Google Marketing Live just wrapped up in San Francisco, and Titan Growth’s team was invited to attend and participate.
The event kicked off with an introduction from Google’s Senior VP & Chief Business Officer Philipp Schindler.
Schindler noted that the innovative new platforms and strategies presented during Google Marketing Live have been created as a result of feedback from the digital marketing community.
Let’s take a look at the new features we’re most excited for.
Discovery Ads
Discovery Ads are native ads that can be delivered across all Google properties. Presented as a swipeable image carousel, these personalized ads have an unmatched reach. Discovery ads can be used to reach hundreds of millions of customers at the moment when they are most open to getting introduced to a new brand or product. Google is using machine learning to better understand the entire customer journey, and Discovery ads will help with the very beginning of that journey to build awareness for brands.
TechStyle is one of the earliest beta users of Discovery Ads and spoke about their success. Discovery Ads quickly became TechStyle’s fastest growing new media channel and allowed them to introduce their brand a scale to a large number of potential customers.
Discovery Ads will roll out for all advertisers later this year.
Gallery Ads
Gallery Ads are a new ad format that highlight the value of the brand while reducing the amount of work needed to find the information.
Gallery Ads appear at the top of the SERP and feature 4-8 images each. Marketers can create and test up to 3 text headlines and place 70-character taglines beneath each image. Gallery ads can quickly tell a more holistic brand story and have the advantage of visual impact. In one case study campaigns using this format have saw a 25% increase in interactions.
Deep linking capabilities with Gallery Ads will also allow advertisers to better optimize the impact of campaigns. To extend the capability of universal links, app links take users directly to an app where their information is already stored, streamlining the purchase process. App conversion reporting in Google Ads will facilitate real-time insights into ad efficiency and purchase behavior.
Brazilian retailer Magalu has already seen the following results since implementing Gallery Ads:
- In-app transactions increased by 110%
- Mobile purchases increased by 40% overall
New Smart Bidding Features
Maximize Conversion Value
Maximize Conversion Value is a brand new smart bidding strategy that gives marketers more flexibility in meeting specific business goals.
Maximize Conversion Value allows for the following simultaneously:
- The ability to choose conversion actions at the campaign level.
- The ability to create a conversion action that can be shared across campaigns.
Seasonality Adjustments
Seasonality adjustments are another new feature that provide marketers with more flexibility in optimizing for their business’ specific marketing goals.
Provide the dates for an upcoming sale or event, and the expected conversion rate during that time, and Google’s Smart Bidding models will automatically adjust bids to account for these changes. Because the performance shifts are temporary, Google will exclude this data from the algorithm once the sale has ended.
Bumper Ads
Bumper Ads are six-second ads that are custom-built for mobile viewing. Six-second ads have proven more effective than 30-second ads because they quickly and creatively articulate your most important selling points.
Bumper Machine
Bumper Machine is a new platform that will be released later this year. At no additional cost, marketers will be able to provide a link to a 90-second YouTube ad, and Bumper Machine will auto-generate 3-4 six-second ads. This allows marketers to repurpose long-form content without breaking the bank.
Display and Video 360
Display and Video 360 is Google’s enterprise media buying solution that is part of the Google Marketing Platform. This solution looks to create new ad experiences that can reach users as they stream music and television on various platforms.
Display & Video 360 will provide access to national, cable, and broadcast networks, as well as thousands of local TV stations. This allows marketers to manage campaigns that reach a diverse group of consumers in a fraction of the time necessary when using traditional methods.
This new platform will allow digital buying teams to work much closer together, as they will be able to buy and optimize all types of TV inventory alongside digital buys.
Google Marketplace & Local Campaign Integration
Google will challenge Amazon by providing opportunities to purchase online, in a local store, or directly from retailers on Google. Using shipping and payment information already stored in Google, users will be able to purchase directly while using Google Assistant, Google Search, Google Images, and YouTube.
Local Campaigns will be integrated with Search, YouTube, Maps, and Display, to provide more personalized experiences for users. In Google Maps, relevant promoted locations will be served as suggestions based off search history and current location. Promoted pins will also be rolled out more broadly in Maps, and marketers will be able to optimize for local actions, such as store visits and phone calls.
Google Travel
Google.com/travel is an interactive platform that provides a cohesive travel planning experience. Here, users can plan and explore potential trip ideas. They can make reservations for flights, trains, buses and restaurants, as well as compare hotel rates and availability.
The platform allows you to bookmark your progress and return to planning at a later time. Price alerts can also be created so users can book a flight or hotel when it is at the lowest rate.
Keeping up with the latest digital marketing trends is an integral part of our process at Titan Growth. Learn more about our services here.