📦 - Google Says, ‘We’re Not Finished’

DTC 566 - Google’s Visual Brand Profiles, Emoji Ad Creatives, and AI Overviews Performance Tracker Monday, May 27, 2024 Good morning, Google is not done making changes. They announced last week during their Google Marketing Live event, they will also be rolling out Visual Brand Profiles which can help ecommerce brands get more visibility on search. More on that and more key updates in our platform update article below. Here’s what you’ll find in today’s DTC: 🔍 Google makes a bunch of new updates which includes Visual Brand Profile and a few more AI ad improvements. 💅 Discover how Glamnetic leveraged Gorgias’ AI-powered tools to create a stellar customer experience. 😃 Can adding emojis to your Meta Ads really make a difference? 💡 And… since Google isn’t giving brands any AI Overviews data on Search Console, here’s a work around to stay ahead of the SEO game. You’re reading this newsletter along with new subscribers from: Martin Ray Vineyards & Winery, Luxity, and Tropicana. 👋 PLATFORM UPDATE 🔍 Google Rolls Out VBPs and More AI Ad Tools Google has announced three key updates in the past week. For ecommerce brands, there is now a way to create a brand profile to grab more search real estate, and new AI tools are available to help you generate product images and immersive ads. Let’s get all caught up 👇 1️⃣ Up your branding in search with Visual Brand Profiles Google shares that [more than 40% of shopping queries are related to a brand](, so they want to make it easier for potential customers to learn more about your brand. They plan to roll out a new feature called Visual Brand Profile, which will highlight your brand at the top of the search results. Merchants can create a brand profile, including key information and visuals like still images and videos. You can even add info on customer reviews, call out promotions and discounts, and share details on your returns and delivery policy. Below is an example of what Visual Brand Profiles would look like for the makeup brand e.l.f. Cosmetics. [Google shares how Visual Brand Profiles will appear in search] VBPs will also make competitor bidding less lucrative on search. This update will roll out in phases over the upcoming months, so keep an eye out for it! 2️⃣ Scale your creative assets production with AI Google has added more AI tools to [Product Studio](. For Performance Max campaigns, you can now use generative AI to create and edit ads to save time. This will make it quicker and less costly for smaller brands to put together creatives and for big brands who need to do iterations. The new feature allows you to generate new images within seconds and, most importantly, that match your brand’s aesthetic. 🎨 Merchants can upload a reference image and prompt it to generate a realistic photo, GIF, or video. This update is live for those in the U.S., Canada, U.K., and Australia and will roll out to more countries in the coming months. 3️⃣ New immersive AI ad types Google will launch immersive AI-powered shopping ads for Shopping Ad advertisers as a closed beta later this year. You can now easily integrate product videos into an ad, use 3D show spins, and offer virtual try-ons to grab the attention of searchers and increase CTR and conversions. Google shares brands with Virtual Try-on imagery, which gets 60% more views than other images. Google will also include AI summaries below the ad for more additional context. Adding new features showcasing videos in what has otherwise been a graphic only placement is an excellent opportunity for brands to leverage brand or UGC video ads. Which of these updates are you most excited about? Reply back to the newsletter and let us know! CX ⭐ Customer Support or Customer Experience? Turning A Cost Center Into a Revenue Driver This week on the DTC Podcast, we delve into [customer experience and automation to elevate your brand’s interactions](.The goal? To drive growth and loyalty. 