Digital Advertising Archives Digital Advertising

Apr 2 2024

Humans Vs. Generative AI: A Head-To-Head Ad Copy Content Test [Data Study]

Generative AI is already making a significant impact on advertising, creating pressure on advertisers to reassess their strategies and explore alternative ways to reach target audiences.

One prominent debate within this space centers around the effectiveness of human copywriting versus AI-generated ad copy.

Both sides claim the crown for crafting compelling messaging that drives clicks and conversions. However, the question remains: What truly resonates with audiences in the digital age?

The Click-Through Conundrum: A Deeper Dive Into The AI Debate

Click-through rates (CTR) and cost per click (CPC) are crucial metrics for gauging ad performance.

They reveal which messages entice users to engage with the advertised product or service and at what cost.

Our recent study at Hop Skip Media delves deeper into these metrics to shed light on the power of human copywriting in advertising.

Methodology: Decoding The Data With Carefully Defined Parameters

For our study, we utilized Copy AI, a popular AI-powered copy-generation platform. We chose Copy AI due to its widespread use and positive user reviews within the advertising industry.

The ad’s target audience was business owners and marketing managers looking for pay-per-click advertising services. The focus product/service advertised was our services at Hop Skip Media.

We designed a controlled test with one responsive search ad (RSA) sample size per copywriter (human and AI). This format allowed for a comprehensive content comparison across various headlines and descriptions.

Each ad contained 15 headlines and four descriptions, following the best practices for the RSA structure recommended by Google Ads. The ads were then placed on Google search via Google Ads for a duration of eight weeks. We allocated a total budget of $500*.

* We acknowledge that these two factors were limitations in our study and have plans to redo this study in 2024 with a larger budget and longer timeline.

Results: Human Copywriting Beats AI-Generated Ads – Exploring The Numbers In Detail

The results clearly show that human-written ads significantly outperformed AI-generated ones. Let’s delve deeper into the key metrics:

Metric	AI-Generated Ads	Human-Written Ads
Clicks	26	65
Impressions	713	1,306
CTR	3.65%	4.98%
Average CPC	$6.05	$4.85

The human-written ads achieved 45.41% more impressions and 60% more clicks, resulting in a significantly higher CTR of 1.33%.

This suggests that the human-written ad copy resonated more effectively with the target audience, prompting them to engage with the ad at a higher rate.

Furthermore, the human-written ads boasted a lower average cost per click, indicating potentially greater efficiency in acquiring clicks.

These findings highlight the human copywriters’ effectiveness in crafting compelling ad copy that drives clicks and potentially leads to conversions.

Analysis: Why Humans Outperform AI – Unpacking The Reasons Behind The Results

Several factors likely contribute to the observed differences in performance between human-written and AI-generated copy:

1. Understanding The Audience Beyond Demographics

Humans possess innate skills in understanding the target audience’s emotions, needs, and desires.

They can tap into cultural nuances and tailor messaging to resonate on multiple levels, creating a deeper connection with potential customers.

While continuously evolving, AI still struggles with this level of nuanced understanding.

2. The Power Of Creativity And Emotional Appeal

Humans possess greater creativity and can craft messages that evoke emotional responses, humor, or a sense of urgency – all of which can significantly improve ad effectiveness.

AI, while adept at generating various text formats, often struggles with the subtle nuances of language and cultural references that resonate with audiences on an emotional level.

This can lead to generic ad copy lacking the emotional appeal necessary for click-throughs.

3. Training Data Quality And The Evolving Landscape Of AI

The effectiveness of AI-generated content hinges largely on the quality of the training data it is fed.

Limited data or biases within the data can lead to subpar outputs that miss the mark. Additionally, the capabilities of AI tools themselves are still evolving.

While advancements are promising, there’s room for improvement in their ability to replicate human copywriters’ creativity and emotional intelligence.

However, it’s important to acknowledge that AI tools can be valuable assets when used strategically.

By providing them with high-quality training data, in-depth information about the target audience and product/service, and careful human review and editing, they can offer valuable support to human copywriters.

We should also point out that Google’s Gemini (formerly Bard) and other large language models (LLMs) pointing to Google’s platform data were not available at the time of the study, which could be a limiter to Copy AI’s performance with this experiment.

4. The Importance Of Context And Adaptability

Humans excel at adapting their messaging to specific contexts and platforms.

They can tailor ad copy for different demographics and online behavior patterns, and even adjust based on real-time campaign performance data.

While AI is improving in its ability to adapt, it still struggles to replicate the level of flexibility and context awareness that human copywriters possess.

Optimizing The AI Advantage: Tips For Success And Responsible Use

While our study highlights the limitations of AI in crafting truly impactful ad copy, these tools still offer benefits when used strategically as long as you take the following into account to get the most out of them:

1. High-Quality Training Data

Ensure Copy AI or the AI tool of your choice is trained on a comprehensive and diverse dataset of high-quality ad copy relevant to your industry and target audience.

This will feed the AI with the necessary information to generate more relevant and impactful outputs.

2. Detailed Audience And Product/Service Information

Provide the AI tool with as much specific information as possible about your target audience, product/service, and marketing objectives. The more information you provide, the better the AI can tailor its suggestions to your specific needs.

3. Careful Review And Manual Editing

Never rely solely on AI-generated copy. Always review the outputs critically, edit for clarity and emotional appeal, and ensure alignment with your brand voice and messaging.

Additionally, use AI-generated copy as inspiration and a starting point, but don’t hesitate to inject your creativity and expertise to elevate the ad copy truly.

While Google recently introduced generative AI for Performance Max campaigns in the United States, it’s important to note that the rollout is currently limited and will reach other countries later in 2024.

Google rolls out features with a phased approach, allowing them to gather data and refine the feature before making it broadly available.

Also, it’s important to be mindful that Google will likely prioritize and showcase the content it generates through AI during the initial rollout.

This could potentially impact the initial performance data you see for your campaigns, as Google’s AI-generated content might receive more prominent placement compared to the content you’ve manually created.

Because of this, monitoring campaign performance over time is crucial, allowing Google’s AI to learn and adapt while observing how your own manually created content performs.

By keeping these considerations in mind, you can better understand the true potential of generative AI in your Performance Max campaigns.

Ethical Considerations: A Note of Responsibility In The Age Of AI-Generated Content

As with any technology, ethical considerations are paramount when utilizing AI-generated ad copy. Using this technology responsibly is crucial to ensure:

1. Accuracy And Transparency

Always double-check the accuracy of AI-generated information. AI is capable of creating highly convincing fraudulent articles that resemble genuine scientific studies.

Additionally, be transparent with consumers about using AI in your ad creation process if applicable.

2. Avoiding Deception And Manipulation

AI-generated content should never be used to deceive or manipulate consumers. The MIT Technology Review discovered that users are 3% less likely to spot false information in an AI-generated tweet than humans.

Although the credibility gap is small, it is concerning as that gap is likely to grow significantly. Ensure the messaging is clear and truthful and avoids any misleading claims.

3. Respecting User Privacy

Be mindful of user privacy concerns when utilizing AI for ad creation. Ensure any data used for training the AI is collected and used ethically, and in accordance with all relevant data privacy regulations.

Conclusion: The Human Touch Endures – A Look Toward The Future Of Advertising

Though narrow, this study clarifies the broader value of human copywriters in advertising.

Their ability to understand audiences on a deeper level, craft emotionally engaging narratives, and adapt to specific contexts remain unmatched by AI.

While AI continues evolving and offers valuable support when used strategically, the human touch will likely remain crucial in crafting ad copy that carries cultural and sensory nuance, leading to better interactions.

As the field progresses, further research and exploration will be key to understanding how AI can best complement and enhance human creativity in advertising.

Additionally, responsible and ethical use of AI-generated content should remain a top priority as this technology continues to play a growing role in advertising.

More resources:

Featured Image: Rob Hyrons/Shutterstock

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Feb 26 2024

The Best 5 Super Bowl Ads in 2024 (Brands That Got It Right) via @sejournal, @gregjarboe

This year’s Super Bowl was the most-watched program in US television history, with the largest audience for a single-network telecast and 123.7 million viewers across television and streaming platforms.

And that means a big investment in Super Bowl ads from the big brands.

So, which brands used social video sites effectively to amplify their TV commercials during the Big Game? Well, that depends a good deal on their campaign objectives. It also depends on how you measure results.

We look at three popular ad meters, USA TODAY, DAIVID, and SYSTEM1, and their top-ranked Super Bowl Ads.

The Top 5 Super Bowl LVIII Ads From USA TODAY

More than 160,000 people registered to vote in this year’s USA TODAY Ad Meter rankings.

According To USA TODAY, these were the top five Super Bowl ads:

1. Like a Good Neighbaaa | feat. Arnold Schwarzenegger & Danny DeVito

As the video’s description says,

“Arnold Schwarzenegger is cast to play Agent State Farm in Agent State Farm the movie. There’s just one catch … he can’t quite nail the slogan. Until his sidekick Danny DeVito steps in.”

What you may not know is that State Farm uploaded six variations of its TV spot to social video sites: four to YouTube, one to Facebook, and one to Instagram.

On YouTube, the 4 versions got a total of 46 million views and 51,800 engagements (e.g., likes, comments, and shares), and the one that got the most views and engagements was “Like A Good Neighbaaa – To Be Continued,” which the brand uploaded on February 6 – five days before the Big Game. It got 43.1 million views and 6,400 engagements.

So, putting one of your key players in motion before the snap is not only legal in football but also a savvy move in Super Bowl advertising.

2. Dunkin’ ‘The DunKings’ ft Ben Affleck, Matt Damon, Tom Brady, Jack Harlow, Jennifer Lopez, & Fat Joe

The video’s description says,

“Ben Affleck’s journey to becoming a pop star confirms that anything is possible when you run on Dunkin’. Premiered during Super Bowl LVIII, Ben Affleck debuts “The DunKings,” featuring Matt Damon and Tom Brady.”

What you may not know is that Dunkin’ uploaded 21 variations of its TV commercial to social video sites: 15 to YouTube, 5 to Instagram, and 1 to Facebook. The YouTube variations got a total of 14.7 million views and 68,900 engagements.

The brand uploaded only one of these ahead of the Big Game: “Dunkin’ ‘Acting Lessons’ ft. Ben Affleck & Matt Damon” and it got only 25,300 views and 150 engagements. So, putting a player in motion wasn’t a major factor in this Super Bowl ad’s success.

However, Dunkin’ uploaded 13 variations on February 12: 10 to YouTube, 2 to Instagram, and 1 to Facebook.

So, flooding the zone is not only a football best practice but also a social video best practice on the day after the Super Bowl, when people search for ads they saw the night before – or heard about from their friends, family, and colleagues.

And Dunkin’ should count “Matt Damon Was On A Break From Acting, But Then Christopher Nolan Called,” which The Late Show with Stephen Colbert uploaded on February 14, 2024, as part of the post-event promotion campaign on social video sites – since Colbert held up a photo of the brand’s Super Bowl ad and made jokes about it before talking about the film Oppenheimer.

