🛫 Goals.

Microsoft and Google roll out timely updates, Pinterest knows what women want, and more. March 8, 2023 [Read in browser]( [logo] [sponsor]( Good morning, question for you… Did our newsletter arrive in your inbox two hours later than usual yesterday? If so, you weren’t the only one. It happened to other readers, too—including our founder. But hit reply and let us know. We’d like to know how widespread the “lag” was… GOOGLE Performance Max gets a timely update and Local Services Ads are expanding [article-image] Not sure about you, but today’s first update makes us want to reach for the suitcase… Just in time for summer vacation: Google is [rolling out travel goals to Performance Max]( to help users drive more direct hotel bookings. The campaign creates ads for multiple formats and channels including Maps, Search, YouTube, and soon-to-be-released Hotel Ads which you can later edit or add more assets. Also, you can now track campaign performance on the Insights page. Sweet. Hooray for services: If you weren’t able to use service-specific ads before, we’ve got good news. Google just [expanded the feature to more than 70 businesses](. This ad type helps you promote your local service at the top of search results in the chosen areas, which could help you get qualified leads and appointments. You can see the list of all available businesses in the article above. And now, the fine print: Google updated two ad policies… - Healthcare and medical policy now allows certified telemedicine providers to [promote online pharmacies in Sweden]( under certain conditions. - Update to Reviews guidelines regarding personal information now provides more context around [what “personal information” means, and what counts as fake engagement](. Why we care: Local service providers and local hotel businesses got a big boost with these two updates. Maybe you’re one of them? It will also be interesting to see if Performance Max capabilities translate well to niche ads such as hotels… if you find out before we do, keep us posted. MICROSOFT New: No-code custom conversion setup, Local Search Ads for Bing, and more… Are you comfortable? Here, have an extra pillow. We’ve got [several Microsoft updates]( to run by you… Look mom, no code: If you enable Microsoft Clarity Insights for Microsoft Advertising in your Universal Event Tracking (UET) tag setup, you can set up event-based tracking—no coding required. Pretty cool. If you’re interested in setting it up, Microsoft has a [simple guide here](. Local love: Bing is getting Local Ads extensions which will help you promote your business alongside other search results in the area. The ads will also provide other business information like location, phone number, operating hours, and more – similar to Google. Local search ads are currently available only in North America. Almost there… Microsoft announced four more important updates, including: - UET tags with deletion option, allowing you to delete unused tags as requested. - Custom combinations allow you to create combined lists of various audiences. - Multimedia ads with logos obviously help you add a company's brand logo to Multimedia Ads. - New shopping markets in North America, allowing you to upload language-adjusted feeds in new markets – French in Canada and Spanish in the United States. Nice, very nice. Why we care: Setting up custom conversions without a code could be a game changer. And the rest of the updates all seem designed to help marketers do more effective advertising. Might be time to test Microsoft’s potential for yourself if you haven’t already… SPONSORED BY COHLEY How experts write effective creative briefs for TikTok creators quickly and easily [article-image]( Every great TikTok campaign needs a creative brief. Creative briefs set expectations long before any tasks are assigned, content developed, or checks stroked. Think of it as a job application and a contract for creators. Without a creative brief you risk misinterpretation, dead space, and a creative asset that doesn’t meet your expectations or match your goals. Now, you can create your own TikTok brief manually if you have the time… … Or you can [download Cohley's free brief template instead](. Having run thousands of TikTok campaigns, Cohley has got the process nailed down. Inside you’ll discover the tools and frameworks you need for successful creator collaborations, including: - Powerful TikTok tips. - Compelling stats. - Expert guidance on creative requirements. Cohley’s proven creative development process will ensure you're getting exactly what you need for your TikTok campaigns from creators. Every time. [Download the TikTok brief template for free.]( MARKETING Don’t write Google posts like this [article-image] When Google introduced Business Profile (GBP) posts, it probably didn’t intend for people to use them as a social media feature. But guess what? Everyone’s doing it anyway. However, as [Darren Shaw points out in his post](, your audience on Google is already in a “transactional state of mind.” They want to buy. You should sell. So instead of trying to educate, entertain, or blog on your Google profile, you should be actively talking about services and offers. Let’s contrast the “social media style” with the “sale” style… What you should never post on Google: - How-to posts. Do you want to teach your customers a service that you intend on selling them? - Infographics. Nobody can read that on your Google post, trust us. - Tips. Could be a great blog post or a video, but not a Google post. - News. Nobody cares about the latest news when they’re looking to buy. - Keyword stuffing. Posts don’t impact your rating. - Blog posts. No value here. Doesn’t rank and nobody will read it. - Good wishes. Because most people aren’t your customers yet. Save it for the email. - Recruiting. Did anyone ever look for a job via Google post? Instead, here’s what you should post on Google: - Special deals. If someone’s looking for a service, 50% off will sway most of them. - Offers. Make pricing and offers