Month: January 2022

Welcome to our weekly review of major happenings in the digital space. Here are a few significant updates that might interest you;

• New Google Mobile Search Feature: People Search Next

Google has just introduced a new feature in its mobile search results called ‘People Search Next’. The new feature was created to help people easily see popular next searches based on what they are searching about. This feature will join other Google search features like People also ask, People also search for, Refine this search, and Related searches. The People Search Next features appear just above Related searches in a consistent pairing. However, Google says the search feature is not limited only to local, “near me” searches. According to Google, this feature is only available on mobile in the U.S. for English-language queries at the moment. There is no further news on when it will roll out to other countries. For more information, click here.

• WordPress 5.9 Launches With Full Site Editing

WordPress has just announced its new release of WordPress 5.9. This new version comes with a series of updates and improvements. Among the enhancements announced with the new release are:

• Full site editing making it easier to edit WordPress themes without using code (only for themes that support the new feature).
• Ten new blocks for site editing are listed under Themes (including next post, previous post, post comments, etc.).
• The opportunity to save theme changes for specific templates or globally across the whole site.
• A new default theme (named “Twenty Twenty-Two”).
• New ways to customize and configure blocks.

There are also new changes on the developer end. An example is how theme.json now supports child themes in the 5.9 version allowing users to build themes in WordPress Admin without writing code. For more information, click here.

• Gmail Campaigns Will Stop Running on June 28

In a recent update, Google has announced that dedicated Gmail campaigns are going away as of June 28. Google notified advertisers about this change on January 18 via email and on the Google Ads interface. The news was broadcasted when Google announced that standalone Gmail campaigns would become “read-only” in July 2021. Since then, advertisers have not been able to create new or edit existing standalone Gmail ads or campaigns. This is a que for advertisers that rely only on their standalone Gmail campaigns to find other alternatives like Discovery campaigns. For more information, click here. 

• Facebook Is Removing Profile Videos from Next Month

Facebook will be removing video profile images as of February 7. Now, users who currently have a video profile image will be reverted back to a still picture. Launched in 2015, profile videos enable users to upload a 7-second video clip, which then loops on repeat. It hasn’t been a highly used feature, and we are guessing that is why Facebook is doing away with it. This first started when Facebook stopped users from uploading profile videos in 2021 and now, it’s removing the functionality completely. It’s not a major shift, and there might just be another fun feature around the corner. For more information, click here.

• TikTok Is Experimenting With New Video Avatar Tools, Audio-Only Live-Streams

TikTok is now testing a new avatar feature that will enable users to create a digital character avatar based on a selfie, with facial expressions that will match their actual look. This is a new approach for Tik Tok to share emotions and responses in the app. The avatar process might not be a new experience for iPhone users because it looks similar to Apple’s ‘Memoji’, which enables users to create their personal Memoji character. In addition to the video avatars feature, TikTok is also introducing a new group chats option, a process for screen-sharing within live streams and creator subscriptions. The social platform is looking to provide more user safety options, with keyword filters to censor content that includes their own chosen terms in the description accompanying the clip.

None of these features are in live testing as yet. They are only in the early experimental phase with no major news on its progress. For more information, click here. 

Thank you for reading. See you next Friday for more news and interesting reads in the digital space. 

 

Welcome to our weekly review of major happenings in the digital space. Here are a few significant updates that might interest you;

• Google Search Console Launches Desktop Page Experience Report

Google has just launched a new page experience report for desktop in Google Search Console. This is to support the upcoming rollout of page experience ranking on desktop. Page experience report first launched in April 2021 then the page experience update rolled out. The new Google Page Experience report offers metrics, such as the percentage of URLs with good page experience and search impressions over time, enabling users to quickly evaluate performance.  Even though the update comes in handy, there may not be a huge ranking change but it may impact sites more if their stories show in the top stories section. You can access the report by clicking here and for more information about this update, click here

• Google Ads Launches Placement Reports for Performance Max Campaigns

Google Ads has just launched placement reports for Performance Max campaigns. Placement reports can be generated to see where ads have served for Performance Max campaigns and how many impressions they received. Placement report was launched to provide insight about where Performance Max ads are showing to give advertisers more transparency and assurance around where their ads are showing. For now, the data only shows where ads have served and their impressions and no click data. Performance Max campaigns became available to all advertisers in November 2021. Google also announced that sometime in 2022, Smart Shopping and Local campaigns will roll out into Performance Max. For more information, click here. 

• Twitter Finally Brings Communities to its Android App

After months of the initial launch of Communities, Twitter has finally announced that Android users can now engage in Communities, expanding access to more dedicated discussion spaces. Communities is Twitter’s approach of tweeting and providing a form of community around specific subjects on the app. Communities operate on ‘invite-only’ or ‘open to all’ access which means that users need to know somebody already in an interest area to gain access to a closed community. While ‘open to all groups are mostly filled with spam. Twitter is working to address this challenge, with a new ‘request to join’ option, where community admins will be able to approve or deny requests. This can help improve accessibility to all closed communities. For more information, click here. 

