What You Need to Know About Google Marketing Livestream 2021

 

A brief history of Google Marketing Livestream

We learned about Discovery Ads, Gallery Ads, and Max Conversion Value in 2019.

We discovered in 2020 that even Google couldn't resist a pandemic.

We discovered in 2021 that Alicia Keys despises being sold to.

All jokes aside, many would agree that this year's event's major lessons are unclear and perplexing. 

We've been taking our time to process everything so that we can share 

the facts with you as clearly as possible and from the perspective of a small business.

Cookieless reporting announcements

With cross-device behaviour already being tough to analyze and browser cookie restrictions, 

Obtaining reliable statistics to assess and optimize your ad campaigns is more challenging than ever. 

Google unveiled three tools that would assist advertisers in obtaining

 the data they want in this post-privacy era.

1. Enhanced conversions

In a nutshell, this tracking function employs hashed first-party data to provide more accurate, yet privacy-friendly, reports.

More: Historically, third-party data has allowed marketers to reveal a user's route to

 the ad that led them to the landing page (for appropriate attribution) 

as well as follow their activity after they leave that landing page (for remarketing).

However, in the absence of cookies, each visit to your website/landing pages will be regarded as a new session, 

even if the user has previously visited before doing other conversion actions.

With improved conversions, your GTM tags will send agreed, but hashed, 

first-party data about your website visitors to Google,

 which it will then match to users in its first-party database before returning aggregated and anonymous conversion statistics. 

This allows you to report conversions more precisely and optimise advertising 

while adhering to privacy and security requirements.

Brett McHale, the founder of Empiric Marketing, LLC, is pleased with the new reporting tool.

“Anything that helps make conversion tracking more precise is usually a benefit

For marketers, especially if they are attempting to match the first-party data they are receiving on their end. 

Advertisers who capture information such as phone number, 

first/last name, email address, or home address will benefit from Enhanced Conversions.”

2. Consent mode

The short explanation is that tags automatically change to particular cookie preferences 

that a user specifies, so you don't require a sophisticated tag configuration.

More: Consent mode is another option for obtaining more precise conversion data in a private and secure setting. 

With this feature, your global site tags or GTM tags will default to ‘denied' for values

 such as ‘ad storage' and ‘analytics storage,' unless the user grants permission via a granular consent banner.

If a user declines to provide consent, Google will utilize conversion modelling to fill in the blanks. 

Consent mode eliminates the need for complex tag configurations

 and, according to Google, "recovers 70% of conversion trips lost due to user consent decisions."

Google outlines the qualifying conditions for consent mode in the same post. 

Advertisers must:

• Have a presence in the European Economic Area (EEA) or the United Kingdom (UK).

• Put the IAB Transparency & Consent Framework (TCF v2.0) in place on your website.

• Meet a daily ad click threshold of 100 per region and domain grouping.

3. Behavioral reporting in Google Analytics

In a nutshell, machine learning will aid in filling gaps in Google Analytics Behavior reports,

 allowing for greater visibility into the customer journey.

More: Just as machine learning is used to help with conversion tracking in Google Ads,

 it is also used to help with behavioural reporting in Google Analytics. 

The deletion of cookies will affect a variety of KPIs, including bounce rate, sessions, events, and more.

Many marketers have developed new tags in Google Tag Manager as well as 

alternative dashboards to access secret data that normal GA reporting misses. 

Google wants to overcome these gaps using machine learning and modelling technologies.

Automation announcements

Many of Google's announcements in the last year,

 such as the new default to responsive ad type, restrictions in the search terms report,

 and the discontinuation of the modified wide match, 

have been viewed by marketers as a series of incremental adjustments in Google's broader drive towards automation. 

We're not pleased about it, but we may as well figure out how to utilize them to our advantage. 

Google has made two new automation-related announcements.

The long and short of it is that value-based bidding is now accessible for Video action and Discovery campaigns.

More: With Troas, you can focus on indicators that are relevant to your goals and compute 

ROI even if you have several products with varying price points. 

Troas is presently in beta for Discovery campaigns and has been completely rolled out for Video action campaigns internationally.

Furthermore, while Google encourages all account types to use this value-based bidding strategy 

With Discovery and Video action campaigns right now,

 I believe they still have a long way to go to make this a small business-friendly alternative. 

This is because not all small firms have the necessary parameters in place for a 

Troas strategy to make sense, particularly if they provide a service or a product with no fixed pricing points."

5. Video action campaigns are replacing TrueView for action

In a nutshell, TrueView for action campaigns will be updated to Video action campaigns 

by early 2022, which will employ responsive ad groups and appear across additional Google properties

More: On June 11, Google stated that TrueView for action campaigns will be phased out in favour of Video action campaigns. 

Video action campaigns, which debuted in June 2020, 

are a form of automated campaign that is distributed across various Google sites,

 including YouTube's home feed, watch page, watch next feed, and Google video partners.

They vary from TrueView in that they employ responsive ad groups rather than regular ad groups for action campaigns.

6. More transparency for Performance Max campaign reporting

Short version: You will soon be able to obtain the critical information you want about

this new campaign type, such as top-performing works and their channel previews.

More: Performance Max ads will be launched in October 2020. 

These programs, like Smart campaigns (introduced at Google Marketing Live 2018), are automated. 