3. Perfect 10

You may remember Kia’s full-length 2024 commercial for this year’s big game, even though it didn’t feature celebrities. Why? Because we all have that person who has always shown up for us. We want them to see us succeed.

So, seeing how the all-electric, 3-row Kia EV9 SUV powers a special moment for one little girl tapped into one of the 39 emotions digital marketers can use in advertising.

It’s also worth noting that there are four variations of this social video ad: a pre-game teaser, a 30-second version of the Big Game commercial, a 60-second version of the Super Bowl commercial, and a Spanish version uploaded after the Big Game.

All four were uploaded to YouTube, where they got a total of 16.6 million views and 1,800 engagements.

This is akin to the spread formation that puts three wide receivers and a running back on one side of the field. Hey, it works in football – and it also works on social video sites.

4. DON’T FORGET UBER EATS

To remember Uber Eats delivers almost, almost anything, all you have to do is forget something else. Simply make a little room in your brain – like Jennifer Aniston, David Schwimmer, Usher, the Beckhams, and Jelly Roll do. Whatever you forget, just remember Uber Eats gets almost anything.

And just in case you have trouble remembering that message, Uber Eats uploaded 53 videos from January 25 to February 19, 2024: 36 to YouTube and 17 to Instagram. The YouTube videos got a total of 26.7 million views and 28,000 engagements. That’s an average of 743,000 views and 800 engagements per video.

This looks remarkably similar to the old football strategy known as “three yards and a cloud of dust.” Okay, grinding out results still seems to work in social video as well as football.

5. NFL Super Bowl LVIII || Born to Play

Yes, the NFL is a brand. And the brand is building awareness outside the US.

Heck, they’ve already played games in London, Munich, Frankfurt, Toronto, and Mexico City. Later this year, the NFL will play a game in San Paulo, Brazil. And in 2025, NFL players will play a game in Madrid, Spain.

So, why shouldn’t the NFL throw a Hail Mary pass to a young boy from Ghana who discovers that it doesn’t matter where you’re born if you’re born to play football?

Actually, the NFL uploaded six social videos about the boy from Ghana: five to YouTube and one to Facebook. But the YouTube videos – which included a teaser and a couple of behind-the-scenes videos – got a total of only 471,000 views and 4,900 engagements.

This includes just two comments, one of which observes, “What’s delusional about this is thinking that people actually know anything about American football abroad…Ghana is crazy about football already. Actual football.”

So, instead of looking like a Hail Mary pass, this ad may go on to become one of the NFL’s funniest bloopers of all time – if the boy from Ghana grows up to play for his country in the World Cup.

But wait, there’s more!

USA Today not only rated 59 TV commercials that were aired during Super Bowl 2024 but also announced a Replay Review in four categories: Most Comical, Most Inspirational/Heartwarming, Most Nostalgic, and Rookie of the Year.

The award for most comical Super Bowl commercial went to:

BMW USA | Christopher Walken in “Talkin Like Walken” (ft. Usher). As the YouTube video’s description says,

“While some try, they simply can’t. Like there’s only one Christopher Walken, only one Usher, there is only one Ultimate Driving Machine.”

Nevertheless, BMW USA uploaded 11 variations of their Super Bowl commercial to YouTube. Together, they got a total of 10.4 million views and 10,600 engagements.

So, just like the option offense in football gives the quarterback several “options” of how each play will proceed based on the actions of the defense, creating multiple variations of your video content enables you to employ a wide variety of targeting methods to reach specific or niche audiences based on who they are, what they’re interested in, or what content they’re viewing.

The award for most inspirational/heartwarming Super Bowl commercial was given to:

Perfect 10 – see above, and also read 7 Brands That Will Inspire You to Create More Awesome Content, which demonstrates that inspiring your target audience isn’t as hard as getting them to laugh out loud.

The winner for Most Nostalgic Super Bowl commercial was:

Dunkin’ ‘The DunKings’ – see above. Also, read Nostalgia Marketing & What We Can Learn From John Lewis Ads, which illustrates that this approach works effectively whether your “football” is spherical instead of an elongated spheroid.

The Award for Rookie of the Year Super Bowl commercial was presented to:

Michael CeraVe

Now, CeraVe was developed with dermatologists, not Michael Cera. But this social video campaign began on January 11, 2024, and CeraVe uploaded 16 videos to 3 platforms: 7 to Instagram, 6 to YouTube, and 3 to Facebook. The YouTube videos got a total of 2.3 million views and 22,100 engagements.

It’s worth noting that USA TODAY’s Replay Ratings have been used in previous years to measure action-packed, dramatic, and informative commercials, but not this year.

Ironically, YouTube AdBlitz tracked all these categories again this year. YouTube AdBlitz also tracked inspirational and sentimental ads as two separate categories. So, it’s unclear why USA TODAY’s Replay Ratings didn’t leverage this data in 2024.

Over the years, I’ve been critical of the methodology used by Ad Meter. I’ve said it:

The Top 5 Super Bowl LVIII Ads From DAIVID

Another alternative Super Bowl ad ranking is DAIVID, a creative effectiveness platform that uses facial coding, eye tracking, and survey responses.

They looked at this year’s Super Bowl ads to see which had the biggest emotional and business impact on viewers. Using this methodology, here are the top five Big Game ads:

1. NFL Super Bowl LVIII || Born to Play

Read above.

