Tagged for Success - Tag Digital’s Newsletter - #5
Welcome to the 5th edition of Tagged for Success, keeping you up to date with the latest in the event industry and updates across all paid marketing channels.
What can you expect in today's newsletter?
?????? Google Consent Mode is coming to the US! What does this mean for US marketers?! ??
"How does Google Consent Mode impact my paid advertising campaigns?!" is our most asked question right now...and it’s only been a priority for advertisers in Europe – but that’s all changing!
It currently affects how advertisers can collect and use users' data in Europe (including the UK) as users now have the option to reject all cookie tracking.?
“Over the course of 2024, Florida, Texas, Oregon, Montana, and Colorado have privacy law provisions coming into effect. In addition, the Colorado Privacy Act (CPA) will begin enforcement of its Universal Opt-Out Mechanism (UOOM) Provisions” – Source: Google.
The change to privacy laws in the United States is the first step towards the introduction of privacy first regulations for advertisers that we are currently following in the UK and Europe.
If you’re a US marketer and want to get ahead of the curve – we have a lot of content by Kristie Cheng on what Google Consent Mode is in a recent webinar session.?
?? Crash course on cookies ??
Google is working towards a cookie-phase out by early 2025. Albeit this is the 4th time Google has been delayed, the removal of third-party cookies is an inevitable change.?
A lot of marketers are asking why Google has decided to remove third-party cookies - this is a direct response to the increasing ethical and legal concerns surrounding online privacy and data protection.
Google has already begun restricting third-party cookies by default for 1% of users from January this year.?
?? What is the difference between first and third-party cookies? ??
Without third-party cookies, advertisers lose a crucial tool for tracking user behaviour across different websites.
This loss impairs the ability to deliver personalised ads, measure campaign effectiveness, and optimise marketing strategies.?
The result is less precise targeting, potentially higher ad spend, and reduced ROI.
Simply put, without these cookies we cannot track conversion performance or build audiences in this way any longer. One of the key solutions to cookie depreciation is moving from client-side tracking to server-side tracking...
?? The future of conversion tracking…say hello to server-side! ??
To address the current cookie challenges, server-side tracking (SST) emerges as a powerful alternative and an important tool to implement in order to navigate conversion tracking and remarketing in a privacy-first world.
The concept here is in essence quite simple, instead of cookies stored by platforms (such as Google Ads, Meta, LinkedIn etc) they are stored in your own cloud server.
On the topic of a cookie-less future, we have to prepare for how these changes and the decline of third-party cookies will change how marketers can advertise.
If we are following the timeline set by Google to phase out cookies – we have around 6 months, which means now is a good time to take action.
?? Let’s start with what is the difference between client-side tagging and server-side? ??
We find the best way to explain the difference is to visualise it through a typical user journey:
Client-side tracking: Users click onto your website, and as long as they have consent enabled, the data will then be sent directly to the advertising platforms – Google Ads and Meta or LinkedIn – to track the users behaviour in remarketing and should they continue to complete a conversion.
Server-side tracking: Once the user clicks onto your website, and similarly have enabled consent, the data is first sent directly to your own server hosting before forwarding on to the ad platforms for remarketing and conversion tracking.
? What are the benefits to server-side tracking? ??
Do you want to find out more about server-side tracking? Watch our recent session with Head of Paid Media, Ashley Hamilton ??
Uncover more in-depth benefits of server-side tracking on your paid advertising, potential challenges and how we can help. Sign up here and watch the webinar straight away!
?? What’s new on advertising platforms????
We want to make sure you’re up to date with the recent changes to all paid advertising channels and new features you can utilise in your event marketing.
?? 1. Google Ads – AI Photo Editor ??
You can now edit your images directly on the platform with a new Google ads feature.
For example, if you have an image that you want to use as an asset in an upcoming campaign but if there’s something within the image that you’d ideally like to remove before you use it in your ads…you can easily edit it out!
Here’s an example from Kristie C. , Paid Media Manager at Tag Digital, where she erased the 2 people in the image and turned the water bottle on the table into a glass object.
Previously, you may have used Canva Pro to make these AI edits, however, Google enabling this as part of the advertising platform allows marketers to make these changes without moving to another platform.
We can see this feature being extremely beneficial if there are small adjustments needed to be made to an image before the campaign goes live!
What do you think? Are you all for AI image editors? Let us know in the comments!
?? 2. Thought Leader Ads on LinkedIn ??
This isn’t a completely new ad format – however there has been a lot of buzz with marketers on the success of these ads recently.
LinkedIn launched Thought Leader Ads in 2023 and they have taken the platform by storm as people like to hear from other people rather than brand accounts.
This is an excellent opportunity for event marketers to use the personal brand of their keynote speakers or recognisable public figures that are associated with the event.
We wanted to test this ad type for an event we were working on – Jessica Mowat , Paid Social Team Lead, trailed thought leader in an A/B test with boosted posts to assess the difference in performance.
The ads were a mix of speakers, people who were part of panel discussions or ‘influencers’ in the events industry.
This ad type is only available for brand awareness or engagement – we chose engagement.
It’s important that the individual is a trusted voice – it can generate followers for the events page but also amplifies the individual's personal brand – the individual should align strongly with the brand.
