The Big Story
Starting November 21st, 2024, Google is rolling out new rules to make sure only real businesses can advertise in local search results. The change is simple but important: businesses must now prove they’re legitimate by verifying their business listing on Google before they can run local ads – those prominent spots you see at the top of search results.
This change will affect businesses across Europe, the Middle East, Africa and parts of North America. While it’s designed to stop fake businesses from advertising, it means honest business owners need to take action to keep their ads running. To comply with the new policy, business owners must first add or claim their business address on Google. Following this, they will need to verify their address through phone, text, email or video verification. An important note is that the name and address on their Google Business Profile must match the information used in their ads otherwise their advertising will be paused.
While getting verified is not overly complicated, it can take up to seven business days. This time frame may leave some businesses scrambling to meet the deadline if they are caught off guard by the changes.
In addition to these updates, Google is implementing major changes to its advertising policies this November, introducing a “zero tolerance” approach for violations. This new policy will result in immediate account suspensions for offenders, replacing their previous warning system. This update mostly impacts third-party partners and marketing agencies, who risk permanent removal from Google’s advertising platform if found in violation.
These changes specifically target artificial engagement practices, banning apps that compensate users for ad clicks, web surfing, or email reading. This also extends to apps that provide instructions for such activities, reflecting Google’s commitment to combat invalid ad impressions and ensure a more trustworthy environment for advertisers.
For businesses and agencies using Google’s advertising services, it’s crucial to comply with these updated policies, or they risk immediate and lasting consequences to their marketing efforts.
Social Updates
Meta Forced to Face US State Lawsuits Over Teen Social Media Addiction
A federal judge in California ruled that Meta must face lawsuits from US states accusing it of contributing to mental health problems among teens by making its platforms addictive. Judge Yvonne Gonzalex Rogers rejected Meta’s request to dismiss the lawsuits from over 30 states, including California and New York, although she acknowledged that Section 230 provides them some protection. Ultimately, the judge found that the states had put forward enough evidence to allow the case to proceed based on claims that Meta had previously made misleading statements. With this ruling, plaintiffs have the green light to gather more evidence and potentially go to trial. A spokesperson from Meta stated that the company disagrees with the ruling and that they have “developed numerous tools to support parents and teens,” including Teen Accounts on Instagram. This ruling also allows personal injury lawsuits against Meta, TikTok, YouTube and Snapchat to proceed.
Instagram Video Quality Policy Raises Eyebrows in Creator Community
Instagram head, Adam Mosseri recently confirmed that the platform employs a strategic approach to video quality based on content popularity. When a video is posted, Instagram determines its display quality based on its overall performance across all viewers. Simply put, videos that generate more views are delivered in higher quality, while less-watched content is automatically downgraded to lower quality to optimize storage and processing resources. This approach has sparked debate across the creator community, with some creators arguing that it creates an unfair advantage for popular creators. Meta maintained its stance saying that it is simply a resource optimization strategy. Mosseri addressed creators concerns by stating that the quality difference is minimal and that the content itself, rather than the video quality, remains the primary driver of engagement.
LinkedIn Faces €310M Fine for EU Privacy Violations
LinkedIn has been hit with a substantial €310 million ($335 million) fine by Ireland’s Data Protection Commission for violating EU privacy laws through its advertising practices. The violation stems from LinkedIn’s failure to establish valid legal grounds for processing user data for its ad tracking practices. The case, which originated from a 2018 complaint, has resulted in LinkedIn being given a three-month deadline to bring its European operations into GDPR compliance. While LinkedIn maintains its innocence, stating that they believe they remained GDPR compliant, they seem receptive to working to ensure their ad practices meet requirements.
Digital Updates
Google’s Latest Shopping Ad Tests
Google is rolling out two significant tests for shopping ads in search results. The first introduces video functionality within shopping ads, allowing users to watch product videos directly in search results through an inline player activated by a hover-to-watch button. While this feature could boost engagement rates, advertisers worry that it could reduce traffic to landing pages as users stay within Google’s ecosystem. Simultaneously, Google is also testing expandable product ad carousels with in-ad search refinements, enabling users to collapse/expand sponsored content and narrow their search without leaving the ad space. These updates could reshape how users interact with sponsored content, giving them more control and requiring advertisers to adopt strategic placements to maintain visibility. As a result, optimizing ads to make a strong first impression in search results will be essential for capturing potential customers’ attention and driving engagement.
Spotify Launches In-House Ad Exchange to Boost Revenue and Attract Smaller Advertisers
Spotify is making significant strides in the ad tech space by piloting its own supply-side platform the Spotify Ad Exchange (SAX), moving away from its reliance on third-party SSPs. This means that advertisers can now access and purchase Spotify’s ad inventory directly. Spotify plans to start with video ads in North America and eventually expand to audio ads. To make this work, Spotify is partnering with The Trade Desk to make it easier for businesses of all sizes to advertise on Spotify. This move comes at a good time for Spotify, as they’ve just started making a profit in 2024, especially in Q2 with ad revenue accounting for 12% of their total income. Advertisers have expressed that this move could make it a lot easier for businesses to advertise on Spotify, potentially leading to success similar to what the industry has seen with TV streaming ads. However, how well it works will depend on how easily it fits into advertisers’ existing plans and how accurately Spotify can target ads to specific podcast genres.
Netflix Introduces ‘Moments’ Feature for Social Media Sharing
Netflix has launched a new feature called Moments that allows users to easily create and share clips from their favorite shows and movies on social media. Accessible on iOS (with an Android version coming soon), this feature lets users tap a new button while watching to save a scene, which is then stored in their “My Netflix” tab. Users can share these clips directly to platforms like Instagram and Facebook, complete with a link back to the full content on Netflix. This move indicates a shift for the platform as it embraces social media sharing to enhance viewer engagement and promote its original content, making it easier for fans to discuss and highlight memorable moments.
