rather than when it's displayed to someone. By setting a maximum bid, you can control how much you're willing to spend on each click and ensure that you're not overspending on low-quality traffic.

By optimizing your ad spend, you can ensure that you're getting the most out of your budget whilst achieving your campaign goals.

Dynamic ad creative

Personalization is key in ABM, and dynamic ad creative is a powerful tool for delivering personalized content to your target accounts. Dynamic ads allow you to serve different ad creative to different users based on their profile information.

Here are a few tips for using dynamic ad creative in your LinkedIn ABM campaigns:

Segment Your Audience

To use dynamic ad creative effectively, you need to segment your audience based on the criteria you want to use for personalization. This could include job title, company size, or industry. By segmenting your audience, you can create ad creative that speaks directly to their specific needs and pain points.

Use Relevant Imagery and Messaging

When creating your dynamic ad creative, it's important to use imagery and messaging that is relevant to each segment of your audience. For example, if you're targeting C-level executives, you may want to use more professional imagery and messaging that speaks to their business goals and challenges.

Test and Iterate

As with any aspect of your ABM campaign, it's important to test and iterate on your dynamic ad creative. Try different messaging and imagery to see what resonates best with each segment of your audience. Make sure you put in a control and then test new approaches and measure the success.

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Retargeting

This can be a powerful way to reach your ABM audience with personalized messages and offers based on previous interactions. You can retarget users who have already interacted with your website or content on LinkedIn, allowing you to show ads that cater specifically to their needs and goals.

By customizing your ads to each segment of your audience, you can ensure that you're providing relevant messages and offers that are likely to convert.

Example

CBRE, a B2B commercial real estate company, wanted to enhance its advertising efforts on LinkedIn by adopting a consumer-centric strategy for its Urban Photographer of the Year competition.

Leveraging LinkedIn's precise targeting filters, CBRE directed its attention to photography enthusiasts and professional photographers through captivating Message Ads. This approach resulted in engaging one-on-one conversations, yielding promising outcomes.

The report showed that they achieved remarkable open and click-through rates, accompanied by a substantial 41% increase in contest entries compared to the previous year.

Measure and Iterate

Measuring and iterating on your ABM campaign is crucial for driving success and maximizing results. By analyzing data and getting this in useful and easy-to-digest ways, you can continuously optimize your LinkedIn ABM campaigns to achieve better outcomes.

Key Performance Indicators (KPIs):

I know we have already talked about this a little when discussing ad spend, which is vital, but you also need KPIs for the campaign as a whole.

Start by identifying the metrics that align with your campaign goals. These could include click-through rates, conversion rates, engagement metrics, qualified leads, or cost per acquisition. Defining and documenting clear KPIs will provide a benchmark for evaluating your campaign's success and progress.

Dive Deep Into Data Analysis

Use the analytics tools available through LinkedIn to gain valuable insights into your campaign performance. Look for patterns, trends, and areas of improvement. Analyze metrics such as engagement rates, ad impressions, and audience demographics to understand which strategies and tactics are working best.

Tip: LinkedIn’s Campaign Manager offers deep insights, use it to it’s fullest!

Conduct A/B Testing

Experiment with different variations of your ad creative and messaging to identify the most effective elements. Split your target audience into segments and test each variation against a control group. Measure the performance of each variation and identify the ones that resonate most with your audience.

Tip: Test different headlines, images, calls to action, or even different targeting criteria to understand which combination generates the highest engagement and conversion rates.

Optimize Based On Insights

Utilize the data and insights gathered from your analysis and A/B testing to make informed decisions. Make adjustments to your targeting, messaging, ad placements, or budget allocation to optimize your campaigns. Ads never stay still, neither do your target audience so continuously refine and enhance your approach based on the performance data.

Tip: If you find that a specific audience segment is highly engaged with your ads, consider allocating more budget towards reaching that segment or tailoring your messaging to cater specifically to their needs.

Monitor, Adapt, and Stay Agile

Keep a close eye on the performance of your ABM campaigns. Regularly monitor key metrics and be prepared to adapt and iterate based on the data. Stay agile and responsive to changes in market dynamics, audience behavior, and campaign performance. Use LinkedIn’s handy charts and graphs to visualize campaigns through time.

If you notice a decline in engagement rates or changes in audience behavior then consider adjusting your targeting parameters, refresh your ad creative, or explore new strategies to re-engage your target audience.

Once you have a good grasp of the analytics and you have a strong baseline on how the ads will perform you can start to use these metrics in your sales forecasting tools. This will help to further understand the kind of engagement you need to hit that all-important quota number.

Summary

By following these five tactics, you can ignite your LinkedIn ABM strategy and achieve greater success with your campaigns. It will help to bring your marketing and sales team together and work in unison, which I know from experience, can be a hard task!

As you expand your advertising across different platforms then Marin One can bring all your campaigns together under one hood. This can give a huge competitive advantage and ensure you are spending your ad budget in the right place to maximize the ROI. So why not start experimenting with these tactics today and see how they can transform your LinkedIn ABM strategy?

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Sean Mackay is a guest contributor to Marin Software.

George Colony - Forrester CEO

7 Best Strategies to Start Sponsoring Your Products on Instagram

Have you ever wondered how to effectively sponsor your products on Instagram and grab the attention of your target audience?

You're not alone. Many businesses seek to unlock the secrets of advertising on this popular social media platform with over 1 billion active users. And today, we're spilling the beans.

In this comprehensive blog, we'll share our top tips on building a captivating Instagram presence and running sponsored campaigns that'll have users stopping mid-scroll, eager to learn more about your brand.

Are you ready to start sponsoring your product on Instagram to elevate your social media game?

Let's dive into this exciting journey to unlock the full potential of Instagram sponsorships.

What Is a Sponsored Post on Instagram?

As you dip your toes into the world of Instagram marketing, it's important to understand the difference between sponsored posts and regular ads.

Let's break it down and clarify these two concepts.

Instagram Ads

On the other hand, Instagram ads are paid promotional content created and managed directly by the brand using Instagram's native advertising platform.

Ads appear in various formats, such as text, photos, videos, carousels, or Stories. You can target these promotional materials to reach users based on specific demographics, interests, and behaviors. And you can use a plethora of online tools to help you create stunning images, such as a mockup generator, background remover, photo collage maker, photo editor, etc.

Here's a simple Instagram Stories ad from Canva that integrates seamlessly with their followers’ Stories:

Unlike sponsored posts, Instagram ads don't involve collaborations with influencers. Instead, they rely on the platform's algorithms and targeting capabilities to reach your desired audience.

The primary goal of Instagram ads is to drive engagement, increase brand visibility, or encourage specific actions, like clicking a link or making a purchase.

TL;DR: Sponsored posts are collaborations between brands and influencers, while Instagram ads are promotional content directly created and managed by your brand.

7 Tips for Sponsoring Your Products on Instagram

Did you know that a whopping 83% of people use Instagram to discover new products or services? That's right, Instagram is more than just a place for stunning photos and quirky stories — it's an essential part of the consumer journey.

Instagram is where the magic happens, from sharing the latest fashion trends to offering a sneak peek into your products and even swaying purchase decisions.

So, if you're a marketer looking to make a splash, Instagram offers countless opportunities to connect with potential customers.

Here are some of the top tips to help you dive into the world of sponsoring your products on Instagram in a fun, engaging, and approachable way.

Set clear goals

Before jumping headfirst into the world of Instagram sponsorships, it's helpful to take a step back and think about what you want to achieve.

Trust us. A little planning goes a long way. Having clear objectives helps you stay focused, guides your strategy, and ensures you're making the most of your marketing efforts.

When setting goals for your Instagram sponsorships, the sky's the limit. Maybe your goal is to reach 25,000 followers by the end of the year. Or boost sales by 20%. Or you have the vision to sell your business in five years for over six figures.

But if you need some help narrowing in on a few simple objectives, focus on these three things: increasing brand awareness, generating leads, and driving sales.

Let's break it down.

Brand awareness

If you want to make your brand the talk of the town, sponsoring your products on Instagram can help you get noticed.

By collaborating with influencers or creating eye-catching ads, you can showcase your brand personality and build a buzz around your products.

Case in point, here's a stunning photo from Olipop, a healthy soda pop, announcing a new partnership with pop star (pun intended) Camila Cabello.

Olipop partnership with Camila Cabello. — Source

If you didn't know about Olipop before, you do now. Thanks to this eye-catching post with a monochromatic look and a high-profile celebrity partnership. Micro-influencers work too, but more on that later.

Lead generation

Maybe you're after a more tangible result, like collecting email addresses or getting users to sign up for a trial.

Instagram sponsorships can help you reach your target audience and encourage them to take that crucial first step.

For example, to showcase its services on Instagram, BriteCo uses high-quality images and captions reminding people of their engagement ring's sentimental value.

Once they've grabbed your attention, they highlight the benefits of protecting it with their jewelry insurance and share a link to a landing page visually consistent with the Instagram post.

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BriteCo landing page for engagement ring insurance. — Source

Using a dedicated landing page and seamless experience (with high-quality images), BriteCo can capture tangible new leads through the power of Instagram.

Pro-tip: It's always a good idea to have software to help you save and track all the data from these newly acquired leads. Sales

Of course, one of the ultimate goals for any business is to see those sales numbers climb.

By sponsoring your products on Instagram, you can highlight the features and benefits that make your offerings irresistible and inspire users to hit that 'buy now' button.

To improve your chances of closing the sale, follow the lead of LeatherCult, by including a "shop here" link in your Instagram bio:

LeatherCult Instagram bio with website URL. — Image Source

Or you can also add a "shop now" link to your captions to further reduce friction in the purchase process:

LeatherCult Instagram post with link in comments. — Source

Remember, setting clear goals is the foundation of any successful Instagram sponsorship campaign. So, figure out what matters most to your brand and let that guide your strategy.

Choose the right target audience

Alright, so you've set your goals — now it's time to focus on reaching the right people.

Instagram's got your back with its built-in targeting options, making it a breeze to connect with the audience that matters most to your brand.

Say goodbye to the days of casting a wide net and hoping for the best. With Instagram, you can laser-focus on your ideal target market and avoid throwing money into the wind.

So think about the age, gender, location, interests, and behaviors of the people likely to love your products. The more specific you can get, the better.

This step is especially important for local businesses, where targeting people in your immediate area is crucial. Not only does this drive better results, but you don't waste time and money on people that'll never convert.

Let's take Watermill Flowers as an example. They are a local flower shop that exclusively delivers flowers in Fort Lauderdale. So, advertising their delivery services nationwide wouldn't make sense for them.

Fort Lauderdale flower shop with delivery policy. — Image Source

Thankfully, with Instagram's location targeting, they can ensure their sponsored posts and ads reach potential customers within their delivery zone.

Similarly, if your floral arrangements are particularly popular among brides-to-be, you can use Instagram's interest and behavior targeting to connect with users planning their big day.

The takeaway? The more relevant your content is to your audience, the more likely they'll engage with it and hopefully turn into paying customers (or at least followers).

Create high-quality content

Let's face it. Instagram is a visual playground. And to stand out from the crowd, your content needs to be nothing short of fabulous.

That's where eye-catching visuals and engaging captions come in. The perfect combo of stunning images and clever words will capture your audience's attention and encourage them to like, comment, or share your post.

Great content is the secret sauce to your Instagram success. So are you ready to up your content game?

Follow the lead of Rolex, legendary for luxury and aesthetics — even on Instagram.

Rolex Instagram all blue aesthetic. — Source

Here are a few tips to help you create your own drool-worthy images and maintain a consistent brand aesthetic:

Invest in high-resolution images — blurry or pixelated photos won't cut it on Instagram.
Choose a color scheme representing your brand to create a cohesive look — stick to it across all your content.
Use consistent fonts and design elements — make your content look polished and professional.

And did you know that simply adding a caption can boost your Instagram engagement rate from 4% to 6%? It's an easy way to get more out of every post.

But sometimes, as marketers or business owners, we fall victim to writer's block. Don't worry, it's normal. And that's why free text generators powered by AI will quickly become your best friend.

With the touch of a button, you can generate compelling Instagram captions that convert. It's all about working smarter, not harder, to drive results. Plus, it's free!

If you need inspiration, take a page from MegaFit Meals' book. They do an excellent job of boosting engagement with captions by asking questions, tapping into customer pain points, and offering solutions.

MegaFit meals compelling caption. — Source

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Plus, how can you pass on this delicious-looking food? It sure does have our mouths watering.

Variety is the spice of life. And when it's time to publish Instagram content, mixing things up can keep your audience engaged and coming back for more.

Don't be afraid to experiment with different formats like photos, videos, carousels, and even AI voices to showcase your products and tell your brand story.

Whether creating a product tutorial, sharing a customer testimonial, or narrating a behind-the-scenes clip, AI voices can help you convey your message clearly and effectively while adding a touch of innovation to your content.

Need inspiration? Try a humorous approach to voiceovers, like this Instagram video from Reese's:

Resse's voiceover video promotion. — Source

Embrace your creative side and explore various formats, from stunning product shots and carousels highlighting customer experiences to videos with added innovations.

The possibilities are endless, and with a little experimentation, you'll discover the perfect content mix to captivate your audience and make a lasting impression on Instagram.

Collaborate with influencers

Influencer collaborations can be a game-changer for your Instagram sponsorship campaigns.

These social media stars already have a dedicated following. And by partnering with them, you can tap into their audience, increase your reach, and build trust with potential customers.

Plus, influencers have the power to make your products feel more relatable and authentic, giving your brand a major credibility boost.

And do you want to know the best part? You can use micro-influencers to help promote nearly any product or service. They tend to have higher engagement rates and are more affordable than mega-influencers (with millions of followers)

So if you're a dental clinic and want to promote innovative dental procedures to prevent the dreaded turkey teeth phenomenon, you can partner with a lifestyle micro-influencer with no problem.

This partnership is the perfect opportunity to detail the procedure's benefits through a behind-the-scenes video — like this partnership with Dentfix.

Dentfix influencer sponsorship video. — Source

Or you can have the influencer post before and after photos on their Instagram profile, showing off their new smile.

The influencer's followers, who already trust their advice on all lifestyle matters, will be more likely to consider the procedure for themselves, ultimately driving business to your practice. It's a win-win.

Are you still not convinced? Studies show that 37% of consumers trust social media influencers over brands. So you're better off letting influencers do the promoting for you.

Leverage Instagram Stories

If you're not already taking advantage of Instagram Stories, it's time to hop on the bandwagon. Stories are an excellent way to casually and authentically engage with your audience.

And the Stories feature sees over 500 million daily users, so why not use this to your advantage?

Plus, Instagram Stories offers a treasure trove of interactive features that can help you connect with your audience on a deeper level. Here are some examples:

Use polls to gather opinions, conduct market research, or entertain your audience.
Engage your audience by inviting them to ask questions or share their thoughts.
If you have over 10,000 followers or a verified account, you can use swipe-up links in your Stories to drive traffic to your website, product pages, or blog posts.

Here's a prime example of how MegaFit Meals leverages sponsored Instagram Stories to appear naturally in a user's personal Stories:

People can swipe up to see the menu and learn more about these custom fitness meals. There's no need to open a new browser and search for the brand name.

The result? A seamless user experience that drives conversions.

Plus, Stories are an excellent tool for retargeting ads, allowing you to reconnect with users who have already shown interest in your brand and nudge them further along the customer journey.

Determine your budget and bidding strategy

As much as we'd all love to have an unlimited marketing budget, the reality is that we need to work within our means.

So don't bite off more than you can chew. Thankfully, even with a modest budget, you can still make an impact with the right strategy. In fact, Meta suggests starting with only $5 per day.

Once you have a budget set in stone, it's time to choose between the three types of bidding: spend-based, goal-based, and manual.

Spend-based bidding: The goal is to generate the highest results or most value using your entire budget.
Goal-based bidding: Pre-determine a cost (cost per result) or value (return on ad spend) you want to achieve.
Manual bidding: Set a cap on how much you want to bid across ad auctions instead of relying on automated algorithms.

To choose the right bidding for your campaign, consider the goals you set earlier. For instance, if you aim to boost sales, you might use a goal-based bidding strategy and set a cost per purchase to keep your average sales profitable.

If your eyes just rolled to the back of your head, try out the MarinOne Budget Optimizer to do the heavy lifting for you.

Remember, the key is to stay flexible, experiment, and continually refine your approach to find your sweet spot.

Monitor and analyze your performance

As the saying goes, measure twice and cut once. Keeping a close eye on your Instagram sponsorships' performance helps you understand your efforts' impact.

That way, you can make data-driven decisions for future campaigns by staying far away from what's not driving results and doubling down on what is.

Thankfully, Instagram Insights is a powerful built-in tool that provides valuable data on your sponsored content's performance, audience demographics, and engagement.

You can also supplement these insights with other analytics tools like MarinOne to see a comprehensive view of your overall marketing performance and return on investment (ROI).

Start Sponsoring Your Products on Instagram Today

And there you have it, our top tips for sponsoring your products on Instagram like a pro.

From setting clear goals and targeting the right audience to creating eye-catching content and leveraging the power of influencers, these strategies can help you elevate your brand's presence and drive results on this popular platform.

As you embark on your Instagram sponsorship journey, remember that the best approach is often one of experimentation and adaptation.

Embrace your creative side, be willing to try new things, and continually refine your strategy based on Instagram Insights. With a little perseverance (and passion), you'll soon discover the perfect formula to captivate your audience and make a lasting impact with your Instagram sponsorships.

So go ahead, turn on the sponsored posts, and watch your brand take off.

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Vergine Melkonyan is a guest contributor to Marin Software.

Forrester B2B Summit Recap 2023 - Austin, TX

Navigating what tactics and strategies to use in B2B marketing is tough. To gather insights on how to stay ahead, we recently participated in the Forrester B2B Summit in Austin, Texas. Leaders and visionaries from various industries gathered to explore trends, strategies, and innovations. The sessions, discussions, and networking opportunities provided valuable knowledge that will shape our B2B marketing approach for 2023 and beyond. Here are our "TLDR" notes from our favorite sessions.

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Opening Remarks

Out of 100 presentations, 17 are focused on AI.
Out of 100 sponsors, 50 of them already have AI built in to their tools.
"Ironman effect" - this isn't about robots taking your job, it's about marketers putting on a robotic suit to create superpower-like efficiency and effectiveness.

AI's capability to analyze vast amounts of data enables B2B marketers to identify patterns, predict customer behavior, and personalize content and interactions. It also streamlines lead generation, automates repetitive tasks, improves customer service, optimizes for voice and visual search, aids in competitive analysis, and necessitates ethical considerations. Marketers should prioritize training and upskilling, refine Account-Based Marketing strategies with AI, and stay updated on AI's future directions.

Introducing Forrester's B2B Customer-Obsessed Growth Engine

John Arnold, Principal Analyst @ Forrester

Sam had an amazing experience meeting Sebastian Vettel's pit crew, sitting in the racecar, and receiving a personal letter from the racer himself. Despite Mercedes' dominance in racecar driving, being a Ferrari fan was essential to Vettel's winning mindset. Experiential marketing, particularly in the context of Formula I, played a significant role in driving customer loyalty and advocacy. Key elements of experiential marketing include interaction, engagement, personalization, and creating memorable experiences. Leveraging technology like VR and AR enhances the impact. Storytelling and adapting to virtual events are crucial, as well as considering emerging trends and building long-term relationships with customers. The Forrester B2B Growth Engine emphasizes aligning marketing, product, and sales to meet the changing needs of buyers, as evidenced by their dissatisfaction with providers in 2022.

Buyer Value is the Core of Your Customer-Obsessed Growth Engine

Katie Fabiszak, Principal Analyst @ Forrester

Katie and her son Drew faced the challenge of choosing a college among numerous options, feeling overwhelmed by the lack of differentiation. Similarly, B2B brands encounter a "sea of sameness" and must differentiate themselves by listening to individual customer needs. Key strategies include understanding buyer value, adopting a customer-centric approach, maximizing customer lifetime value, personalization, predictive analysis, customer feedback, crafting compelling value propositions, increasing customer retention, aligning product development with customer expectations, customer journey mapping, cross-functional collaboration, and evolving with changing customer preferences for sustained value delivery.

How CMOs Support the Six Ways a Company Can Grow

Barbie Mattie, VP, Principal Analyst, Forrester

CMOs can drive market penetration by implementing targeted marketing campaigns, enhancing branding efforts, and implementing customer retention strategies. Market development involves conducting market research, creating market entry strategies, and tailoring messaging to different market segments. CMOs collaborate with product teams in product development by integrating customer insights and developing marketing strategies. Diversification requires exploring opportunities, validating them through research, and executing marketing strategies for new products or markets. Strategic partnerships involve identifying compatible partners, creating collaborative marketing strategies, and maintaining brand alignment. CMOs also play a role in assessing potential acquisitions, overseeing post-acquisition integration, and developing effective communication strategies to inform customers about changes resulting from acquisitions.

Outreach: How Unified Revenue Operations Strategy Drives External Growth

Ashley Naumann Vonella, Sales Enablement & Operations Senior Team Manager, VelocityEHS

Ashley Naumann discussed the concept of Revenue Operations (RevOps) and its significance in driving business growth. RevOps involves aligning sales, marketing, and customer service departments to provide a seamless customer experience. It emphasizes the integration of data from different departments to create a holistic view of customer interactions, enabling informed decision-making. RevOps also streamlines business processes, enhances revenue forecasting and planning, and helps overcome organizational silos, fostering collaboration and improving performance. She highlighted the impact of RevOps on customer experience and provided strategies for successful implementation.

Making Sense of the B2B Intent Data Landscape

Brett Kahnke, Principal Analyst, Forrester

B2B intent data is defined as data that reveals the signals and indications of a potential buyer's interests and purchasing intentions. It plays a crucial role in modern marketing and sales strategies by providing valuable insights into customer behavior and preferences. There are various sources of B2B intent data, including first-party and third-party data providers. First-party data providers utilize a company's own data, such as website analytics and CRM data, to analyze user behavior. Third-party data providers collect data from external sources, offering a broader view of the market. Other intent data provider models include bidstream data providers, cooperative data providers, predictive analytics providers, publisher-based providers, and data aggregator providers. Understanding the pros and cons of different data sources helps businesses make informed decisions about utilizing B2B intent data in their marketing and sales efforts.

Dun & Bradstreet: True Stories of Successful Master Data Management

Neil Honaker, Data Hygiene / Data Privacy Manager, Essity

Jackie McBrady, Sr Director, Lead-Finance Applications EMEA, Cushman & Wakefield

Jenn Atkins, CMO, Dun & Bradstreet

Master Data Management (MDM) is a comprehensive method that helps organizations define and manage critical data, providing a single point of reference for all data elements. It ensures data accuracy, consistency, and uniformity across the organization, leading to improved efficiency, decision-making, and regulatory compliance. MDM consists of components such as master data, metadata, data quality, and data integration. Best practices for implementing MDM include having a clear strategy, securing executive buy-in, prioritizing data quality, involving stakeholders, starting small and scaling gradually, choosing the right tools, and planning for data governance. Common challenges in MDM implementation include inconsistent data quality and resistance to change, which can be addressed through data cleansing and effective communication. Successful MDM implementation results in enhanced decision-making, improved operational efficiency, and better regulatory compliance.

How We Plan to Use What We've Learned

Attending the Forrester B2B Summit was truly an illuminating experience that has invigorated our team at MarinOne. As we reflect on the invaluable insights gained from industry experts, thought leaders, and fellow marketing professionals, we are inspired to push the boundaries of B2B marketing and embrace innovation. Armed with a fresh perspective and a deep understanding of emerging trends, we are eager to implement the strategies and best practices we've learned to drive tangible results for our clients and stay ahead of the curve. The Forrester B2B Summit served as a catalyst for growth, igniting our passion for continuous learning and reaffirming our commitment to delivering exceptional B2B marketing solutions. We eagerly look forward to the opportunities and challenges that lie ahead, armed with the knowledge and inspiration we gained. Reach out to work with one of our team members to revamp your B2B advertising campaign strategy.

