The world of Digital Marketing is constantly evolving and despite the current climate, we’ve still seen various digital changes come into effect over the Summer months. In this post we’ll take a look at some exciting updates for September:
1) Changes to Google Maps
Gone are the days of pulling out the folded paper map from the glovebox when trying to find the hotel you are staying in (perhaps some of you have no idea what we are talking about!). We have all become accustomed to Google Maps and our friends at Google are rolling out more changes this week. Key changes include visual changes that bring even more detail to the map, making it easier to understand what an area looks like if people are planning a visit to your hotel. These changes will be beneficial to your visitors so they will be able to find you faster.
> Discover more about the changes here.
2) Google adds ‘last updated’ hours notification to GMB profiles
During these uncertain times, it can be difficult for organisations to communicate to customers that they are open for business. Why? Because many potential customers are skeptical that the business hours listed on Google My Business are still applicable. Google has looked to reinstill confidence by adding a ‘last updated’ feature to Google My Business listings.
> Find out more about this new feature & why it is important
3) Google Search Console Insights for content creators
We’ve all heard the expression that “Content in King” but creating unique and engaging content can be hard. We might think we know what the customer wants, but often we don’t. Google recognises this struggle and is experimenting with a new Google Search Console Insights feature which will combine Search Console and Google Analytics data in one view to provide a deeper insight into how customers find your website and the type of content they find most engaging.
> See what else you can learn about your content
4) Christmas Voucher campaigns
It’s hard to believe that we’re already talking about Christmas gift vouchers in September, but the reality is that many people start Christmas voucher shopping as early as October. We want you to be well prepared for these early birds so here are some suggestions on how to effectively conduct Christmas Voucher Advertising.
> Tips on how to sell Christmas Vouchers Online
5) Google Image Ad Extensions
Images in text ads have been a long-running experiment and we believe this is Google’s third time having a go at this. The image extension beta arrived earlier in the year but they are now adding it to more and more accounts (instead of the infamous gallery ads which never surfaced and was withdrawn in may) You can now add high-quality, rich assets, so your visitors can quickly see an image and take action faster on your ad. Using image extensions, you can upload relevant images or automatically curate them from your website with machine learning. The images show as a thumbnail alongside a text ad, as shown in the example below:
