Our Top 5 Takeaways from #GML2022

On May 24th 2022, the annual Google Marketing Live event showcased Google’s latest product innovations, emerging trends and user insights.?

Privacy, YouTube and Performance Max Campaigns were the hottest topics of the event, with ‘building resilience for tomorrow’ being the motto of the day.?

Whilst there will undoubtedly be a flurry of follow up webinar, product information pieces and extensive updates to existing online guides, we don’t want you to miss out on the latest announcements. Most importantly, we don’t want to confuse you with jargon and technical terms which even the most seasoned PPC pro has to take a second glance at. So here are our top five takeaways from #GML2022 and what they mean for your business:

1. Video. Video. Video

In the words of Jerry Dischler:

“If you want to be where your audience is, then video is a must buy”.

Video content was heavily featured at GML2022 and there were many announcements related to advertising on YouTube. The most significant for SMEs was the introduction of video ads for YouTube Shorts. YouTube Shorts focuses on short-form video content (TikTok style) and averages over 30 billion views per day. If you’ve been thinking about getting into video advertising, then there’s no time like the present to get the ball rolling.

Head here to learn more about YouTube Shorts: https://www.youtube.com/creators/shorts/

2. ‘My Ad Center'

With the goal of improving the experience of online privacy for users, ‘My Ad Center’ will be launched later this year. Basically an ad customisation tool,? people will be able to choose what types of ads they want to see, see less of and how their data is used to inform those ads.?

For businesses this means that whilst your audience pool might decrease, it should help to improve the relevancy of the audience you keep. These individuals should be more engaged with your industry and content, and therefore have a higher level of intent to convert.

3. CRM Integrations

Whilst the nitty gritty details are still a bit sparse at the moment, there are upcoming improvements for CRM integration with the Google Ads platform.

For businesses this will mean more features and opportunities to ‘score’ leads, which in turn will help to improve the efficiency of your automated bidding strategies.

Later this year Lead Funnels reports (as shown above) will also be added to Google Ads, so you can visualise how your leads are progressing through the sales process.

4. Business Messages

Business Messages will soon be available in Google Ads. Simply put, this opens up the option for potential customers to start a chat with a business by clicking on the ads CTA. No need to leave the Search Results page or dig through the website to find the live chat option!

This ‘Chat Extension’ unfortunately doesn’t go into open beta until the end of 2022, but it sounds like? a fantastic opportunity for businesses to be able to communicate with potential customers at the moments when it counts the most.

In the meantime, take a read through more information about Google’s Business Messages here - https://businessmessages.google/

5. Privacy Accountability

A large chunk of the GML2022 announcements revolved around CRM integrations and the use of first-party data. Whilst these exciting new features are great to hear, the event whitewashed the importance, both legally and morally, of advertisers when it comes to how they collect and use data.

As advertisers we are responsible and accountable for the data we collect from our customers and website visitors. Whilst abiding by privacy policies, GDPR and data protection rules can be frustrating at times, as a business you need to be transparent about your data practices. Some of the upcoming innovations to Google Ads are heavily reliant on how you use your first-party data, and in response you need to protect your back.

Julie Bacchini said it best in her tweet:

Keeping up to date with the latest Google Ads feature updates and announcements enables advertisers to future-proof their account. By understanding and implementing new innovations, advertisers are better equipped to tackle changes and trends in users behaviour online. Online advertising is a fast paced industry, and Google Marketing Live demonstrated just how reactive advertisers need to be to stay ahead of the game.

#PPCChat #GoogleAds #PPCNews