Frederick Vallaeys says, “I’m always looking for an edge in PPC so that my campaign’s performance will shine in a very competitive landscape. Back in 2013, I started talking about how to use programming to set up time-saving and performance-boosting automations with AdWords Scripts, at the time among the newest capabilities in AdWords. But now that we’re about to head into 2017, there’s an entirely different AdWords power feature that is starting to let us use programming to improve performance: ad customizers (“customizers” for short). Customizers sit at the intersection of... [...]

Barry Levine says, “If you’ve noticed that more and more billboards have essentially become giant TV screens, then you’re watching the out-of-home (OOH) industry slowly grow into something resembling the online ad industry. This week, a Santa Monica, California-based startup called AdQuick launched its first product, a platform that is designed to manage the OOH ecosystem — including screens in bus shelters or displays on the sides of buildings, as well as billboards. But the industry still has a ways to go. Founder and CEO Matthew O’Connor told me that well over 90 percent of OOH... [...]

Brian Patterson says, “I’m always looking for an edge in PPC so that my campaign’s performance will shine in a very competitive landscape. Back in 2013, I started talking about how to use programming to set up time-saving and performance-boosting automations with AdWords Scripts, at the time among the newest capabilities in AdWords. But now that we’re about to head into 2017, there’s an entirely different AdWords power feature that is starting to let us use programming to improve performance: ad customizers (“customizers” for short). Customizers sit at the intersection of two... [...]

Andy Beohar says, “Expanded Text Ads (ETAs), announced in July of 2016, are considered by most industry observers to be the biggest change to Google Adwords in 16 years. Google’s new ETAs provide for an increase of 50 percent more ad space. Plus, ETAs pack in a few other exciting features as well. Numerous strategies and best practices have been developed over the years for the standard text ad format, but unfortunately, most of these don’t translate to expanded text ads. And, businesses are now having to scramble to update their ads before Google stops supporting the old format in January. The... [...]

Carl Erik Kjærsgaard says, “There’s a reason transparency is such an important topic of discussion throughout the industry. In June, the Association of National Advertisers (ANA) published a bombshell of a report revealing that executives were aware of — and sometimes mandated — extensive use of nontransparent practices like rebates and kickbacks. As a direct response to the report, JPMorgan Chase sent shockwaves throughout the industry when it became the first big brand to hire a team of auditors to examine its media agency. Ultimately, Chase wanted to ensure “that they are getting... [...]

Patricio Robles says, “Donald Trump’s upset victory in the 2016 U.S. presidential election has sparked a vigorous debate about the role of the internet in promoting the spread of misinformation. Much of this debate has focused on fake news sites and how articles they published found an audience thanks to the algorithms used by social networks and search engines. In many cases, these fake news sites were not intended to sway public opinion but instead to generate ad revenue for their creators. According to BuzzFeed News, teens in a small town in Macedonia were behind more than 100 pro-Trump... [...]

Ginny Marvin says, “A new Google AdWords ad extension has been spotted in the wild. Moz’s Dr. Pete notice a new promotion extension being tested in a text ad. First are Consumer Ratings Annotations, next up is the new Promo Extension that’s being tested, followed by Sitelink Extensions, and finally, a Location Extension. The promotion extension (official name TBA) features an offer followed by some descriptive copy (Here Williams-Sonoma is using a promo code, but I’m guessing a code does not always have to be included). Merchant Promotions that feature the same tag icon shown in... [...]

Matt Lawson says, “Expanded text ads (ETAs) are a big deal. At least a dozen articles on this fine site can attest to that fact (including one that I wrote myself). Spread out across all of the articles and discussions online, I’ve read more than a bit of speculation. So, I decided to get together with the product management team behind expanded text ads to definitively answer some of the most common questions. 1. Does anything bad happen if I wait until the last possible moment to upgrade? You’re not directly penalized or anything like that. However, I wouldn’t recommend sitting on... [...]

Craig Simpson says, “Now it’s time to look at what ad expert Eugene Schwartz had to say about headlines because it gives us an interesting perspective on what a good headline is all about. Schwartz told us that, in spite of what many of us may believe, “The headline does not sell.” That’s not its purpose. Its purpose is to capture attention. As people read through their mail, you have only 10 seconds to catch their interest. During those ten seconds, people decide to either keep reading the piece or throw it away. The headline’s only purpose is to get people to read the rest of... [...]

Brad Bender says, “Readers of Marketing Land are surely aware of the opportunity with programmatic advertising, whether from the excellent MarTech Landscape Series or your years of experience. The benefits of programmatic are clear: Using data and technology increases efficiency and improves campaign performance. The next big question, though, is how to actually do it. When you’re ready to commit to programmatic advertising, what platform should you use? This is a conversation I’ve had countless times in my role at Google. It’s a conversation I’ve had so often, in fact, that I’ve... [...]