📈 Joining us are Kevin Gould, Co-founder of Glamnetic, and Romain Lapeyre, Co-founder and CEO of Gorgias. They discuss how Glamnetic soared during the pandemic, from $1M in their first year to $50M in their next, and how, with the help of Gorgias, they’re using AI to transform their customer experience. We cover: 👇 - Glamnetic’s explosive growth and how they shifted from reactive support to proactive customer experience. - Using Gorgias’ AI to automate tasks and focus on personal connections and unique initiatives like monthly gifts to enhance customer loyalty. - The impact of automation on boosting customer lifetime value (CLTV). - Future trends in AI for customer experience and continuous innovation. This episode uncovers how having instant touchpoints with your customers, the good, the bad, and the ugly, can increase LTV. If you’re curious about the process (and benefits!) of turning your customer support from a cost center into a revenue driver, you can: [Listen here](. 🎧 OR [Continue reading here](. 📖 META 😃 Adding Emojis to Your Creatives Can emojis move the performance needle? The Pilothouse Meta team has seen wins with emoji creatives for multiple brands. What works well: Emojis can work in a broad range of creatives: evergreen, product launches, you name it. Here’s an example of emoji style creative that has been working for [CPAP.com](. This specific creative had a 48% higher click attributed ROAS compared to the account average. The creative clearly shows the product being advertised and the offer is displayed in bold font to catch users mid scroll, while the airplane emojis are relevant to the product and sale. Below you'll see multiple text options, which allows Meta to dynamically serve the copy that it deems most likely to convert for each audience. Here’s an example of what the copy options look like: How to test: [The Pilothouse Meta team]( recommends pairing your top product and headline with 3-4 different emojis as a test to start - making one creative asset per emoji. For example, the apparel brand True Classic could run a test with these emojis for summer: 👕☀️🔥😎 From there, you take your winning creative, test 3-4 different headlines, or branch out with your other top products to expand on the initial win. 🏆 Try this creative style in your Meta account and see how it scales against your existing winners! ⚡ QUICK HITS 📈 Looking to drive more orders, faster? Predict patterns in your shoppers’ behavior and discover untapped revenue in your Shopify store. [Book a 30-min. call and get a $100 Amazon gift card](. * 💸 MERGERS & ACQUISITIONS - Gorgias [raises $29 million to lead AI-powered customer experience in ecommerce](. - Pepper [secures $30 million in funding for AI and advertising improvements](. - AI startup Humane [is seeking an estimated $1 billion dollar buyout after AI Pin’s lackluster debut](. 🌐 IN THE SOCIAL SPHERE For ecommerce owners who want to see if their site ranks for AI Overviews, here’s a tool you can test. Since Google says no AI Overviews data is available on Search Console, alternative solutions like [ZipTie]( have emerged to fill the void. Use this to monitor your AI Overviews performance and your competitors' performance. Can't view the image? [Click here]( 📰 NEWS - Meta [announces members of their new AI council board and people are shocked by the lack of gender and racial representation](. - Canva [introduces an Enterprise offering for businesses that includes new AI capabilities](. - Former Vogue creative director Grace Coddington [stars in Merit’s new campaign for ‘Ginger’, their newest lip shade](. SPONSOR DTC 📥 Got a B2B Biz? Join dozens of B2B companies finding demand-gen success through our niche community of 160k brand leaders and founders this year. [Talk to our team to learn more](. Have you heard our latest podcasts? - 💎 How Anna Harman [Grew Studs To An 8 Figure Brand]( - 💣 [AKNF 404:]( Navigating Email Landmines + Bot Click Clarification - 📈 The Marketing Millennials on [Cracking the DTC Success Formula]( - 💰 [AKNF 403:]( Early Indicators of Amazon Success - 👕 How True Classic [Turned Customer Support Into a Profit Center]( - ❌ [AKNF 401:]( Common Google Ad Mistakes - 🤠 Bart Szaniewski Shares [How Dad Gang Sold 100K Hats]( Don’t forget to [rate the DTC Podcast]( on Apple (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️) DTC Newsletter is written by [Rebecca Knight]( and [Frances Du](. Edited by [Eric Dyck](. Was this email forwarded to you? Sign up [here](. Please note that items in this newsletter marked with * contain sponsored content. [Direct To Consumer]( Pilothouse, 1011 Government St., Victoria, BC V8W 1X6, Canada [Advertise with DTC]( | [Work With Pilothouse]( [Unsubscribe](