As all good businessmen know, information is one of the most essential tools in the development of any company. The more data you have, the better your position will be to improve your business in the quickest and best way available. As a digital marketing company, Movers Development makes it a priority to keep up with all past, present, and future trends in the online community. It is only by doing so that we can translate those same trends to the moving industry and how they can affect our clients and partners. And so, we present to you our analysis and summary of the Google Marketing Live 2019 conference that took place on May 14-15. This special event covered some of the most important changes and topics regarding search engine optimization and digital marketing.
Throughout the course of 2 days, this conference hosted over 30 speakers, among which there were Google project managers and section leaders, as well as digital business owners and marketing professionals. Today, we bring you some of the most important conclusions and round-ups from our unique perspective.
Google Marketing Live 2019 – Day 1
Ads Innovation Keynote
We start with some general updates and innovations regarding Google and online advertising solutions for companies:
- Gallery Ads – advertisements comprised of 4-8 photos, each of which has a limit of 70 characters for ‘alt’ tags. Another useful factor to consider is the fact that each photo can have as many as 3 headlines.
- Click-to-app access – Google has decided to differentiate between clicks for a website with and without apps. From now on, users will be able to access site apps directly, rather than having to go through the official website of a company. Businesses will also be able to monitor organic app visits through Google Analytics.
- Introduction of smart bidding to help maximize conversion value. Additionally, companies will now be in a better position to categorize and modify their lead hunting criteria. They will be able to do so with:
- Campaign-level conversions
- Conversion action sets – that enables you to choose the type of conversions you are searching for.
- Conversion value rules – with which you can categorize the type of leads you are interested in and have Google show your ad to only those that fall within that range.
- Seasonal campaigns – Google gives you the chance to intensify campaigns that are linked to a certain time frame or season while lessening its circulation beyond that time frame.
Welcome the notion of Google Shopping
Google Shopping is an option that enables users to find products and services in accordance with their specific criteria. Users can use filters based off of past shopping activity, brand recognition, and product/service characteristics. Google will then offer YouTube videos related to that specific product metric, in addition to the locations where you can shop.
Google is also planning on introducing logical shopping and advertising. For example, if a user looked up ‘professional moving services’ in the past, they will also start getting pop-up for storage or packing supplies, etc.
Google Marketing Live 2019 was proud to present Google Travel
No longer will people have to struggle with the notion of hunting for information regarding potential travel destinations. Google has gone and created a travel-friendly solution for online users. By using Google Travel, you can easily find information about your destination, travel expenses, available local accommodations, and amenities – all in one place.
The entire system is based on Machine Learning algorithms that use geo-location to create a map for your unique use. That is Google’s way of offering people all the information they might need about a specific destination in one serving. Websites will need to update their Privacy Policies, as well as build a more personal connection with clients. Machine Learning will offer a broader scope of audiences without having to reveal as much personal information as before.
The Future of Search
Machine learning is carrying the promise of optimizing the aspect of online searches for useful information. Soon enough, new versions of browsers will be able to comprehend and automatically process all the most essential search metrics:
- Language – by matching full or partial keywords, in addition to synonyms and other logically-related terms.
- Image – through analyzing and processing full photos, details on images, as well as the purpose of images.
- Journey – matching past searches and news feeds with present needs and data entry.
YouTube is planning to unlock new forms of Video Storytelling
Search engines are embracing the notion of micro-ads. Recent studies have shown that ads lasting up to 6 seconds have a much better conversion success rate than those that last up to 30 seconds. A practical tool here is the Bumper Machine – which takes longer videos and offers suggestions of how to split them into smaller 6-second ads. Not only does the bumper machine split larger videos into smaller ones, but it does so while targeting specific audiences.
Google is also introducing the option of having a Custom Audience. Once you define your target audience, you will be able to segment it on other advertising channels as well. According to testing, display ads now have a 50 percent higher conversion ratio than they used to. And 360-degree videos enable linear device users to react to ads.
The following criteria are, in Google’s opinion, the most essential for the creation of high-conversion video ads:
- Seize the attention of people from the start by leveraging familiar faces and using creative styles
- Make sure to brand naturally and with a clear purpose by defining the goal of your ads:
- Establish a connection with your target audience through emotion and storytelling
- Point the viewer towards what they should do next with a proper CTA
Featured statistics from analyzing conversions and shopping trends
- More than 40% of consumers opt for buying products/services after visiting YouTube
- Over 50% of people use online videos while shopping online
- 50% of people that search for products/services researched store locations before making the purchase.