2. The Wait Is Over’:60

This video’s description provides the backstory:

“The year is 1972. Popeyes has just opened, and they have some groovy, far-out, and tasty fried chicken. Unfortunately, it will be over fifty years until they will offer chicken wings. Sweet ‘N Spicy, Ghost Pepper, Signature Hot, Honey BBQ, Roasted Garlic Parmesan.

Crispy, juicy, and still decades away from your early seventies taste buds. Faced with this mouth-watering quandary, what would you do? How could you ensure that you would be around to taste these modern marvels? Well, for one man, the answer was simple.

He cryogenically froze himself. And now, the world knows his story. This is that man’s journey to loving that chicken, and those chicken wings, from Popeyes. Of course, for you, the wait is over, too. Because Popeyes finally has wings. What a time to be alive.”

I recognize this play. It’s a delay route! A runner will block the defensive end for a few seconds, then turn around and shuffle toward the quarterback. It’s an effective play in advertising as well as football.

3. “DON’T FORGET UBER EATS.”

Since I’ve also analyzed this social video above, what can I add?

Occasionally, using a different methodology can reinforce the original result. In Philadelphia, this play is called the “Tush Push.”

4.“CeraVe with Michael Cera…Ve.”

Yes, I analyzed this social video above. However, I hadn’t noticed that an additional video in the campaign had been uploaded to the CeraStan998 channel on YouTube. That’s what people outside of Philadelphia would call a quarterback sneak.

5. “Paramount+ Super Bowl Spot | Sir Patrick Stewart Throws a Hail Arnold | A Mountain of Entertainment”

This video’s description also provides the backstory:

“As the climb up Paramount Mountain continues, Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, Patrick Stewart, and Drew Barrymore reach an impasse. While they’re having trouble with their equipment, Patrick realizes there might be another way to take them higher…”

There are two versions of this Super Bowl spot. A two-minute version was uploaded to YouTube on February 1. It got 10.7 million views and 33,200 engagements. Then, a 45-second version was uploaded on February 7. And it got 25,500 views and 16 engagements.

The shorter version was the one that ran as a Super Bowl Commercial. Hey, with 30 seconds of air time costing $7 million, the 45-second spot cost about $10,5 million, while the two-minute version would have cost around $28 million.

But YouTube video ads don’t cost more if they are 2.67 times longer. And any organic views are free. So, the lesson learned when creating social videos is to “go long.”

DAIVID also ranked the most effective Super Bowl brands on TikTok. Skincare brand CeraVe finished in the top spot.

Forrester said,

“CeraVe’s superb use of TikTok to tease its ad with actor Michael Cera gained it the top spot of the TikTok chart. Using a mix of spoof interviews with employees and Cera himself, fake internal announcements and influencer content, the brand created the myth that a crazed Cera was claiming to have developed the product. The content generated a cumulative 5.8m views, maximizing the impact of its Big Game spot.”

By the way, 4,950 US respondents participated in DAIVID’s Big Game study.

So, even though Forrester spells words like “honours” and “maximizing” the way they do in the UK, DAIVID’s methodology tells us which Super Bowl advertisers had the biggest impact on the hearts and minds of American viewers.

The Top 5 Super Bowl LVIII Ads From System1

System1 evaluated this year’s Super Bowl ads with more than 10,000 Americans to determine how well they triggered emotional reactions that drive long-term brand effectiveness as well as short-term sales potential.

Their top five ads for brand effectiveness were:

1. Superior Beach | Michelob ULTRA

Like other video descriptions, this one also provides the backstory:

“Leo Messi walks into a bar and a keg taps, leading to the greatest game ever played. Featuring a shout-out from Jason Sudeikis and an assist from Dan ‘The Man’ Marino – grab an ULTRA and pull up a beach chair. It’s game time.”

Umm, okay. But which game?

Messi is kicking a soccer ball in this ad. Marino throws the ball like he did when he was the quarterback for the Miami Dolphins. Sudeikis reminds us that Coach Ted Lasso’s strategy, which is called Total Football, gives players freedom.

2. REESE’S Cups Big Game Commercial 2024

This video’s description informs us,

“#REESES #GameDay #commercial announces that there will be a big #change to the iconic #REESES Peanut Butter Cups! The #REESESCaramelBigCup which includes #caramel is #outnow.”

Now, it’s also worth noting that Reese’s riotous slapstick ad shows that you don’t have to use celebrities to make an impact. But it did use eight hashtags.

If this seems excessive, consider this: Peyton Manning yelled “Omaha” 44 times during a regular season game in 2014. So, maybe the brand is just calling an audible.

3. Mayo Cat – Hellmann’s Big Game

This video doesn’t have a description. So, what’s the point? Well, Hellmann’s “Mayo Cat” parodies instant stardom while also making a serious point about food waste.

On the other hand, maybe this is an homage to the Dolphins’ legendary “No-Name Defense.”

4. That T-Mobile Home Internet Feeling

Unlike the previous video, this one’s description explains:

“Zach Braff and Donald Faison (are) welcoming Jason Momoa to the neighborhood the best way they know how – with a song and dance 🕺 about T-Mobile Home Internet.”

Or, as the legendary David Ogilvy advised in the 1980s, “When you have nothing to say, sing it.”

5. Lindt LINDOR Life is a Ball

This video doesn’t have a description, either. But Lindt was the highest-ranking debut advertiser, and the chocolate brand’s chilled-out ad featured a Perry Como soundtrack and their familiar Master Chocolatier character.

What does this have to do with the Big Game? I don’t know, it’s a mystery. But why does the NFL allow end zone celebrations that include using the football as a prop, celebrating on the ground and group demonstrations?