Automation

Defining "PPC Management" and How to Automate Yours

PPC Management is one of the most effective ways for a business to achieve positive ROI. In this article, we break down what PPC management is, why it’s important, and what kind of processes go with it. We wrap up with some opportunities to automate your PPC management (and why automation is an attractive option).

‍Defining PPC Management

Let’s start by defining “PPC” as “pay per click”, which refers to the common pricing model of digital advertising publishers constrained by the advertiser’s overall budget. PPC Management is the process of organizing, managing, and optimizing the PPC budget to achieve optimal performance.

This definition is extremely basic, as the practice of managing PPC encompasses a myriad of tasks that result in the efficient spend of the budget toward a company’s goal. These goals are typically related to awareness or ROI. While PPC is one of the best ways to improve ROI, it can take a lot of time, effort, and testing to produce optimal results. This is why many advertisers go the route of hiring a PPC agency and/or leveraging automation (more on this later).

Why PPC Management is Important

Simply put: effective PPC Management can help you reach your business goals. Done properly, PPC Management is a game changer for businesses large and small.

PPC Management Essentials

The PPC management process includes many parts, some of which a business might opt to take on internally. There are many great resources for learning the ropes of PPC management (check out this guide from HubSpot), but sometimes it’s best to bring in a professional to get the most out of your time and advertising investment.

Some common tasks typically included with PPC Management are:

Keyword Research and Analysis

Researching the keywords that customers are looking for related to your business. These are then evaluated and adjusted based on performance during optimization.

Targeting Channels

Google and Bing are the top publishers for PPC, but they aren’t the only places where your audience spends time. PPC management might extend to channels such as Facebook, LinkedIn, Criteo, and many more depending on your unique business needs.

Optimization Tasks

Are some keywords spending money but not driving any ROI? Is there a headline that is performing way better than others? Is that bid too low for your ads to be seen? Optimization is the essential process of identifying what is working and making changes based on the findings. This may look like excluding keywords in Search ads, pausing an ad in Social, adjusting a keyword bid, etc. Consistent implementation of these tweaks is important as the ppc landscape is dynamic, meaning that there is always room for optimization based on the current factors at play.

Competitor Analysis

There are many options for competitor research out there that vary by channel. Tools like SpyFu can be used to gain insight into competitor keyword strategy, while Facebook Ad Library can help you scope out the creative strategy of the competitor. Competitor analysis is great for finding inspiration for your own ppc strategy.

A/B Testing

Always Be Testing! Testing copy, landing pages, creative, etc are all essential to continuous improvement. Testing and learning is the best way to understand what works for your business and how to improve.

How to Automate your PPC Management

As you might imagine, the tasks above can take a considerable amount of time and effort. While there are some tasks that can be outsourced to agencies, there are others that can be easily managed through automation.

One pillar of Marin Software’s offering is automation, saving businesses time and money on essential ppc management tasks.

Here are a few of the ways that Marin’s automation can help you with your ppc management strategy:

Flexible Rules and Dynamic Actions

Integrate external signals into Marin for smart optimizations that are performed without you lifting a finger.

One-Click Keyword Expansion

Marin identifies keyword opportunities, and with the tap of your mouse they can be launched in your campaigns. No need to spend time researching the best keywords, Marin does it for you.

Build Campaigns Based on Feeds

Build out text and shopping ads from your feeds or use our dynamic campaigns tool to pause ads based on inventory. This is a fast and effective way to manage your ppc campaigns.

Bidding

Marin’s Strategies offer transparency and efficiency while performing optimizations to your ppc campaigns. Algorithmic bidding is available for multiple publishers through Marin.

To learn more about opportunities for automation customized to your business, reach out to us!

Balancing Privacy and Personalization in E-commerce Marketing

Balancing personalized experiences and consumer privacy has become incredibly complex.. As a result, retailers are constantly looking for ways to engage, retarget, and personalize consumer experiences while complying with the ever-growing list of privacy laws.

One study showed that consumers were more open to explore beyond their usual products during the pandemic, with up to 75% trying new categories and 40% switching to new brands.

To help you navigate this tricky situation, we've put together some tips on how to tread the fine line between providing the personalized experience consumers crave and safeguarding your customers’ privacy. This balance is a delicate one that retailers must learn to strike if they hope to remain competitive.

The difference between personalization and privacy

E-commerce personalization should be all about delivering something relevant to your users. Try to also make it something they will relate to, as this will help build a strong connection with them. In turn, it will also start the process of forming a successful relationship. In the modern digital age, personalized and relevant content is essential if you want to keep your consumers engaged and interested in your products and services. However, this approach doesn't mean you should resort to over-tracking and collecting your users' personally identifiable information.

Instead, focus on understanding user intent to create relevant content that meets their needs. This approach allows you to deliver an exceptional experience without compromising your customers' privacy. As a bonus, you'll ensure they follow through with their purchase after abandoning their shopping cart.

Collect relevant data only

While data is essential for personalization, only collect the data you need to create a personalized experience. Businesses should avoid accumulating too much data or data that customers are not willing to share, as this can damage trust and discourage future engagement.

To strike the right balance, businesses should focus on collecting the most relevant data to the customer journey. This data might include basic demographic information, purchase history, and browsing behavior. By collecting only the necessary data, you can create personalized experiences that feel relevant and valuable to customers without compromising their privacy.

Personalize the experience for brand-new customers

As online traffic grows, most visitors remain anonymous, limiting the potential for personalization in the retail industry. However, there are ways to address this challenge. Consumers will often move on to the next best solution if they don't receive a personalized experience. Therefore, it is important to strategically navigate these changing times and not lose the opportunity to serve your customers.

Personalization is about providing a relatable experience to the user on a session-by-session basis. Losing that first opportunity to engage your visitors is not an option. Try using quizzes or surveys for first-time visitors. By asking questions and gathering consent-based reference data, you can gain valuable insights into your customers' wants and needs without invading their privacy.

By capturing the user and understanding their intent through consent-based reference data, you can obtain valuable customer data while respecting their privacy. When creating these strategies, consider that many new customers use their mobile devices to access your content, so you should account for a mobile app marketing option.

Machine-Learning and AI tech can help understand consumer behavior

To provide an exceptional customer experience, it is crucial to gather customer data based on their consent. Focus on omnichannel approaches that track visitors and consumers without compromising their privacy. There are conversational AI tools that can lessen the work of your team in this regard.

Personalization means delivering what customers want at the right moment; this strategy doesn't necessarily involve collecting and tracking their personal information. It's essential to remember that Gen Z consumers are particularly cautious about sharing their identities.

Aim to collect customer first-party data, ensuring it is based on their consent, then use it to personalize the customer experience. Find influencers people trust to communicate your message, then target your chosen audience with relevant content, offers, or products. It's essential to recognize that different customers have different preferences; some might respond to discounts, while others might appreciate informative content or product knowledge. A lightweight solution that helps to convert customers within the session is the way to go.

Communicate data policies clearly

To continue building trust with customers while encouraging them to share their data, you must communicate your data and privacy policies clearly and transparently. This transparency includes clearly explaining how you will use their data, who you’ll share it with, and how you will protect it.

To achieve this clarity, you should provide options for customers to opt out of data sharing and have their data deleted. We also recommend displaying security badges on your website to show customers that you protect their data and privacy. By breaking down their privacy policies in an easy-to-understand manner using FAQ-style language and infographics, you can help customers feel more comfortable sharing their data.

Branding and building trust

Everything you do is a branding exercise, even down to the Amazon Custom Shortlinks you use. Educate your team on the importance of privacy in creating a positive customer experience across every business element.

With the constantly evolving landscape of data privacy laws, it's important to stay informed and up to date on the regulations in the countries and territories where you do business. This approach ensures you are always compliant and avoid legal issues that could damage your reputation.

Supercharge your E-commerce advertising

Happy customers equal good business, and toggling the line between personalization and privacy with the tips above is one of the many ways you can ensure it. We also recommend harnessing the power of MarinOne Insights to identify opportunities in your digital marketing programs automatically. Work smarter, not harder, with our expert help.

Amazon

Amazon and Pinterest Join Forces: Expanding Audience Targeting and E-comm Opportunities

Pinterest, the popular social media platform known for its visual search engine, has announced a multi-year partnership with Amazon to bring third-party ad demand to the platform. This collaboration will allow advertisers to purchase ads on Pinterest through Amazon's Demand-Side Platform (DSP).

The partnership is set to benefit both parties, with Amazon gaining access to Pinterest's vast user base of over 450 million monthly active users, while Pinterest will have access to Amazon's robust e-commerce capabilities. The partnership will also help advertisers reach their desired audience more efficiently and effectively, as they will have access to the wealth of data that both platforms have collected about their users.

For Pinterest, this partnership is part of their ongoing efforts to enhance their advertising offerings and provide more options for advertisers. In recent years, the platform has introduced features such as Promoted Pins and Shopping Ads to make it easier for businesses to reach their target audience on the platform.

This partnership is not the first of its kind for Pinterest, as the platform has previously collaborated with other e-commerce giants such as Shopify and WooCommerce. These partnerships have allowed businesses to integrate their online stores with Pinterest, making it easier for users to discover and purchase products on the platform.

However, the partnership with Amazon is perhaps the most significant one yet, as it opens up a whole new world of advertising opportunities for Pinterest. The partnership will allow Pinterest to provide advertisers with more advanced targeting capabilities. For instance, advertisers will be able to target users based on their Amazon purchasing history and search behavior, as well as their Pinterest engagement history.

The partnership is also a significant win for Amazon, as it allows the e-commerce giant to extend its reach beyond its own platform and tap into Pinterest's vast user base. With over 450 million monthly active users, Pinterest offers Amazon a unique opportunity to expand its advertising offerings and reach new customers.

Furthermore, the partnership aligns with Amazon's broader strategy of expanding its advertising business. Over the past few years, the company has been investing heavily in its advertising capabilities, with the goal of becoming a major player in the digital advertising space.

By partnering with Pinterest, Amazon can tap into the platform's vast user base and gain access to valuable data that can help inform its advertising strategy. This, in turn, will help the e-commerce giant better compete with other digital advertising giants such as Google and Facebook.

Overall, the Pinterest-Amazon partnership is a significant development for both companies and the advertising industry as a whole. The partnership will provide businesses with more advanced advertising capabilities while also helping Pinterest and Amazon grow their respective businesses.

As the advertising landscape continues to evolve, collaborations such as this one will become increasingly important for businesses looking to stay ahead of the curve. By partnering with other industry leaders, businesses can leverage each other's strengths to create more comprehensive advertising solutions and drive better results.

Making Accurate Sales Forecasts with CRM Analytics

Accurate sales forecasting is key to the success of any business. Companies have been using traditional sales forecasting techniques for years, but are they as effective as they need to be?

The truth is accurate sales forecasting is difficult to predict and achieve under the most favorable of circumstances. A report by Korn Ferry revealed that only one-fourth of sales teams are able to attain 75% accuracy in their sales forecasting.

Thankfully, times have changed and sales forecasting has seen a great improvement with the introduction of CRM analytics tools. These tools provide you with reliable predictions that are highly accurate, making it easier to get the desired outcome for your business.

This article provides insight into how CRM analytics can be leveraged to make accurate sales forecasts. It aims to help you by outlining a winning strategy for your business, through executing CRM analytics in sales forecasting.

What is Sales Forecast Accuracy?

Firstly, let us define sales forecast accuracy. This is the accuracy of your projection tools to predict forecasted sales for a given period of time. Accurate sales projections are essential to ensure adequate resource allocation, production forecasts, insights into customer behavior and a better understanding of market trends not only for the coming quarter, but ideally for several quarters ahead. Such data is vital for businesses to make well-informed decisions.

Here are some common outcomes if a sales forecast goes wrong.

Overproduction
Underproduction
Stockouts
Excess inventory
Customer dissatisfaction
Hindrance in profitability

A reliable way to measure sales forecast accuracy is by looking back at the percentage difference between actual and forecasted sales performance. A smaller gap indicates that the prediction was more accurate, while a larger gap would mean the projection was not accurate. Businesses can use this information to refine their sales forecasting models, improve their forecasting processes, and make better decisions.

The Role Of CRM Analytics In Sales Forecasting

In the final two decades of the 20th century, sales and marketing achieved some significant milestones. Way back in 1987, the first automated CRM - Automated Contact Tracking (ACT) - was released. Over time, sales forecasting has been incorporated as a feature within this software and is used by many businesses today.

Let's dive into some of the key roles of CRM analytics in sales forecasting.

Customer Segmentation

By segregating customers based on common characteristics or behaviors, your business can tailor their sales forecasting strategies to each group. This can lead to higher customer satisfaction and increased sales.

E.g., your business can create segments based on demographic data, including gender, age, and location. The segments might also include purchase behavior, such as frequency or value of purchases.

Perform Predictive Modeling

CRM analytics use data and statistical models to predict future customer behavior, like plausibility to purchase or churn. This way, your business can anticipate customer needs and proactively address issues.

Using CRM analytics, you can analyze historical data and identify which campaigns and promotions have successfully driven sales. This can help your business focus the resources on the most effective strategies, improving your return on investment and overall profitability.

Identify Opportunities For Scalability

Using CRM analytics, now you can identify overlooked customer segments and new markets by the data acquired. These are budding opportunities to reach out to the needs of your customers by launching new products and services, which in turn boost sales revenue and scalability.

Monitor Sales Performance

Using CRM analytics, you can monitor sales performance in real time. As a result, you can always be updated with the correct implementation of the current strategy, identify areas of improvement, and adjust your sales strategies accordingly.

Forecast Customer Lifetime Value

CRM analytics can help you predict the potential lifetime value of customers. So next time, you can prioritize and invest in the customers adding more value to your organization.

Identify Cross-Selling And Upselling Opportunities

Forecasting accuracy is achieved by identifying the singular opportunities that add to increased revenue. Cross-selling and upselling are some critical points for potential revenue you wouldn’t want to miss without having to drastically increase lead volume. CRM analytics can analyze customer data and provide business-driven insights to pinpoint the places your business could be better optimizing your cross-sell and upsell strategies.

Importance Of Accurate Sales Forecasting For Businesses

Although we have covered CRM sales forecasting as a successful method for getting accurate results, there are several significant reasons why accurate sales forecasting is critical for businesses. Here are a few:

Resource allocation

Sales forecasts are used to allocate resources such as personnel, equipment, and inventory. If a company overestimates sales, it may invest too much in these resources, resulting in overproduction, waste, and unnecessary costs. Conversely, if a company underestimates sales, it may not allocate enough resources, leading to stockouts and lost sales.

Financial planning

Accurate sales forecasts are essential for financial planning, budgeting, and cash flow management. By accurately forecasting sales, businesses can plan their expenses and investments to optimize their financial performance including overhead and new hires.

Production planning

Sales forecasts play a critical role in production planning, as they help businesses determine how much product to produce and when to produce it. Accurate forecasts can help businesses avoid stockouts and excess inventory–issues that often lead to reduced profits and increased costs.

Marketing strategy

Sales forecasts give businesses insights into consumer behavior and market trends, which can inform marketing tactics. By accurately forecasting sales, businesses can adjust their marketing efforts to maximize their return on investment.

Investor confidence

Investors rely on accurate sales forecasts to assess a company's performance and growth potential. Investors may view a company that consistently misses its sales targets negatively, which can impact its ability to secure funding and grow.

In a nutshell, accurate sales forecasting is essential for businesses to make informed decisions, optimize resources, and improve their financial performance. By investing in accurate forecasting methods and tools, businesses can gain a competitive advantage and position themselves for long-term success.

Understanding CRM Analytics

CRM analytics refers to the process of analyzing data from a company's customer relationship management system (CRM) to gain insights into customer behavior, preferences, and needs. This data can then be used to increase sales, improve customer engagement, and boost customer satisfaction.

Let’s dive a bit deeper and understand what CRM does and how its analytics benefit you.

A CRM is a powerful database system that stores information on:

Company customers’ contact information
Customers’ purchase history
Customer service interactions

Companies can unleash patterns and trends in their customer data by using tools like data visualization, predictive modeling, and machine learning algorithms.

For example, they might discover that customers who purchase certain products are more likely to make repeat purchases or that customers who interact with customer service through social media are more likely to give high satisfaction ratings.

Likewise, companies can make informed and data-driven decisions on how to engage with their customers. Another way to utilize customer data would be to send personalized recommendations to customers based on their purchase history. This creates a sense of customized experiences contributing to customer trust and retention.

Implementing CRM Analytics for Sales Forecasting

Depicted above is how CRM and sales forecasting are linked. Let's walk through four easy steps to execute accurate sales forecasting using CRM analytics :

Identify The Data Sources

The first step to implementing CRM sales forecasting is identifying the data sources. Here are some data points of which you ought to be mindful:

Customer Interactions
Purchase Histories
Website Traffic
Social Media Activity

The data from these sources can help your business understand customer behavior and preferences comprehensively.

Develop a Data Model

The next step to successful sales forecasting is to develop a data model.

A data model will help you structure the facts and figures to pave the way for a successful analysis. This step may involve creating segments on customer characteristics or purchase behavior. You will also be able to develop a predictive model to forecast the customers’ future behavior.

Analyze the Data

Now that you have a well-versed data model, you can now identify patterns and trends through the data model analysis. E.g., using statistical models to identify correlations and patterns or using machine learning algorithms to predict future behavior.

Generate Reports And Insights

The final step in implementing CRM analytics for sales forecasting is to generate reports and insights. With this final step, you will be ready to make informed business-winning decisions.

You can see your insights in KPI dashboards and monitor real-time data on sales performance. You can also get a hold of reports providing insights into customer behavior and preferences.

The Road Ahead of Accurate Sales Forecasts

Summing up how CRM analytics affects sales forecasts, here are a few key takeaways:

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By using CRM analytics, you can leverage customer visibility by quickly accessing accounts, tasks, contracts, and events of individual users leading to higher performing marketing actions.
With customer segmentation, you can get a better identify opportunities for scalability, monitor sales performance, forecast customer lifetime value, and more.
With a concrete plan to integrate CRM analytics into sales forecasting, you are ready to take business-winning decisions with a map to guide you.

Initially implementing CRM analytics requires a significant investment in data infrastructure and expertise. But this investment paves a long road to greater ROI.

To learn how to optimize your sales process end-to-end, get in touch with the professionals at Marin Software. We're ready to help you make the most of your advertising investment leading to a more consistent CRM lead funnel.

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Shweta is a guest contributor to the Marin Software blog.

Create Marketing Assets That Convert: Best Practices and Design Strategies

If you’re a business looking to differentiate yourself from competitors, switching up your marketing strategy should be your go-to.

Creating killer marketing assets allows you to stand out, convert potential customers, and create an instantly recognizable brand identity.

But what exactly are marketing assets, and how can you make them as effective as possible? Let’s dive in!

See Freepik’s Guide on Visual Trends for 2023 (Image Source)

What are Marketing Assets?

Marketing assets are tools used by organizations to promote their products or services. The most common examples include landing pages, blog posts, social media posts, infographics, videos, and eBooks.

Marketing assets help you differentiate yourself from competitors, explain your unique offering to customers, and convert prospects.

With the rise of video platforms and sites like Instagram proving just how valuable visual content is, making your digital marketing assets visually appealing has never been more crucial. Creating landing pages that look stuck in the 90s or social media posts with questionable filters is a no-go.

The good news? There are tons of stock photos, videos, and vectors you can use to set your marketing assets apart from the rest, as well as fresh content ideas to keep your site and social media page up to date.

If you’re new to design or simply need a refresher, here are our top tips for creating marketing assets that will have your customers scrambling at your (virtual) door and your competitors scrambling to keep up.

Create a Strong Brand Identity

If you think about the biggest, most popular brands, they probably have one thing in common - a strong, instantly recognizable brand identity.

Consistency is key in cultivating a strong brand identity with the help of your marketing assets. The most important marketing assets will be your website, blog, and social media page, so keeping the types of images, font, and colors consistent across all three is critical.

Your tone of voice is equally as important as the visuals. Whether you write in an informal, conversational style or a formal, more authoritative one, picking a tone of voice that resonates with your audience and sticking to it is a must.

Make the Most of Social Media

Social media posts are some of the best marketing assets you can use in your strategy. People worldwide presently spend an average of 2 hours and 28 minutes per day scrolling through social media platforms, according to Hootsuite.

The best part is that creating a business account on a social media platform is free, so it’s one of the lowest-cost marketing techniques you can use.

To keep things simple, start by working with the channels most likely to connect you to your target audience. If you’re targeting Gen Z and millennials, this will be Instagram or TikTok, while Gen X and baby boomers are more likely to use Facebook.

To create a coherent brand identity across your social media profile, use the same colors, typography, and tone of voice that you use in your other marketing assets.

No design experience? No problem! You don’t have to be a professional graphic designer to create marketing assets that look good. Use templates, vector images, and easy-to-use image creation software to get started with social media posts.

‍

Tell Your Story

Implementing storytelling in your marketing assets can be a game changer for your marketing strategy. Creating a narrative around your brand can make it easier for potential customers to connect with you emotionally.

Using storytelling in your assets can even make your brand more memorable.

You can use free videos for your content on your social media channel or your product’s videos as part of your product descriptions to give customers a more realistic view of what they’re buying and reduce returns.

Bonus points if you feature a content creator popular in your niche in your video content or feature user-generated content in your marketing assets.

With 53% of shoppers saying they always do research before buying a product, having previous buyers vouch for what you’re selling can massively increase trust in your brand.

Create Easy-to-Read Blogs

Blogs benefit your business in various ways - they can improve your SEO, boost brand awareness, and cement your status as an authority in your industry.

Here’s the catch.

If blogs are thousands of words long with no subheadings, long paragraphs, and a lack of visual content, readers can easily switch off, and you’ll miss out on the desired effects of improved conversion rates and brand trust.

To keep your blogs as readable as possible (and optimized for Google’s algorithm), add subheadings to signal new topics, write in paragraphs no longer than four lines, and add visuals such as images and infographics where applicable.

Consider Video Case Studies

Case studies are widely perceived to be the gold standard of testimonials.

Proving how your product or service has benefited an individual or company by letting them tell their own story combines two of the most effective techniques in the world of marketing - storytelling and user-generated content.

Imagine you could take your case studies to a whole new level. That’s where video case studies come in. By tapping into the popularity of video content and its ability to build trust with consumers, you can increase the effectiveness of some of the most popular marketing assets, case studies.

Focus on Consistency, Authenticity, and Connection

Your marketing assets should allow your target audience to feel more connected to you and better understand what your brand stands for.

Using images and videos can make your content more visually appealing, while settling on color and typography brand guidelines can help you create an instantly-recognizable look.

For the best chance at capturing the minds of your potential customer base, focus on cultivating a consistent brand identity, using storytelling, and creating marketing assets across various platforms.

‍

Filip Nikoloski is a guest contributor to Marin Software's blog and website.

B2B

B2B Online Chicago Day 1 Recap: Navigating Modern Marketing, E-commerce, and B2B Marketplaces

We recently attended B2B Online in Chicago to get a sense of how distributors and manufacturers are delving into digital marketing to create full-funnel B2B customer journeys. Read on to get an overview of key themes industry experts shared on day one. Some of the most important topics throughout the day were about increasing ROI, developing the ultimate tech stack, aligning sales with your digital strategy, and leveraging the power of e-commerce marketplaces.

Modern Marketing to Increase ROI

To increase ROI, marketers should keep up with the latest trends and technologies. Key strategies discussed include:

Leveraging digital marketing channels: Develop a comprehensive strategy that includes social media, email marketing, SEO, and pay-per-click advertising.
Measuring ROI through analytics: Use marketing analytics tools to track website traffic, conversion rates, and customer engagement.
Personalizing marketing efforts: Segment audiences based on demographics, behaviors, and interests to create personalized campaigns.
Incorporating influencer marketing and user-generated content: Partner with influencers and encourage customers to create and share content.

Developing the Ultimate Tech Stack

Building an efficient tech stack requires understanding business needs and goals. Some of the most important tools for digital marketers to consider include:

Identifying key components: CRM software, marketing automation tools, and analytics platforms are crucial for managing customer data, automating marketing tasks, and gaining insights.
Evaluating and selecting tools: Research different options and choose those that meet specific business needs.
Integrating and optimizing the tech stack: Ensure seamless integration and collaboration between different tools for improved efficiency.
Ensuring data security and privacy compliance: Implement measures to protect customer data and comply with privacy regulations.