• Instagram Expands Video Remix Option to All Videos, Not Just Reels Clips

Instagram is adding the capacity to remix all videos that people post in the app and not just Reels. This increases the options for creative response and engagement on Instagram. Now, when a user is viewing any video on Instagram, they will be able to tap on the ‘Remix this video’ option to create their own version. Users can also choose to switch off remixes in their video settings. Instagram explained that Remix gives users ways to respond and reinvent creative videos shared on Instagram every day. This gives them the opportunity to collaborate with other users on the app and get discovered by new audiences. Reels remix option was introduced to Instagram in March 2021, and the new functionality will greatly expand the amount of video content that users can use to build their own responses and creativity. For more information, click here.

• Meta Announces Planned Integration of WhatsApp into its Workplace Platform

Meta is adding a new WhatsApp integration into its Workplace platform, to enable companies to share posts from Workplace over WhatsApp. This is to help businesses maintain connections with their staff, many of whom are now working remotely. The integration will provide another way to share internal information within Workplace, which could help to streamline messaging, while also facilitating more engagement and interaction between remote employees. Workplace currently has more than 7 million paid subscribers, and with more organizations moving to flexible working arrangements. Adding WhatApp to this platform provides even more options, and while the integration is not yet live, Meta is planning to roll out the new option soon, as part of the next major Workplace platform update.

Thank you for reading. See you next Friday for more news and interesting reads in the digital space. 

Welcome to our weekly review of major happenings in the digital space. Here are a few significant updates that might interest you;

• Google Business Profiles Sets Waiting Period for New Owners and Managers

Google Business Profile, formerly Google My Business Google has just updated its help documents with a new feature. Now when a new owner or manager is added to an existing Business Profile, they must wait for 7 days before they can access all the features of the profile. During this 7 day period, the new owner or manager gets an error if they try to:

• Delete or undelete a profile.
• Remove other owners or managers from a profile.
• Transfer primary ownership of a profile to themselves or a third user.

If the account gets deleted by the new manager within the first 7 days, they’re automatically removed from the profile. If they undelete their account, they must be added to the profile again. This is a new approach Google is taking to increase security and prevent fraud or hack attempts. For more information about this update, click here. 

• Google’s Page Experience Update is Coming to Desktop Next Month

Google will be releasing the desktop version of the page experience update in February. Google has announced this update since November 2021 and it is finally going live next month. The rollout will take two months, starting from February 2022 till the end of March 2022. This update will include all the current signals of the mobile version of the page experience update, outside of the page needing to be mobile-friendly. Here are what to look out for with the desktop version:

• The same metric thresholds will work for desktop and mobile. The same three Core Web Vitals metrics: LCP, FID, and CLS, and their associated thresholds will apply for desktop ranking.
• Google explained that users should not expect any drastic change with this rollout and this new Google update. The update was designed to highlight pages that offer great user experiences.
• Google Search Console tools and reports will be released to help site owners prepare for this update. This is to help site owners understand how their desktop pages are performing with regards to page experience using a Search Console report.
• Google explained that all factors will be included in this desktop version except for the mobile-friendliness requirement. 

For more information, click here.

• Twitter Rolls Out Spaces Recording for All Users

Twitter is finally rolling out spaces for all users. Now, Spaces hosts can now record their chats, on both iOS and Android devices. The long-awaited update will now provide additional value for all Spaces content, which can now be re-shared to generate more interest, while it will also facilitate broader re-purposing considerations. In order to record Spaces chat, you need to first switch on the ‘Record Space’ toggle in the set-up process. Participants will be able to see when a chat is being recorded with a red ‘Rec’ indicator in the top left of the main Space screen.

Once a recorded Space is complete, it will be available for public playback on Twitter for 30 days, while hosts will also be able to download the audio of their Space, which they can then edit into a podcast or smaller audio clips to help promote upcoming shows and content. For more information, click here.

• Instagram’s Testing a New Option Which Would Enable Users to Re-Arrange their Profile Grid

Instagram is testing a new option that would enable users to re-arrange their profile photo grid into any order of their choice. The new ‘Edit Grid’ option would be in the profile settings, allowing users to rearrange their profile gallery regardless of when each post was made. Also, Instagram chief Adam Mosseri pointed at a possible ‘pinned post’ option for profiles, which would enable users to select certain posts that they want to showcase at the top of their grid.

This is great news for social media managers and Instagram users and the possibility that it might roll out is exciting for them. There’s no word on whether this will ever be rolled out, along with post pinning, but again, it does seem likely that Instagram will try things out in the coming months. For more information, click here.

