This Week’s Industry News
Compiled by the Rocket Clicks Team
Top Stories
Non-Skippable Ads To Roll Out to All YouTube Creators
YouTube will soon be allowing all creators who are already able to monetize their content to show non-skippable ads on their videos. Previously, non-skippable ads were only available to certain creators, though this has now been expanded to anyone in the YouTube Partner Program. The update will happen next week and creators will be notified that they will be able to run non-skippable ads. In addition, creators will have the ability to track audience engagement and revenue on these non-skippable ads. Source: Search Engine Journal
Changes to Facebook Reviews
Facebook is still showing the 5-star ratings the business had, but is no longer offering it as a review option. Consumers wishing to review a business on Facebook are now simply asked “Do You Recommend ‘business name’?” and they answer by clicking yes or no. The user is then prompted to share their reasons and some businesses are also showing suggested tags called “rich endorsements.” Some example tags are: friendly staff, noisy, overpriced, and limited parking and a user can select as many tags as they want. You will be able to sort reviews by “Most Helpful” or “Most Recent.” Source: Get Five Stars
New Search Console Features
When applying a query filter to reporting in Search Console, anonymous queries will be removed from click and impression totals. This means that reported clicks and impressions may drop when applying a filter. You may see a drop in clicks and impressions when adding a filter that excludes specific queries.
Google is clarifying that data was never displayed but the queries they hide were previously used in the total sum. Google previously included the sum of queries that weren’t tracked in Search Console in the totals for “query not containing.” The anonymous queries are ones made a very small number of times or that contain personal identifiable information. The change doesn’t affect the queries shows or how they treat untracked queries. It will also not change views on the report that do not use a “query not containing” filter, but you may see drops when you add a filter to reports. Google Analytics will also no longer show a placeholder with “other” for these filtered queries.
New search console features include user management that is now an integral part of Search Console, it enables you to share a read-only view of Index coverage, AMP and Mobile Usability. The interface enables all users to see and manage user roles for all property users. Read-only users will no longer be able to perform any actions like starting a fix validation or sharing an issue.
The new version of Search Console will also offer history tracking of user actions, showing which logged-in user performed property modifications including changing a setting, validating an issue or submitting a new sitemap. Source: Search Engine Journal & SEO Roundtable
Analysis
Essential Skills For the PPC Professional
Christi Olson at Search Engine Journal covers the essential skills needed to be an effective PPC professional. #1 is communication, both verbal and written. Poor written or verbal skills can lead to misunderstanding of thoughts or intentions. Storytelling is also an important skill as it allows you to tell the story of performance and helps you elaborate on what’s being done by infusing it with data. Naturally, attention to detail is also an important skill as a PPC professional is required to dive into the details of various metrics and settings. Analytical thinking is the fourth important skill, since the average PPC professional is surrounded by data on a day-to-day basis. Olson’s final skill necessary to be an effective PPC professional is a growth mindset. The ability to learn and grow can bolster your performance and achievement, especially since the nature is search is always changing. You need to continually develop your skills and adapt to remain at the top of you game. Source: Christi Olson, Search Engine Journal
Video Marketing Success
It is predicted that by 2019 that 80 percent of web traffic will be video, so it’s important to try and incorporate video into your marketing strategy. Videos that are likely to get shared and receive backlinks are entertaining, provide a solution to a common problem or help educate on a trending topic. Include keywords in video titles, descriptions and tags to help search engines understand what the video is about. You may want to create a separate video sitemap that will give Google a better idea of what pages have videos and the focus of those videos. Upload your video content to Facebook, YouTube and Instagram to help encourage social sharing. If you have your videos on YouTube, be sure to include them in your page copy and add video schema. Name video files with targeted keywords and an accurate description of the video topic. Create a compelling call-to-action to encourage users to like and comment on the video. Include a branded into footage so that users remember who you are and an engaging introduction that explains what users are about to see and how it will benefit them, to get them to keep watching. Including background music grabs attention instantly and sets the mood for the session. Tap into micromonents – times when people need to know, go, do or buy something and turn to the closest device. Visit Google Trends to help validate the increasing demand or topic. Learn what people are searching for and tailor your videos to fit into existing conversations. Leverage YouTube analytics to answer “who is actually watching” and “what they are truly interested in.” Consider clickable annotations that appear in the first few seconds of the video. Source: Search Engine Journal