?? What were the results of this test? ??
We tested this ad format for an event with a delegate promotion objective – we can’t wait to test thought leader ads for exhibitor promotion and free visitor registration tickets to compare the results further.
领英推荐
The rise of thought leader ads isn’t surprising when the marketing landscape is changing to be focused on sharing authentic and personal content that tells a story to connect with your audience!
Have you heard of thought leader ads? Let us know if you would try them in the comments…
?? 3. Meta’s beta integration with Google Analytics 4! ??
This is HUGE for event marketers! Meta is currently offering a very limited beta to connect Google Analytics 4 data with Meta directly on the platform.
This is still only running as a beta so if you’re lucky you may have noticed this pop-up in Meta, informing you about the possibility to connect GA4 with Meta.
How will this benefit paid advertising? This link will help drive improved campaign performance on Meta Ads and has potential to:
The good news? Setting up your third-party analytics integration only takes 5 to 10 minutes – don’t worry this won’t take forever!
Why should you link your accounts? According to Meta – advertisers who shared third-party analytics data experienced a 22% average increase in Meta-attributed conversions as measured by their third-party tools in a 2023 experiment.
We’re really excited about the full roll out of this feature!
?? Toys ‘R’ Us debuts first video ad using Sora, OpenAI’s text-to-video tool at Cannes Lion ????
In our second edition of Tagged for Success – we shared our excitement over the new AI software, Sora by OpenAI – creators of ChatGPT – were releasing a new AI tool called Sora, that creates videos from a simple text prompt.
Sora still hasn’t been released to the public yet, but this is a great opportunity to create unique, exciting content that helps to tell your brand story.
?? What is Sora? ??
Quick back story: Sora transforms text prompts into minute-long videos, showcasing OpenAI's strides towards an AI that interacts with real-world scenarios.
It's not just about generating videos, it's about creating solutions through visual storytelling from your prompt.
Someone had to be the first to use this new AI technology and it was Toys ‘R’ Us!
This video ad was previewed at Cannes Lions last month – Sora still isn’t available to the public yet, however, the brand’s creative partner, Native Foreign, had early access. Source: The Hollywood Reporter
Sora can create up to one-minute-long videos featuring realistic scenes and multiple characters, all generated from text instruction.
Toys ‘R’ Us have rewritten what is possible for advertising with this video ad – they have brought the brand’s founder back to life as a child sharing his dreams for the now iconic brand and their recognisable mascot – Geoffrey the Giraffe.
This ad obviously uses ground-breaking AI technology, however, they have aced the importance of storytelling to get the audience to connect with your brand and your story.
There’s a strong feel good factor to this video – you want to keep watching and remind yourself of who Toys ‘R’ Us are as a brand and brings you back to your childhood with nostalgia.
We can’t wait to see what other brands use Sora to create once it is released to the public!
? The New Era of Marketing – Infinity Loop Marketing Funnel ?
We’re concluding this month’s newsletter by continuing to look to the future of marketing with the introduction of “The Infinity Loop Marketing Funnel” ??
In today’s digital era, the conventional sales funnel is becoming an outdated concept.
Customers no longer follow a linear path from awareness to purchase. Instead, their journeys are dynamic, multifaceted ecosystems of continuous engagement.
This fundamental shift has given rise to a new strategy: Infinity Loop Marketing compared to the Traditional Marketing Funnel (pictured below).
This transformative approach of the Infinity Loop redefines how brands interact with customers by prioritising integrated, ongoing touch points that foster long-lasting relationships – not merely one-time transactions.
By creating a seamless, interconnected brand experience at every stage, Infinity Loop Marketing elevates customers into loyal advocates, driving sustained growth.
?? Infinity Loop Marketing Foundational Principles ??
1. Continuous Engagement
2. Customer-Centric Approach
3. Feedback Integration
4. Omni-Channel Presence
5. Personalisation and Customisation
6. Lifetime Value Optimisation
7. Content as a Driver
8. Community Building
9. Agility and Adaptability
10. Measurement and Analytic
By embracing these interwoven principles, brands move away from transactional thinking to cultivate enduring customer relationships rooted in mutual value exchange and loyalty.
The Transformative Power of AI Integration
While the underlying concepts of Infinity Loop Marketing are powerful on their own, artificial intelligence (AI) acts as a multiplier – exponentially amplifying the execution of this customer-centric approach and unlocking new frontiers in experience and loyalty.
Brands that embrace this powerful union will be well-positioned to create unparalleled customer experiences, forging meaningful, lasting relationships that drive sustained growth and success.
In an era where customer expectations are constantly evolving, the integration of AI into Infinity Loop Marketing represents the future of customer engagement.
A future where brands and customers are seamlessly connected in an endless loop of value creation, personalisation, and mutual benefit.
For marketing leaders and innovators, the time is now to harness the transformative potential of AI and redefine the boundaries of what’s possible in building enduring customer loyalty and advocacy.
Read our full blog – The New Era of Marketing – Infinity Loop Marketing Funnel by Alex Velinov , CTO at Tag Digital, to find out how you can use AI to implement an Infinity Loop Marketing funnel.
We release a newsletter every month with all of the latest news and updates in digital marketing, subscribe to Tagged for Success!