Aligning Sales

Aligning sales and marketing goals is crucial for driving revenue. The experts shared various methods for making this happen:

Implementing a sales enablement strategy: Provide sales teams with the right tools, resources, and training.
Using data analytics to optimize sales processes: Gain insights into customer behavior and preferences to improve engagement and increase sales.
Aligning sales compensation with business goals: Develop a compensation plan that rewards performance and aligns with objectives.
Providing ongoing training and development: Continuously improve sales teams' skills and knowledge.

Transforming Digital Experience with Nordson

Nordson Corporation's digital transformation journey highlighted the importance of enhancing the user experience and leveraging technology. Here's what Nordson did to be successful:

Leveraging the power of Coveo: Nordson used Coveo to scale their business and streamline the user experience.
Enhancing product discovery: Nordson's strong taxonomy foundation improved product discovery on their website.
Benefits of a streamlined user experience: A seamless and responsive experience leads to better engagement and business value.

Reimagining Sales to Include E-commerce

Integrating e-commerce into sales strategies is crucial for growth. Some key points that were shared more than once:

The importance of a digital frontend: Digital should be an integral part of the selling process.
Understanding headless selling: Leveraging technology and analytics to integrate digital selling and drive growth.
Personalization and customer experience: Emphasizing the role of personalization and focusing on customer satisfaction.
Measuring success and optimizing strategies: Tracking key metrics and continuously improving e-commerce sales approaches.

Proactive vs. Reactive: Enabling E-procurement

Procurement teams must adapt to remove inefficiencies in the Procure-to-Pay process. Key topics discussed include:

Understanding e-Procurement and its benefits: Emphasizing the cost savings, efficiency, and supplier relationship improvements.
Modernizing the e-commerce platform: Evolving e-commerce platforms to incorporate e-Procurement features and functionalities.
Managing suppliers and vendor relationships: Establishing effective requirements and measuring supplier performance.
Collaboration between departments: The importance of aligning procurement and e-commerce teams and breaking down silos for improved communication and efficiency.
ROI goals for e-Procurement and the company: Defining ROI goals, factors impacting ROI, and strategies for maximizing ROI.
Corporate social responsibility and hitting goals: Integrating CSR into procurement processes and aligning e-Procurement initiatives with CSR goals.

Bullsh*t Bingo in B2B Commerce: What Is Real, What Is Fake, and What Matters

This presentation highlighted the importance of transparency and authenticity in B2B marketing and sales. This was definitely the most lively, entertaining and informative presentation of the week. Here's what they ultimately had to say:

Identifying common "bullsh*t" in B2B marketing: Vague claims, jargon, and inflated statistics.
Negative effects of "bullsh*t" on trust and relationships.
Benefits of transparency and authenticity: Building trust and differentiation.
Strategies for avoiding "bullsh*t": Fact-checking, asking for proof, and focusing on specific outcomes.
Role of customer feedback and reviews: Separating real from fake in B2B commerce.
Ethical considerations in marketing and sales.

Myth Busting False B2B Online Beliefs

The presentation debunked common myths in B2B marketing. We've provided below the most common myths they "busted" and what B2B marketers should actually be doing:

B2B buyers using social media: Importance of having a social media presence as a B2B company as this is a key way to build trust, brand authenticity, and have potential buyers find you.
Importance of visual content in B2B marketing: Engaging B2B buyers through visual content should not be underestimated as it can have a lasting effect on your company's perception.
Digital channels in B2B sales: The role of digital channels and the increasing reliance of B2B buyers on them–it's well past time to move away from traditional methods.
Personalization in B2B marketing: Building stronger relationships with B2B buyers through personalization is a good technique for creating a healthy returning customer base.
Role of brand storytelling in B2B marketing: Differentiating a company from competitors through brand storytelling is not just for CPG or D2C brands.
Building brand awareness in B2B marketing: Importance of brand reputation beyond lead generation.
Emotional factors in B2B marketing: Considering emotional factors alongside rational decisions.

Building a Paid Brand Presence to Reach Consumers

A paid brand presence is vital for standing out in a crowded market. Here are the highlights of what was shared:

Importance of paid brand presence: Increasing visibility, brand recognition, and sales.
Understanding the target audience: Defining demographics, psychographics, and online behaviors.
Crafting an effective paid brand strategy: Setting clear goals, selecting appropriate channels, and determining budgets.
Creating engaging ad content: Using visuals, clear messaging, and A/B testing.
Measuring and optimizing paid brand presence: Tracking performance metrics and continuously refining strategies.

How the Modern PIM is Driving Growth with Automation and AI

The main presentation surrounding this topic focused on the role of modern Product Information Management (PIM) systems in driving growth. Some quick takeaways from that presentation are as follows:

Overview of modern PIM solutions: Core features, data modeling, enrichment, and syndication.
Importance of automation in PIM: Streamlining data entry, validation, and categorization.
Role of AI in PIM: Leveraging machine learning to analyze product data and optimize information.
Benefits of automating attribution: Reducing errors and increasing efficiency.
Generating potent product descriptions using AI: Personalizing descriptions for different channels and audiences.
Case studies of successful PIM implementations: Increased sales and improved customer experience.
PIM's role in omnichannel commerce: Delivering consistent and accurate product information.
Key considerations when selecting a PIM solution: Integration capabilities, scalability, and ease of use.
Future trends in PIM: Natural language processing and image recognition for automation.

Getting the Ball Rolling With Customer Adoption in B2B Global E-commerce

The fireside chat focused on the importance of customer adoption in B2B e-commerce. Key insights discussed include:

Customer adoption impacts revenue growth and sustainability.
Develop a customer-centric approach with personalized experiences and data analytics.
Address global e-commerce adoption challenges like cultural differences and regulatory compliance.
Navigate B2B e-commerce distribution channels for efficient supply chain models.
Build a comprehensive customer acquisition strategy using paid advertising and content marketing.
Leverage AI for cross-selling and upselling to optimize customer lifetime value.
Collaborate with technology partners for customized e-commerce platforms.
Embrace emerging trends like mobile and voice commerce for innovative experiences.
Measure and report customer adoption metrics for continuous improvement.
De-risk e-commerce platforms with fraud prevention and data protection measures.
Manage customer expectations for delivery times and product quality.
Ensure robust disaster recovery and business continuity plans.

Where B2B marketers may have some changes to make compared to their B2C counterpoints is in maintaining transparency, authenticity, and ethical standards in marketing and sales. With additional focus in these areas, all the experts who presented agree that long-term relationships with customers will ultimately lead to long-term success…especially for manufacturers and distributors.

To address these areas for potential improvement, the industry expert presentations shared at B2B Online Chicago provided valuable guidance for increasing ROI, developing tech stacks, aligning sales, leveraging e-commerce, and succeeding in the marketplace model. It's clear that by embracing digital technologies, personalization, and customer-centric approaches, B2B businesses can enhance their marketing efforts, streamline operations, and drive revenue growth.

MarinOne Scripts Will Change How You Manage Your Advertising Campaigns

PPC advertising has revolutionized the world of online advertising, allowing businesses of all sizes to reach their target audience and generate conversions. However, managing PPC campaigns can be a time-consuming and laborious process, especially for businesses that run multiple campaigns simultaneously. This is where MarinOne comes in, providing businesses with a powerful and efficient automation tool that can save time, improve accuracy, and increase efficiency.

MarinOne Scripts is a part of MarinOne, a comprehensive cross-channel advertising platform that integrates all of a business's advertising data into a single platform. With MarinOne Scripts, businesses can automate various aspects of PPC campaign management, including adjusting bids, budgets, and ad status based on preset logic. Similar to MarinOne bidding, automated changes to bids and budgets allow businesses to focus on strategic aspects of their marketing program while MarinOne Scripts takes care of the routine tasks. Since MarinOne Scripts leverages Python, users can leverage Scripts that handle spend optimization, keyword expansion, negative keyword mining, data analysis, and ad copy optimization.

Automate Bidding, Budgets, and Keyword Monitoring

With MarinOne Scripts, businesses can automate bid adjustments and budget allocation, eliminating the need for manual monitoring and adjustment. MarinOne Scripts can also help businesses identify underperforming keywords and pause or adjust them automatically, saving valuable time. Users can customize scripts so that they can chain actions together - ex.everytime a poor performing kw is paused, it is also added as a negative keyword to the original campaign and/or all campaigns.

Increase Efficiency Based on Performance

Another benefit of MarinOne Scripts is that it increases efficiency. MarinOne Scripts automatically adjusts SmartBidding targets based on performance data, ensuring that businesses get the most out of their ad spend. It can also optimize ad copy to improve conversion rates and reduce cost-per-click. By streamlining the PPC campaign management process, MarinOne Scripts helps businesses improve their efficiency and increase their ROI.

Increase Accuracy with AI

MarinOne Scripts improves accuracy of data analysis as it minimizes the instances of human error - a common problem in manual PPC campaign management. MarinOne Scripts eliminates the risk of human error by automating several aspects of campaign management. This ensures that businesses get accurate and reliable data on their campaign performance, allowing them to make data-driven decisions. It also ensures business continuity in the event that a PPC manager has unexpected time off and is unable to manually monitor and/or optimize PPC campaigns.

Customize and Scale All Advertising Campaigns Cross-Channel

In addition to saving time, increasing efficiency, and improving accuracy, MarinOne Scripts is scalable and customizable, making it an ideal solution for businesses of all sizes. Whether a business is managing a single campaign or multiple campaigns, MarinOne Scripts can help automate and optimize PPC campaigns across online ad accounts.

MarinOne Scripts customization capabilities give advertisers the flexibility to create automation rules that are tailored to their unique business goals and objectives. Each script can have pre-defined start and end dates - this way, advertisers can apply scripts that are aligned with their business calendar. As an example, end of quarter spend governance rules may be more flexible than start of quarter so two scripts with complimentary start and end dates would ensure that the appropriate spend governance rules are applied.

With scalability and customization options, MarinOne Scripts is a valuable asset for any business that wants to get the most out of its PPC campaigns. Speak to us today about getting started and trying MarinOne Scripts for free during the first 30 days.

Copy and Find and Replace in MarinOne

Why recreate the wheel? New ads are often similar to existing ads. The powerful Copy Tool in MarinOne lets you easily copy campaigns, groups, keywords, creatives, and placements across accounts and publishers. You can also apply Find and Replace during the copy process.

Find and Replace

The Find and Replace feature is also available as a standalone tool, allowing you to quickly make changes to your ads without editing each one individually or dealing with downloading and uploading bulk files. Instead, simply input the text you'd like to find and the text you'd like to replace, then MarinOne will handle the rest. When managing large campaigns with many different assets, such as RSAs, Find and Replace can be a big time saver.

Used side by side, the copy tool and find and replace functionality allow you to turn a single permutation of an ad into many different permutations featuring updated brand names, product types, headlines, description lines, display URLs, and more.

Want to learn more about MarinOne? Take a 3-minute product tour here.

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Agencies

How to Write Incredible Calls to Action (with Examples)

What if I say, “Subscribe to our email newsletter at the end of the article?” Probably, you’ll skip it and forget when reaching the subscription button. Why? Because a compelling call to action is not only about using action words. CTAs should appear at the right place and contain the right words to lead to conversion.

A CTA is a suggestion to people to perform a certain action: subscribe, download an ebook, schedule a call, etc. Website owners place them in various parts of the page, depending on the goals, such as:

above the fold;
in the middle of an article;
next to the lead form;
in the right rail and many other places.

How should you arrange CTAs to encourage the audience to do what’s expected? This post will enumerate some helpful tips for successful call-to-action writing and show real-world examples from various spheres.

Image credit: Freepik

7 Proven Tips for Crafting Effective CTAs

Choose the Right Action Verb

CTAs usually appear precisely at the end of the message. It’s the last opportunity to reach out to consumers and point them in the right direction on their purchase journey. Where can you see them? On buttons, ads, banners, pop-ups, slide-ins, or at the end of videos. In any case, you have limited space for them. That’s why the CTA should be short, concise, and punchy.

Use a command verb at the beginning of the CTA copy. Compare the following variants and think of what will be more effective:

Start your 14-day free trial period now.
A 14-day trial period is available.

The first option is the clear winner because it tells the audience what to do. Remember that a strong call to action eliminates as much thought as possible. Choose the needed verb to match your situation and purpose, such as:

sign up, subscribe, register now/get access
download, start free trial;
learn more, click here;
buy/purchase, shop, order.

Use Power Words and Emotional Triggers

Another crucial component of call-to-action writing is power words. These are words that appeal to emotions and trigger the desire to click. While action verbs tell readers what to do and what will happen after clicking a link, power words subtly nudge people to the desired page. They rely on people’s emotions as a motivation to proceed, such as:

fear: mistake, nightmare, painful, crisis, danger;
encouragement: amazing, astonishing, life-changing, astounding, effortless;
lust: thrilling, pleasurable, mouthwatering, compelling, engaging;
anger: misleading, diminish, infuriating, annoying;
greed: double, profit, explode, quadruple, extra, reduced;
safety: proven, risk-free, moneyback, secure, refund;
curiosity: lost, never seen before, unconventional, invitation only, confidential.

A strong CTA is the one people feel, not just comprehend. For example, “Secure your spot for the concert of a lifetime now,” will elicit a different response from viewers than, “Get your tickets for the concert now!” due to phrases like “lifetime” and “secure”. Another way to evoke enthusiasm is to leverage punctuation like an ellipsis or an exclamation mark.

Create Urgency and Scarcity

As most purchases are emotional rather than rational, another motivator can be a fear of missing out (FOMO). It’s one of the most widely-used tactics in e-commerce, where sellers show the number of remaining goods or the time left until the discount expires. So you can do it in the CTA.

The more people think, the less likely they will buy, remember? A sense of urgency/scarcity encourages people to act without much consideration. You can also find FOMO in social proof. If someone uses this product or service, others will be interested in joining the crowd. You can employ this idea in the CTA. Find a problem that your audience is experiencing. Emphasize it, show people they are not alone, and provide a solution.

Highlight the Benefits and Value Proposition

There is hardly anything more persuasive than a benefit. It works as simply as suggesting some perks for clicking the button. In other words, what are consumers going to gain from it? Will it enable people to perform their jobs more effectively, get in shape, or save money? You can add a tangible benefit like a discount or promotion. To show readers the value of clicking, start the CTA with words like “save” or “redeem” like “Save 15% by calling today!”

Or you can combine a USP and CTA in a single statement to persuade potential customers to take action. By highlighting what makes your product or service unique and motivating the user to take a specific action in line with that USP, you can increase the chances of converting them into leads or customers. Here’s an example of a USP/CTA mash-up:

“Get the best deals on luxury vacations - Book now and save 50%!”

Here you mention the action you expect users to perform (“book now”) and bring up a reason to do it (“save 50%”).

Personalize the CTA for the Target Audience

Personalization is one of the easiest ways to elicit emotions. It shows users that you value them and take a genuine interest in guiding them through the purchase journey smoothly. That’s why personalized CTAs can be so effective. According to Hubspot, tailored CTAs outperform standard CTAs by 202%.

Suppose a new website visitor, John, adds some products to the cart but leaves without buying them. You can show an exit-intent pop-up before he closes the tab with a personalized advertising call to action, such as: “John, get 10% off your first purchase! Plus, free shipping on orders over $50. Shop now and start saving!”

But if it was your existing customer, Rebecca, you could show her another pop-up, such as: “Welcome back, Rebecca! As a valued customer, we’d like to offer you 15% off your next purchase. Take advantage of this exclusive offer by making your purchase right away!”

Consider your audience when crafting your message, and address them specifically. You can segment people by age, gender, profession, level of proficiency in using your software, and other traits to offer the most relevant products and services.

Apart from writing a tailored message in your CTA, personalization can also be achieved by using new tools for sales documents creation. If you go with an interactive sales deck or proposal, you can add an impactful CTA by embedding your own calendar in the message, so that your potential customer can book their next meeting simply by reading your proposal.

Include Numbers If Relevant

Numbers catch the readers’ attention because they stand out on the page with text. So it’s another way to persuade people to click. Numbers also provide information that audiences want, like phone numbers, pricing, or advantages. For example, “Learn a new language in just 30 days with our intensive course.” It’s easy to spot the numbers, so viewers will immediately grasp the possible advantages of responding to your CTA.

You can also include a price in the ad copy and CTA. Why should you do it? On the one hand, you may scare away users from clicking the button and reading more about the product. On the other, if people deliberately respond to the ad knowing about your pricing, it shows their interest in the offer. It reduces the chances of bouncing from the landing page, increasing the return on ad spend.

Test and Optimize the CTA

Calls to action are tricky since you won’t know how effective they are until you put them to the test in real life. An idea that seems terrific on paper may not work well in practice. Thus, you need to understand why the CTA performs poorly and what doesn’t appeal to viewers. But how do you determine the need to change something? Through A/B testing.

A CTA is one of the most accessible and suitable page elements for the A/B test. A small change in word choice can have a significant impact. A/B testing lets you find the best option not only in terms of wording but also in placement, colors, size, etc.

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Examples of Incredible CTAs

Now that we know the best practices for organizing CTAs, let’s examine how different companies do it. We’ll analyze call-to-action examples of online stores, SaaS companies, and nonprofit organizations.

E-commerce CTAs

Converse

Screenshot taken on the official Converse website

The first example under consideration is from Converse, a renowned lifestyle brand. The company uses several tips mentioned above:

the language is simple to comprehend;
numbers are showing the benefits of performing a particular action, such as 15% off the next order for signing up;
the CTAs stand out from the rest of the content because they are bold or contrasting.

Ulster Weavers

Screenshot taken on Ulster Weavers

In this example from Ulster Weavers, we see the emphasis on FOMO. The bag is at a lower price, but only one item is available, so the retailer leaves us less time to think but to click the “Add to Cart” or “Buy it now” button.

Kusmi Tea

Screenshot taken on the official Kusmi Tea website

Kusmi Tea decided to play with words and use the CTA “Enjoy now” instead of a basic “Click here” or “Shop now”. Don’t be afraid to get creative, as Kusmi Tea does in this screenshot. You can also notice that there is a lot of space around the button. This trick and the contrasting black color on the orange background make the CTA more visible.

Service-Based Call-to-Action Examples

Salesforce

Screenshot taken on the official Salesforce website

Here we can see several CTAs. Salesforce directs the viewer’s attention to them in the following ways:

“Start free trial” is in the hero section of the website and is filled with color. So we understand it’s more important than the “Watch demo” button next to it.
“Try for free” is filled with a contrasting green color for more emphasis. It also denotes no obligation to pay at the moment of clicking.
The “Let’s chat” button is also noticeable. The photo on it aims to create a personal connection with the visitors and increase the likelihood of them engaging in a chat.

Time Doctor

Screenshot taken on the official Time Doctor website

When adding creativity to your CTA, be careful with misleading users. For example, the screenshot from Time Doctor illustrates two CTAs on the exit-intent pop-up:

“Yes, help me increase my team’s productivity.”
“No, I don’t need insight on what my team is doing.”

Unfortunately, they lack information about what will happen after choosing each. While you may guess the second button will close the pop-up, the first one may be confusing. Will I schedule a call, download the app, or get to the checkout page? No idea.

Exabytes

Screenshot taken on the official Exabytes website

This screenshot from Exabytes demonstrates a personalized approach. The CTA contains a personal pronoun, “My”, creating a sense of ownership and exclusivity in the customer’s mind.

Nonprofit CTAs

Elevation Church

Screenshot taken from the newsletter from the official Elevation Church website

It’s an email from Elevation Church. We can see that the organization displayed creativity in its “READY. SET. SHOP” advertising call to action. What may be the reason for that? It can be a powerful way to reach younger generations and differentiate an email from other generic promotions.

African Wildlife Foundation

Screenshot taken on the official African Wildlife Foundation website

Another nonprofit with impactful calls to action is African Wildlife Foundation. They are one of the first things you notice on the page. CTAs are concise and inspire supporters to learn more about the organization or donate immediately.

Over to You

Calls to action are indispensable elements of web forms, ad campaigns, emails, and social media content. What are the tips for designing them? We’ve looked at the top seven strategies, including:

beginning with a powerful verb;
appealing to emotions;
leveraging numbers;
offering benefits;
instilling a sense of urgency;
personalizing CTAs according to user preferences, behavior, and types;
testing various aspects of CTAs thoroughly.

These tips will help you amplify your conversion rates and find the key to your audience.

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URL Builder in MarinOne

Let’s face it, URL tracking parameters are an essential part of the digital marketing experience but can be tricky and time-consuming to get right. So we’ve made it easy with the upgraded URL Builder in MarinOne. Best of all, the built-in autocorrect automatically identifies and fixes URLs incorrectly set up.

The MarinOne URL Builder allows you to create, apply, and manage Tracking Templates, Custom Parameters, Redirects, and more across publishers and tracking solutions in MarinOne. Currently, the MarinOne URL Builder supports Google, Microsoft, and Yahoo! Japan. In addition, it automatically handles encoding if you are using redirects and makes managing custom parameters a breeze.

Think of your URL tracking templates as the building blocks for your tracking. Typical integrations see one tracking template used for one set of query string parameters.

Redirects

The URL Builder makes managing redirects simple. You can customize your URL by specifying the precise redirect you plan to use and any encoding.

None: Select this option if no redirects are needed.
Single: For URLs with a single redirect.
Double: For URLs with a double redirect.

If you use Single or Double redirects, you will also have the option to use the corresponding encoding.

The Final Template (Preview Field)

As you build out your landing page, redirects, and custom parameters, you will see your Template Preview start to build out at the bottom of your tracking template.

This template is a combination of three things:

Redirect URL (if used)
Landing Page
Landing Page parameters

Custom Parameters

Google Custom Parameters allow you to specify URL snippets (in the form of key/value pairs) that can be substituted by Google when Google serves the ad. Custom parameters will only be substituted into a Tracking Template when explicitly referenced.

For example, if your Tracking Template is: http://www.example.com?mkwid={_mkwid}

And your keyword custom parameter is {_mkwid}=abc123; the URL in the ad for that keyword will contain the resolved custom parameter: http://www.example.com?mkwid=abc123

where abc123 represents the specific object (Keyword, Placement, Product Group, etc.).

Bulk Upload can set Custom Parameters for any Google objects. However, by defining them in the URL Builder, you can let Marin add them automatically. Because Custom Parameters can contain URL snippets that differ across objects, most custom parameters defined in the URL Builder will be Marin Macros.

To set up the URL Builder so that all keywords are given a custom parameter containing Marin’s unique tracking parameter, you would define: {_mkwid}=[uniq_id] in the URL Builder, and the appropriate value will then be substituted into each keyword when the URL Builder settings are applied. The example keyword’s [uniq_id] resolved to “abc123” in the case above.

Autocorrect

The URL Builder can apply URL settings to objects when they synced into Marin. This automatically adds tracking and corrects mistakes when campaigns sync into Marin. Set your Autocorrect preferences to On, Off, or Warn; these settings will apply to your entire MarinOne Client Account.

Want to learn more about MarinOne? Take a 3-minute product tour here.

Your Step-By-Step CRO Audit Guide

Providing a great customer service experience can help you get ahead of your competitors, and there are plenty of statistics that can prove it. If your website doesn’t offer a great visitor experience, you could be missing out on a bi g opportunity to provide value that will impact your conversion rate.

To get a high return on your website's hard-earned traffic, you need more visitors to take the action you desire. By running a customer-centric conversion rate optimization (CRO) audit, you can gain deeper insights into your users’ needs, discover which parts of your site are actually maximizing conversions, and run tests to see what’s working and what’s not.

In this guide, we’ll explain everything you need to know, from what a CRO audit is to how you can get started.

What is a conversion rate optimization audit?

A CRO audit is a comprehensive evaluation of a website's design, structure, and content with the aim of improving the site’s conversion rate. The goal of a CRO audit is to identify the barriers and pain points that are preventing website visitors from completing the desired actions, such as making a purchase, filling out a form, or signing up for a service.

