Greetings!

I’m going to change Bananarama’s “Cruel Summer” lyrics to “It’s been a hot, hot, hot summer…” (and we’re not even that far into it)! It’s also been hot from a digital marketing perspective… check it out!

• How do you know if your gen AI chatbot is hallucinating? Time recently reported “Scientists Develop New Algorithm to Spot AI Hallucinations.” The researchers came up with a formula to calculate “semantic entropy” which determines how similar the responses are when prompted with different variations of the same prompt. They are hoping that gen AI chatbots like ChatGPT can ultimately provide a button that will give you a “certainty score” to the provided response. If you don’t want to wait to see how and when this comes to pass, we have three suggestions for you:
  1) Try typing the same prompt into multiple gen AI chatbots and observe the response similarity.
  2) Only use Gen AI responses that come with citations to the sources included in their response.
  3) Use Google Gemini’s fact-checking feature to highlight verified (green) and questionable (red) parts of AI-generated responses.

• Switching from AI hallucinations to a different AI issue: “How to fight bias in your AI models.” Martech uses the lack of accurate data on loans taken out by women as an example of how an AI model will then be biased about the potential of this under-reported segment. A possible solution is creating “synthetic data” to fill in these gaps.

DBE Perspective 💬

At SMX Advanced, Elizabeth Tucker, Google Search’s Director of Product Management, revealed key insights into the future of SEO.

Some focal points include reusing the words, “satisfying,” “helpful,” and “experience” when describing content. Could these expand EEAT principles Google’s set forth in the past?

Get the details from our Director of SEO & SAIO, Marc Engelsman: Google Seeks to Satisfy with Renewed Focus on Helpful Content.

• Here’s a new concept: ban algorithmic feeds on teen social accounts. New York Governor Kathy Hochul signed the “Stop Addictive Feeds Exploitation (SAFE) for Kids” act. Should the act be approved, it will prohibit addictive feeds for teens as well as sending notifications between 12am – 6am. Social Media Today sums it up well.

• We’ve seen influencers used in countless B2C product campaigns, but what about B2B? Some influencer strategies from B2C crossover into B2B, like choosing a micro- and niche influencer for their specific audience. One thing you have to keep in mind is subject-matter expertise and professional experience. Check out this EMarketer chart on the topic!

• Did somebody say bacon? Oscar Mayer did! They pulled a great fake-out to give you a giggle!

Thoughts to Take With You… 💞

I’ve been hit with the “respond, don’t react” mantra frequently this year. Books, articles, and life situations have been pointing at it in one way or another. The quick overview if you’re new: it is about letting the situation sink in and responding thoughtfully instead of reacting on your first emotion.

I think one way to get closer to this is by listening. Once the situation (whatever it is) gets difficult, pause and listen.

• Listen to what’s going on in yourself. Ie., Is your heart beating faster? What emotions are going through you? 
• If you’re in a conversation, listen to the other person’s verbal and non-verbal cues. 
• If the situation is too much to handle, listen to something outside what’s going on. Maybe there’s rain on the window or a breeze picking up. Then, once you’ve grounded yourself, head back in and respond.

Responding allows us to pull out of the tunnel vision caused by reacting. We gain perspective and thoughtfulness in tricky circumstances.

Go get ‘em today – you got this!

Natalie

Love me some Coldplay… Did you know they are making their new album entirely out of plastic collected from water? They also aim to make their tours more sustainable. They’ve topped my charts as the coolest band ever. 🤘

Guess what?

… our favorite day of the workweek! We’re super excited to give you this week’s edition of Perceptive Marketer. Let’s goooo!

• How do Perplexity searches differ from Google? This article could have used Google SGE examples for a more ai-pples-to-ai-pples comparison (pun courtesy of Marc Engelsman). However, you quickly see the stark (and welcome) difference of Perplexity’s ad-free environment. Time will tell if Perplexity will show ads for revenue.

• What is the top impacting factor on a person’s perception of brands on social media? Would you be surprised if I said content? A recent study by Sprout Social supports this. Content ranked over how fast the brand responds and how personalized the responses are. So whatever you post – make it worthy of your audience’s time!

• Meta introduced new AI-powered tools for the Creator Marketplace and Advantage+ creatives in ad campaigns. The improved Image Expansion feature is said to allow more natural-looking image ads on the platform. As with any new feature, please check all creatives as thoroughly as possible.

• Does B2B have to be the “boring” sibling to B2C? Liam Moroney poses this thought in MarTech. If you look at B2B with the perspective of quick sales, many opportunities for awareness and audience-building are missed. Marketing and sales are their own separate channels that require their own objectives and finesse.