System1 also ranked the top five ads for short-term sales potential. They were:

Oreo’s “Twist on it” campaign not only ran a 30-second ad during the second quarter of this year’s Super Bowl, but also uploaded 14 social videos between January 22 and February 12, 2024: a dozen variations to YouTube and 2 to Instagram.

The YouTube videos got a total of 3.8 million views and 4,700 engagements.

The variation with the most views was 1:42 long. Yeah, you know this play. Go long.

5th: Like a Good Neighbaaa

“It’s no surprise brands are trying to fit as much into their airtime as possible with loads of celebrities and blink-and-you’ll-miss-it scenes,” said Jon Evans, Chief Customer Officer, System1. “But these results show that the winning brands on game night take a more focused approach.

“They execute simple ideas brilliantly, tell great stories, use celebrities and brand assets wisely, and never forget to entertain,” he added.

How Should Brands Measure The Effectiveness Of Their Super Bowl Ads?

Measuring the effectiveness of a Super Bowl ad isn’t easy, especially considering the high stakes and unique aspects of the event. But here are 12 key areas that brands should consider to create effective ads:

Before The Game

Set clear goals: Define what success looks like. As I said in How To Make A Video Go Viral, the odds of your video going viral are about 1 in 1,000, which are also the odds of cracking open an egg with a double yolk. Instead, you should prioritize concrete objectives like raising brand awareness, increasing purchase intent, or driving website traffic.
Create your brand strategy: Understand previous content performance, your brand’s personality, and what’s resonating with your target audience.
Use pre-testing: Utilize surveys, focus groups, and other research methods to gauge audience reception to different creative concepts before investing tons of money in production.

Create Effective Ads

Tell good stories. According to a Google/Talk Shoppe study, 94% of viewers say good content tells a good story, while 92% of them say good content is produced with thought and effort.
Make it emotionally resonant. According to the same study, 85% of viewers say good content makes them feel something emotionally.
Keep it relevant. Finally, the study found that 80% of people say they are more open to advertising or branded content when a piece of content is relevant to the viewer.

During And After The Game

Measure social media engagement: Use the best social media metrics across platforms to gauge the real active engagement of users with your social videos: conversation (comments), amplification (shares), applause (likes), and economic value (conversion value).
Compare brand lift surveys: Conduct a brand lift study, which measures ad recall, brand awareness, consideration, favorability, and purchase intent of a group of people who saw your ads and those who didn’t, or simply compare pre- and post-game surveys.
Track website traffic, leads, and sales: Use Google Analytics 4 to measure new users, event count, and conversions, including engaged-view conversions (EVCs), which indicate that viewers watched a YouTube video for at least 10 seconds and then converted on your website or app within 3 days of viewing the video.

Additional Considerations

Track earned media coverage: Track news articles, blog posts, and social media mentions that discuss your Big Game ad organically, indicating broader impact.
Employ social listening tools: Analyze online conversations to understand audience perceptions, identify key themes, and address any negative sentiments quickly.
Use creative effectiveness platforms: Instead of using Ad Meter, which was created in 1989, use a creative effectiveness platform like DAIVID or System1 to determine how well Super Bowl ads triggered emotional reactions that have been proven to drive both short-term sales and long-term brand effectiveness.

Remember, no single metric paints the full picture.

Utilize a combination of quantitative and qualitative methods to gain a holistic understanding of your Super Bowl ad’s effectiveness, and don’t be afraid to dig deeper beyond just the immediate buzz.

How Should Brands Adjust Their Social Video Strategy For 2025?

Even if CTV plays a larger role in the Super Bowl, your social video strategy shouldn’t solely focus on CTV itself.

Remember, social media provides a vital launchpad and companion throughout the campaign:

Pre-Super Bowl Buzz

Teaser campaigns: Use social video snippets to build anticipation for your CTV ad, creating excitement and generating buzz before the big game.
Behind-the-scenes access: Share exclusive clips or insights into the making of your CTV ad, humanizing your brand and fostering connection.
Partner with influencers: Collaborate with creators relevant to your audience and the Super Bowl to promote your campaign and drive viewership.

During the Super Bowl

Live reactions and commentary: Encourage real-time engagement by sharing reactions to your CTV ad on social media, responding to comments, and creating interactive polls or quizzes.
User-generated content: Incentivize viewers to share their reactions to your CTV ad on social media using a branded hashtag, creating a community around your campaign.
Extend the conversation: Use social media to amplify key messages from your CTV ad, answer questions, and offer exclusive content or deals related to the ad.

Post-Super Bowl Follow-up

Highlight key metrics and successes: Share performance data from your CTV ad campaign on social media, showcasing its reach and impact.
Offer post-game content: Create social video content that expands on the themes or story presented in your CTV ad, providing additional value to viewers.
Continue the conversation: Keep the momentum going by engaging with viewers on social media, answering questions, and fostering brand loyalty.

Remember

Align your social video content with your CTV ad: Ensure a cohesive message and visual style across both platforms for seamless brand recognition.
Leverage social media analytics: Track performance metrics like engagement, reach, and sentiment to understand what resonates with your audience and refine your strategy.
Optimize for different platforms: Tailor your social video content for each platform’s specific audiences and formats.

By using social media as a launchpad, companion, and follow-up tool, you can maximize the impact of your CTV ad during the Super Bowl and beyond.

Disclaimer: All statistics above not linked are from a gated Tubular Labs report.

More resources:

Featured Image: Gatot Adri/Shutterstock

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Feb 15 2024

Paid Media Marketing In 2024: 7 Changes Marketers Should Make via @sejournal, @brookeosmundson

If you fail to incorporate this part, you run the risk of targeting the wrong sector of people, ultimately throwing money down the proverbial drain.

