⚠️ Frequently returned.

Amazon is testing a label to warn customers about certain products, there’s a new version of Google Ads, and more. March 29, 2023 [Read in browser]( [logo] [sponsor]( Good morning, you’re halfway through the week. We’ve got another reader-submitted riddle for you in today’s Brain Teaser section. If you’re a visual learner, you’ll appreciate it. If not… good luck. Thanks for the brain workout, Catie Holdridge! AMAZON Don’t join the new “frequently return” club [article-image] It’s not exactly “name and shame,” but it’s close… Amazon is planning to roll out a [“frequently returned”]( label to warn customers when particular products are regularly shipped back. Something’s off: According to the company, the new label will help customers make “more informed purchase decisions.” … Which makes sense when you consider how Amazon is swarmed by counterfeit, low-quality items, fake comments, and inflated ratings. Where you’ll see the label: So far, the warning has been spotted on a few products listed by third-party retailers. Amazon hasn’t said when the label will be rolled out platform-wide, or whether it will be available outside the US. Guess we’ll see. Why we care: If you have a product with low return frequency, not having the label could confirm the quality of your product, and even give you leverage over competitors that do. Of course, that could go both ways, if you know what we mean. Let’s just hope this motivates companies to increase product quality, tone down the review inflation, and focus on providing adequate information to their customers. GOOGLE New Ads editor version, plus new information about organic search listings Today Google has something for PPCs and SEOs. Don’t worry, it’s mostly good. Like what you did with the place: Google released [version 2.3 of Google Ads Editor,]( which includes a ton of new additions, like… - File support and card view for image assets. - Full support for image assets, automatically created assets, location assets, and business information assets. - Text asset automation for Performance Max. - Support for Discovery ads and campaigns with product feed. … And lots more. You’ll see the full list of updates in the link above. It’s OK to judge an article by its writer: Google also launched a set of features to help you [fact check and verify your sources of information.]( Here’s the breakdown: - About This Result. The 2021 feature that provides more information about a search result is finally available in all languages. Very helpful. - Perspective. A new carousel feature that appears below Top Stories and displays insights and comments from top experts is now available for English results in the US. - About This Author. This new feature lets users find out more about the article author’s background and expertise. So what’s more important… the content or who’s written it? Probably a bit of both. Why we care: The new Google Ads version should make it easier for you to manage assets and different campaign types, among other things. So that’s good. Also, the content features make it seem like you’ll have to work a lot on yours—or your writer’s—authority and reputation if you want Google to rank you. … Seems like the Expertise part of Google’s E-E-A-T framework gets a slight edge with this update. SPONSORED BY SALESFORCE What are today’s leading marketers doing to manage the chaos? [article-image]( If you’re reading this, chances are you’re struggling to get ROI in a world of tight marketing budgets, tight data regulations, and tight customer purses and wallets. Want to know how other marketers are tackling these challenges? Salesforce surveyed 6,000 marketing leaders across 35 countries about the trends that are impacting marketing today… … Then analyzed trillions of outbound marketing messages sent using the Salesforce platform. Salesforce compiled the illuminating results in an [all-in-one report on changing trends, priorities, and challenges](. You'll learn: - How marketers are doing more with less amid economic uncertainty. - The strategies, channels, and tactics they’re using to reach audiences. - The exact steps they’re taking to prepare for the retirement of third-party cookies. - How metrics and KPIs are shifting as marketers pursue real-time intelligence. Uncover the latest trends shaping the industry in The 8th Edition State of Marketing Report. And it's free to download. [Get the report now.]( E-COMMERCE Want to boost your average order value? Try these tips… [article-image] So your ads work and your audience keeps spending money. Great. But what if you could encourage them to spend even more? That’s where increasing average order value (AOV) comes in. And as Sara Yin [points out](, it’s the first thing you should do to improve revenue or optimize return on ad spend (ROAS). How do you persuade without intruding? With proven tactics of course. Sara offers a few in her article and we’ve picked them apart. Let’s take ‘em one at a time… #1 – Create a minimum free shipping threshold. If there’s one thing shoppers love more than discounts – it’s free shipping. But there are margins to think about… Set your threshold too low, and you may actually lose money on costs. Set it too high and you risk abandoned carts and less conversion value. So what’s the magic number? Apparently it’s setting a free shipping threshold 30% above your current AOV. For instance, if your AOV is $30, the free shipping threshold should be around $40. #2 – Bundle it up. Yes, the good old bundle. Grouping items together may not only increase