• Speaking of B2B, how can you utilize AI-powered tools to find and engage the right decision makers? Ruth Stevens describes how to use Demandbase, Anteriad, and 6sense. Check it out!

• After debate between Elon Musk and the X team, they decided to decrease the impact of blocking users. If a blocked user replies to your post, you will be able to see it and report/respond to it. Andrew Hutchinson from Social Media Today has an interesting opinion as to whether it will last because some people want to be fully separated from select profiles.

Thoughts to Take With You… 💞

When was the last time you really looked out a window?

Every time you look out a window, it’s a little different. Leaves on a tree are rearranged. Different people may be walking, running, or riding bikes. The sunlight is shining on the Earth at a slightly different angle today than yesterday. 

The point is… there’s always something new and different to appreciate. Like the window, each day, there is something new and different to appreciate. We just have to be open and present to look.

Happy Wednesday!

Natalie

Excel at Excel with these hacks!

Hey y’all!

March is named after the Roman god of war, Mars. In most myths, Mars is known for being quite brutish and hot headed. Now, traveling a little further east. In Ancient Chinese medicine, spring is the time of the wood element, which is associated with being highly motivated, ambitious, and sometimes forceful.

Personally, I don’t think this connection is a coincidence. The weather is getting warmer. The days are getting longer. It’s not unreasonable to get riled up in the action. While this newfound energy is exhilarating, let’s be cautious not to get too drawn into the heat of the moment. Instead, try to channel this energy into meaningful projects and present awareness.

Now that we’re a bit more centered, let’s take a looksie at this week’s digital marketing:

• Where do website traffic referrals really come from? Datos & SparkToro research concluded that 63% of US web traffic referrals came from Google. The next two runner ups are from Microsoft/Bing and YouTube. *cough cough* Another reason why SEO is not dead. Shoutout to Jessica Perry for this interesting piece!

• Is your website content “helpful”? If not, you’re likely to experience dramatic reductions in organic search traffic. Elizabeth Tucker, Google’s Director of Product, Search, stated the latest Google Core Update will “reduce low-quality, unoriginal content in search results by 40%”. We have always emphasized the need for quality, relevant, and helpful content, so we don’t expect our clients to see declines due to the update.

Do Good Spotlight
🌟 Action Against Hunger 🌟

For 40+ years, Action Against Hunger has taken decisive action against the causes and effects of hunger. They’re a top-rated charity on Charity Navigator and Charity Watch as well as a recipient of 2023 Platinum Transparency Candid Seal. Learn more about what they do: Action Against Hunger.

Thanks, Domenick D’Agostino, for sharing this organization!

• As the US Congress decides whether or not to ban/sell TikTok, we thought you might be interested in TikTok usage data. See the share of US TikTok users who have posted a video broken down by Age, Sex, Political Affiliation, and Education. Plus, read some interesting analysis from MarketingCharts including the observation that over half of TikTok users have never posted a video.😲

• 59% of people think there is too much brand advertising on social media. Yet, 61% of consumers agreed they discovered brands/products/services they’re interested in from paid/sponsored social posts. Confusing, right? It’s all about strategy. If selling is a brand’s only strategy on social media, the brand has already lost. The audience has to be the focus. No audience – no business. Check out Hootsuite’s report.

• Paging B2B sales leaders. 📟 McKinsey has 3 game-changing case studies highlighting different approaches to increasing sales productivity. AI is not directly mentioned but it could be used to leverage sales technology and automation. The other two areas for improvements include re-focusing on inside sales and driving personalization with data analytics.

• ESG is growing in importance to consumers and, ultimately, brand marketers. Sustainable marketing reduces social and environmental impacts and creates lasting positive change. This ClickZ article also highlights two noteworthy successful sustainable marketing campaigns from Patagonia and The Body Shop.

Happy Spring! 🌹🪻🌷

Natalie

Is the day already off to an off-kiltering start?

Hey, that’s okay. Here’s a time lapse video of flowers blooming to remind you of the simpler things. 🌸

If you’re in a sharing mood, send our WHW signup link to your friends and sign up for our LinkedIn newsletter. 🙂

Heyoo 😃

What’s going on? A LOT as always. We’ll get to the meat of it for ya, no worries:

• To compete against the strengths of TikTok, Google is making improvements to YouTube Shorts for advertising, including “First Position on Shorts.” This will allow an advertiser’s video to be the first video a viewer sees at the start of scrolling.