However, if you retarget and refresh your approach, you’re bound to find a dynamic audience that correlates with your vision.

In the end, audience management alone can be worth its weight in gold.

4. Prepare For Video Content Dominance

You’ve likely heard this phrase before in marketing: content is king.

With a slight tweak for 2024, the new hot phrase should be: video content is king.

Not only is video taking over social platforms like TikTok, Instagram, and Snapchat, but it’s also asserting its dominance in YouTube Ads. YouTube Shorts, the platform’s short-form video offering, is booming.

With this new form of video comes a new ad format: vertical video ads.

Not only should marketers focus on video marketing in general – 2024 is the year to get more sophisticated with video strategy.

Marketers should prioritize creating engaging and high-quality video content that’s appropriate for each platform on which it will be delivered.

If the thought of creating video content for multiple platforms scares you, just remember that a little goes a long way.

Start by creating evergreen content about your brand and test those with different lengths.

These can be used and recycled on multiple platforms and can be used for organic and paid video content simultaneously.

Just remember to create a variety so that your users don’t see the same message or content on the same platforms, which can reduce the effectiveness of video marketing.

5. Don’t Sleep On Microsoft Ads

Microsoft Ads continues to enhance its advertising platform year after year.

Not only does it have many of the same coveted features as Google Ads, but it has added features that are unique to the platform.

As a marketing professional, your brand will surely benefit from digging into it more in 2024.

Some of the most notable updates Microsoft Ads launched in the last twelve months include:

Video and CTV ads: Microsoft unveiled these new ad types on its platform in September of 2023. Advertisers can choose from online video ads or connected TV ads that are non-skippable while a user is streaming content. This gives advertisers big and small a leg up on what once used to be a very complicated process of buying TV ads.
Three new generative AI solutions: Also announced in September 2023, Microsoft came out with three new AI features to help grow and scale. These include Compare & Decide ads, ads for Chat API, and Copilot campaign creation.
Data-driven attribution reporting: Gone are the days of last-click measurement! Microsoft Ads enhanced its UET tagging solution and implemented data-driven attributing modeling. It uses machine learning to calculate the actual contributions of each ad interaction.

While Microsoft still holds a lower share of the available search engines, just remember that you’re leaving a whole slew of potential customers behind by not considering this underestimated ad platform.

6. Focus On Optimizing The User Experience

Between a mix of shorter human attention spans and limited marketing budgets, every interaction and website experience counts.

If you find that your pre-sale metrics are favorable – such as high engagement or high CTR – but never result in a sale, you likely don’t have an ad problem. You have a user experience problem.

In 2024, consumers expect more from brands, especially if they’re spending their hard-earned money with that company.

Ask yourself, when was the last time you sat down and went through your website’s checkout process through the lens of a customer?

If you’re not sure where to start on optimizing your website experience for users, here are some ideas to get you started:

Use tools like Hot Jar or User Testing to get real-life analytics of how your customers are interacting and what their pain points are.
Review the website landscape on desktop and mobile. While this may be a no-brainer, many websites still forget to optimize for mobile!
Make sure that any relevant call-to-actions (CTAs) are above the fold – yes, on mobile, too!
Check your site speed.

These are items that should continuously be monitored and not a “set and forget,” which unfortunately happens quite a bit.

Optimizing the website user experience can have a positive impact on those paid media campaigns and can make those dollars go further in the future.

7. Use AI Tools To Your Advantage

Let’s face it: Machine learning and AI aren’t going anywhere.

For marketing leaders, 2024 really is the time to lean into its advantages instead of running away from the inevitable advances.

It’s not a question of whether to use AI or not. It’s a matter of how to use AI to your advantage.

While companies are tightening their budgets and scaling back staff, PPC marketers are constantly being asked to do more with less.

This is where AI comes in.

In fact, using AI can strengthen your ROI for paid media campaigns of all kinds (whatever channel you prefer).

Just make sure you don’t sacrifice your brand’s personality for a little efficiency.

One way you can do this is with Google’s generated AI assets (currently in beta). Using its Gemini-powered AI solution, the tool allows for more streamlined campaign creation and generated ad assets, including images, headlines, and descriptions for ads, and more.

Additionally, you’re likely already using one of Google’s Smart Bidding strategies to automate the bidding process.

With a combination of creativity and machine learning, your ads have the potential to go farther than ever before.

Your 2024 Plan Should Not Be Static

If the past year(s) have taught us anything in marketing, it’s to be fluid.

In some cases, tactics that used to be tried and true are now more volatile than ever.

Take advantage of advances in AI to boost your strategic advantage, and keep in mind platforms that you’ve typically shied away from – the time may come to incorporate them into your 2024 strategy.

What changes are you most excited to try this year?

More resources:

Featured Image: Sutthiphong Chandaeng/Shutterstock

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Feb 14 2024

Smart Paid Strategy: 4 Tips To Save You $4K In Monthly Ad Spend via @sejournal, @CallRail

As a marketing agency, the bottom line for your clients comes down to how well you’re managing their budget.

No one likes the idea of wasted ad spend, but often, it can be hard to tell which funds are actually being put to good use.

Even when a campaign is successful, it’s important to understand which tactics are more effective than others.

How do you determine which platforms are generating the most quality leads for your clients? And how do you prove it?

With the right tools at your disposal, you can remove the guesswork from your marketing strategy and analyze performance more efficiently.

The key is to find out exactly what’s working and what’s not so you know where to focus your ad spend moving forward.

After all, a simple shift in budget allocation could ultimately save you thousands of dollars.