The process involves analyzing website data, user behavior, and customer feedback to gain a deeper understanding of the user experience and determine which elements can be optimized to increase conversions. By conducting a CRO audit, businesses can make data-driven decisions to improve their website and achieve better results.

Why is a CRO audit important?

A CRO audit can lower your customer acquisition costs by generating increased value from the visitors and users you already have on your site. CRO audits also help you identify bottlenecks in your conversion funnel, and can provide valuable data, enabling you to make informed decisions about website and marketing strategies, which can ultimately lead to increased customer engagement, loyalty, and revenue. In addition to improving traffic quality, CRO audits also allow you to pinpoint prospects’ behavioral characteristics so you can better meet their needs.

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CRO audit checklist

Here’s a handy CRO audit checklist to make sure you don’t miss anything important.

Define key conversion actions

Before embarking on your CRO journey, take time to set conversion goals and plan which conversions to track. Conversions can be defined as a user action that brings users closer to becoming a paying customer.

To accurately determine the key conversions for your business, it's important to involve various stakeholders and gain a clear understanding of what conversion means across your organization. In addition to tracking macro conversions like purchases and subscriptions, consider micro conversions along the customer journey, such as adding a product to a wish list or watching a demo video.

Concentrate on priority pages

It's important to prioritize analyzing pages that have the greatest potential to impact your conversions. To determine the most impactful pages, consider both the amount of traffic the page receives and where it fits in the customer journey.

You'll want to focus on pages that are both conversion-oriented and have a healthy traffic volume, as this will allow you to quickly see the results of your optimization efforts and determine if you're headed in the right direction. However, it's important to note that top-of-the-funnel (TOFU) content, which is designed to create awareness about a product, often receives a lot of traffic, but may not lead to direct conversions since it's positioned at the beginning of the customer journey.

Instead, consider prioritizing pages that serve as key touchpoints in the customer journey, such as specific landing pages designed to convert, or pages where users sign up for demos or download whitepapers or ebooks.

Analyze user behavior

Once you have a good understanding of which conversion actions and pages you want to audit and optimize, the next step is to analyze the behavior of your website's visitors to gain insights into their engagement and conversion patterns. Use the goal conversion tracking feature in Google Analytics and enable event tracking to monitor key conversion actions such as purchases, newsletter signups, and webinar registrations.

Use Voice-of-the-Customer (VoC) insights

To truly understand what users want and need, go beyond quantitative data. Studies prove that businesses that place more focus on their customer experience end up increasing their revenues by 4%–8% more than their competitors. They also show that VoC programs result in 55% higher retention rates.

With statistics like these, it’s important to conduct customer research and interviews to uncover the motivations behind conversions and the barriers preventing users from becoming customers. Get a clear understanding of what users think about different elements of your site and gather more information about your customers through surveys. With this information, you can address specific pain points that are hindering conversions, enabling you to make improvements where needed.

Combine qualitative and quantitative data

This approach will provide you with a comprehensive view of user satisfaction, objectives, and obstacles, enabling you to identify which factors are preventing conversions. When your CRO audit is complete, pinpoint areas for improvement and focus on eliminating friction points. Look for opportunities to make simple and effective changes that will quickly enhance the user experience.

Form a conversion hypothesis

Develop a clear hypothesis to guide your testing efforts and identify the changes that will have the greatest impact on conversions. Zero in on specific pages and site elements that can be optimized to better meet customer needs.

For instance, if you observe low time-on-page and high bounce rates on a crucial landing page, gather more user insights to determine the cause. It could be that the messaging is not connecting with your target audience. In that case, your hypothesis could be: "If we incorporate use cases that are more relevant to our target audience, the conversion rate on this landing page will improve by X%."

Alternatively, if your "book a demo" page has a low conversion rate and users say they are not signing up because the time commitment and logistics of the demo call are unclear, your hypothesis might be: "If we clearly detail the length of the demo and what it will entail above the fold, twice as many users will book."

Top 5 CRO strategies

The purpose of a CRO strategy is to convert more visitors into paying customers. By following these five steps, you can maximize your marketing efforts:

Include CTAs in blog posts

Although including CTAs in blog posts is a best practice, visitors don’t always take the action you desire. Users who have become all too familiar with banner-like information tend to ignore them, while other visitors don’t always read through an entire post to actually get to the CTA. For cases like this, text-based CTAs are your next best option. As text that’s linked to landing pages and usually styled with a Header 3 or Header 4 title, these text-based CTAs are an alternate method for converting more traffic into leads than regular CTAs that may otherwise be placed at the bottom of a page.

Use lead capture pop-ups

A lead capture pop-up is designed to capture attention and provide value to your visitors. There are several types of pop-ups to choose from, including a slide-in box, drop-down banner, or pop-up box. When compared with standard CTAs, lead captures typically generate higher click-through rates and more submissions.

Implement A/B testing for landing pages

A well-designed landing page can make a huge impact on your conversion rate optimization efforts. Your landing pages are where website visitors can transform into leads or where existing leads can engage more deeply with your brand. The more landing pages you have, the more targeting opportunities you have. Running A/B tests can help you optimize them and determine which design and content elements are most effective.

Consider using marketing automation software. Doing so will help your team be more productive, and will encourage leads to be more independent. For instance, with marketing automation, emails can be scheduled and leads can easily book meetings with reps while reps get notifications of high-intent user actions.

Leverage re-targeting to re-engage website visitors

To re-engage people who left your website, leverage re-targeting. For your re-targeting efforts to be successful, provide visitors with a compelling offer, make sure your copy is well crafted and use engaging visuals.

Getting started with CRO auditing

Conducting a CRO audit is well worth the time and is a wise investment. It can reveal friction points on your site that may otherwise go unnoticed, and it’s critical for optimizing conversion rates.

To learn more about how MarinOne can help you get started, request a free demo today.

Google Display Ad Specs and Sizes

To connect with audiences on Google’s feeds, your ad creative should include high-quality visual experiences combined with the perfect blend of authentic, captivating messaging and an appropriately-sized ad. With the right balance, you can attain peak performance on Google, drive more sales to increase your company’s bottom line, and hit your benchmarks to get the best results. After all, Google’s Display Network reaches 90% of the world’s internet users.

In this article, we’ll walk you through:

Why Google Display Advertising matters
Different ad sizes and formats
How to set up a Google Display Ad campaign
Five best practices to make sure you succeed

The importance of Display Advertising

Differentiate your brand

With your competition targeting the same prospects, it's crucial to differentiate your business. The advantage of visual imagery is that display ads can be used to distinguish your brand in the minds of potential customers — and they’re a great way to interrupt consumers who are considering giving your competitors their business instead.

Generate brand awareness

According to the marketing “Rule of 7,” on average, a customer encounters a brand at least 7 times before doing business with them. Display advertising offers the advantage of widespread exposure, making brand awareness its greatest benefit. Because it has such an expansive reach, it’s not surprising that statistics indicate an annual growth of 7.91% with a market volume of $226.80 billion is likely by 2027. To make your brand known, get in front of consumers before they need your products or services. This way, you have a better chance of being considered when they make a purchasing decision, since they’ve encountered your brand time and again.

Increase performance of your other ads

A more recognizable brand leads to higher engagement with all of your marketing efforts, including search and social ads. Display ads, in particular, can complement and reinforce the messaging of other ads, strengthening your overall marketing campaign, and leading to better results. In fact, studies have shown that after seeing a display ad, 27% of consumers will conduct a search for that business.

Improve results with retargeting

Most potential customers don't make a purchase on their first visit to your website. Even if they click on your ad, they often leave without taking any action. However, retargeting display ads help address this issue by targeting individuals based on their past behavior online, including those who have previously visited your website but didn’t convert. Display advertising is a highly effective approach that can help you go the extra mile to seal the deal and engage the consumers who already know about your business.

Google Display Ad formats

Google offers two main formats for display ads: uploaded and responsive.

Uploaded display ads

If you have access to the design resources to create display ads from scratch, go ahead and use image formats such as JPG, PNG, or GIF for Google Display Ads. However, keep in mind that even if you’re eligible for a specific placement, your ad may not be displayed if it does not meet the required size specifications for that placement. To maximize visibility, it’s advisable to upload different sizes of each ad.

Responsive display ads

To make the creation of display ads more manageable, Google introduced responsive display ads, which later became the default ad type for display campaigns. With this feature, you only need to supply visual elements (such as images, logos, and videos) and basic ad copy. Google will then test different combinations to find the most effective versions. Additionally, responsive display ads are designed to automatically adapt to the size requirements of each web page, making it easier to display your ads on a variety of sites.

Google Display Ad sizes

If you plan to use uploaded display ads, here is a list of some of the most commonly used display ad sizes you’ll need to know:

Mobile

300×200
300×50
300×100

Desktop

300×250
336×280
728×90
300×600
160×600
970×90
468×60

Both

250×250
200×200

The most popular Google Display Ad sizes

Of all the different Google Display Ad sizes, the following are the most popular and widely used.

Wide Skyscraper

160 × 600 px

Large Skyscraper

300 × 600 px

The “1.91:1”

600 × 314 px

Leaderboard

728 × 90 px

Large Leaderboard

920 × 90 px

Mobile Leaderboard

320 × 50 px

Video ads

300 × 60 px

Large Rectangle

336 × 280 px

Medium Rectangle

300 × 250 px

Large Mobile Banner

320 × 100 px

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Setting up a Google Display Ad campaign

If you’re ready to get started, just follow this step-by-step checklist:

First, log in to your Google account.
Next, click New Campaign.
From there, select Display.
Then, Google will ask you to provide your website.
Be sure to give your campaign a name that’s descriptive and memorable.
Select your language and your location targeting.
Determine your budget and bidding strategy.
Develop your targeting parameters for this campaign.
Provide your copy and upload creatives.
Then, review all of your desired settings.
Lastly, go ahead and publish your new campaign.

5 best practices for Google Display Ads

To maximize your return on Google display ads, consider implementing these top five best practices:

Bid adjustments

Once you’ve collected enough data from your display campaigns, you can make informed decisions about the performance of your keywords, affinity audiences, and so on. Bid adjustments, which can be set at either the ad group or campaign level, allow you to turn these performance insights into action.

A positive bid adjustment for an ad group instructs Google Ads to raise your maximum cost-per-click (CPC) bid when one of the ads in that ad group is eligible to be displayed. On the other hand, a negative bid adjustment tells Google Ads to decrease your maximum CPC bid for that ad group.

Simply put, bid adjustments are an effective way to increase the gains from your top performers and reduce your losses from poor performers.

Focus on top-performing search keywords

If you’re interested in keyword targeting, start by using your most successful search keywords. If you have groups of keywords that have driven few conversions or clicks, you may want to test them on the display network as well.

Keep in mind that consumer intent between the two Google Ads networks can be different, but if your search ads are performing well in terms of clicks and conversions, then the keywords behind them have likely proven to be effective.

Analyze referral traffic

Google Analytics provides a wealth of information, and for display advertisers, the referral traffic report is extremely valuable. It shows which websites are linking to your website the most, essentially indicating which websites attract audiences who would benefit from your product or service.

These websites are ideal for displaying your ads since you know that the audience is relevant and therefore, you can be confident that you’ll see returns from the impressions and clicks made on those ads.

Make your value proposition clear

Consumers have become highly familiar with display ads, so it's easy for prospects to overlook them while scrolling. To avoid missing out on opportunities and wasting resources, it’s crucial to make sure your display ads stand out and grab the attention of your prospects.

The visual design of your ads, including the color scheme and typography, contribute to this, but the real key is having a clear and impactful value proposition that is prominently displayed on your ads.

Create strong headlines

Most responsive display ads will prompt you to write four required pieces of copy:

A short headline (25 characters)
A long headline (90 characters)
A description (90 characters)
Your business name (25 characters)

When it comes to headlines, keep in mind that Google Ads will not display both headlines simultaneously, and that Google Ads may exclude your description. This means that when your Responsive Display Ad (RDA) is displayed, there is no guarantee that your description will accompany either headline. With this in mind, it’s essential to ensure that both headlines effectively convey the unique value of your business or offer on their own.

Get your Google Display Ads noticed

Using Google Display Ads as part of your campaign can be a powerful tool for increasing traffic to your site and helping customers make their way through the conversion pipeline.

When integrated into a comprehensive marketing strategy, Google Display ads can amplify your campaign’s success. It plays a crucial role in elevating brand awareness at the beginning of the buyer’s journey, as well as re-engaging repeat customers with personalized promotions and offers. Clearly, display advertising is a valuable tactic and can be leveraged at various stages of the buyer’s journey to maximize marketing outcomes.

To make sure your Google Display ads are as effective as possible, reach out to the experts at MarinOne today. We can help align your marketing efforts to take your campaign to the next level.

6 Steps to Develop an Effective Change Management Plan

All businesses must undergo a change at one point or another. Whether it's a change in leadership, organizational structure, or technology, companies have to adapt to remain competitive.

But change can be disruptive and stressful for employees—and without a well-planned change management strategy, organizations may fail to achieve their desired outcomes.

Case in point: 70% of change initiatives fail due to employee resistance or unproductive management behavior. Luckily, you can mitigate this risk by creating an effective change management plan and ensure a smooth change transition.

This article will explore the steps to develop a change management plan, including the skills needed to lead a successful change effort, common reasons why change management plans fail, and how to avoid these pitfalls.

Why you need a change management plan

As an organization undergoing change, you must prepare your employees for what lies ahead. Change can be difficult for everyone involved. But if you have a process they can follow, it makes the transition easier and ensures everyone is on board.

A change management plan allows you to communicate the change early and often, provide training and support, and be available to answer possible questions. It also reduces change resistance, boosts employee morale, and helps to create a more positive work environment.

In addition, a change management plan helps control the effect of change during the execution and control stage, thereby avoiding overruns in cost and schedule, incoherent scope, or poor quality change management.

Skills needed to lead a change management plan

Leading change is not a simple operation. It's a very human process, requiring human skills. Soft skills like empathy, communication, and emotional intelligence are essential. A change leader must also have strong resilience and be good at motivating others.

Some other skills that are critical for analyzing change, creating a plan, and implementing the plan effectively include:

Leadership: Good leadership is essential for taking employees through organizational change and delegating roles to the right people. Good leadership styles include qualities like honesty and transparency. A change leader should be transparent about why the change is taking place. They should also have a clear vision of what the company aims to accomplish through the change.
Strategic thinking: Strategic thinking is a critical skill that helps you create change management plans. When you understand your company's needs, you can develop a strong plan that includes the timeline for the change, the deadline, specific tasks necessary to make the change, and key responsibilities for each employee.
Organization: Organization is another skill that can improve change management. Establishing a clear change management plan requires organizing various information, including employee roles, project goals, deadlines, and other key information.
Research skills: Developing research skills can enable you to assist your organization in planning for change. You can research other companies' change management tactics and methodologies to generate ideas for your company's change process.
Analytical skills: Change management plans also require analytical and critical thinking skills to analyze company data, understand the research, and make the best decisions for your organization.

Here are a few tips to help you develop and improve the skills you need to lead a change management plan:

Read articles and blogs about other companies' change management experiences to gain more insight and knowledge
Find a mentor to give you specific guidance and help you make good decisions
Hire a change management consultant to guide your company through the change and learning from their expertise
Take and complete an online management course

How to create a change management plan

You shouldn’t take a one-size-fits-all approach to creating a change management plan.

It requires careful consideration of the unique challenges and opportunities that come with the specific change. But, generally speaking, you'll find one to include the following:

A clear definition of the change
A timeline for implementation
A communication strategy
A training plan
A risk management strategy

Below are the steps to develop a successful change management plan.

Step 1: Define your change management goals

Start your change management plan by establishing the plan goals. This involves identifying the problem or opportunity the change will address and articulating the desired and expected outcomes.

Use these tips to define your goals clearly:

Understand the changes: Familiarize yourself with the changes that need to be made and their implications, as well as the methodologies you'll use to prioritize change requests. For instance, if you plan to introduce new software to your employees, it's not enough to simply know how the software works. You also need to understand how it'll affect existing workflows.
Have awareness goals: Employee awareness and adoption of the changes should be part of your plan, so ensure you incorporate that.
Define KPIs: Define quantifiable KPIs to define your plan's success. How will you measure your success? What metrics do you need to move? What is the baseline for how things currently stand? Apply the metrics that make sense given the context of the changes.

Step 2: Build your change team

In order to effectively implement change management, it's important to prioritize the building of a strong change management team with the necessary resources.

This team should consist of individuals in leadership positions from various departments, including:

Building alliances with various departments makes it easy to educate the rest of the team on the changes and provide support throughout the change process.

Additionally, it's important to build a finance team to manage change incentives and resources. This will help develop strategies for effective finance change management and avoid delays. You also need support from stakeholders, including the CEO and other members of the executive team, to increase the chances of success.

Step 3: Develop your change management plan

With your team assembled, it's time to develop your change management plan.

Create a task list: This is a checklist of actionable tasks you must complete to achieve your goals. It keeps your team on track and is easy to reference when determining the next steps.
Put together a timeline: Assign specific due dates to each task on your list and make sure that those deadlines are met. Your plan should revolve around the project's overall due date. If any tasks cannot be completed before the rollout of changes, consider adjusting their due dates or prioritize them according to their importance and feasibility. You may also complete some tasks after the rollout if necessary.

Change management can be complex, so using a project management tool like Asana or Trello to organize your plans and keep everything in one place can be of great help.

Step 4: Create a communication strategy

Developing a clear and concise communication strategy ensures everyone is onboard and understands what's happening throughout the change management process.

Keep the following pointers in mind when developing your communication plan:

Ensure all stakeholders, including employees, customers, suppliers, and external partners are aware of the project timeline and objectives.
Create a timeline for how often you'll communicate updates.
Have clear channels of communication. Examples include email, phone, or in-person meetings.
Ensure that everyone understands the company's change management process and procedures clearly.

Step 5: Execute your change management plan

Executing a change management plan involves several steps, including executing the communication plan, providing training, and monitoring progress.

During the implementation phase, change managers should identify and quickly address any roadblocks that arise. This can be accomplished by encouraging employee participation in the change, being transparent and communicative from the start, and addressing any resistance that may arise.

To help build momentum for the change, be sure to communicate all successes and provide incentives for embracing the change. Employees should also be encouraged to experiment and share their experiences to harness their emotional energy and overcome any natural resistance that may arise.

Step 6: Evaluate, review, and adapt

Evaluating the change management plan is essential to determine its effectiveness. This involves assessing the success of the change and identifying areas for improvement in the change management process.

A few ways you can do this include:

Use a change management tracking system to track all changes that are made in the organization. This allows you to identify and mitigate any areas of concern before they become major issues.
Use performance indicators to help you measure the success of the plan. With a collaborative KPI dashboard, you can see if the plan is being implemented correctly or whether there are unexpected side effects resulting from the changes.
Regularly review team progress to ensure that the employees adopt the changes and that all successful change initiatives are incorporated into future change management plans.

When do change management plans fail?

Not all change management plans are successful. They can fail for a variety of reasons. The following are some common reasons for change management plan failures and ways to avoid them:

Active resistance

People often resist change, especially if it threatens their job security or current way of doing things. This can result in a lack of cooperation and engagement, which can undermine the success of the change management plan.

It's crucial to communicate the why behind the change and how it will benefit the organization, involve stakeholders in the planning process, and provide training and support to help them adapt to the changes.

Poor communication

Clear communication is essential for the success of any change management plan. If stakeholders are not informed about the changes or the reasons, they may become confused or disengaged. Anxiety and resistance are higher when people do not understand the why behind the change.

An excellent way to avoid this failure is to ensure everyone impacted by the change is well-informed. Include the reasons behind it, the expected outcomes, and how it will affect them. Communication should be ongoing and two-way, with opportunities for feedback and questions.

Inadequate planning

Change management plans require thorough planning to be successful. If the planning is inadequate, the plan may not address all the necessary areas, or it may not be implemented effectively.

It's critical to ensure the planning process is thorough, considering all change aspects. Clearly understand the goals, timelines, and resources required to implement the change effectively.

Lack of leadership support

Without support from leaders, change management plans are unlikely to succeed. Leaders are critical in driving change, communicating the vision, and providing the resources and support needed to make the change happen.

Engage leaders early in the planning process and get their commitment. They should be involved in communication efforts and be visible and accessible throughout the change process.

Inadequate resources

Change management plans need resources such as finances, time, and technology to be successful. If these resources are inadequate, the change may not be implemented effectively.

The solution is to thoroughly assess the resources required to implement the change and ensure that they are available. Build finance teams that will be involved in reallocating resources or securing additional funding to finance change management.

Conclusion

Change is inevitable, especially in the business world. In light of the market fluctuations, digital innovations, and constant growth surrounding the marketplace, following an articulated change management plan can help guide your organization through any changes they need to adopt or decisions you need to make today for the opportunities you'll find tomorrow.

But to ensure all the information in your change management plan is well documented and easily accessible to employees or to make any needed changes, use a change management tool or software like Spendesk. Spendesk provides you with real-time data to easily manage your company expenses/budgets during change management, keeping you on top of your finances. Schedule a free demo to empower your team to make informed spending decisions.

The main aim of a change management plan is to stay on top of a growing business, manage change, and make the change process easier. A documentation tool can easily create a collaborative, robust, and interactive change management plan for your company.

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Rana Bano is a guest blog contributor to Marin Software.

B2B

The Benefits of LinkedIn Sales Navigator for B2B Sales and Lead Generation

When the cold call is dead and traditional B2B prospecting tactics are not enough, it’s time to derive the maximum from LinkedIn – one of the most effective social media platforms for generating leads.

40% of B2B marketers acknowledge that LinkedIn is the #1 channel for driving high-quality leads. In addition, they report two times higher conversion rates on LinkedIn. Among all LinkedIn’s products, 74% of B2B sellers prioritize the top three sales intelligence tools: LinkedIn.com, LinkedIn Premium, and LinkedIn Sales Navigator.

Indeed, Sales Navigator changes the whole leads-sales game for B2B companies on LinkedIn.

This article will enumerate some valuable LinkedIn Sales Navigator benefits and give you the most helpful tips.

So, let’s get the ball rolling with the definition.

What is LinkedIn Sales Navigator?

Sales Navigator is a social selling tool on LinkedIn. It has a relationship-based system that helps you conduct outreach on LinkedIn, nurture qualified leads, and establish a robust sales pipeline.

LinkedIn Sales Navigator is a paid subscription-based tool offering monthly and annual billing. Currently, there are three plans:

Core
Advanced
Advanced Plus

Critical Advantages of Sales Navigator for B2B Businesses

LinkedIn Sales Navigator is highly beneficial for B2B organizations. Here’s why.

The most significant amount of B2B leads

LinkedIn generates the largest number of B2B leads on social platforms – 80% compared to roughly 13% of leads driven by Twitter and 7% by Facebook. Using LinkedIn Sales Navigator, you’ve got the richest source of B2B data: over 75 million organizations have LinkedIn accounts.

Extensive pool of methods to work with B2B leads

Depending on the Sales Navigator subscription plan, social marketers have access to different features and tools to get qualitative leads and convert them into clients:

Advanced Search
InMail
Custom Lists
Alerts
Smart Links
Team collaboration tools
CRM integrations and more

Better sales content exposure

One of the Sales Navigator’s features, Smart Links, allows packaging and sharing of sales content: product overview, sales presentation, demo video, PDF case study, pitch deck, brochure, etc.

Additionally, it enables tracking your prospects’ behavior with your content. Smart Links has great selling potential and can help expose your company’s content more efficiently and increase LinkedIn conversion rates.

Shortened sales cycles

Based on LinkedIn’s report, Hyland Software, for instance, reduced sales cycles by 30% to 60% with the help of Sales Navigator.

A faster sales cycle is a huge competitive advantage, as it improves cash flow and gives you the fuel you require for continuous and more rapid business growth.

Increased revenue

In 2017, LinkedIn analyzed companies from 14 different industries. All of them had been using Sales Navigator for over a year. During that time, each organization’s revenue was significantly impacted by Sales Navigator. The percentage of income prompted by social selling ranged from 51% in telecommunications to 67% in computer and network security.

