Welcome to the April 2024 digital marketing updates and news blog! We’ve got latest updates coming up from Search marketing, highlighting Google this month; Martech advancements and; Updates from the social media landscape, including the TikTok U.S. ban polemic.
For this edition, we will be covering:
Search Marketing: We’ll explain How Google processes its queries & ranks content. Furthermore, we’ll talk about an important topic we have been discussing in our previous blogs, Google’s Third-Party depreciation in Chrome. Finally, we’ll discuss the official completion of Google’s Core Update and include a link to a quick Search Quality Rater Guideline.
Martech Field: In this section, we’ll explore the New Guidelines of Google and Yahoo for bulk email senders, along with some recommended authentication tools and Frizbit marketing channels to keep you on the right side of email etiquette. Also, we’ll also touch upon the New GenAI-powered Content Hub of HubSpot to enhance user experience.
Social Media Landscape: We’ll address one of the most polemic issues in social media: The approval of the Senate for TikTok Sell-off Proposal, leaving 170 million users uncertain about the fate of their favourite platform. Also, we’ll discuss LinkedIn’s new CTV ads for B2B campaigns and some of its benefits to increase brand visibility. Finally, we will delve into the new features of Meta’s Ray-Ran Smart Glasses, including new styles and improvements for user experience.
About Frizbit: This month, Frizbit participated at IESE Business School Carreer Fair, where our CEO announced the new MBAs internship opportunities for this upcoming Summer 2024. Additionally, we’re excited to announced that Frizbit collaboration with IYRA was awarded by the European Commission WORTH Partnership Project.
Without further ado, let’s dive into the latest digital marketing updates for April 2024.
Search Marketing Updates
1. Google explains how it processes queries & ranks content
Gary Illyes, an Analyst in Google, released a new video detailing how search queries are processed and content is ranked.
Further, Gary explained that relevance to the user, goes beyond semantic relevance and should consider factors like personalization, topicality, and geolocation.
The ranking process:
- Interpreting the search query, which includes identifying and removing entities that require stop words.
- Query expansion is then applied to combine similar queries, broadening the scope of search results.
- Once the query is done, it’s sent to the index for ranking, where hundreds of factors determine relevance, including webpage content, user location, language, and device type.
If you want more details, you can watch Gary Illyes video presentation.
2. Google further postpones Third-Party Cookie deprecation in Chrome
Google has once again pushed back its plan to remove third-party cookies from its Chrome web browser, extending the deadline to 2025.
“We recognize that there are ongoing challenges related to reconciling divergent feedback from the industry, regulators and developers, and will continue to engage closely with the entire ecosystem.” — Google
The announcement was made in Google’s joint quarterly report with the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) on the Privacy Sandbox initiative.
This marks the third delay to Google’s plan, which was originally targeted for Q3 2023 before being postponed to late 2024.
Is this delay as bad as it sounds?
No, this delay gives websites and services time to prepare for third-party cookies removal. Also, all stakeholders have more opportunities to adopt Google’s proposed Privacy Sandbox APIs.
If you are preparing for the completion of third-party cookies phase-out, our blog “Google phasing out third-party cookies in Chrome: Leverage the cookieless future” will give you some valuable insights and automated marketing solutions that don’t require third-party cookies.
3.Google officially completed its march 2024 core update
Google finally wrapped up its March 2024 Core Update on April 19 but didn’t confirm it until April 26, causing speculation in the SEO community.
This update, which took 45 days to complete, caused significant ranking fluctuations and led to the deindexing of some sites.
>If you want to know more about the deindexing of sites, you can read our previous February 2024 monthly blog.
Continuing with this new, Google targeted link spam and manipulation attempts, making sites focus on quality content rather than quantity, reducing the importance of links.
Now, SEOs and publishers are advised to audit their strategies to align with Google’s new ranking criteria that you can read about in the Search Quality Rater Guidelines from Google.
Furthermore, Google seems to still be working on the core update and opened a feedback form for users to report issues related to the core update until May 31.
Martech Updates
1.New guidelines for bulk email senders
Google and Yahoo rolled out fresh rules for bulk email senders on Feb. 1, 2024, focusing on three main areas: authentication, spam rates, and unsubscribe options.
Starting in April 2024, Google began enforcing these rules. They started by implementing temporary errors for non-compliance, gradually ramping up rejection rates.
To avoid being identified as a bulk sender you have to embrace a trio of authentication tools: Sender Policy Framework (SPF), DomainKeys Identified Mail (DKIM), and Domain-based Message Authentication, Reporting, and Conformance (DMARC).
Google’s not playing around when it comes to spam. They want reported spam rates to stay below 0.10%, with a firm warning against hitting 0.30% or higher.
In the business area, Google set as a requirement for marketers to have an unsubscribe option.
This requirement gives users the power to choose what they want to receive to avoid privacy violations and invasive emails. Plus, it keeps everyone on the right side of email etiquette.
For marketers this can be a problem but in this evolving digital marketing world there are always innovative solution such us Frizbit that work with consent automated marketing channels based on first-party cookies.
To explore the consented marketing channels Frizbit offers, make sure to read our blog about “the cookieless future”.