So, how can you optimize your marketing strategy and trim the unnecessary fat in your budget?

Let’s explore the top tools and tactics you can use to reduce your cost per lead and boost ROI this year.

Tip 1: Get A Strong Understanding Of Your True, Granular ROI

One of the biggest problems agency marketers face is limited insights, which can greatly impact decision-making.

Without the full picture of your marketing performance, it can be difficult to identify your top-performing – as well as underperforming – channels.

This was the challenge for shared workspace management and consulting firm Workspace Strategies.

However, with the right tracking and recording tools, they were able to gain valuable performance insights and pivot their strategy to eliminate wasted ad spend – ultimately saving them $1,000 per month!

So how’d they pull this off? Let’s dig deeper into how the firm was able to prove the true ROI for its campaigns.

The Downside Of Using Multi-Channel Advertising

The bigger a brand’s digital footprint, the more successful it’ll be, right? – Well, not necessarily.

Although it’s important to expand your online presence, there is such a thing as overdoing it.

It’s one thing to market on multiple online platforms, but how can you tell whether they actually bring value to your business?

Workspace Strategies was utilizing Google Ads, as well as various social media platforms to maintain the occupancy rates at their managed workspaces.

Jason, the firm’s Director of Operations, suspected that some of these channels were generating more leads than others.

However, he struggled to prove which marketing channels truly drive results.

Tracking & Optimizing For Maximum Campaign Success

The solution for Workspace Strategies, in this case, was simple: They were able to track and optimize their campaigns more effectively with Call Tracking by CallRail.

With this advanced tool, the firm was able to attribute every one of their leads to a specific channel, which helped them remove marketing spend from ineffective social platforms.

“When you’re making decisions about how to allocate your marketing budget, proof of ROI is everything. We got proof with CallRail.”

– Jason Tiemeier, Director of Operations at Workspace Strategies

Read the full case study to learn more about Workspace Strategies’ success.

How To Uncover Your Highest ROI Channel

With 360° data, you can:

See which sources and keywords are generating high-quality leads.
Pinpoint which paid ad campaigns are driving the most calls for your business.
Improve customer service using Call Recording to identify opportunities for staff training and coaching.
Speed up sales and drive ROI more efficiently.

If you’re ready to prove – and improve – the value of your marketing tactics, it’s time to add CallRail’s Call Tracking to your marketing tech stack.

Tip 2: Expand Your Datasets Outside Of Google Analytics 4

If you’re a business with multiple locations, tools like Google Analytics 4 may only provide you with a partial picture of your marketing ROI.

But what if you need to track the source of leads who contact your business by phone?

As businesses increasingly rely on phone calls as a valuable touchpoint for customer interactions, diversifying your datasets is even more important.

The Limitations Of GA4

While Google Analytics 4 certainly has its benefits, it also has its share of limitations.

Some of the most notable challenges include:

Complex data migration.
A new reporting interface.
Fewer attribution models.
Limited data collection.

For Workspace Strategies, the limited data Google Analytics provided made things particularly difficult, as it painted an incomplete picture of user interactions and behavior.

However, with Call Recording by CallRail they were able to collect valuable customer insights and close more sales.

How To Improve Customer Interactions With Call Monitoring

Sometimes, the problem with businesses simply lies in how they’re interacting with their customers – anything from excessively long phone calls to weak sales pitches could end up costing them conversions.

For instance, when Jason of Workspace Strategies started monitoring recorded phone conversations with incoming leads in CallRail, he uncovered some missteps made by staff members while trying to close sales.

As a result, the firm was able to quickly incorporate these findings into staff coaching and training.

Find out more about how Workspace Strategies identified and corrected their client-customer communication gaps.

Tip 3: Boost Campaign Results With AI-Enhanced Call Data Analysis

Often, businesses that receive a high volume of inbound phone calls through their marketing campaigns struggle to qualify those leads efficiently and accurately.

However, trying to outsource this task can be expensive and drive up the overall cost per lead.

For example, digital marketing agency Wit Digital dealt with inaccurate and expensive lead qualification, with their cost per lead sitting well above the industry average.

To resolve this, they powered up Call Tracking with CallRail’s Conversation Intelligence software.

As a result, Wit Digital is now saving up to $4,000 per month with a 64% lower cost per lead.

Learn more about how the agency benefited from CallRail in the full case study.

How To Use AI To Unlock The Data Within Your Calls

Conversation Intelligence uses AI technology to analyze your calls and turn your conversations into easy-to-act-on insights.

This advanced technology can:

Automatically record and transcribe all of your phone calls with near human-level accuracy, so you can easily refine keyword lists for agency clients.
Easily spot keywords and phrases in every call for automated insights and analytics.
Define rules to classify calls automatically when specific conversation criteria are met.

“With Conversation Intelligence, I have new insights into what’s working in our campaigns and what’s not. Sometimes even a simple word change can make all the difference.”

– Ryan Cook, Director of Client Strategy at Wit Digital

Automate Your Analysis & Achieve Higher Accuracy

With Conversation Intelligence, you get more accurate:

Keyword spotting.
Auto-tagging and lead qualification.
Sentiment analysis.

Plus, you can automatically filter and categorize your phone calls – for instance, if a call from a first-time caller lasts more than 60 seconds, you’ll know it’s very likely a qualified lead and can have it automatically categorized as such.

By removing the need to manually listen to calls and categorize them, Wit Digital was able to stop overpaying vendors to analyze their call data.

Wit Digital is now getting a better return on its own marketing efforts and retaining more customers as they too get better ROI on their pay-per-click campaigns.