the AOV, but can also spark a lot of creative ideas. For instance, you can mix and match different items for holidays, create all-in-one bundles, and even let customers make their own bundles, which can be a fun experience. #3 – Provide live chat support. Research shows that online stores with an integrated live chat support sell up to 15% more items per cart. And there are a few reasons for this… First, you’re providing immediate answers, which lowers abandonment rates. This can also nudge high-intent buyers to complete a purchase instead of aimlessly scrolling through. Second, the instant connection that you form encourages repeat purchases. Like what you’ve read? If so, there’s [more to read]( in Sara’s article, so make sure you check it out. Mind your margins and optimize that AOV. It’s totally worth it. SPONSORED BY UPFLUENCE Yesterday: struggling to find influencers. Today: hiring perfect fits and seeing results [article-image]( Creator-generated content is more relatable than ads, so it’s not surprising that influencer marketing gets results. But would it surprise you to know that a whopping 61% of marketers struggle to find influencers? [Upfluence solves that problem](. It helps you find influencers and affiliates, measure your efforts, understand what’s working, and make ROI-boosting decisions more easily. 1600+ brands worldwide- including KEEN Footwear, Fabletics & Kayak are building lasting creator partnerships and enjoying measurable, predictable ROI. Why not you? [Drive revenue with Upfluence.]( THE CREW’S INSIGHTS The least effective ways to market during a recession [article-image] We recently stumbled [across a survey]( conducted during the last recession, in 2009. The premise: Respondents were asked to explain which marketing strategies they found to be the most and least effective during a recession. In light of the fact that experts believe we’re likely in a recession—or something close to it—we want to highlight the four marketing tactics marketers mentioned the least during the recession: - Trade shows, exhibitions, and events. - Traditional media advertising. - Price reductions and promotions. - Direct mail. Why? Marketers were not able to track the ROI of most of these channels, and when the focus is on the short-term, strategies like trade shows, events, and traditional media advertising are difficult to justify. What about price reductions? Well, marketers probably didn’t mention those because most businesses don’t like reducing prices during a recession. It’s painful to eat into your margins when business is already tough. OK, so those are the tactics you want to avoid… Now what about the tactics marketers find most effective during a recession? You can learn all about them in our Stacked Marketer Pro report, [The Marketer’s Guide to Surviving and Thriving in a Recession](. Join Stacked Marketer Pro for just $7 to read it. ROUNDING UP THE STACK [E-COMMERCE:]( Get this—85% of e-commerce sales are made on smartphones, and 18–24 year-olds spend 50% of their time on TikTok watching influencers. These aren't even the craziest trends! Check out this free report to reveal all. [Download Insider Intelligence’s snapshot.](* [TIKTOK:](Guess the most downloaded app so far in 2023 in the US? TikTok, of course – and it dethroned Instagram in the process. All that talk of banning seemed to leave no dent in the app’s popularity. In fact, it may have boosted it. [META:]( Testing, testing, one, two… Meta is currently testing two advertising features — a product that helps retailers and CPG brands collaborate to create personalized ads, and an ad type that allows businesses to target users near their stores with relevant offers. Nice! [TWITTER:]( Pay to play. Elon Musk announced that Twitter will only show tweets of verified users on the “For You” recommendations feed, meaning if you want your content suggested to others algorithmically, you have to pay for the privilege. Hmm… [ADVERTISING:]( Holding up. Digital advertising fell by 2% during the first two months of 2023, but still remains healthier than overall US ad spend decline. Ad networks and exchanges even saw a rise of 2%. Maybe brands are moving to performance-based channels… [SEO:]( Just so you know, there’s a difference between Merchant listings and Product snippets – and Search Console is finally acknowledging it. Google announced that you can now see separate performances of each on the Performance dashboard. Yay! *This is a sponsored post BRAIN TEASER What expression is represented by this? LITTLE LARGE LITTLE LARGE LITTLE LARGE LITTLE LITTLE You can find [the answer here.]( [poolside-logo] POOLSIDE CHAT The pancake redemption [article-image] Imagine this for a second: You’re a prison inmate who successfully breaks out of jail after months of careful, quiet labor. Now that you’re out, would you: A) Get off the grid and lay low for a few months, change appearance, plot your next move? B) Or go to a nearby pancake restaurant and grab a bite? Obviously option B, [if you’re like these two prisoners from Virginia.]( This crafty duo cut a hole in the wall with primitive tools, then made a Shawshank Redemption-style run for it… … Then decided priorities come first. And by priorities, we mean pancakes. They were caught, of course. But hey, at least they got breakfast. SHARING IS CARING “The style is too casual/chatty for me.”—a reader who unsubscribed Apparently some people prefer marketing news to be rigid and formal. Not us. And not you either, we’re guessing. 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