This Week’s Industry News
Compiled by the Rocket Clicks Team
Top Stories
Customer Match Coming to Google Shopping
According to a recent post by Google, they will be expanding customer match opportunities into the realm of Google Shopping. This means you will be able to utilize first-party email lists to generate an audience for your Shopping campaigns. This exciting feature is not yet available to all advertisers, but you can still be opted in for beta access. Source: PPC Hero
Google Testing the Removal of Estimated Search Results
According to a recent screenshot submitted by Search Engine Land contributor, Derek Edmond, it appears that Google may be testing the removal of the estimated number of search results that normally appears at the top of the SERPs. While this potential change shouldn’t flip the SEO world upside down, it could have an effect on how technical SEOs determine index bloat and overall page visibility. Source: Search Engine Land
Google Introducing New Partner Badges & Premier Status
Google recently announced that they will be introducing new Partner badges for advertisers. The new badges require advertisers to not only to be certified, but to also have “a history of consistent product performance.” In addition, Google is adding a new “Premier Partner” badge. Details on this badge aren’t clear, but it does require additional certification. Advertisers with the Premier badge will supposedly receive increased support from Google. Source: The SEM Post
HTTPS Sites Now Occupy 30% of Search Results
Two years after Google’s HTTPS algorithm update, a new study from Moz shows that the number of page one HTTPS results has jumped from 7% to 30%. Dr. Meyers of Moz believes this percentage will grow to 50% within the next year and a half, but advises web developers to be aware of the site-wide risks that are involved with switching over to HTTPS despite the positive ranking signals it could have on your site. Source: Search Engine Journal
Additional Commentary
How to Pick an Audience for the GDN
Stephanie White offers some insight on how to effectively pick an audience for your Display campaigns in AdWords. White’s first recommendation is to review audience data in Analytics to find out who is viewing your site and how they are viewing it. The author notes an example where she broke down her audiences by age group and their specific In-Market interests. She also notes the importance of using filters to determine if there are any categories that need to be excluded, such as excluding users that didn’t make a purchase. Analysis: Stephanie White, PPC Hero
What SEOs Need to Know About Google Rater Guidelines
At this year’s SMX Advanced conference, panelists discussed Google’s Search Quality Rating Guidelines that were publically released for the first time last year. After attending the session, Joy Hawkins recapped the conversation and shared her top 21 takeaways with Search Engine Land. The panel explained that search quality raters are most concerned with page quality and determining if the needs of searchers are being met. Landing pages should not only help users answer a specific query, but they should also go above and beyond to show a high level of expertise, authoritativeness and trustworthiness. You can read her full list on Search Engine Land. Analysis: Joy Hawkins, Search Engine Land