2.HubSpot launches new GenAI-powered Content Hub
HubSpot recently launched its Content Hub, enriched with a suite of new genAI-powered features.
The upgraded Content Hub introduces several innovative functionalities:
- AI Content Creation: Harnessing artificial intelligence to generate both textual content and images.
- Content Remix: Enabling the creation of multiple content variations from a single original asset.
- Brand Voice: Ensuring a consistent tone across diverse channels like social media, blogs, and email.
- Audio Tooling: Facilitating the creation and hosting of podcasts.
- Post Narration: Transforming text into audio format.
- Members Blog and Gated Content Library: Streamlining content management and lead capture processes effectively.
These enhancements align with HubSpot’s commitment to empowering businesses with efficient and effective marketing tools.
Additionally, HubSpot unveiled Service Hub updates, including new help desk and customer success workspaces, to streamline customer service operations and enhance overall user experience.
Social Media News
1. US Senate approves TikTok sell-off proposal
What is happening with TikTok and America?
The TikTok polemic took place on December 30, 2022, and it started due to concerns over potential access by the Chinese Government to sensitive user data from millions of U.S. TikTok users.
“The Chinese government could build dossiers of personal information for blackmail, and conduct corporate espionage,” — Donald Trump
To learn more about the context of the TikTok polemic, read our “Social Media Marketing section of March 2023”.
Is the nightmare of U.S. TikTok fans becoming true?
In the latest news of TikTok’s polemic, the U.S. Senate has passed a bill that mandates a sell-off of TikTok or its complete ban in the country.
The bill, which gained approval in the Senate with a vote of 79 to 18, now awaits President Joe Biden’s signature.
If signed into law, ByteDance, the parent company of TikTok, will have nine months to find a U.S. based buyer or risk being removed from the American market altogether.
As stakeholders navigate this transition period, millions of TikTok users remain uncertain.
What will happen to the data algorithm of TikTok if it’s forced to sell-off?
The impending sale of TikTok raises crucial questions about its future, including the fate of its proprietary algorithms and user data management.
The app’s algorithm, designed by TikTok’s Beijing engineering team, aims to keep users engaged by giving them relevant content to the user’s interests.
The TikTok Algo 101 document uses an equation based on likes, comments, and playtime. These factors allow the platform to successfully focus on user retention.
However, the systematic algorithm is dictated by the Chinese Government, which means that even if TikTok is sold, there is the possibility TikTok’s back-end systems may not be included.
The sell-off could mean a significant decrease of performance, user-experience, and overall value of the platform.
To learn more about TikTok algorithm, read this interesting article of The New York Times, “How TikTok Reads Your Mind”.
As stakeholders navigate this transition period, millions of TikTok users remain uncertain.
2.LinkedIn new CTV ads for B2B campaigns
LinkedIn is improving its B2B advertising with the introduction of LinkedIn CTV ads, expanding marketers’ reach to connected TV platforms.
Through partnerships with industry giants like Paramount, Roku, and Samsung Ads, LinkedIn now will offer advertisers a seamless pathway to incorporate CTV into their B2B campaigns.
The introduction of LinkedIn CTV ads complements the platform’s existing suite of video solutions, catering to the diverse needs of its 1 billion member community.
What are the benefits of CTV?
>Advertisers will increase brand visibility and ensure top-of-mind presence that will lead to future conversions.
>CTV ads will work as a streamlined for marketers, to define objectives, target specific audience segments, and allocate budgets effectively.
>Other strategic partnerships such us Kantar and iSpot, will enhace campaign performance and audience engagement across platforms.
> Proves commitment to innovation and customer-centricity in the digital marketing transformation.
3.Meta announces updates for its Ray-Ban Smart Glasses
Meta, integrated new capabilities in its Ray-Ban Smart Glasses, from new styles to more complex features such us live-streaming.
Meta started a collaboration with EssilorLuxottica, Meta introduced new styles for the Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses to stay on top of the fashion trends for this upcoming summer 2024.
In terms of Social Media integration, now you can share your view on a video call via WhatsApp and Messenger, enabling hands-free communication for those special moments.
Additionally, the introduction of Meta AI with Vision allows you to ask your glasses about what you’re seeing, providing instant, hands-free access to valuable information.
In conclusion, this updates will bring a new level of connectivity to your everyday experiences. Plus, with the ability to conduct video calls and access real-time information, the possibilities are endless.
About Frizbit
1.Frizbit at IESE Business School
This month, our CEO, Ata Gur, participated at the IESE Business School Carreer Fair where we gave a presentation about Frizbit.
This was a great opportunity for our CEO to connect and capture the interest of talented students that might be interested in finding a 2024 MBA Summer Internships with Frizbit.
2. Frizbit x IYRA’s Ecotech Textile Revolution collaboration has been approved and awarded by the European Commission WORTH Partnership Project
We are thrilled to share that Frizbit’s collaboration with IRYA, the EcoTech Textile Revolution, was approved and awarded by the European Commission WORTH Partnership Project.
This recognition reflects Frizbit’s commitment to client satisfaction, going beyond the marketing purposes to ensure that its practices are also sustainable.
Missed the previous editions?