- 67% of e-commerce in 2018 was done via smartphone
- 67% of marketing specialists agree that Machine Learning will improve strategic planning
- Keywords related to “best things to do” phrase have increased over 85% in search volume in the past two years
From Brand to Demand – Driving Growth with Video
Google Marketing Live 2019 has expressed how effective the combination of Google Search and YouTube is. Those that put these two together experienced an 8% increase in conversion volume, and a 3 percent boost in conversion rates. Research showed that using different top keywords in video ads brings excellent results.
Companies need to anticipate to win
With a drastically increasing number of people searching for ‘best places to buy,’ and a majority of people turning to YouTube for shopping advice, the safe bet is to focus your marketing efforts on these channels. Knowing your target audience is still the best way to maximize your conversion rate, as it enables you to predict their behavior, and exploit it to match your company goals.
You need to start using YouTube to inform potential clients about your product or service, as well as invest efforts in deep linking through searches and apps.
How to use measures to break through a competitive market?
It’s never easy to make a name for yourself and stand out from the competition, especially when you operate in a highly competitive market and industry. That is why there are three fundamental principles that Karen Sauder, Matt Gehring – two of the speakers of Google Marketing Live 2019 turn to:
- Measure what matters
- Value what works best
- Act on what is most important
Three simple steps to achieve the best results for your business. However, make sure to measure everything twice and from different aspects. That means that you need to test different campaigns on various products/services and learn from the data you gather. And remember that you can’t rush a conclusion based on short-term studies. Instead, you need to take the proper time to research your target audience and their particular expectations and habits.
Captivate to Convert: How to Drive Growth with Video
According to John Nicoletti and John Lewand, companies need to raise awareness in terms of how they use video ads. Rather than focusing all their video ads on making the sale, we should instead focus our efforts on inviting emotion from the viewers and potential clients. Although the priority of videos is to invite quotes and conversions, they should also focus on raising brand awareness, thus helping people learn more about our company and the offers we make.
By combining audiences that know of our brand with those that have yet to learn about the products/services we offer, we can establish the best impact possible, thus increasing conversion wide and across the online environment.
Ending note
That concludes the summary of the first day of Google Marketing Live 2019 and the topics that were covered. Below, you will find the analysis and coverage of the 2nd day of the conference. We hope that you found the summary to your enjoyment and that you were able to gather some conclusions that might lead to the improvement of your current moving company marketing efforts.
Google Marketing Live 2019 – Day 2
If you found the summary of the first day exciting and to your liking, hold on. We still have an entire day of talks from Google experts and business owners. So, rather than waste any time, we’ll just get down to it. Here is our round-up of the most interesting topics on the 2nd day of Google Marketing Live 2019:
The End of “Digital”: A Shift in Mindset.
The world of marketing is evolving, and companies need to change their way of looking at things. CEOs need to change focus from the limitations of digital marketing and instead focus on global marketing. What this means is that you need to look beyond the borders of digital marketing. You need to perceive the digital as part of global marketing – the online part. As a result, there are three trends in modern marketing:
- Research online and buy offline
- Trust in providers of products/services
- Remember that people always purchase
Marie Gulin-Merle, a representative of Calvin Klein, shares the results of their research. According to their analytics, over 50% of consumers today tend to shop online.
How do CK marketers adapt to a turbulent environment?
- Attracting new customers – by continually working on new and innovative marketing tactics
- Focus on re-targeting and the second purchase – build a lasting relationship with customers
- Cross-selling to increase loyalty
- Prevent the loss of existing customers by reducing churn to a minimum
The way in which Calvin Klein accomplish all this is through DCO (Digital Content Optimization):
- Your hero content takes precedent – it helps your audience understand your brand and connect with it.
- Creating fresh content that will correspond to the needs of your target audience (high volume, high velocity, high personalization)
To check whether the content is up-to-date, their team uses the combination of the following metrics:
- Engagement
- Past Behavior
- Conversion
How should marketers adjust to the coming of Machine Learning and the change it brings?
- Automation and repeating past success tactics
- Identifying behavioral patterns
- Marketers need to analyze data and make logical conclusions with logical strategies
While investing effort into all this, you need to pay attention to:
- Transparency – regarding the use of consumer data
- Security – through safeguarding sensitive data
- Calculation – planning and analyzing every possible scenario
Given that brand loyalty is growing weaker by the day, most brands opt for product-focused marketing. Continually researching the market and adapting to consumer behavior – this is the only way to prepare and adapt to the coming changes truly.