5 LinkedIn Sales Navigator Tips for Generating B2B Leads

Now, let’s look at the top five tactics you can use to leverage LinkedIn Sales Navigator, unlock more possibilities in B2B prospecting, and target the right buyers.

Target your B2B audience better with Advanced Search filters and Booleans

An Advanced Search option in LinkedIn Sales Navigator offers over 30 search filters for sales prospecting. It allows you to find accounts and leads, segmenting them by location, industry, job title, profile language, company headcount, etc.

“An often underestimated practice in LinkedIn Sales Navigator is the Boolean search,” says Tory Gray, CEO & Founder of Gray Dot Company.

“Booleans like OR, AND, NOT, parentheses (), and quoted search “ ” can help you prospect more efficiently and close B2B deals faster. You can use them in the keyword search bar for accounts and leads in the title field.

After using Booleans, you should refine your search results with Advanced Search. Together, they give you a more polished list of leads,” Tory mentions.

Save searches and segment leads into custom lists

After filtering your search results, you can make a saved search.

Alternatively, you can save particular leads, click “Select all,” and then save them to one list.

Make a new lead list if you haven’t done it before.

Chris Cozzolino, Co-Founder and CEO of Uptown Creation, explains how to keep LinkedIn Sales Navigator leads organized in this video. He recommends creating four Lead lists:

Connection Request Sent
Message 1 Sent
Responded
Follow-Up

Of course, you can name and organize your lead lists however it feels most convenient.

Benefit from InMail messaging

InMail is a feature that lets you contact any B2B prospect or lead with a direct message without sending a connection request first.

In LinkedIn Sales Navigator, you get 50 free InMail message credits every month, irrespective of the Sales Navigator edition. You can also purchase some additional InMail credits if needed.

Note: the open rate for InMails is 166% higher than regular emails. Besides, personalized InMails can bring you a 15% greater result than those sent in copy-pasted heaps.

Follow some pieces of advice on InMail personalization and other actionable tips on using InMail shared by Logan Mallory, VP of Motivosity:

“Targeting your B2B prospects with InMail, you should personalize your messages as much as possible so that each recipient can feel a personal touch throughout the text.

You should start with personalized subject lines, of course. But don’t forget to optimize them with attention-grabbers to achieve higher open rates. You’ve got 80 characters to do magic with your subject line, so don’t squander them.”

Check some examples of creative subject lines for InMail sends below.

Logan Mallory also believes it’s beneficial to use the Rule of Three regarding the InMail body. When three items are grouped, named, or listed together, they are more memorable, impactful, and motivational. For example: reduce, reuse, recycle. You can stick to a three-part structure in your message and group your ideas into three big categories.

Monitor your overall progress with Social Selling Index (SSI)

Social selling leaders typically generate 45% more sales opportunities than those who have a low SSI.

SSI is a performance indicator and helpful metric to measure your efforts on LinkedIn by focusing on the four components:

Professional branding
Engaging with insights
Networking with the targeted audience
Building profound relationships

Each component is worth 25 points. Your total score may range from zero to 100.

Calculating your SSI score, LinkedIn relies on the following data in Sales Navigator: a) saved leads and accounts; b) profile views; c) people searches; and d) Account and Lead Lists.

Align marketing and sales

When sales and marketing on LinkedIn are properly coordinated, the customer retention rate grows by 36% and the revenue – by 208%.

Besides, LinkedIn members are 25% more likely to reply to a Sales Navigator InMail message from a sales representative when they see marketing content from that brand.

“Building brand awareness and improving engagement of your B2B audience on LinkedIn is as simple as posting short videos,” according to Max Wühr, co-founder & CGO at FINN.

“Video marketing on LinkedIn helps you communicate your brand’s message in the most effective visual way because videos perform better than images and texts. You can make your mark with B2B videos on LinkedIn and keep your prospects updated on what’s happening in your company,” he notes.

Regularly, FINN shares video updates about their business on LinkedIn. Their most recent announcement, for instance, was a video of the first car delivery for a B2B customer in the United States.

You can effectively use Sales Navigator and tap into the power of LinkedIn marketing with MarinOne to merge sales and advertising and maximize the ROI in every promotional campaign.

Grow Your Sales and Leads With LinkedIn Sales Navigator

If you’re searching for the best methods to increase B2B leads and sales, LinkedIn Sales Navigator is a true goldmine for that. You won’t find a more powerful channel to connect with the right people on LinkedIn.

You have just seen the major benefits of Sales Navigator and the best ways of using it. Now it’s time to begin your path to B2B lead generation success on LinkedIn.

On this road, MarinOne can help you focus on your best-performing campaigns and help you understand the impact LinkedIn advertising has on your business goals through intelligent analytics. Check out MarinOne in three minutes with a product tour, or start a 30-day free trial right away.

‍

Rachel Melegrito is a guest contributor to MarinOne.

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Microsoft Advertising: 7 Tips to Drive More Conversions

As the second most popular search engine in the United States, Microsoft Advertising provides an excellent opportunity for businesses to reach a diverse audience and increase their revenue. With over 133 million unique desktop searches and 5.4 billion monthly searches worldwide, Microsoft Ads provides a massive audience base for businesses to reach out to.

When comparing Microsoft and Google Ads, business growth expert Charlotte Davies said, "If your audience matches Bing’s user demographics, then this could be a better advertising option for you. Choosing Bing over Google can also work out cheaper because, even though there are fewer users, there are also fewer advertisers. This means less competition."

However, it takes more than just setting up an account and creating ads to see success. Here are some best practices to help you drive more conversions and maximize your return on investment (ROI) with Microsoft Advertising.

Optimize Your Campaigns for Targeted Keywords

The success of your Microsoft Advertising campaigns depends heavily on the keywords you target. It’s crucial to choose the right keywords that are relevant to your products or services, have high search volume, and low competition. Start by conducting thorough keyword research and analyzing your target audience's search terms. Microsoft provides a keyword research tool that you can use to identify relevant keywords for your campaigns. Once you’ve identified your target keywords, create ad groups and optimize your ads around those keywords.

Use Ad Extensions to Improve Your Ad Rank

Ad extensions are additional pieces of information that you can add to your ads, such as your business location, phone number, or links to specific pages on your website. Ad extensions can help increase your ad’s visibility and improve your ad rank, leading to higher click-through rates (CTR) and conversion rates. Microsoft Ads provides several ad extensions, including sitelink extensions, call extensions, location extensions, and callout extensions. Choose the ones that are relevant to your business and add them to your ads.

Create Compelling Ad Copy

Your ad copy is the first impression potential customers have of your business. It’s essential to create compelling and engaging ad copy that clearly communicates the value of your products or services. Use language that resonates with your target audience and highlights your unique selling proposition (USP).

Remember what Leo Burnett said about great ad copy…as it is as true today as it was 50 years ago during his heyday: "Advertising should say, 'Here’s what we’ve got. Here's what it will do for you. Here’s how to get it.'"

Monitor and Optimize Your Campaigns

The key to success with Microsoft Advertising is continually monitoring and optimizing your campaigns. Track your campaigns’ performance regularly, and make adjustments based on the data. Analyze your ad copy, keywords, targeting, and ad extensions to identify areas for improvement. Use Microsoft Ads’ reporting tools to gain insights into your campaigns’ performance and make data-driven decisions.

Use Audience Targeting to Reach the Right People

Nicole Farley from Search Engine Land recently said this about audience targeting with Microsoft: "The Microsoft Ads Audience Network is beneficial for brands as it allows them to reach users on a variety of platforms, such as mobile apps and websites. This can be especially helpful for brands looking to target a wide range of audiences – especially B2B."

So try it out in 2023 as Microsoft Ads provides several audience targeting options to help you reach the right people. You can target your ads based on demographics, such as age, gender, and location, or based on their search history and interests. Audience targeting can help you reach a more relevant audience and increase your ad’s effectiveness. Use audience targeting in combination with keyword targeting to create highly targeted campaigns. Microsoft is also continually updating the audience options this year with a suite of new features that were just introduced in January.

Take Advantage of Microsoft Ads’ Automated Bidding and Budgeting Tools

Microsoft Ads provides several automated bidding and budgeting tools that can help you save time and maximize your ROI. Use Microsoft Ads’ automated bidding to adjust your bids based on the likelihood of conversion, maximizing your chances of winning auctions. Use automated budgeting to set a daily budget and let Microsoft Ads manage your spending for you. These tools can help you optimize your campaigns without spending hours manually adjusting bids and budgets.

Test and Experiment with Different Ad Formats

Microsoft Advertising provides several ad formats, including text, image, and video ads. Test and experiment with different ad formats to identify which ones work best for your business. Different ad formats may work better for different products or services, so finding what works best for your business is essential.

Start Running Microsoft Advertising Today

Microsoft's advertisement system has been subject to a considerable overhaul lately, with the axing of Microsoft Rewards and the implementation of a new business model. In order to make sure you're using Microsoft Advertising to its fullest potential, take the time to study its features and benefits. Knowing how everything works before you begin setting up campaigns can save a lot of frustration and give you the opportunity to use it effectively.

After you have got a good grasp of the fundamentals, you can begin establishing your campaigns. To save time and automate as much of the setup process as possible, speak with a MarinOne consultant today on how we centralize advertising data across platforms and make optimizations easy for paid search marketers.

Mobile

An In-Depth Look at Google Play ASO

Given that apps have revolutionized the lives of many, it’s no surprise that mobile technology has created enormous opportunities for both consumers and businesses. With more than 6.2 billion smartphone users worldwide, it’s clear that mobile apps are flourishing and our reliance on them will continue to grow.

While this is good news for app developers and businesses, it is a challenge to stand out amongst competitors. In an app store world where users have thousands of choices, an app can get easily lost. To stay afloat, businesses must create reliable and functional apps to reach their targets — and take the right steps to display them in stores and maximize app store optimization (ASO).

In this guide, we’ll walk you through Google Play’s ASO — from understanding the basics of how it works, tips for increasing the visibility of your app, and much more.

What is Google Play ASO?

Simply put, Google Play ASO is a method that can be used to optimize the visibility and user appeal of an app to get more downloads and better conversion rates.

Why is ASO important?

ASO is important for a multitude of reasons, some of which include the following:

It maximizes visibility

Regardless of how great your app may be, if people can’t find it, they can’t download it. Unless it’s easily discoverable, the number of installs won’t budge. However, ASO allows you to maximize your app’s visibility so you can reach as many prospects as possible and ensure your app performs well.

Improves appeal for users

Making your app visible isn’t enough. You need it to be visible to the right users. Because it matches your app to relevant keywords, ASO can help you get your app noticed by high-quality and relevant users at the right time.

Increases organic app downloads

A solid ASO strategy will increase the number of organic installs and ensure long-term results. It is essential that you continually work on your ASO to keep your rankings high when people search for keywords related to your app.

Enables marketers to lower user acquisition costs

By focusing on organic growth with ASO, you can cut your user acquisition costs. This not only helps you save money on ad spending, but also ensures steady, continuous growth.

How does ASO work?

ASO optimizes various elements of an app's listing to improve its visibility and ranking in app store search results. Just as people use search queries to find different websites on the internet, app store users use search queries to find different apps and games. And just as search engines recommend additional websites based on user preferences and popularity, app stores can recommend additional apps to users. Keyword optimization, category rankings, search and paid ads, and top charts are all common ASO tactics.

Ranking factors in the Play Store

Keywords that people use to find apps are the biggest consideration. The reason? Google’s algorithm searches which apps match those keywords in their metadata. To rank those keywords, Google uses the following elements:

App title

The most critical metadata element in the Google Play Store is the app title because the keywords here reveal both keyword relevance and eligibility. Since app titles influence your app store optimization efforts, you’ll want to test and update your app titles frequently. According to statistics, 215 of the top 1000 mobile apps are updated a minimum once per week and 62% are updated once a month.

Descriptions

Long and short descriptions allow you to familiarize your audience with your app. Once you’ve selected your app title, optimizing your short and long descriptions is a worthwhile investment of your time. Typically limited to 80 characters, short descriptions help provide background information to Play Store visitors and are used by Google to gain a deeper understanding of what your app is actually about.

In contrast, long descriptions have a 4,000 character limit, so you can create a detailed description of your app with the aim to convince visitors to install it. However, it’s important to recognize that most users aren’t interested in reading long descriptions. Therefore, the best strategy for long descriptions is to explain your app’s features briefly and clearly and provide a call to action. When you do so, be sure to include the most important keywords at the beginning to increase the rate of conversions. Using focused keywords repeatedly (up to five times) can also help Google better understand your app.

App downloads and conversion rate

When your app has a lot of downloads, it’s considered more credible and thus, it ranks higher. With high rankings, visitors are more likely to find your app and your conversion rates will increase. The number of app downloads and the download velocity are key if you want your app to show up in category rankings and top charts.

Retention rate

For a long time, app download numbers were one of Google’s strongest ranking elements. However, when Google Play ASO evolved over time, retention rates of those downloads also gained tremendous value. The goal is not only to have someone download your app, but also to ensure they do not uninstall it shortly thereafter.

Reviews and ratings

Customer ratings and reviews are an additional way to show Google that your app is useful and appealing. When app ratings and reviews are high, your app maintains more credibility and Google will recognize it to be high quality. Subsequently, with a high quality standing, your app will rank higher for relevant keywords.

Developer name

Google will rank you for search queries that have your developer name. When you have a well-known brand name, you appear in search results more often and you can secure more page visits.

Crashes, bugs, battery life, and file size

If your app crashes frequently, has bugs, drains batteries, or runs into file size limitations, this can negatively impact your rankings. These factors can also affect your reviews and retention rates.

Backlinks

Backlinks have a positive influence on your Google Play ranking. More important than the number of backlinks you use, however, is their quality. Google’s algorithm determines the quality of a backlink based on the keywords used in the link as well as the relevance of the source website. To maintain credibility, make sure your backlinks are related to your app’s content.

Checklist for a successful ASO strategy

If you want to get your app in front of the right users, your ASO strategy must be focused. To make sure you don’t miss anything, here’s a helpful checklist.

Research markets and regions

Create a clear app store optimization strategy by researching and understanding your market. Doing so will help you explore how users discover apps in your category.

Do proper keyword research

Think about the main features of your app and consider using synonyms when describing your features. It’s wise to analyze similar apps and competitors in the category. Exploring auto-suggestion in app store search bars and investigating the terms people commonly use in your app category can also help you establish a proper keyword research and prioritization process.

Pick a unique name for your app

You want to be sure your app's name is easy to read, relevant, and unique. When choosing a name, remember character limitations and adhere to app store guidelines.

Write easy-to-understand metadata

When writing metadata, focus on information quality. Include a short description, subtitle, keyword field, and app description. Structure it clearly, use all available characters when possible and applicable, and put particular emphasis on the first couple of sentences.

Perform A/B testing

It’s important to create variations. Run experiments, evaluate results, and implement changes as needed. During A/B testing, steer clear of forbidden keywords such as best, free, top, new, and so on.

Tell a visual story of how your app works

Use screenshots and videos to highlight your app’s main features and illustrate how your app works and looks. When you do, pay close attention to layout and size requirements.

Tips for increasing the visibility of your app

Follow these tips to stand out from the other apps in your category and increase your app’s visibility.

Get featured

Getting featured on Google Play can increase both the visibility of your app and the number of downloads. To pass Google’s screening test, be sure you have a good app rating, offer a smooth user experience, and have a flawless app store listing.

Top Charts

Ranking in the Top Charts on Google Play can be a powerful way to increase visibility and drive more downloads for your app. However, it can be challenging to influence your rank in the Top Charts using purely organic methods, as your ranking is primarily determined by your app's acquisition velocity (the rate at which users are downloading your app).

It's important to note that different categories have varying levels of competition. For example, the number of downloads required to rank in the top five apps in one category may not be enough to rank in the top 10 of another. Therefore, it's important to choose your app's category wisely, keeping in mind the relevance of the category to your app and the competition level in that category. If your app doesn't fit into one clear-cut category, you should analyze the competition and evaluate the likelihood of ranking highly in different categories' top charts.

Appear on another app’s store listing

Being featured as a "similar app" on another app's listing in the store can drive traffic to your own app. While the specific factors that Google takes into account when selecting similar apps are not publicly available, a few known elements include:

Keyword alignment: Apps that rank for the same keywords in their metadata are more likely to be considered similar apps.

Category and Google tags: Apps that belong to the same category or have the same Google tags are more likely to appear as similar apps.

User behavior: Google tracks users' interactions with the store and store listings, and similar apps may be influenced by the apps that users have previously downloaded.

3 ways to improve conversion rates on Google Play

Because Google wants to make sure its users have a good experience in the Play Store, it prioritizes apps that have high conversion and retention rates. Here are three tips to help your conversion rate grow.

Creative assets

Optimizing your creatives can greatly impact users. Take advantage of your app’s icon, promotional videos, and screenshots as conversion incentives. Color symbolism can influence a user’s perspective, and an icon design that represents your app functionality can make your creatives more striking and noticeable. Highlighting your brand name or changing your icon design to align with different seasons can also make an impact. Use high-quality screenshots that are localized and consistent with app expectations and showcase your unique selling promise. Promotional videos are also a good way to give users a good idea of the feel and experience of your app.

Improve app ratings and reviews

As previously stated, app ratings and reviews are a good indicator of a good app since they reflect users’ actual experiences. Google’s In-App Review API displays ratings and reviews. In addition, respond to any negative reviews. Doing so illustrates that you care and are willing to implement changes to improve your user experience.

Write compelling descriptions

Because users tend not to read long descriptions and therefore represent a small audience, it’s wise to concentrate on writing compelling short descriptions. However, rather than stuffing all your target keywords into your short descriptions, try to strike a good balance between conversion rate optimization and keyword optimization. To do this, summarize your app’s content, features, and benefits. When you run A/B tests you will be able to determine what works best for your app.

MarinOne and Google Play ASO

In such a saturated market, becoming a leader requires a lot of effort. However, with innovation, creativity, and the right tools, you can take advantage of technology to make your app stand out.

MarinOne can help you manage your mobile marketing strategies to hit revenue targets and optimize your app campaigns. Our customizable, enterprise-class solution offers everything you need in a single platform to take your app advertising to the next level.

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To see how, contact one of our MarinOne experts today.

6 Google Ads KPIs That You Should Be Tracking

When you run a digital campaign, it’s only right that you want to know how well it performed, and Google Ads are no exception. Whether you're looking to increase website traffic, generate leads, or make sales, tracking specific KPIs will help you ensure that you're getting value for your advertising investment. You can easily track your ads using Google Analytics or directly from the Google Ads dashboard.

That said, there are many metrics to analyze—and it can be overwhelming to choose the right metrics that most closely align with your campaign objectives. So we’ve made it easier by highlighting six major key performance indicators (KPIs) and sharing why they are critical to running successful ad campaigns.

Click-Through Rate (CTR)

Click-through rate is an important Google Ads metric that helps you measure the effectiveness of your ad campaign. CTR is the percentage of people that click on your Google ad. It is ascertained from the ratio of clicks to impressions and indicates how often people click on your ad after seeing it.

For instance, if you ran a Google Ad campaign and received 1,000 impressions (i.e. your ad was shown 1,000 times). Suppose that your ad received 30 clicks, your CTR will be: 30 clicks divided by 1,000 impressions and multiplied by 100.

So, CTR = (30 clicks / 1,000 impressions) * 100 = 3%

This means that, for every 100 impressions, 3 people clicked on the ad. The same calculation applies to the image below:

Tracking your CTR means that you can determine whether your ads resonate with your target audience. It also reveals if your targeting strategies are effective. For example, if you notice that your CTR is low, you may need to adjust your ad content, target a different audience, or adjust your bid strategy on keywords.

But how do you know if your CTR is good? Typically, this will depend on which industry you operate in. According to WordStream, most industries have an average of 6-7%. While it’s okay to aim for industry standards, a more effective use of the CTR metric will be to monitor how each of your campaigns or ad groups is performing and optimize them for better results. It’s also helpful if you want to identify trends in your campaign performance over time.

Cost Per Click (CPC)

The cost per click measures how much you pay each time someone clicks on your ad. This is a critical KPI to track because it tells you if you're getting value for your advertising costs.

A high CPC suggests your ad may not be relevant to your target audience, or that the competition for the keywords you're bidding on is high. To lower your conversion costs, consider adjusting your bids and targeting settings. If you’re running ads for B2B, B2C, or recruitment marketing purposes, here are some targeting settings you can tweak for better CPC on your Ads:

Keywords - use low-competing keywords that are relevant to your search intent so that you’ll only get clicks from prospects that are more likely to convert. You can also adjust your bids on keywords that are less likely to bring conversions. It’s advisable to compare various search terms to find the keywords that fit well into your ad.

Demographics - based on your target audience, you should only direct your ads to those who your campaign caters to.

Location - target specific areas instead of going too broad with your audience.

Timing - schedule your ad to go live at a time when your target audience is more likely to engage with it.

Ad placement - choose the right ad placement (e.g. search network, display network) to reach your target audience. Adjust bids based on the competition and cost of advertising in those placements.

Monitoring your CPC helps you determine whether your campaigns are cost-effective and determine the best ways to optimize your ad spend and set better budgets. With the CPC metric, you can easily make informed decisions about how to allocate your advertising budget. Overall, tracking your Cost Per Click is an essential part of managing your Google Ads campaigns and ensuring that you get the best advertising ROI.

Conversion Rate

Conversion rate measures the percentage of visitors to your website who complete a desired action, such as making an online purchase or filling out a contact form. The higher your conversion rate, the more effective your ad campaign is at driving valuable actions.

If your conversion rate is low, it may indicate one or more of the following:

Your ads are not resonating with your target audience
Your website is not optimized for conversions
Your targeting strategies are not effective

To get more conversion actions, consider optimizing your landing pages, call-to-actions, and the overall user experience on your site. You also want to ensure that what’s on your landing page aligns with what your ad promises. Otherwise, you’ll have a high bounce rate and lose potential conversions.

Optimizing your ad and landing page relevance will also improve your ad’s quality score—which is also important to its general performance. If you need help creating engaging landing pages, you can use an AI content generator to get some ideas. Overall, conversion tracking helps you optimize your campaigns to achieve your marketing goals.

Cost Per Acquisition (CPA)

Cost per acquisition measures how much you pay for each acquisition (or conversion) generated by your ad. This KPI helps you determine the profitability of your campaigns and evaluate their return on investment (ROI). CPA is calculated by dividing the total cost of your advertising by the number of conversions you have received (total ad cost / total number of conversions).

CPA is an important metric that allows you to evaluate the level of customer acquisition generated by your campaigns. If your CPA is high, it may indicate that your ads are not driving conversions efficiently. On the other hand, if your CPA is low, it may indicate that your campaigns are getting conversions at a lower cost, making them more efficient and cost-effective.

You can fix a high CPA by adjusting your bids and targeting, or tweaking your ad copy and landing pages so your ad is relevant to your potential customers.

By tracking your CPA, you can run a comparison between ads and determine which ones drive the most conversions for the least cost. Depending on your campaign goals, you can then use this information to maximize the efficiency and profitability of future ads.

Return on Ad Spend (ROAS)

Another KPI on our list of Google Ads metrics to check is the return on ad spend. Your ROAS tells you how much revenue you generate for every dollar you spend on advertising. This metric helps you understand the return you're getting on your advertising investment and determine the profitability of your campaigns.

To determine your ROAS, you'll need to track your ad spend and revenue. To calculate your ROAS, divide your total revenue by your total ad spend. For example, if you spent $1,000 on advertising and generated $10,000 in revenue, your ROAS would be 10 ($10,000 ÷ $1,000).

A high ROAS indicates that you're getting a good return on your investment. It's vital to track your ROAS because it helps you understand the impact of your ads on your bottom line. If your ROAS is low, it could mean that your campaigns are not generating sufficient revenue to cover your ad spend, or that you need to adjust your campaigns to improve their profitability.