Unlike Smart campaigns, however, you can design a single ad

 that will run across all of Google's platforms: Search, Display, Discover, Maps, Gmail, and YouTube.

Reminder! 

As of July 1, you will no longer be able to create new Gmail advertisements, but existing campaigns will continue to run!

Performance Max campaigns are developed in the same way 

that Responsive display advertisements are, with you providing the assets and Google rotating them to discover the optimum mix.

Previously, there was no way to see how assets performed and whose properties they appeared on. 

To respond to this request for greater exposure, Google plans to release data on 

top-performing creative, auction information, trending search categories, 

and the option to preview your best advertisements on each channel.

Local advertising announcements

While you may (and should) use these free techniques to rank higher on 

Google Maps naturally, other Google Maps advertising alternatives can boost your exposure even more. 

Three new Maps ad kinds that might help businesses with a

 physical presence were announced at the Google Marketing Livestream.

7. Auto suggest ads

When you start typing a query into Google Maps, advertising for a local company

 that offers the product or service you're looking for will now display in the recommendations. 

They're labelled with a little "Ad" label.

8. Navigational ads

Ads for establishments on the way to a user's destination will show with this ad type. 

Google assures us that they are safe for drivers,

 but I'd want to check out Bob's Burgers first before adding that stop to my itinerary.

9. Similar places ads

These advertisements will display neighbouring companies 

that are similar to the one you looked for if that shop is closed—whether

 temporarily or permanently due to the epidemic, or simply owing to their working hours.

10. New attributes for local inventory ads

Even though we are in the post-COVID era, the curbside pickup option that we grew to know and love during the epidemic is still popular. 

For companies that use local inventory advertisements, available goods will now be labelled "Pick up now" or "Curbside." 

"Pickup later" is currently in beta.

You must first register a Merchant Center account, a Google My Business Locations account, and a Google Advertising account before you can generate local inventory ads.

Google Shopping announcements

According to Francine Rodriguez, the Google Shopping releases are 

the most interesting improvements that can positively influence small to medium-sized accounts.

“This is a strong indicator that ecomm was leading the paid search sector in 2020,” Rodriguez adds. 

“It is critical that small companies handle setting up their Google Merchant Center and learning streams as seriously as they do PPC.”

11. Shopify integration

In a nutshell, Shopify users will now be able to showcase items across Google properties such as Maps, Images, Lens, and Youtube with a few simple clicks.

More: Google and Shopify have updated their collaboration so that Shopify

 users may more readily make use of Google properties when it comes to displaying their items to consumers.

While no specific date has been revealed, we do know that by leveraging Shopify's Google

 Channel directly in Shopify, Shopify users will be able to reach customers outside the

 SERP shopping results, independent of how their Merchant Center is configured in Google Ads.

12. Black-owned attribute tags in shopping ads

In a nutshell, Google Ads has added a new identification characteristic to the Merchant Center for black and women-owned companies.

More: We're used to seeing product characteristics like product ID, title, and description in the shopping stream. 

These will appear on the item's shopping placement, but advertisers

 may now opt in to self-identify as a black-owned business by navigating to 

the Business Information area of their Merchant Center. 

They will subsequently included in any black-owned retail campaigns performed by 

Google on its properties.

Additionally, any items exhibited by a business that self-identifies as

 black-owned will carry a sticker so that shoppers who want to support these firms can do so.

This is comparable to the ability for women-owned businesses to 

self-identify as such on Google My Business. 

These updates to Google's products are in line with the marketing industry's quest for more inclusion.

13. Price competitiveness report in Google Merchant Center

In a nutshell, this new reporting tool in Google Merchant Center 

Will let merchants view the prices rivals are advertising for the same items by utilizing 

An average price for all products that fulfil "minimum requirements for traffic and Retailer aggregation."

More: Consider this the Google Shopping equivalent of Auction Insights, 

where you can obtain insight into how you compare to the competitors. 

In addition to changing prices depending on what displayed in this new report.

This will assist sellers to get a better understanding of what they should be bidding.

14. Shopify sites can use Shop Pay across Google products

In a nutshell, Google Merchant Center marketers with Shopify websites may now use Shop Pay on Google goods to boost sales.

More: Shop Pay is Shopify's entirely electronic payment tool,

Allowing customers to swiftly and easily enter their purchasing information using a security code. 

This reduces time at the checkout, making it easier for customers to complete the purchases that earn marketers money.

Along with the previously stated integration of the "Shopping Graph,"

This innovation will allow customers to easily make purchases straight from Google goods. 

Even if you currently use Shop Pay on your Shopify site, 

Having an additional channel of payment via direct shopping placements across Google products will help you grow sales even more.

Conclusion

In terms of good takeaways from the 2021 Google Marketing LiveStream, 

We would argue that Google is assisting marketers and advertisers in the following areas:

Adaptability: The Insights page and soon-to-be demand prediction page will make

It easier for marketers to respond to fast fluctuations in consumer behaviour,

Which were prevalent during the epidemic but will surely continue as other global events occur.

Inclusivity: Of course, this relates to the new black-owned and woman-owned features in retail advertisements. 

Similarly, the abundance of Google Shopping improvements

Will assist small firms in remaining competitive in the online sector.

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