Step Inside the Product Sandbox
It’s important to follow the complete analytics of:
- search console
- analytics
- analytics 360
- search ads 360
- display and video 360
- analytics for firebase
Companies have to follow seasonal changes in Google Ads Analytics. You have to think about local geo campaigns, and think more by using Google Maps. If your website loading time is less than 3 seconds, more than 50% of visitors will leave the website without a second thought. That is why you are advised to use Google’s new website tester.
Unpack Optimization Score and Impression
Google Marketing Live 2019 offers plenty of useful advice on how best to improve your ads on desktop and mobile devices. These Google recommendations can be applied with a single click – so-called “Bulk Apply Across Campaigns” option. To apply the wanted changes, all you need to do is download the file and upload it on your Google Ads account.
Recommendations can be dismissed, and a list of all dismissals will be created for monitoring and analytics purposes. And for each dismissal, you will be able to notify Google and explain why you did it and how it can assist you in the realization of your goals.
Mythbusting – Average Position
The average position reflects the order of your ad against other ads. It means the auction position, not the placement on the page. That is why the average position can yield wrong conclusions. And that is also why you should never bid based on the average position. Instead, Google prepared some new metrics for marketers to use, focusing on the Absolute Top and Top of the Page.
The 4 new metrics based on this that Google Marketing Live 2019 added are as follows:
- Abs Top Impression Rate – the percent of all those on the top of the page
- Top Impression Rate – the percentage of those ads appearing on any position about organic results
- Ads Top Search Impression Share – from the percent of potential top page placement to current page placement
- Top Search Impression Share – from the percent of possible top three positions to current page placement
These metrics will be able to provide you with a precise estimate of the bids to be made, all based on real-time positions rather than average positions. And you will be able to use Google recommendations to achieve this. And given the fact that Average Position is being removed in September, you are recommended to start shifting to these 4 metrics. Only by doing so, will you be able to bid for top page position, top three positions, or anywhere on the page for that matter.
Maximize Performance with New Planner
An engine has been created to help predict and simulate campaigns and the effect it has:
- Based on everything we wish to follow, it gives a forecast of how those campaigns will do.
- You can play around with separate CPA goals, and decide which is best.
- Companies can predict the investment necessary to achieve the wanted results.
Rather than having to waste 5-8 hours to accomplish all this, the new engine makes it possible within dozens of minutes. You need to pay attention to use linked ad campaigns with a similar budget, identical goals, for the same product, etc.
Never forget, however, that nothing we do in a forecasting environment affects in any way our campaigns. It only serves the purposes of the forecast. At this time, the New Planner is only available for search campaigns, but it will soon be available for all other ad campaigns as well.
Drive Business Growth with Faster, Well-Designed Mobile Sites
Two things are most important to reach an audience – act quickly and offer a user-friendly environment. The average mobile phone ad takes more than 15 seconds to load. For your typical consumer, that loading time is the equivalent of watching a horror movie or solving a math problem. And each second more it takes for your ad to load can reduce conversions by 20%. However, by using AMP, your site will automatically load 85% faster.
What companies should do is focus on turning their website into a progressive web app. The layout of a website has to be simplistic and practical. Where to click and why? How to use cookies, and for what? These are all elements necessary for the User Experience on your website, the upgrade of which directly influence the engagement of people visiting the website.
Visualize Your Marketing Data to Unlock New Insights with Data
According to Google Marketing Live 2019, there is a new tool to help with analyzing marketing data. The tool is called Data Studio, and it offers plenty of benefits, the three most important worth mentioning being:
- It simplifies data analysis
- Users can define dimensions and metrics
- The tool can present a huge amount of data quickly
The tool itself is simple to use. It works as fast as it does thanks to Big Query BI Engine.
What are the opportunities that Data Studio offers?
- Transforming spreadsheets and data into an interactive experience
- Crating personalized reports with the most crucial data for the end user
- The effective and efficient distribution of reports
The conclusion of our summary of Google Marketing Live 2019
That concludes our talk of the results and discussions that this 2-day conference brought. We hope that you found it useful and practical for the further plans and ideas you might have for your business. The ideas you found here can be found in more detail on the official event page, along with videos to back up the stories. Stay posted for more useful news from Movers Development – your guide into the world of digital marketing.