Impressions

“Impressions” is one of the Google ads metrics that help you understand the visibility of your advertising campaigns. This KPI measures the number of times your ad is shown to users. While high impressions are generally desirable, they don't necessarily indicate a successful campaign. It's important to consider impressions in conjunction with other KPIs, such as CTR, conversion rate, and ROAS, to get a complete picture of your campaign's performance.

Impressions are quite useful in evaluating the effectiveness of your targeting strategies and determining if your ads are being shown to the right audience.

By tracking impressions, you can make informed decisions about your advertising strategy and determine which campaigns are delivering the best results in terms of reach and exposure. Your overall ad quality, audience targeting, bidding strategy, and ad placement are major determinants of how many impressions your ad will get.

For instance, avoid the mistake of bidding too low on your keywords or you’ll lose the opportunity to show your ad to more people. Also, if you set a low budget, there’s a good chance that only a few people will see your ad while it’s running. So, let your bids and ad budget be sufficient enough to get you tangible views.

In closing

Tracking key performance indicators (KPIs) is essential to the success of your Google Ads campaigns. These KPIs provide valuable benchmarks in relation to the performance of your campaigns and can be used to optimize future advertising and marketing efforts.

In this article, we highlighted 6 Google Ads metrics and KPIs that help you assess positive or negative campaign performance. They include: Click-through rate, cost per click, conversion rates, cost per acquisition, return on ad spend, and impressions. With these key metrics, you can unlock the full potential of your Google Ads and drive success for your business goals.

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David Pagotto is a guest contributor to Marin Software.

Mobile

The Future of Mobile Marketing: Emerging Trends and Technologies to Watch

The growth of the mobile industry in recent years has been tremendous, and this trend is expected to continue in the future.

According to a report, about 86% of the global population owns a smartphone, which is about 6.9 billion people. That's huge, right?

Due to this extensive coverage, many businesses now use mobile marketing as a powerful tool to reach and engage with their customers. As technology continues to evolve, new trends and technologies are emerging in the field of mobile marketing that are worth keeping a close eye on. In this article, we will explore the future of mobile marketing, highlighting some of the most exciting trends and technologies that businesses should keep an eye on.

From the rise of 5G to the use of artificial intelligence and machine learning, this article will provide a comprehensive overview of the most important mobile marketing trends and technologies that will shape the industry's future. Let’s dive in.

Emerging Trends in Mobile Marketing

Location-based marketing

Location-based marketing is an innovative trend in mobile marketing that uses a person's device location to deliver tailored and relevant content or offers. It is made possible through location-based services and GPS technology, which allows businesses to track a device's location and send targeted messages to users within a specific area.

For example, a business can use location-based marketing to send a special offer or coupon to customers near their store. This type of marketing can also be used to deliver relevant content or promotions to customers at a specific event or location, such as a sports stadium or concert venue.

There are many benefits businesses stand to gain from using location-based marketing. One of the most important is reaching customers at the right place and time, increasing the chances of converting them into customers.

John Gardner, Co-Founder & CEO of Kickoff, adds, "Location-based marketing allows businesses to gain insights into consumer behavior and preferences by tracking their interactions with various types of content and offers."

There are a multitude of channels through which location-based marketing can be delivered, including SMS, push notifications, and in-app messages. It can also be integrated with other types of mobile marketing, such as social media marketing and mobile advertising, to create more effective and personalized campaigns.

Personalization

Personalization is another fast-emerging trend in mobile marketing. It refers to how businesses tailor marketing messages, content, and offers to the individual preferences and needs of a specific customer. Marketers use data and insights about the customer, such as their browsing and purchase history, demographics, location, and other relevant information to increase advertising personalization.

For example, a clothing retailer might use personalization to send targeted promotions to customers based on their previous purchases. If a customer has previously bought a lot of athletic clothing, the retailer might send them a promotion for a new line of workout clothes.

Another great way to use personalization is through mobile advertising. It allows businesses to target a specific group of customers with tailored ads. For example, a business can use personalization to target ads for a new product to customers who have previously shown interest in similar products.

Mobile video marketing

In today's world, more and more people are using their mobile devices to watch videos online. And businesses have to take advantage of this by promoting their products and services through videos on mobile devices like smartphones and tablets.

Since businesses now know that their target audience is spending most of their time on their mobile devices, they can use mobile video marketing to target on-the-go consumers, such as those commuting, waiting in line, or even during lunch breaks.

Another advantage of mobile video marketing is that it is a highly engaging form of content. According to a study, video content is 1200% more successful than other content forms; viewers absorb 95% of the message while watching videos.

According to Tom Golubovich, Head of Marketing & Media Relations, Ninja Transfers, "Videos are more likely to capture the attention of viewers than text or images, and they also tend to be more memorable. That makes mobile video marketing an effective way to increase brand awareness and drive conversions."

There are several ways to implement mobile video marketing, such as creating short video ads that can be placed on social media platforms or creating longer-form videos that can be shared on a company's website or YouTube channel.

Businesses can also use live streaming to connect with their audience in real time and create a sense of immediacy.

Technologies to Watch in Mobile Marketing

Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning

Let's face it. Artificial intelligence and machine learning are taking over the world. These technologies now have applications in many parts of our daily life. In mobile marketing, businesses can use these advanced technologies to analyze data from mobile devices to create personalized and targeted marketing campaigns. Artificial Intelligence and machine learning are powerful technologies that allow businesses to create more effective and personalized mobile marketing campaigns.

According to Anthony Martin, Founder, and CEO, of Choice Mutual, "These technologies can help businesses target the right users with the right message at the right time, which can lead to higher conversion rates and better ROI. As such, they are certainly among the technologies to watch in mobile marketing."

5G and edge computing

Regarding mobile marketing, it is possible to use 5G and edge computing now to provide faster and more reliable connections for things like mobile ads and location-based marketing.

For example, with 5G, an ad can be delivered to a customer's phone almost instantly, and with edge computing, businesses can personalize ads based on the customer's location. It can lead to more effective and targeted advertising, resulting in better business outcomes for the companies involved.

Voice-enabled technology

Image source: Photo by Andrea Piacquadio

Voice-enabled technology allows users to interact with their devices using only their voice rather than typing or touching the screen, thus making using a mobile device more effortless and convenient. In mobile marketing, businesses can use voice-enabled technology to create more interactive and personalized advertising experiences.

For example, a voice-enabled mobile ad could allow users to ask questions, receive information about a product or service, or even purchase using only their voice. That can make the advertising experience more exciting and convenient for users and help businesses target and convert potential customers better.

Another potential use of voice-enabled technology in mobile marketing is in the creation of virtual assistants. These software programs can be programmed to understand and respond to a wide range of voice commands and can help users with various tasks, such as scheduling appointments, making reservations, or even ordering products and services. This can make mobile marketing more interactive and personalized and help businesses engage with their target audience better.

There's no doubt that voice-enabled technology is an exciting and rapidly-evolving area of mobile marketing that can create more engaging, personalized, and convenient advertising experiences for users and help businesses reach better and convert potential customers. For these reasons it is considered one of the technologies to watch in mobile marketing.

Conclusion

Mobile marketing is becoming an increasingly important aspect of digital marketing as more and more people rely on their mobile devices for everyday tasks. The emergence of new technologies is helping businesses create more effective and personalized marketing campaigns for mobile users.

As these technologies continue to evolve and become more mainstream, businesses must stay up-to-date with the latest trends and technologies to stay competitive in the mobile marketing landscape. However, it's also important to note that while technology is advancing rapidly, the key to successful mobile marketing will always be understanding the customer.

As such, businesses should be aware that data and technology should be a supplement, not a replacement, to understanding their target audience and tailoring their mobile campaigns to meet their needs.

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Rachel Melegrito is a guest contributor to Marin Software.

SWOT Analysis for Marketers: A Guide to Better Marketing Decisions

Marketing is a complex and ever-changing field that requires careful strategy and planning. One important technique that can help marketers navigate this landscape is SWOT analysis.

SWOT, which stands for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats, is a framework for evaluating a company's position in the market and identifying key factors that can impact success. In this article, we'll explore the basics of SWOT analysis and how it can be used to inform marketing decisions.

What is SWOT Analysis?

SWOT analysis is a strategic planning tool that helps businesses and organizations identify their strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. This analysis allows companies to assess their current position in the market and make informed decisions about their future. Identifying these key factors enables marketers to better understand their target audience, market trends, and competition, and develop effective marketing strategies.

Why is a SWOT Analysis Important for Marketing?

Marketing is all about creating value for customers and driving growth for the business. Using SWOT analysis, marketers can identify their key strengths and leverage them to create more impactful campaigns and marketing initiatives. At the same time, they can also identify areas for improvement, such as weaknesses in their marketing strategy, and take steps to address these weaknesses.

By understanding the opportunities and threats in the market, marketers can also better position themselves to capitalize on new trends and minimize the impact of challenges. This allows them to stay ahead of the competition and keep their marketing efforts relevant and effective.

The SWOT Analysis Framework

The SWOT analysis framework is simple and straightforward. Here's a closer look at each element:

Strengths

Strengths are the things that your company does well. These are your competitive advantages and the things that set you apart from other brands. Examples of strengths in marketing might include a strong brand image, a loyal customer base, or a highly effective marketing team. For instance, if you have a strong brand image, you may want to focus on leveraging this strength through your marketing efforts to increase brand recognition and build customer loyalty.

Weaknesses

Weaknesses are the things that your company doesn't do well. They are the areas in which you are lacking and need improvement. Examples of weaknesses in marketing might include inconsistent content creation, weak branding, or ineffective marketing campaigns. For instance, if you have identified inconsistency in creating content as a weakness, you may want to allocate more resources to hiring a good content team or even use AI marketing tools to automate the tasks.

Opportunities

Opportunities are the external factors that can positively impact your marketing efforts. They entail the trends and changes in the market that you can capitalize on to achieve better results. Examples of opportunities in marketing might include new demographic groups, new geographic markets, or changes in consumer behavior. For instance, if you have identified a new audience with high potential for growth, you may want to allocate more budget towards targeted marketing efforts to reach this customer base.

Threats

Threats are the external factors that can negatively impact your marketing efforts. These are the challenges and risks that you need to be aware of in order to minimize their impact. Examples of threats in marketing might include changes in consumer preferences, new competitors entering the market, or shifting economic conditions. For instance, if a new competitor has entered your market, you may want to evaluate your marketing strategies and tactics to ensure that you are effectively differentiating your brand from the competition.

How to Conduct a SWOT Analysis for Marketing

Conducting a SWOT analysis for marketing is relatively simple and can be done in several steps. Here's a basic outline for how to do it:

Gather data: The first step in conducting a marketing SWOT analysis is to gather data on your marketing efforts, your target audience, and your competitors. This can include customer feedback, sales data, market research, and other relevant information. The goal of this step is to gather as much data as possible to support your assessments in the next steps.

Identify your strengths: This is the internal analysis of your marketing plan where you make a list of your company's key strengths in marketing. Consider the things you do well and what sets you apart from your competitors. What are your unique selling points? What are your core competencies?
Assess your weaknesses: Next, make a list of your company's weaknesses in marketing. This is where you assess your internal shortcomings. What are the areas where your marketing efforts fall short? What can you improve upon?
Determine opportunities: Next up is the external analysis of your marketing plan, whereby you look at the market and identify the trends and changes that could positively impact your marketing efforts. What are the trends in your industry? Is there new technology, artificial intelligence software, or anything else to boost your productivity? What are the untapped markets you can explore?
Analyze threats: Here, you assess the external challenges that could negatively impact your marketing efforts. What are the challenges posed by your competitors? What are the changes in the market that may negatively impact your marketing efforts?
Evaluate the results: After you've identified your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats, take some time to evaluate the results. Determine which factors are the most important and which areas need the most attention.
Develop a plan of action: Based on the results of your SWOT analysis, develop a plan of action for how you will address your weaknesses, capitalize on your strengths, take advantage of opportunities, and minimize the impact of threats.
Regularly reevaluate: Because marketing is something that keeps changing over time, it's important to regularly review and update your SWOT analysis. This will help you stay up-to-date with changes in the market and make sure your marketing efforts are always effective.

SWOT Analysis Example

Below is a SWOT Analysis example for a marketing agency:

Strengths:

Experienced and knowledgeable marketing team
Strong portfolio of successful marketing campaigns and projects
Wide range of services, including digital marketing, branding, and advertising
Strong relationships with media outlets and influencers

Weaknesses:

Relatively high prices compared to smaller or less established agencies
Limited ability to handle large-scale, complex projects
Dependence on key clients for a significant portion of revenue
Limited international reach and presence

Opportunities:

Growing demand for digital marketing services
Ability to expand into new industries and markets
Opportunities for growth and expansion through acquisitions or partnerships with other agencies
Growing awareness of the importance of branding and marketing to businesses of all sizes

Threats:

Intense competition from larger and more established agencies
Disruptions in the advertising and marketing industry, such as changes in consumer preferences or technology
Increased regulation of marketing practices and advertising
Changes in consumer spending patterns, particularly in a weak economy

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By considering these strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats, the marketing agency can develop a plan to address its weaknesses, capitalize on its strengths, and position itself for success in a competitive industry.

Common Mistakes in SWOT Analysis

While it can be a valuable tool, SWOT analysis is not always done correctly, and there are several mistakes that can occur.

Lack of Objectivity

One of the biggest mistakes in SWOT analysis is the lack of objectivity from those conducting the analysis. When evaluating your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats, it's important to be honest and unbiased. This can be difficult when personal opinions and emotions are involved. To avoid this mistake, it's important to gather data and opinions from a variety of sources, including employees, customers, and industry experts.

Not Considering the Right Factors

Another common mistake in SWOT analysis is not considering the right factors. As you identify your strengths and weaknesses, it's best to focus on factors that are relevant to your business and the market.

For example, while a strong company culture may be important, it may not be relevant to your marketing efforts. It's important to focus on factors that are directly related to your marketing strategy and can impact your success.

Ignoring External Factors

SWOT analysis is designed to evaluate both internal and external factors, but some organizations tend to focus too much on internal factors and ignore external ones. This can lead to a limited understanding of the market and can impact your ability to capitalize on opportunities and minimize threats. That’s why it's important to consider both internal and external factors when conducting a SWOT analysis.

Not Updating Regularly

It is important to keep in mind that a SWOT analysis is not a one-time event. Marketing is a constantly evolving field, and it's important to regularly reevaluate your SWOT analysis to stay up-to-date with changes in the market.

However, many organizations make the mistake of not updating their SWOT analysis regularly, which can lead to an outdated understanding of their position in the market.

Not Using the Results

Finally, a common mistake in SWOT analysis is not using the results. After conducting a SWOT analysis, it's important to integrate the results into your marketing strategy. Plan how you will address your weaknesses, capitalize on your strengths, take advantage of opportunities, and minimize the impact of threats. Even so, many organizations make the mistake of not following through on these plans, which can limit the effectiveness of the SWOT analysis.

Conclusion

SWOT analysis is a powerful tool that can help marketers make better decisions and achieve more impactful results. Understanding your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats, marketers can help you identify areas for improvement, capitalize on new trends, and stay ahead of the competition. By incorporating SWOT analysis into your marketing strategy, you as a marketer can drive more success for your business and create more value for customers.

In case you need assistance with paid search, retail or social advertising, Marin Software may interest you. The platform offers expert solution for digital marketers to save time and scale their campaigns. Get in touch today!

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Mike Stuzzi is a guest blog contributor for Marin Software.

11 Proven Strategies to Increase AOV for an E-commerce Business

Businesses in the e-commerce industry are continuously looking for methods of boosting their revenue. The Average Order Value (AOV), the average amount a customer spends on a single purchase from an online store, is one crucial metric that can assist in achieving this.

Each e-commerce company strives for a high AOV since it shows that customers spend more on each purchase, boosting revenue and profitability. This post will examine a few tried-and-true tactics that e-commerce companies may employ to increase AOV and, as a result, reduce cart abandonment, improve customer experience, and accelerate bottom-line growth.

How to Calculate Average Order Value

We've already mentioned the formula for Average Order Value: AOV = Revenue / Number of orders. However, to get more precise data, you can also calculate the AOV for each traffic channel, including organic traffic, referrals, ads, etc.

Installing accurate reporting web analytics software is crucial. Use Google Analytics to determine the typical order value for each traffic channel. Visit your Google Analytics profile. You'll need the figures from the Transactions and Revenue tabs and look at the low and high values to determine the causes of these changes.

Best Practices for AOV Improvement

If you strive to raise the average order value for the company, the most important thing is to earn trust. You can do this in different ways, some of them are:

Offer a personalized approach where each consumer can discover the ideal product.
Provide consumers the flexibility to modify their orders to fit their unique schedules or lifestyles.
Ensure your organization has a fair pricing policy.

Let's look closely at some particular activities that can be done to improve the average order value.

Optimize Product Bundles

One of the tips for raising the AOV is putting up packages and bundles that drive customers to spend more. In this situation, the right thing to do is group related things that make sense to buy together. For example, if the person purchases contact lenses, they will likely need a solution for them as well.

Evaluate your product sales data to determine which goods are frequently bought in pairs. Make these goods available in product bundles that come with a discount. Use your website and other platforms to promote the bundles extensively.

Upsell and Cross-Sell

AOV may be improved by using cross-selling and upselling tactics. Upselling is the practice of persuading consumers to upgrade or purchase more expensive versions of the product they're interested in.

With product bundles, cross-selling entails making product recommendations that complement the items a consumer is already purchasing. A pair of shoes or a scarf, for instance, may be suggested items while someone is shopping for a coat.

Examine your product catalog to find items that may be cross- or up-sold. Add checkout notifications for upselling and cross-selling. Analyze the data to find the best recommendations for increasing AOV.

Screenshot taken on the official Asos website

Optimize the Pricing

Be very careful with the products' pricing. It might be hard to boost AOV if they are too low, and if prices are too high, consumers can be discouraged from purchasing. The price must be competitive within the market sector and allow the company to profit. Do a competitive study of pricing in the industry. Maintain profit margins while adjusting product prices to comply with industry norms. To raise AOV, consider providing superior items at a higher price range.

Offer Discounts and Special Offers

Product discounts can generate more purchases and raise the average order value on your e-commerce store. Deals can be presented as a gift card, or you may provide first-time buyer discounts. This is one of the most straightforward techniques to raise the average order value and help enhance conversion rates across the site. Since customers will get a better deal, they are more likely to add other products to their shopping cart.

Screenshot taken on the official Bodum website

Provide Free Shipping

The free delivery option makes customers willing to purchase more items. You may provide a shipping option once an order reaches a specific value. If you're shipping small things, this tactic could reduce shipping costs and encourage users to make larger purchases from the website.

Free delivery is one of many options available. You may ensure the customers that the deliveries will be made safely. Another option is to offer free returns or allow clients to select from various delivery variants.

Create a Customer Loyalty Program

To thank your loyal consumers, implement customer loyalty programs. Design a program that offers the clients value-adding incentives like gifts for spending a specific amount or discounts for making a particular number of purchases or returning customers.

These initiatives boost not only sales but also brand engagement, resulting in increased levels of customer satisfaction and steadfast brand loyalty. Due to reduced related marketing and advertising expenditures, loyal clients are more likely to leave more money at your store, which is excellent for AOV.

Screenshot taken on the official The Webster website

Create the Feeling of Urgency

Use time-limited deals to raise the average order value for your online store. Many shoppers simply can't resist a bargain, especially if it has a feeling of urgency. In this regard, you may create a limited edition of some products or launch a countdown with a discount.

Demonstrate Social Proof

If consumers see that others have bought similar goods from your store and stayed satisfied with the purchase, they are more inclined to do the same. So it makes sense that social proof is a valuable strategy for boosting your AOV and encouraging greater buy orders.

As a result, showing social proof from the customers may help build trust with potential consumers. Also, if potential and present consumers realize that you are a reputable company many people adore, they are more inclined to make larger purchases.

User-generated content is one of the finest methods to demonstrate social proof. You might also post reviews on the homepage and social media accounts to let people see what your clients think about the store.

Screenshot taken on the official True Botanicals website

Provide Free Trials for Premium Products

Customers prefer to try products out before purchasing them, especially if the product is expensive. Knowing that a product works well and corresponds to your expectations is comforting. Giving out free samples of more expensive or premium items is a highly efficient way to increase AOV and conversions for such products.

If you sell a digital product, promoting a trial period is also a working strategy for entry-level products. As a product's advantages are demonstrated, any remaining doubts are eliminated, which motivates clients to spend more money.

Ensure Live Chat Support System

A company has a better chance of decreasing the abandoned carts rate and converting customers if representatives are constantly available to answer customer questions. Clients are less likely to abandon shopping carts full of items when the company can answer their questions promptly.

For instance, a consumer who wants additional details about the shipping prices would demand a prompt response before purchasing. You have a greater chance of converting such consumers if you answer immediately, raising the company's sales and, thus, AOV.

Screenshots were taken on the official Farfetch website

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Perform A/B Testing

You should test each AOV-boosting strategy to ensure it works as effectively as possible. This may be accomplished through A/B testing. Split testing is a reliable technique for comparing several website components to get the best variables combined for positive outcomes. Making the wrong decision might result in your online store losing conversions at a staggering pace. With that in mind, make it a practice to test key components to make sure you're putting your attention where it belongs.

Final Word

To increase sales and profitability, an e-commerce company should raise its average order value (AOV). Businesses may successfully enhance AOV and boost sales by putting the tactics outlined above into practice, including upselling and cross-selling, offering free delivery, making individualized product suggestions, and others. Turning to analytics to customize these techniques to each customer's buying habits and interests is crucial.

Establish a baseline for the company before implementing any sales strategies, and then monitor changes in client behavior. By doing so, you may drive the success of your marketing initiatives, keep an eye out for any patterns or abnormalities, and adjust the tactics to better serve your target audience. In a similar vein, make sure to keep an eye on client feedback. You may keep improving customer experience by paying attention to what consumers say and how their comments change over time.

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Kate Parish is a guest contributor to Marin Software.

Everything You Ought to Know About Instagram Video Ads

‍Instagram evolved from an exclusive photo-sharing platform to one that now includes video formats. From 15-second Instagram Stories to long-format in-feed videos, marketers can leverage these powerful marketing tools.

Video ads on Instagram, in particular, are an attention-grabbing way to showcase your product or service. According to Meta’s Q3 2022 earnings release, production and consumption of Instagram Reels grew by 50% to 140 billion shares across Facebook, Instagram, and DMs. So, now is the best time to capitalize on Instagram video advertisements.

In this guide, you’ll learn how video ads on Instagram can help you achieve business objectives and best practices.

Different Types of Instagram Videos

But let’s back up a bit. What are the different types of videos on Instagram in the first place? Here are four:

In-Feed

These videos appear on users’ feeds the same way image posts do. They can run up to 60 minutes long. This gives businesses leeway to create different types of content – from behind-the-scenes videos to promotions. It’s a surefire way to get Instagram likes. Plus, you can engage customers in the comment section.

This in-feed ad looks like a regular post with the like, comment, and caption section. The call to action button (CTA) sits between the video and the engagement features.

^{Instagram Stories}

These posts use a full-screen, vertical video format, appearing in the Stories section. They run for up to 15 seconds and ‘disappear’ after 24 hours (Note that Instagram Stories ads are different from regular Stories; they allow you to customize ad length). Interactive elements like tagging and stickers give Instagram Stories content an organic feel. It’s one of the few places you can post a direct link on the app.

This Instagram Story doesn’t have like or comment features, but viewers can share the ad with their followers. The CTA button sits at the bottom of the screen, and users swipe up to go to a converting landing page.

Instagram Reels

These 90-second videos are the newest video format on the app. They appear on the Instagram Explore page, followers’ feeds, and the Reels section of your profile. Customers engage with them by liking, commenting, and sharing.

This Reels ad looks like a cross between Instagram Stories and In-Feed posts. The video is a vertical full-screen. The caption, engagement, and CTA buttons are onscreen and not separate from the video.

Live

Instagram Live allows users to stream videos for up to four hours. Live streams appear in the Stories panel and only your followers can view them. Even though Meta is phasing out the Live Shopping feature, it is a great marketing format to interact with followers. You can also share exclusive content like tutorials or events.

