By Mark Eting
Bullseye Strategy Special Correspondent
We here at Bullseye Buzz hope you had an enjoyable Memorial Day Weekend. Don’t let the fact that it’s a short work-week lull you into expecting a shortened edition of the Bullseye Buzz. We’ve got an action-packed issue, chock full of digital marketing breaking news that cannot be ignored. And with that, let’s get rolling!
YouTube Advertisers Can Target TV Viewing
YouTube has announced that it has relaunched its premium advertising program. Now called YouTube Select, it incorporates what had been formerly referred to as Google Preferred and allows advertisers to target TV screen viewing. Brands can target a dedicated streaming TV lineup including YouTube originals, live sports, movies, news, and content from popular creators.
YouTube Select packages content into lineups tailored by market for topics including beauty & fashion, entertainment, technology, sports, and more. Ad buying options will vary by region.
NYT Takes a Bite Out of Third-party Cookies
The New York Times has announced that it will cease using third-party cookies, the technology appreciated by advertisers, and feared by consumers.
Third-party cookies, those small data files on web browsers that track visits to websites have come under heightened scrutiny in recent years due to privacy concerns. While the U.S. doesn’t currently have laws on the books preventing them, both Apple and Google have announced plans to curtail their use.
The New York Times is taking the step now to ensure that they can collect data from readers themselves and be prepared once third-party cookies become a thing of the past. Beginning in July they’ll offer advertisers 45 audience segments based on geographical and personal interest data, and expect to expand that by an additional 30 in the second half of the year.
Facebook and Instagram Open “Shops”
Facebook and sister platform Instagram have launched “Shops”, an online marketplace where any business, regardless of size or budget, can sell their wares on the platform. The feature allows businesses to choose the products they want to feature either by uploading product listings or directly from their current eCom catalog via Shopify, ChannelAdvisor, Cafe24, CedCommerce, and other providers.
As explained by Facebook:
“ Creating a Facebook Shop is free and simple. Businesses can choose the products they want to feature from their catalog and then customize the look and feel of their shop with a cover image and accent colors that showcase their brand.”
Facebook will soon be providing businesses with a link to a new “Shop Builder” platform.
Bonus Buzz: A Facebook and Google Showdown
Lookout Facebook. Google is taking aim at your revenue stream.
Google’s Discovery Ads are now available globally and take aim at Facebook’s bread and butter; “visually impactful, native ad targeting based on audience data rather than search intent”.
Available across YouTube, Discover, and Gmail, Google claims an audience of 2.9 billion people, the exact number that Facebook claimed as the audience for their family of apps. How convenient.
Discovery ads, like Facebook and Instagram ads, make use of high-quality imagery and budgeting similar to that of social platforms. Organizations that have a separation between Google and social media marketing silos may need to rethink their approach.
Stay safe. Stay classy. Stay indoors still.
“Mark Eting” is the pen name of the Bullseye Strategy team. Check back with us next week for more news on what’s buzzing in the digital marketing industry
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