visible in the graphic, [like this](. - Services. Be concise in describing what you do. - Reviews. Take your best testimonials and turn them into posts. You’re validating your brand and giving it extra visibility. - Awards. If your brand won any awards, make sure you brag a bit. - Case studies. Short descriptions of how you solved a problem to your customers can be a deal-maker. Try to adapt some case studies into posts. Of course, anything else that brings your audience closer to the conversion could be your Google post. It’s high-intent, it’s engaging, and it should be among the final touch points. See the difference? So whenever you’re in two minds about what you should post on your GBP, ask the question – are you educating or are you selling? And remember: it should always be the latter. SPONSORED BY PANDA COPY Oh no… still getting filler copy? Here’s how to get the great content you need. Every time. [article-image]( Content is king. But finding great, reliable writers is a major pain. Flaky schedules, poor writing, missing the tone and purpose of the project entirely… That's where Panda Copy comes in. [Panda Copy reliably provides high quality copy]( in a few days or less. It’s edited, well researched, and SEO friendly. If you're panda-shy, no worries. Try a week of unlimited copy for $49. No fuss. No negotiations. No insanity. [Try 7 days for $49.]( THE CREW’S INSIGHTS Why nobody’s replying to your emails [article-image] The team that writes this newsletter is diverse in nationality, location, and skillset. But the one thing most of us have in common? We’ve sent our fair share of emails. What you’re about to read are insights we shared with each other in a private company channel recently, after critiquing a cold email: - Don’t make compliments unless they’re specific and personal. Most cold emails open with a line like, “Hey Joe, I love your content.” This is a buzzkill, because it’s so obviously generic. If you include a compliment, it should read something like, “Hey Joe, I saw the piece you wrote about copywriting. I used your framework with a client last week.” - Lead with the ask. When someone opens your email, they should also be able to answer the question, “what’s in it for me?” in just a couple of seconds. Try leading with the ask. Don’t make them guess. - Cut everything that isn’t absolutely essential. Keep your emails under 150 words, or 100 if you can. Shorter emails tend to perform better than long-winded emails—unless there’s a specific reason your emails need to be long-winded. - Write in the first person. Instead of, “Hey, we’re Stacked Marketer,” say, “Hey, I’m Manu, the founder of Stacked Marketer.” Want some inspiration for writing the best emails this side of the Mississippi… or, whatever major geographical landmark exists in your country? [Check out the email marketing swipe file]( we put together for Stacked Marketer Pro. It’ll help you write emails people actually want to open and read this week. ROUNDING UP THE STACK [EMAIL DELIVERABILITY:]( What if you had had the power to put your emails in front of your subscribers at the same moment they're checking their inbox? Hundreds of companies are seeing rocketing open rates to up to 50-70% with this new technology. [Here’s how it works.](* [REDDIT:]( Swiping from the TikTok playbook. Reddit just introduced a “Watch” feed, which allows you to optimize your feed for video content. The platform also introduced a “decluttered” interface and some updates to its video player as well. Nice. [PINTEREST:]( To celebrate International Women's Day, Pinterest revealed the latest female trends, including insights into what women are searching for and why. Definitely worth reading if you use the platform to run ads or produce content. [ANALYTICS:]( Good news for huge businesses and agencies. Now Google Analytics 4 can fit 2000 properties per account, which is 10 times more properties than Universal Analytics. Wonder who’ll max that out… [AMAZON:]( Are we seeing a “retail media” gold rush? Possibly. Amazon is becoming a $40B advertising business, and retailers like Walmart are following in its footsteps by opening new markets and ad platforms. [META:]( The crew’s getting back together! After almost nine years, Messenger is finally rejoining the Facebook app, probably to compete with the built-in messaging options of TikTok. Could this mean more efficient Messenger ads? Here’s hoping… *This is a sponsored post BRAIN TEASER What thrives when you feed it but dies when you water it? You can find [the answer here.]( [poolside-logo] POOLSIDE CHAT Ew, flying spider [article-image] Oh wait, it’s not a real spider, just a robot. Or is that worse? Anyways, there’s now a flying robot spider—called SPIDAR—[under development at the University of Tokyo](. And crazy as it sounds, SPIDAR’s unique structure combines legs and propellers so it can both fly and walk. No need for wings or wheels. And while that may sound like a techno-arachnophobic nightmare, don’t worry—it has just four legs, not eight. Whew. Really had us going for a minute there. SHARING IS CARING “I want only email marketing, not all marketing on planet earth.”—a reader who unsubscribed Ouch. Well, our newsletter isn’t for everyone. But it’s definitely for smart marketers who manage multiple growth channels. And we have a feeling you know a few of them. Would you take a few seconds to share our newsletter with someone who values getting the latest marketing news and insights in 7-minute segments? When they subscribe, you earn points towards exclusive content, merch, and more. Share your referral link below to get started! [article-image]( [CLICK TO SHARE]( Or copy your referral link: [ [SUBSCRIBE]( | [SM PRO]( | [ADVERTISE]( You are receiving this email because you want to know what is going on in digital marketing. If you aren't thrilled about our emails, reply and let us know why. Or you can unsubscribe from all daily updates by clicking [here.]( Our postal address: Spectrum IT Solutions GmbH, Canettistrasse 1/Top 0107, 1100 Wien, Austria