Whatever format you choose, well-designed Instagram ads should feel like organic posts.

Instagram Video Advertising Goals

The statistics on video marketing are compelling – demand for video content is 91%. However, it would help if you had a well-thought-out content marketing plan to capitalize on the trend. Your marketing strategy should identify the marketing or business goals you wish to achieve with video ad content.

These goals can be one or more of the following:

Brand Awareness and Reach

Brand awareness is the degree to which target audiences recognize a brand, product, or service by name. Customers are more likely to buy products they know than those they don’t. Therefore, businesses with high brand awareness rates generate more sales and create economic moats that protect their market share from competitors.

Some ways to measure brand awareness on Instagram are mentions and engagement.

Engagement

It refers to creating meaningful customer interactions and building customer loyalty. According to Forbes, people are exposed to almost 8,000 ads a day. If you want customers to remember you, you should create engaging and organic content for every step of the customer journey.

You track your engagement rate by how many likes, video views, comments, and shares your video post gets.

App Installs

This objective falls under the category of increasing brand audience. SaaS brands don’t sell physical products; they sell subscriptions. These companies use video ads on Instagram to demonstrate their software value and drive app installs. So, instead of a ‘Buy Now’ CTA, you may see an ‘Install Now’ or ‘Download’ CTA. The more downloads you get, the bigger your audience.

Conversions

The goal of every marketing campaign is to turn prospects into customers. It is difficult to justify the budget spend on video marketing with low conversion rates. Fortunately, 92% of marketers believe that videos give them a good return on investment (ROI), with increased leads, traffic, and sales.

Instagram Video Ad Best Practices to Follow

If you’re considering video ads on Instagram, study the various video feeds to understand features, engagement capabilities, and content trends. The best ones usually blend into followers’ feeds. Here are five tips to optimize your Instagram video ads.

Choose Appealing Visuals

According to a study, you should deliver value in the first three to ten seconds to ensure viewers keep watching your video.

So, you need to make your ad visually appealing.

Start by minimizing the number of visual elements in the ad. Mobile screens don’t have a lot of space. You want to reduce the visual clutter and direct the viewers’ gaze to the product.

Also, use bright colors to capture attention. Check out this great example from Apple. The yellow green and pink colors stand out:

Use your brand colors, too, to improve recognition.

Also, place your product front and center in your video. You only have a few seconds to leave an impression; the viewers should know what the product is even if they don’t watch the full video.

There are technical requirements to making video clips appealing. We recommend vertical videos to fit the natural orientation of smartphones. Instagram Stories and Reels are full-screen formats and look better in portrait orientation. Other technical guidelines include video size, resolution, MP4 or MOV format, and 4:5 aspect ratio video settings.

Write Compelling Captions

As important as ad visuals are, you mustn’t underestimate the power of captions. Videos on Instagram automatically play without sound. That means viewers must tap the sound icon to hear the marketing message.

Again, you have a short time to grab customers’ attention. If your ad relies on sound, you must convince viewers to switch on the video sound. Onscreen captions help audiences hook into ad storylines and increase view time by 12%. They allow you to communicate your marketing message with or without sound and are browsing-friendly for people with hearing disabilities.

The video captions of this Nike reel (this isn’t a video ad, but just want to prove a point) are timed with the audio narration. The font color stands out for easy reading. So, whether the video sound is off or on, the audience receives a cohesive experience. You can do this with your Instagram video ads, too.

Remember, ad copy can clutter your ad, so keep your message concise.

Use Call-to-Action Buttons

The call to action turns prospects into leads and leads into customers. If you want users to download an app, sign up for a newsletter, or buy a product, the CTA directs them to the right place.

Instagram doesn’t provide many opportunities for direct links to drive conversions. There is the link in the bio and the link sticker in Stories. However, Stories are short-lived. If you send leads from your video to your bio to a landing page, you might lose them.

A third option is available to business/professional accounts to run ads. The CTA button appears at the bottom of the screen. Check out the Learn More CTA in the screenshot of Velocity Black’s video ad above.

To catch viewers when they are most interested, ensure your CTAs appear in the middle of the video. If you wait until the end, you will miss the chance to convert the people who didn’t watch the entire video. If CTAs appear at the beginning, you might seem pushy.

Utilize Hashtags

Hashtags are keywords or phrases that help people find content around searched topics. But if you’re using a pay-per-click strategy to amplify your ads, do you need them?

The short answer is yes.

Hashtags give context to your ads, allowing Instagram to understand and categorize your content. Instagram uses hashtags as signals to determine which content gets in front of which audience, affecting your rank on the Explore page and content delivery to your followers' Instagram feed.

Test Different Ad Formats

Even if you create an ad you think customers would like, it’s best to test different ad formats to find the one your audience responds to. Customer viewing preferences change. A/B testing helps you learn what they want to see.

A/B or split testing compares two or more versions of the same ad. This helps you determine which version leaves the most impact and drives conversions. Test each element individually, i.e., CTA buttons, color schemes, or caption copy, to find the best combination. For instance, the only variable between two ads could be the caption text color or video length.

Split testing adds another step to your video ad campaign. However, with A/B testing tools, you save time and money by running ads that bring results. When you sign up for Meta Ads Manager, you can use the same tools that optimize Facebook ads for your Instagram A/B testing.

In Closing

Instagram recognizes the value of video. Savvy marketers are capitalizing on the social channel’s video formats to reach audiences and drive sales. They use the platform to demonstrate product uses, highlight unique features, or tell their brand story. This guide showed you how Instagram video ads could help you meet your business goals. You learned five best practices to optimize your video ad campaigns. As a final tip, remember that your Instagram videos must be authentic, entertaining, and high-quality. Otherwise, customers will just swipe or scroll past them. Good luck!

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Harry Flynn is a guest contributor to Marin Software.

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SIS Deer Valley Content Highlights - December 2023

Some months ago, MarinOne attended Search Insider Summit’s Performance Marketing event in Deer Valley, Utah. While skiing, snow shoeing, snowmobiling and more winter fun set the tone for a casual, social atmosphere…the insights and expertise that were shared during the speaking sessions I would call anything but casual. Here are our quick and brief “too long didn’t read” notes on the content that was covered.

Keynote Presentation: Super Coffee's Digital Marketing Blend in an Omnichannel World

Super Coffee has been one of the nation's top five ready-to-serve coffees since 2015 when they quickly reached a $400 million company. They can now be found in over 70,000 stores and online, prompting the need for an update to their digital marketing efforts to continue their success. Jimmy Dicicco (co-founder and Chief Brand Officer) and Tyler Ricks (Chief Executive Officer) talked about their journey and how their digital strategy transformed over time. They also explained their strategy for maintaining a balance between expanding their business and staying profitable, along with the methods to measure ROI.

KEYNOTE SPEAKERS

Jimmy DeCicco, Co-founder, Chief Brand Officer, Super Coffee

Tyler Ricks, Chief Executive Officer, Super Coffee

"We shouldn't think in silos"

Stopped dividing ecomm goals and retail goals, looked at all business holistically

Clued into their target market, initial targeting was very broad but it did give them the data they needed to establish the right audiences

Seeking protein, avoiding sugar, keto

Primary focus on lifetime value, built up the subscription model
With the growth of revenue and reduction of paid media spend, they were able to raise a significant amount of funding for the business
All consumers are omnichannel

Presentation: Winning at Retail Media: Leveraging Retail Media in Today’s Unique Economy

Morgan Chemij, HP's Global Senior Director of Marketplaces, offered great insights about retail media and shopper marketing! He discussed how marketers can ensure that they remain up to date and well-informed on new retail media trends. The recent trend of diverting money away from traditional media channels and allocating it towards retail marketing, means understanding the importance of this type of marketing is paramount for any brand or advertising team. He went into depth about how retail media has been gaining immense traction in the marketing sphere.

Major players like Amazon, Walmart Connect, Target Roundel and Instacart are taking advantage of this trend to leverage their reach and engagement, while new platform partners like Costco and Best Buy are rapidly growing and making a mark. Major retail d2c brands particularly have been using these platforms to propel growth and success for their businesses. Chemij gave tips on where to place bets, what types of activations are likely to be the most successful, and HP's approach and learnings during their Retail Media journey.

PRESENTER

Morgan Chemij, Global Marketplace Strategy & Execution, HP

Amazon is still leading in retail media, but Walmart and Instacart are both taking a significantly higher share than they once did. Multiple media networks is critical at this point.
Wayfair, Ebay, Costco, Macy's, Best Buy, The Home Depot, Target, Tesco, 7-11, and Kroger are all emerging networks that are gaining traffic and taking market share. (we need to get with all of these!)
Retail media networks offer a convenience to consumers that they really enjoy. Buyers like to have a personalized experience, especially when it's with a brand they trust. Not everyone may want to share their information or activity to any advertiser online, but they may be more willing to "allow cookies" when it's a specific brand they like.
HP invested in search on smaller media networks like Costco and had a 13% conversion lift and lowered their CPA to just $12.

Panel Debate: Automation - Friend or Foe?

The ad tech industry has progressed significantly by automating a great deal of the process for building, publishing and optimizing paid media campaigns. This shift has taken away more control from marketers. It's understandable to be wary of AI algorithms when it comes to content creation and optimization. Figuring out the perfect balance between automation and human input is key for a successful campaign. To gain more insight into this topic, Annie Stickney moderated a debate-style panel discussion where leading marketers discussed their experiences with artificial intelligence and automation.

MODERATOR

Annie Stickney, VP OmniChannel Analytics - Head of Search Analytics, JP Morgan Chase

PANELISTS

Michael Aburas, Director of Digital Marketing, Icon Parking

Brett Geeser, Head of Paid Search, Cross Media

Jonathan Kagan, VP, Search, 9Rooftops @jonkagan

Brett - "Trust but verify"
Annie - Gonzalez vs. Google
Jonathan - Content terrorism, Twitter is a danger

Difficult brand decisions to ethically rule out or keep geographical areas where controversial bills are passed, like Texas vaccination law

Michael - brand association, his view is to keep things right in the middle

Free speech vs. brand messaging
US and New Zealand allow pharmaceutical advertising

Many global countries do not allow it

Presentation: Peak Behind the Curtain – Driving Organizational Change During Uncertainty

In this time of ongoing uncertainty, marketers must be nimble and flexible to stay on top of consumer's evolving needs. Being able to respond quickly is critical for success is critical. Vivian Chang, the head of direct-to-consumer at The Clorox Company, discussed how the iconic CPG brand is optimizing and adapting its organization to ensure a successful long-term outlook. During her presentation, she covered essential tactics for marketing operations success like delivering over revenue, successful change management, and finding a balance between short-term and long-term objectives.

PRESENTER

Vivian Chang, VP Growth, Clorox DTC, The Clorox Company

Martech landscape is overwhelming
How do you determine the tools that are needed?
How do you be agile?
How do you develop teams to be successful at driving strategy?
Be a growth engine

Get started! Be aware you'll probably pivot, but you won't know until you try SOMETHING

Balance long term and short term mentality

Be more reactive
Respond to the customers' wants and needs

Get creative on showing success

Incremental omni revenue
High quality first party data
Insights to drive brand efficiency
Early learning for R&D innovation

Mobilize support through allies
Build a flexible people organization

FTEs, contractors, AND agencies
Put people in the places that they will have the greatest long-term impact

Clarify and simplify
Own, don't abdicate decisions
Check your ego
Celebrate the small wins
Take care of you

Keynote Presentation: The Future of Traffic Generation - Why Branding & SEO Matter in a High CAC Environment

Despite a complex customer acquisition climate, companies are still looking for effective solutions to drive traffic and sales. Brands and retailers are held to high expectations to achieve their goals in this landscape. Establishing a strong presence through conventional branding and SEO is essential for achieving success within a performance marketing strategy. These channels provide valuable assistance to paid media for maximizing the return on your investments.

Amy Madonia, Executive Director of Global Ecommerce at The Estée Lauder Companies, explained how the world's biggest makeup brand made use of storytelling techniques to differentiate themselves online. She also covered the future of demand generation in today's digital environment which is changing rapidly.

KEYNOTE SPEAKER

Amy Madonia, Executive Director, of Global Ecommerce, The Estée Lauder Companies

$500M in charitable donations to those affected by HIV or AIDS
Focus on AOV - virtual try on or "trend try on" is increasing the number of products each user buys
Commitment, persistance, and elbow grease - there was no ownership for SEO, so they created a team of engaged and committed people that would work on easy tasks in sprints

Case Study: Becoming Relevant via Cultural Moments

H&R Block saw an opportunity to reach a younger audience and enhance its brand perception when the NCAA updated its Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) regulations in 2021. College athletes had the chance to make a large profit off of their NIL, which presented an appealing opportunity for tax preparation companies. It enabled them to join in on a relevant cultural moment and effectively connect with consumers. Pierson Curtis, Director of Growth Marketing at H&R, talked about how their culturally sensitive and purpose-driven campaign led to better performance across various paid, earned and owned channels.

PRESENTER

Pierson Curtis, Director of Growth Marketing & Engagement, H&R Block

Case Study: Affiliates & Partnerships: Where Brand and Lower Funnel Merge

It's possible to achieve a mutually beneficial situation among Brand and lower funnel marketers. Through Affiliate and Partnership programs, teams can collaborate in creating profitable strategies and tactics for all involved. Kristina has done a commendable job at Big Island Coffee Roasters as their lower funnel marketer. 'Partnerships' has become her priority, right after her love for coffee. This initiative has enabled Kristina to support her Brand colleagues in various ways. By thinking out of the box and applying creative strategies, marketers can create fresh opportunities and deliver excellent results that are beyond usual PR and Brand activities.

PRESENTER

Kristina Smith, Head of DTC, Big Island Coffee Roasters

Are you ready for GA4?

Google is retiring the version of Google Analytics we have all been using for years and requiring us to move to Google Analytics 4 (GA4). Because GA4 is built on an entirely new data model, we need to set up GA4 from scratch. This post is intended to highlight a few topics for consideration as you manage this upgrade from Universal Analytics (UA).

What is different about GA4?

Mobile First: GA4 is built around an event-driven data model that tracks user interactions across different platforms and devices, providing marketers with a more holistic view of user behavior. UA, on the other hand, is pageview-based, meaning it tracks website pages' interactions and doesn't provide insight into user behavior outside the website. Additionally, GA4 uses machine learning to analyze user behavior and provide deeper insights into audience demographics, interests, and behaviors.

Events First: In UA, Goals were the focus of any conversion-related analysis and were set up in Google Analytics. Not in GA4. Everything is an Event and there are four type of events. Events can be marked as Conversions in GA4 for use in funnel reports.

To get the most from GA4, you will want to configure the events in Google Tag Manager although you can define up to 30 custom events in GA4 directly. Instead of a few pre-defined parameters (Label, Action, etc.), events can have multiple custom-defined parameters to align with how they are used.

Google offers a Goals Migration Tool that can be used for Destination Goals and Events, but they recommend restructuring your events to match the GA4 data model.

Goodbye Views, Hello Data Streams: GA4 maintains Accounts and Properties, similar to UA, but the concept of views is gone. Views were often used to filter your data to focus on a subset. In GA4, each data is collected from one or more Data Streams (websites, apps, or other digital properties), and any filtering must be done in Google Tag Manager.

Farewell Bounce Rate, Welcome Engaged Sessions: Because page-oriented metrics like Bounce Rate don’t translate to a mobile app, GA4 is focused on session metrics. One casualty is Bounce Rate. The closest approximation is an Engaged Session which attempts to determine whether the user interacted with your content. It’s similar in that 2 or more page views should count as an Engaged Session, but it also works on mobile. If the numbers surprise you, remember that it translates more closely to 1 - Bounce Rate.

Built on Big Query: Google’s Big Query underlies GA4, giving you improved access to the underlying data for querying or use in Google Data studio.

We polled our nearly 40,000 MarinOne followers on LinkedIn about their GA4 status, March 2023.

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How does my workflow change?

Google is attempting to clarify the workflow around analytics by breaking it into separate pieces handled by distinct applications. Many of us already use Google Tag Manager and Google Data Studio, but GA4 encourages or even requires some of the work to be done in those tools.

Conversion Setup in Tag Manager: As mentioned earlier, you no longer set up Goals in Google Analytics directly. Instead, you set up anything you want to track as an Event, and then you can mark some of your events Conversions in Google Analytics. Many activities you probably thought of as metrics in UA (e.g., Page Views) are automatically tracked. For custom events tied to your conversion funnel, these need to be set up in Google Tag Manager, including things like reaching a specific thank you page or submitting a form, or viewing a video. This gives you tremendous flexibility but requires more forethought in your setup.

Reporting in Google Data Studio: Google envisions Analytics as a tool for Analysis or asking questions about the data. They are pushing pure reporting functions to Google Data Studio. The idea is that you probably have some users who will be overwhelmed with the complexity of analytics (not to mention they might break something in the process) and would be better served with a Dashboard from GDS.

There is configurable reporting in GA4, and one of the first things you may want to do is set up a Library that mimics the reports found in UA to make the transition easier.

Linking Google Ads: GA4 can still be used to power your Google Ads conversions, but you will need to reconfigure your setup to make sure this happens.

First, you need to take the existing conversions from Universal Analytics and make them Secondary Conversions, so Smartbidding does not consider them. Then you will import the new GA4 Conversions by selecting New Conversion Action from Tools > Conversions. Once there, select Import, and you will be able to import any events that are marked Conversions in GA4. Once imported, these will be available for Smartbidding optimization.

Improved Analytics: This migration presents an opportunity to review your Analytics setup to ensure it is up today with the needs of your business. It’s easy to have your analytics on autopilot, even as your website, app, and go-to-market motions change. Take the opportunity to audit the events you want to track, the audiences or segments that are important to you, and the report your stakeholders need. Of course, you want continuity with your existing data, but don’t miss the chance to improve things.

What about historical data?

There is no migration of historical data from UA to GA4. Google has stated that historical data will be available in UA for 6 months, but after that, there is no guarantee that you will have access. This is why it is important to set up GA4 tracking as soon as possible if you have not already.

UA’s reporting tools If you work with a 3rd-party PPC platform such as MarinOne, you should be able to import your conversion data as far back as needed

Need Help?

This article isn’t intended to be a complete guide to making the migration, so it barely scratches the surface of what’s possible with GA4. If you find yourself in need of additional bandwidth or expertise, our team of analytics ninjas are ready to help. Click here to set up a free consultation.

Digiday Media Buying Summit Recap 2023 - New Orleans

The media buying industry is constantly evolving, and staying on top of the latest trends and strategies is crucial for success. That's why events like the Digiday Media Buying Summit are so valuable. Industry experts and thought leaders come together to share insights, discuss challenges, and explore new opportunities.

The recent Digiday Media Buying Summit in New Orleans was no exception. Over the course of several days, attendees had the chance to hear from a variety of speakers, participate in workshops and panel discussions, and network with peers from across the industry.

One of the key themes that emerged from the summit was the ongoing challenge of data privacy and how it's impacting media buying. As more and more consumers become aware of the data being collected about them and the ways it's being used, there's a growing push for greater transparency and control. This has led to increased regulation, such as the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in Europe and the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) in the United States.

Media buyers are having to adapt to these changes by being more transparent with consumers about how their data is being used, and by ensuring that they're only collecting and using data that's truly necessary. They're also exploring alternative ways to target audiences, such as contextual advertising, which targets ads based on the content of the page rather than the user's data.

Another topic that received a lot of attention at the summit was the continued growth of programmatic advertising. Programmatic has become an increasingly popular way to buy and sell advertising, as it allows for greater targeting and efficiency. However, there are still challenges to be addressed, such as ad fraud and brand safety.

To combat these issues, media buyers are investing in more sophisticated fraud detection tools and partnering with trusted publishers to ensure that their ads are appearing in safe and reputable environments. They're also exploring new approaches to programmatic, such as bringing programmatic in-house, which can give them greater control over their campaigns and data.

In addition to these challenges, the summit also highlighted some of the exciting opportunities that are emerging in media buying. One such opportunity is the growing importance of connected TV (CTV). As more consumers shift away from traditional TV and towards streaming services, CTV has become an increasingly important channel for advertisers.

Media buyers are exploring ways to take advantage of this trend, such as by using data to target specific households or by partnering with streaming services to create unique ad experiences.

Advertisers are being faced with new, ever-changing obstacles due to fluctuating budgets, varying company and industry objectives and unpredictable customer behavior. This creates tension between brand marketers and the platforms from which ads are purchased.

This puts additional pressure on agencies and third party tools like MarinOne to bridge the gap and represent both parties well–ensuring marketers get the best possible return on their advertising investment, while the ad platforms' requirements are met to ensure their audiences are protected. Speak with one our expert consultants to learn how you can increase ad efficiency while remaining compliant.

We were glad to be apart of this years' Digiday Media Buying event in New Orleans, alongside our partner LinkedIn, to bring you, our clients and partners, the most up to date information possible. Continue to watch our blog for more insights that were gathered throughout this 3 day event over the coming weeks.

Content Marketing

Unlock the Secrets to Efficient Content Creation: 10 Fresh Ideas for 2023

Creating high-quality content that resonates with your audience is more important than ever in 2023. The amount of content produced and shared online is staggering, and you need to find ways to stand out from the crowd.

Marketers also need to be consistent, so finding ways to make your content creation more efficient, impactful, and memorable should be a priority. To help, we've put together 10 fresh ideas for efficient content creation in 2023 that will help you connect with your audience, drive engagement, and reach your content marketing goals.

From beginners to those who wish to revamp an existing content strategy, these tips will make things easier for you this year, and beyond.

Tip #1: Plan and organize your content

To ensure you create content efficiently, you must have a clear plan and strategy. A content calendar is a great way to accomplish this strategy while also guaranteeing that you publish relevant and engaging content regularly. Always prioritize your tasks based on audience demand and your content goals, and use a mockup generator with pre-designed templates to provide an idea of the look and feel of your content.

With a content plan, you can ensure your content focuses on your current products, releases, services, and business happenings while aligning with the overall marketing strategy. Your content plan should be a roadmap for creating, publishing, and ensuring that you achieve a better return on investment (ROI) for your content marketing efforts.

Tip #2: Repurpose and upcycle old content

Instead of starting from scratch every time you create new content, consider repurposing and updating existing content. For example, you could turn a blog post into an infographic or use it to create a podcast. This approach saves time and ensures that you're making the most of the content you've already created; no one is scanning back through your feed to see what you posted a year ago, and if they do, they likely won't point out a double-up.

Take your existing content and modify it in new and innovative ways to speak to new audiences, drive engagement, and above all, save time. Extending the lifespan of your content by turning a blog post into a video, for example, also means you'll see more value from all content efforts while building brand recognition and creating a strong, consistent brand image.

Tip #3: Collaborate with micro-influencers and crowdsource ideas

Collaborating with other departments, influencers, or subject matter experts can help create better content. Use crowdsourcing techniques, such as surveys, to gather feedback and understand what types of content your audience wants to see.

This strategy will help point your content creation in the right direction, whether it be a social post or a high-converting blog. You can also leverage the audiences of the people or organizations you collaborate with to see higher reach to new audiences, who are potential customers. For example, micro-influencers, individuals with a relatively small but dedicated social following, can be a great way to generate sales.

Some benefits of working with micro-influencers include:

Higher engagement rates: Micro-influencers often have higher engagement rates than more significant influencers, as they have a more dedicated and engaged following. Your brand message has a better chance of reaching and resonating with your target audience.
More authentic relationships: Micro-influencers often have personal relationships with their followers. This connection means their endorsement is more authentic and trustworthy.
Cost-effective: Micro-influencers typically charge less for their services, making them a cost-effective option.
Niche reach: You can target a specific niche or area of expertise, which can help your brand reach a targeted audience.
Long-term relationships: Micro-influencers are often open to forming long-term relationships with brands, which can help build brand recognition and credibility over time.

Tip #4: Use storytelling and other visual elements

Make your content more engaging and memorable with images, videos, and other data visualization to understand complex information. Where possible, try to tell a story about your brand, the products, or whatever your content is focusing on. People want to be entertained and interested by the content they see; if you can achieve this, your content will perform much better.