• Keep Creativity in Content! That’s my new slogan for the year, but creativity is in the process as much as it is in the writing.
  • Ross Simmonds dives into leveraging AI in writing as our superpower. His video expands how to elevate your brainstorming and drafting process.
  • Stephen Marcinuk from MarketingProfs backs up my point, too. AI doesn’t negate the need for strong, connection-building, experience-based, human-generated writing. It substantiates it… making it shine in a sea of impersonal, information-motivated pieces. BUT there are some places where AI can be helpful for my fellow word crafters.

• What’s under the surface of the digital ad spending iceberg that grew almost 11% in 2022 to over $209 billion? What’s Hot Wednesday regulars won’t be surprised by some report takeaways including:
  • spend increases in audio/video formats and
  • spend decreases in social media ads.

Do Good Spotlight
🌟 KinderSmile Foundation 🌟

The KinderSmile Foundation provides comprehensive dental care and dental hygiene education to underserved children and families, regardless of insurance status. With 3 locations in Bloomfield, Newark, and Trenton, they have impacted over 40,000 low-income families across NJ. Thank you, Randy Kirkpatrick, for the great suggestion! Show them some appreciation and see what they do: KinderSmile Foundation.

• Econsultancy has a great interview with Richard Shotton who shares some insights from his latest book, “The Illusion of Choice.” It includes examples of behavioral studies that illustrate things like cognitive biases on workplace decisions (among doctors no less) and pricing hacks based on extremeness aversion. Head-y stuff but fascinating potential implications/applications for B2C and B2B marketers…

Ciao for now!

Natalie

Got friends*? 🥛

*Who enjoy weekly insights on digital marketing news curated by enthusiastic digital marketing nerds

Send them this signup link!

Welcome! 📺

You’re tuning in to DBE Channel Digital Marketing News. I’m your host, Natalie, and we’ve got stories to shock, awe, and make you think. Here’s the 4-1-1:

• Meta’s jumping on a bandwagon trend (that we’re not sure works yet). Meta is testing a subscription verification service for Instagram and Facebook. If the verification check mark increases account reach, what will that mean for boosted posts? For ads? We’ll have to see…

• B2B is ch-ch-ch-ch-changin’ 🎶
  • Buying power is shifting between generations. King Data’s reign is becoming ever more expansive. Ecommerce is the fast-growing channel. See more trends here.
  • For B2B marketers: The Martech marketing automation buyer’s guide can help define the scope of marketing automation platforms (MAPs). The list of MAP categories is far more wide-ranging than you would think. (You may be already using some of them without thinking of them as marketing automation.)

• SEO is still not dead yet, in spite of recent AI developments. This Search Engine Land article encapsulates the potential of AI for SEO’s future but couples the advantages with reasons why human input remains a vital and needed component for SEO success.

• We’ve been keeping a close eye on Google’s Performance Max (Pmax for short). 👀 They’re offering some new updates including brand exclusions, page feeds, and easier video creation. Check it out on Search Engine Journal.

Do Good Spotlight
🌟 JDRF 🌟

Their vision: a world without type 1 diabetes (T1D). JDRF is the leading global organization funding type 1 diabetes (T1D) research and has been actively searching for a cure since 1970. In addition to research, they offer many resources to those affected by the disease. See how you can help: JDRF.

• 🤖 There a few things robots can’t take away from us. One of them is the power of personality. ChatGPT may be able to (almost) write like a pro, but part of the joy of reading is an author’s flavor of word-choice and solely unique world view. Ann Handley’s playful piece reminds us of the potency of human writing.

• Looking to expand beyond Google? Check out these alternatives for analytics and search engines!

Just some thoughts… 💭

Wellness and well-being are integral values in healthy organizations. However, I feel we live in a “fix it when it breaks” culture. What if we, instead, focused on preventing breaks in the first place? The proposal: let’s bring mindfulness into the workplace.

• Microsoft’s got moves. Insider Intelligence notes 5 advertising moves in particular. See how they’re making strides against competitors.

Wishing you the best as we march into this windy month!

Natalie

Hurry – you gotta send them this signup link!

Do Good Spotlight

? Travis Mills Foundation ?

United States Army Staff Sergeant Travis Mills of the 82nd Airborne was critically injured on his third tour of duty in Afghanistan by an IED (improvised explosive device) while on patrol, losing portions of both legs and both arms. Now, Travis and his wife Kelsey run the Travis Mills Foundation, a nonprofit organization, formed to benefit and assist post 9/11 veterans who have been injured in active duty or as a result of their service to our nation. These veterans and their families receive an all-inclusive, all-expenses-paid, barrier-free experience in Maine where they participate in adaptive activities, and much more! See more: https://travismillsfoundation.org/

We loved supporting this beautiful cause. If you have another cause you’d like us to shoutout, let us know: info@digitalbrandexpressions.com.