• YouTube Adds New Filters to its Video Performance Chart, Enabling More Specific Data Context

YouTube has introduced a new advanced analytics option to YouTube Studio. The new analytic helps users to visualize the performance of their uploads by the focus topic of each, and provide more context as to the comparative performance of each clip. This new element also enables users to select ‘Show videos with similar topics’ from the plot display, which will then switch the graph to a specific listing of uploads on the same subject. This means a better comparison of video performance

Up to 100 videos can be displayed at once in the chart, and the listing can be sorted by ‘First 24 hours’, ‘First 7 days’ or ‘First 28 days’. Users will also be able to compare various metrics, including views, impressions and average view duration. To access the video performance chart, go to Channel analytics > Advanced mode > Compare to’ > ‘First 24 hours video performance’. For more information, click here.

Thank you for reading. See you next Friday for more news and interesting reads in the digital space. 

Welcome to our weekly review of major happenings in the digital space. Here are a few significant updates that might interest you;

• Google Launches ‘Shops’ Section in Mobile Search Results

Google has just launched a “Shops” section in mobile search results. This feature was launched to help present more seller options to users on Search. It currently shows 3 merchants and users can then expand to see up to 10 merchants depending on availability. The selection of results shown and their order are based on organic search ranking.

This is another milestone for Google’s organic shopping efforts. For a few years now, Google has expanded shopping-related results from being a paid product to also offering plenty of visibility organically. This started with the free product listings in April 2020. The new “Shops” feature helps retailers potentially generate and increase awareness for their brands. However, since the Shops section is based on organic search ranking, retailers who don’t rank well may not be able to enjoy its benefits. Google also introduced the “deals” section in the search results and launched Shopping integrations for Shopify, WooCommerce and GoDaddy, among other e-commerce platforms. Shops” is currently available on mobile devices for select US-English shopping-related queries. For more information, click here. 

• Yoast SEO to Launch on Shopify

Yoast SEO will now be available for Shopify starting January 18, 2022. Unlike the WordPress version, which operates under a freemium model, Yoast SEO for Shopify will cost $29 monthly (after a free 14-day trial). Yoast SEO is a widely used SEO app in the WordPress ecosystem and the launch of an app for Shopify speaks volumes to the rise of e-commerce over the years. This new app is primarily aimed at SMBs, just like the available Google and Bing Shopify integrations. For more information, click here.

• LinkedIn Launches Test of Audio Rooms, Announces New Formats for Live Events

LinkedIn is introducing some new elements to its live events tools, which will provide more capacity for connection and interaction within the LinkedIn environment. LinkedIn first launched the initial test of their audio events platform, which will enable users to tune into live discussions in the app, and participate by raising their virtual hand to join as a speaker, or posting likes in response to the chat. The live audio tool has been in development since March 2019. 

LinkedIn explained that its new events options will be tested by “a few thousand creators who will host events across different topics and themes. Then it will be expanded to more creators in the coming months. Video Events format will later roll out this spring. For more information, click here. 

• Twitter Adds Spaces Replay Stats for Recorded Broadcasts

Twitter has added additional context to its Spaces insights, with new data on total replays for recorded Spaces which can now be viewed by hosts. Now, hosts will be able to see how many listeners tuned into the stream live, and how many replays the session has garnered. This new feature comes as part of the effort to add more context to Spaces analytics and help users plan their strategy with the information they get from the audience. With more specific insight,  this feature can help users broaden their approach to Spaces and audio connection. After the rise of audio early last year, it is ideal that Twitter is still developing Spaces on the app. Twitter is working to make Spaces a more functional, valuable element in the broader tweet experience. For more information, click here. 

• Facebook Adds New Features to Creator Studio, Including Stories Highlights and Timeline View for Posts

Facebook has introduced new features to Creator Studio to celebrate the new year. The features include a Stories preview option for video uploads and a new way to preview how posted content looks in-stream. The main addition is the Stories highlight clips for video uploads, which takes a 20-second preview segment from a full video to post as a Facebook and/or Instagram Story. This new option enables users to share a video highlight clip to their story in order to drive views of the full video clip.

The process is simple. Creator Studio will automatically highlight a preview segment from a full video to choose a segment to use as the preview. After choosing the segment, users can now post that clip to their Facebook Story, with a ‘See More’ CTA button at the bottom of the Stories panel to drive people to your main clip.

Another new feature for Creator Studio is a timeline view for published Page posts in the app, providing more transparency as to how posts look in user feeds. This adds another element to Page management options through the app, which remains a key posting tool over third-party platforms. For more information about this update, click here. 

Thank you for reading. See you next Friday for more news and interesting reads in the digital space.