Weekly Digital Marketing Roundup

June 5, 2017 – By Aaron Hockel

Here are the biggest announcements, product updates, and news stories impacting the digital marketing industry last week:

Google Chrome’s Ad Blocker Is Coming

Google had informed publishers an ad blocker was coming to Chrome in April. Now the Wall Street Journal is confirming that Google will launch the ad blocker within the next 6 months. According to reports, the ad blocker will be enabled by default on desktop and mobile Chrome browsers. The release will force publishers to eliminate prohibited ads, highlighted in the graphic below, based on Coalition For Better Ads guidelines. For more on this story, checkout Greg Sterling’s coverage on Marketing Land.
 
 

Instagram Ads Now Connect to Facebook Messenger

Using Instagram ads? Now you can link them to your Messenger account to connect directly with your customers. The technology, which Facebook added to News Feed ads last year, is now available for Instagram Ads. This is a great opportunity for advertisers to start meaningful conversations and dialogues with customers. Below is an example of how the ads appear on the Instagram feed. Click here to read the official announcement from last Wednesday. and the complete announcement can be read here.
 
 

Google Officially Stops Using DMOZ Descriptions

Following the official shutdown of DMOZ on March 17th, Google has decided to stop using any of its titles and descriptions in search results. DMOZ descriptions, generated from the human based project to index the internet, have only been used occasionally in search results since 2006. Click here to read the official announcement from Google’s Webmaster Blog.

Maximize Conversions Bid Strategy Rollouts in AdWords

Just as the name says, the Maximize Conversions smart bidding strategy will exhaust daily ad budgets in pursuit of conversions. The biggest difference in the Maximize Conversions and other smart goals is that it ignores investment goals in pursuit of maximum conversion counts. Maximize Conversion is now listed as a bid strategy in campaign settings, pictured below, and has been rolled out globally. Click here to read last week’s announcement on the Google AdWords Blog.

Missed last week’s roundup? Click here for the biggest digital marketing stories from last week!

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Aaron Hockel

Aaron Hockel is a Partner and the VP of Digital Marketing at AltaVista Strategic Partners. A University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC) alumnus, Aaron expertly crafts digital marketing strategies that drive success for clients, leveraging his deep industry knowledge and innovative approach.