To weave storytelling into your content, consider the following tips:

Identify your story: Determine the main story you want to tell and ensure that it aligns with your brand and messaging.
Use relatable characters: Help audiences personally connect with your story, either with relatable fictional characters or real people such as customers or employees.
Create a strong emotional connection: Use emotional appeals such as humor, excitement, or heartache to create an emotional connection with your audience.
Use vivid imagery: Descriptive language, images, and video help bring your story to life.
Make it relevant: Ensure that your story is relevant by tying it to your customer's needs, wants, and interests.
Keep it concise: A focused story is good; avoid unnecessary details that can distract from the main message.

These storytelling tips apply to everything from social posts to sales promotion examples and landing pages. Great visuals and interesting stories go hand in hand with other SEO tactics. If you run a Shopify store for your business, some of the best Shopify apps can help you combine all of these elements seamlessly.

Tip #5: Inform your content with data

Data is a powerful tool that can inform your content strategy and help you create stories that resonate with your audience. By using analytics and metrics, you can track the performance of your content and make data-driven decisions to improve its effectiveness.

If you build a scalable content marketing campaign, you can easily pivot as you receive new data about content performance. From the types of people reacting to your content to the most popular pages of your website, data helps you understand what your audience wants, which is the key to successful content creation.

Tip #6: Incorporate voice and audio content

Voice-activated and audio content, such as podcasts, are increasingly popular. These formats allow you to reach new audiences and create more immersive experiences, making them a great way to diversify your content and engage with your audience in new ways.

You can also think about voice-activated video content designed for voice assistants and triggered by voice commands. This strategy can be a great lead magnet if your video content is engaging and informative.

Tip #7: Create interactive and immersive content

Engage your audience by encouraging them to take action. This can be done with interactive quizzes, 360-degree videos, or augmented reality experiences. These formats help you create a deeper connection while driving higher engagement and conversion rates.

Consider elements such as user input, which encourages audience engagement and involvement as they build a deeper connection with your brand. Immersive content can also help users to better understand complex concepts. For example, imagine a 360-degree view of a product or VR experience demonstrating how a service works.

Tip #8: Use higher quality video content

Video content is a powerful tool for engaging and building a deeper connection with your audience. However, whether it is live video or animation, it needs to be of a certain level of quality to help bring your content to life in a more impactful way.

Invest in high-quality video editing and production to help maintain your audience's attention and show the value of your products and services. Poor-quality video can create a negative effect, reflecting poorly on your business and lowering the perceived quality of your products and services. Once completed, enlist the help of tools that ensure quality and secure uploads for efficient content processing with large video files.

Tip #9: Specific content tailored for social media

While you can use social media to distribute and promote any of your content, it is important to think about specific content built for designated platforms. This content can be short and humorous videos for TikTok, industry-relevant opinion pieces for LinkedIn, and carousel posts or reels for Instagram. Craft content that suits the platform, then engage with your audience in real-time.

To do this successfully, you will need to understand the unique strengths and weaknesses of each platform. As some social media sites reward users who post regularly, use an AI Content Creation Platform to get a head-start on your social media-specific content and create in advance.

Tip #10: Benefit from personalization and targeting

Personalization and targeting are essential for creating content that speaks directly to your audience. Be it personalized email campaigns or targeted eCommerce ads, this method allows you to work smarter as opposed to harder with your content marketing.

Ensure that your content reaches the right people at the right time to see higher engagement and conversion rates. This strategy is a cost-efficient way to spend your marketing budget and will likely yield greater results as your attention and effort are focused on people who are somewhat already interested in the products or services you offer.

Focus on these areas to enjoy quality results

These efficient content creation ideas will help you make sure you provide quality output for your audience in 2023. Always remember that the key to success is understanding your audience, goals, and whatever makes your content stand out.

Experiment with these ideas and find the ones that work best for you and your audience, then lean into them and reap the rewards. We also recommend supercharging your paid search, social, and e-commerce advertising with MarinOne, and maximizing the return on every single marketing dollar you spend.

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Luke Carlino is a guest contributor to Marin Software.

15 Paid Search Best Practices for 2023

Paid advertisements can increase your ROI by 200%, so it’s no wonder the market for paid search ads is worth approximately $60 billion annually. With digital ad spend forecasted to account for more than 60% of the global ad revenue this year, you’ll want to stay competitive to make sure your rankings consistently show up at the top of search engine results.

As we approach 2023, paid search advertising remains a critical aspect of marketing. To make sure you’re ready to kick off the new year with a strong start, we’ve outlined 15 best practices you can put into action.

15 paid search best practices you should know about

Use these best practices as part of your marketing strategy to take your paid search advertising to the next level.

Routinely evaluate your target keywords’ performance

Zero in on what your customers are searching for—and how they are searching for it. To drive targeted traffic to your site, do your keyword research. Go beyond traditional keyword tools and the typical Google Adwords’ Keyword Planner. By setting up a filter, you can figure out which keywords are performing well and toss the ones that are delivering the fewest conversions.

Leverage A/B testing

Make a habit of A/B testing. By following up with tests, you can continuously improve your conversion rates. Using A/B testing is one of the best ways to learn which messaging strategies resonate best with your audience. Once you have a clear indication, you can hone in on messaging that works for your target audience and your CTR will inevitably rise.

Make special offers a habit

Special offer tactics encourage higher web traffic by driving more users to your site. Time-bound discounts, freebies, and creating a sense of urgency are methods that motivate consumers to take the action you want them to take. Using phrases like “One Hour Flash Sale” or “Only Three Left in Stock” in your PPC ad can draw people in by making them feel the need to act quickly and complete a purchase.

Use local and negative keywords

To make the most of your PPC investment, you want to be sure you use both types of keywords, local and negative. Think of negative keywords as the opposite of your targeted ones. Negative keywords lead to a lower chance of you attracting the wrong visitors by dictating the types of search terms for which you do not want to appear. Local keywords enable you to increase targeted traffic from people around your area.

Align your PPC ad copy with your landing page copy

Matching your ads’ messaging with your landing page is one of the most important elements of PPC optimization. When researching consumer journey patterns and overall behavior, be sure to check how searchers respond to certain words in your messaging. You can go dynamic and change your landing page to make it specific for different audiences as well. By adjusting your landing page based on user search queries, you'll boost conversion rates without adding to your development costs.

Increase the loading speed of your landing pages

A slow loading site negatively impacts the user experience. When a page takes longer than three seconds to load, there’s a dramatic increase in abandonment rates. In fact, bounce rate probability increases by 90% if a page’s load time is between one and five seconds.To check the speed of your site, use tools like Google’s Pagespeed Insights, GTmetrix, or Pingdom Tools.

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Adapt to a “mobile-first” mindset

This goes for both your visuals and your text, both for your ads and your landing pages. In a world where consumers are constantly glued to their phones, it's critical for you to approach your paid search ads with a mobile-first mindset. Over 70% of web traffic comes from mobile devices and mobile search queries will no doubt continue to outpace desktop queries.

With a mobile-centric PPC strategy, you can ensure mobile users have the best user experience, encouraging them to follow through to the end of your funnel.

Take advantage of voice search popularity

With 27% of the global online population using voice search on mobile to conduct their queries, your paid search strategy needs to be optimized for it.

Thanks to voice-enabled digital assistants like Alexa and Siri, voice search is rapidly rising in popularity. It’s also faster than typing, making it convenient and ideal for on-the-go mobile users. When building your paid search ads, include voice search in your strategy. If you don’t, you’ll be leaving opportunities and money on the table. To capitalize on voice search, you can:

Concentrate on hyperlocal searches
Think mobile-first
Optimize your long-tail keywords
Use conversational, question-oriented keywords

Focusing on clicks and on conversions

Your conversions must be measurable so you can identify the success of your campaign and determine your next steps to optimize and improve results. While impressions, clicks, and click-through rates are important metrics, when you’re running multiple PPC campaigns, it’s not ideal to rely just on them. For example, a high CTR may make it appear that your campaigns are performing well. However, if your conversion rate is still low, it means it’s time to adjust your strategy.

Include call conversions

With a mobile-first mindset, it’s also important to track calls from your ads. A great way to track call conversions is by using the Google Adwords Call Extension. This feature enables you to add a clickable phone number so customers can call directly from the ad. With this conversion type, you can track phone calls, calculate your cost per acquisition (CPA), and optimize your campaigns.

Diversify your strategies

Make it a priority to diversify your campaigns. If you’re used to running text-based search ads, expand your strategies to not only include paid search ads, but also display ads, paid social ads (META, Tiktok, LinkedIn to name a few), as well as other ad formats. By implementing a diverse approach, you can ensure that you are reaching potential customers in all digital spaces where they’re most likely to be frequently visiting and engaged.

Run responsive search ads / responsive display ads

Don’t stick to ad styles of the past. Instead, use responsive search ads in all of your paid search planning. To do so, you can use Google’s AI to discover which headlines and descriptions are more likely to resonate with your audience. Eventually, Google Ads will also be able to identify which combinations yield the best results through the use of machine learning.

Learn to use scripts

With scripts, certain aspects of your paid search optimization can be automated including bid management, reporting, split testing, and others. Scripts are good tools to help you use your time more wisely rather than using it to complete mundane and repetitive manual tasks that can be more efficiently streamlined.

Incorporate video

Marketers have realized that using video is a powerful way to get in front of their audiences—84% of marketers claim that it helps generate leads and boost sales. By providing customers with a deeper understanding of your product or service, video is one of the best ways to use visuals to increase brand awareness. Make it your goal to incorporate videos where they make sense in your strategy.

Ditch third-party cookies and opt for the new first-party cookies

In the second half of 2023, Google Chrome is slated to shift from third-party cookies to first-party cookies. To get ahead of the game, refocus your paid search strategy so you’re prepared for the transition. Looking ahead will allow you to alter your plans accordingly, but will also help you build strong lasting relationships with new clients, vendors, and your internal teams.

MarinOne Can Optimize Your Paid Search Advertising

When done right, paid search advertising is a valuable marketing strategy to increase leads and sales and generate brand awareness. By following these best practices for paid search in 2023, you will be well on your way to optimizing your campaigns and maximizing your ROI.

However, it's important to remember that an effective paid search strategy relies on leveraging data insights to make informed decisions. By pairing paid search best practices with MarinOne’s platform, you can gain the insights you need to scale your top advertising campaign results, increase conversions, and reach higher paid search rankings for your target audiences so you can grow your business.

To learn more, request a demo.

Display

Incredible Snapchat Ad Examples You Can’t Miss (And Why They Work)

Since Snapchat made its debut in 2011, it has drawn millions of users to its platform. And although other social media competitors burst onto the scene to compete, it has stood the test of time. In fact, Snapchat still remains one of the most popular apps for users between the ages of 15 and 25.

With 319 million active users each day, the app continues to be a valued marketing tool for brands looking to reach millennials and Gen Z’ers. Because of its unique ad formats and its power to extend audience reach and increase brand awareness, Snapchat has gained much attention and made it possible for marketers to create some of the most memorable Snapchat ads.

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*Number of daily active Snapchat users from 1st quarter 2014 to 3rd quarter 2022.* *Image Source*

Why you should use it

Here are a few convincing reasons to add the social media platform to your marketing mix.

Highly engaged audience

Because they’re young and highly-engaged, Snapchat users are more likely to pay attention to and interact with ads. This makes it an ideal platform for reaching younger demographics.

Targeted advertising

Snapchat allows businesses to target their ads to specific demographics, locations, and interests. Through targeted advertising, marketers can ensure that their ads are seen by the right people and increase their effectiveness.

High ROI

Many businesses have seen a high return on investment from their Snapchat ad campaigns, making it a cost-effective marketing tool.

Strong mobile presence

Snapchat is primarily a mobile app, which means it's easy for users to view and interact with the ads on their smartphones. This can be particularly effective for reaching users on the go.

The best Snapchat ads ever

Sephora

Sephora, a leading beauty brand, partnered with Snapchat to create a gamified AR Lens. They ran their campaign for four weeks and increased the total amount of transactions on their website by 5%.

What they got right: Users were directly engaged for 37+ seconds because the brand created an interactive game that kept their audiences’ attention by teasing them with a coupon code redemption.

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Hopper

An airline-booking app, Hopper helps users find the best deals on flights and the best time to fly. To engage Snapchatters, Hopper developed creatives for different routes with ads that were simple, static, and had a clear call to action. Through their campaign, Hopper discovered that Snapchatters were not only 37% more likely to watch a route, but booking rates from Snapchatters were 4x higher than users of other platforms.

What they got right: The airline-booking app used location radius targeting along with geographically relevant creatives to reach millennials.

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Bacardi

Bacardi spearheaded a Snapchat ad campaign with the slogan “Do what moves you” to target their ideal audience. They chose Snapchat as their primary vehicle for digital communications, because not only does it offer ad engagement varieties, but it allowed them to reach the age group they were after. As a result of their strategy, the brand was able to gain maximum proximity to their target group, ultimately reaching 2.5 million Snapchatters.

What they got right: In an attempt to update their brand image and attract more followers from the younger generation, Bacardi utilized Snapchat’s ad formats to create an immersive “summer feeling” for Snapchat users that kept them engaged.

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Motorola

To increase consideration intent and brand awareness for their Moto g7 power smartphone, Motorola used Snapchat to present the product’s three-day battery backup feature.

What they got right: By leveraging Story Ads and Snap Ads, Motorola was able to show their customers just how much they could benefit from the brand’s long-lasting battery.

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Gucci

As the first brand to partner with Snapchat for a global AR shoe try-on campaign, Gucci had a very successful outcome. Through the campaign, Snapchatters were able to virtually experience trying on four different kinds of sneakers. From the Lens, Snapchatters were able to go straight to Gucci’s website to purchase the shoe of their choice.

What they got right: Gucci’s AR try-on experience not only captured the attention of many Snapchatters, but it also kept them engaged, leading to an increase in sales and positive ROAS.

Shipt

To cement themselves as a leader in the competitive grocery delivery space, Shipt turned to Snapchat’s impactful ads to expand their audience and reach potential prospects with relevant Snap Ads. As a result of their creatives, their message was received by over 10 million Snapchatters in as little as two months.

What they got right: They chose an illustrative animation strategy to generate awareness of their brand and increase reach.

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Snapchat Ad best practices

With so many users worldwide, Snapchat is an ideal platform for connecting and engaging with consumers. When planning your Snapchat campaign, keep these best practices in mind.

Use interactive features

Snapchat offers a range of interactive features such as sponsored lenses, filters, and polls that can make your ads more engaging and memorable. Consider using these features to create an interactive experience for your audience.

Always use NEW story content

While it may be tempting to reuse an existing ad, it’s not recommended. Snapchat’s user base attracts a broad audience, so creating a tailored message will help you take advantage of the platform’s Gen Z niche.

Be consistent and stay on brand

If your brand has a limited budget, develop a strategy that allows you to advertise consistently rather than being highly active one month, and completely inactive another. Of course, if your budget allows and your strategy permits a sprint advertising style, then go ahead with it. While every brand is different, it’s a preferred practice to keep your brand front of mind over long stretches of time.

Ditch the sales pitch and create content that’s fun and natural

Work with micro-influencers and content creators to produce content that’s appealing to your audience. Keep content organic and authentic, and shift your focus away from being 100% sales-pitch oriented.

Focus on the first two seconds

The first two seconds of your ad can either make or break performance. When promotion pop-ups appear immediately rather than in the final end card, optimal results can be achieved. Ads that have followed this best practice have outperformed others that have not.

Test different ad formats

As part of your Snapchat advertising strategy, be sure to test different ad formats to see which ones are performing well for your brand and your target audience. By gaining key insights into how your ads are doing and why, you unlock the maximum return on investment for your budget so you can grow your business.

Supersize your Snapchat presence

Whether your goal is to boost sales or raise brand awareness, Snapchat is an ideal platform for innovative and effective advertising campaigns. Creative Snapchat ad design relies on the combination of eye-catching visuals and a clear and compelling message that guides viewers to take the next step.

By creating memorable, shareable, and interactive experiences that resonate with your target audience, you can supercharge your advertising efforts. Partnering with an expert in Snapchat advertising can get you started on the right track. MarinOne can help you develop engaging ads that inspire action and drive results to unlock more opportunities for your business. With its Snapchat integration, you can easily identify budget by channel, audience, and products that can be tested across multiple platforms.

To learn more about how you can maximize the potential of your Snapchat ads and fine-tune your omnichannel advertising strategy, reach out to one of our MarinOne experts today.

Why Managing Your Brand's Online Reputation is More Critical Than Ever Before

You’re a customer-first brand that prioritizes customer satisfaction, but no matter how hard you try, there will always be a handful of unhappy customers who leave disgruntled reviews or share negative sentiments about your brand on social media. Perhaps they received a faulty product, or maybe they were just having a bad day and the product didn’t live up to their expectations. You can’t please everyone, but having a strong online reputation management (ORM) strategy can minimize the impact of negative feedback to help your brand maintain a positive reputation.

Online reputation management (ORM) involves monitoring mentions of your brand name on the internet, primarily in reviews and on social media. This may sound like a job for your PR team, but ORM is different. PR teams work proactively to increase exposure to your brand and strengthen your reputation. ORM is a more defensive strategy that centers around seeking out negative content and working to minimize the damage.

Virality's Role in Online Reputation Management

In the age of Instagram, ORM is more important than ever before. Social media algorithms favor viral content, and unfortunately negative and controversial content has some of the highest potential for virality. This is because virality is based on engagement. Engagement meaning, how many people are watching the video (most likely a tiktok or reel) from start to finish? How many people are liking and commenting? The more controversial a video is, the higher the engagement will be. This can cause negative press around a brand to spread quickly. However, the phenomenon of virality also causes trends to come and go rapidly. So while negative press around a brand could be trending for a day or two, as soon as a new scandal happens, the internet will all but forget about it.

Internet trends move so quickly that most viral mishaps are often looked past within a matter of weeks. For example, many of us remember the Kendall Jenner + Pepsi Ad Debacle of 2017. For those who don’t, Pepsi released an ad where Kendall Jenner walked into a crowd of protestors, approached front line police, and handed the police officers a can of Pepsi which miraculously ended a conflict between police and protestors. Viewers were outraged as they felt this ad belittled protestors and minimized the issue of police brutality.

In April of 2017 it felt like this ad was all anyone was talking about. Folks on Twitter were calling for boycotts of all Pepsi products, and Pepsi’s stock certainly took a hit. But today, most people scarcely even remember that it happened. This scenario exemplifies how brands can quickly move past even the most ‘cancellable’ scenarios. Between Pepsi’s reputation as a staple household soda and the speed at which internet gossip moves, Pepsi recovered quickly. By May, the internet had moved on to other scandals, and nowadays no one thinks twice about drinking a Pespi. Virality is both an enemy and a friend to brands trying to maintain a positive online reputation.

Online Reputation Management aims to get ahead of any negative sentiments and address them before they become a larger, or even a viral issue. Things rarely escalate to the viral level, but regardless, social media has made people more connected than ever before which enables negative or positive sentiment about a brand to spread quickly if you let it.

Here are a few key steps to an effective ORM strategy:

Hire a Community Manager or Community Management Team

If someone tweets about a negative experience and tags your brand, they expect a response within a few hours. The speed of communication on social media demands a dedicated employee or team to monitor mentions of the brand on Twitter, Instagram and Tiktok. Additionally, if a customer contacts a brand via social media and does not receive a timely response, they may post a negative comment on the brand’s account in order to get the company’s attention, or to express their frustration and gain sympathy from others online. Instagram has even started including a ‘typically responds within’ blurb that users see when messaging a verified business account. People are utilizing social media as a way to get a quick response from a company representative when they have an issue. And this makes sense; we scarcely talk on the phone anymore as everyone communicates through Instagram instead. So instead of relying on a customer support hotline, brands need to meet customers where they're at, which is on Instagram and Twitter. For example, check out this helpful exchange with a member of the community management team at clothing retailer Savage X Fenty:

Their community management team responded within minutes and began working to answer the question at hand. This quick response was possible because Savage X Fenty has a dedicated team managing their social media accounts. If this customer were to receive no response to their direct message, they might start commenting on the brand’s posts asking why they’re being ignored. Then, others will see the comments and develop a negative impression of the brand.

It’s interesting; people spend so much time on Instagram talking to their friends who are also on Instagram all the time and therefore respond quite quickly to each other. But now, people expect the same behavior from brands. Which is fair, since brands want their followers to see their social media content as native and relatable, just like a post from a friend. In turn, brands are held to the same standards that we have for our peers when it comes to social media interactions. These high expectations are exactly why having a community management team is so important.

Provide a Respectful Public Response, then Move the Conversation to Private Messages

Let’s say a customer tags a clothing company in a tweet stating their pants developed holes after just two wears. The customer likely wants two things; a refund and a public apology. A generic example of an appropriate response would be to reply to the tweet stating “This is not the experience we want our customers to have. Please message us directly so that we can make it right.” This way, you’re showing you care and will work to correct the situation, but you're also taking the conversation out of a public forum so the details can be handled privately. The disgruntled customer gets their resolution, and the public viewers of the tweet see that you value customer satisfaction.

The same goes for responding to negative reviews on your website. Publicly state that you are sorry to hear about the customer’s negative experience, and ask them to email your customer service team directly so you can make it right. This way future customers who read the review will know that if they receive a faulty or defective product, the situation will be remedied.

Here’s an example of a great response from Starbucks to a customer complaint on Twitter:

The Starbucks care team expressed empathy, apologized, and provided clear and concise instructions on how to continue the conversation in a private forum. That’s how it’s done!

Be Honest

Do not delete negative reviews or “bury” negative reviews under positive ones. Customers are smart, and an overwhelming amount of 5 star reviews will be seen as a red flag that your company is hiding negative reviews. It may seem counterintuitive, but a couple bad reviews actually help to validate the positive reviews by proving that the feedback is unbiased. However, if a review has overly vitriolic or profane language, it’s best to delete it as that is an unreasonable reaction and you don’t want other customers to be confronted with foul language when visiting your site.

If your company makes a more widespread mistake, quickly post a public apology stating why the mistake happened and what you plan to do to fix it. Utilizing the pants with holes example again, I’d recommend an instagram story post explaining that the fabric was faulty and the team will be sending out higher quality replacements or refunding customers who experienced that issue. The Instagram story is the best placement for a public apology because it is easily visible by your engaged customer base, but it won’t live on your Instagram grid forever like a feed post will. This way, you’ve addressed the issue without drawing unnecessary attention to it, so it can be resolved and your brand can move on.

Be Helpful

In order to be forgiven in the court of public opinion, you must truly take action to remedy the issue at hand. This often comes in the form of issuing a refund or store credit for a problematic item. Or if you provide a service, making fixes easy for the customer. Here’s a great example of a helpful response from Jetblue Airways:

The ORM team responded quickly and helpfully. Rather than just telling the customer to stay on the line until they reach a customer service representative, the community manager offered to fix the issue for them. The key here is that they are making issue resolution as easy as possible for the customer, diffusing frustration. This experience could have caused K. M. Sutton and their followers to stop being brand loyal to Jetblue, but by fixing the issue, their team was able to retain a loyal customer.

Stay Informed with Google Alerts

Set up Google Alerts for brand terms so that you know immediately when any negative press arises. Setting up a Google alert is easy. Simply visit https://www.google.com/alerts, type in your brand name and enter in a few settings around where the alerts should be sent and how often you would like to be alerted:

Google alerts are a great way to monitor sentiment around your brand, both positive and negative.

In conclusion, a branding issue or bad review can feel like a big deal, but utilizing our ORM tips, your brand should be able to recover quickly. The internet moves fast! So as long as you’ve got a plan in place that involves reacting to negative sentiment with empathy and truly making things right with your customers, you’ve got nothing to worry about.

ORM is a part of your business that requires empathy, energy and genuine connection between the customer and the brand representative. If you're struggling to find the budget to hire a dedicated community manager, or your current team lacks the time to do community management yourselves, consider using a tool like MarinOne to automate some of your more mundane and time consuming tasks like reporting, paid media ad creation, and ad account optimization. Automate the things you can, so that you can focus on the things you can’t. Click here to schedule a demo of MarinOne today.