And now, CallRail’s new multi-language transcriptions can even help agencies overcome language barriers between clients and their customers, regardless of their native tongue.

Ready to automate your data analysis and boost your campaign results? Try CallRail’s Conversation Intelligence free for 14 days.

Tip 4: Consolidate Your Marketing Data & Streamline Your Process

Sometimes, the hassle of navigating between multiple platforms can be overwhelming.

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Feb 7 2024

Amazon Non-Endemic Display: What Is It & Why Should You Care? via @sejournal, @navahf

Amazon, a name virtually synonymous with online retail, is now opening its doors to lead generation sectors.

It offers the chance to leverage unparalleled audience targeting capabilities.

Currently, the platform offers display-only advertising campaigns – but even with this limitation, it provides substantial opportunities for businesses to engage with potential customers.

In this article, we aim to explore the process of setting up advertisements on Amazon, their distinctiveness in today’s privacy-centric digital environment, and how they are transforming advertising strategies across various channels.

Please note that Amazon’s non-endemic advertising channel is still in its beta phase. We plan to keep this article updated as new features and information become available.

Understanding Amazon’s Non-Endemic Ads

Amazon’s non-endemic advertising allows businesses not selling directly on Amazon, such as lead generation advertisers, to target Amazon’s user base. The ad channel currently supports the following sectors:

Travel.
Automotive.
Local Services.
Restaurants.
Education.

Advertisers set their bid levels at the audience level and combine them with creative assets at the campaign level, ensuring that bids do not exceed half of their daily budget.

Targeted audiences work on an “or” basis, allowing for broader reach.

amazon limits bids to 50% of daily budget

Screenshot from Amazon, January 2024

When targeting Amazon’s audience for non-Amazon sellers, let’s say you select “Users using Amazon Garage” and “Mazda car enthusiasts.”

You will place a bid for each audience, and your campaign can target either group – not just users who fit into both categories.

It’s recommended to add multiple audiences to a single ad group only if you’re comfortable with all of them seeing the same ad. Otherwise, splitting them into different ad groups might be more effective.

Amazon also provides a market share preview of your audience, giving an overall number rather than a forecast based on your set budget.

This metric is particularly useful as it offers a clearer picture of the potential market you can reach.

Screenshot from IMDB, January 2024

These advertisements appear not only on Amazon but also across its third-party network, including platforms like Twitch and IMDB.

Advertisers can choose between cost per click (CPC) or cost per thousand impressions (vCPM) payment models.

From our experience, CPC suits those aiming for actual engagement, while vCPM might be better for those focused on brand visibility.

As of now, location targeting on Amazon is somewhat limited, but you can still target individuals, cities, states, or entire countries, with this service, currently exclusive to the US market.

It’s crucial to undergo and complete Amazon’s mandatory verification process to protect both advertisers and consumers.

Why This Channel Is Intriguing

For brands traditionally focused on Google or paid social lead generation, Amazon’s approach might seem unconventional.

At the core of Amazon’s advertising strength is its audience. In an era where privacy is paramount, Amazon has innovated to keep its audience targeting robust yet privacy-compliant.

Amazon’s platform provides in-depth insights into audience behaviors without targeting specific individuals, focusing instead on detailed group characteristics.

These can be based on product views, interactions with Amazon technologies or subsidiaries (like Whole Foods), and purchasing patterns.

Google Ads and Meta Ads can mislabel some sectors, and brands might find an easier time on Amazon.

For example, advertisers mentioning “no credit required” are sometimes incorrectly tagged as financial services, which can be an issue in the automotive sector.

Also, local services that blur the lines, like legal or wellness services, might find it easier to target appropriate audiences on Amazon due to its product-focused approach versus the idea-centric targeting on Google or Meta.

Amazon ads should be considered as part of an incremental advertising strategy.

If you’re allocating a portion of your budget for experimental campaigns, Amazon’s advertising platform is worth exploring, especially if you’re looking to balance your spending on visual content campaigns and target more strategically.

Setting Up Amazon Campaigns

The first crucial step in setting up an Amazon campaign is clearing the verification process.

Once that’s out of the way, the remaining steps are relatively straightforward. Registration should be done using the official legal name of your company.

If you’re setting up an account for a client, ensure they provide payment information in a timely manner. The campaign cannot start without this information.

The focus of campaign preparation involves selecting your audience and creating your ads. You can use Shutterstock images or upload your own for the creative component.

However, keep in mind the limited editing capabilities on the platform. Part of your ad creation will involve crafting text similar to a Google Display headline, capped at 90 characters.

After preparing your creative elements, you can select your audiences either manually or via search. Note that you can’t add them to your campaign or receive audience size forecasts if your bid is more than 50% of your daily budget.

Campaigns can be tailored to target leads (the only conversion event currently available), views, or clicks, with the choice influencing whether you opt for CPC or vCPM.

Why Non-Amazon Sellers Should Consider Amazon Ads

Amazon has cultivated one of the most robust audience pools available.

Although the campaigns are currently limited to display formats, they offer significant opportunities for reaching specific, sometimes hard-to-reach, audience segments.

The most promising opportunities lie in the automotive sector, particularly with Amazon Garage integration, and local services that can leverage Amazon’s insights into product purchasing patterns.

Between the extremely accessible auction prices and robust targeting, Amazon non-endemic display is a no-brainer to add to testing budgets.

More resources:

Featured Image: vijay0401/Shutterstock

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Dec 7 2023

Google Updating Cryptocurrency Advertising Policy For 2024 via @sejournal, @martinibuster

Google published an announcement of upcoming changes to their cryptocurrency advertising policies and advises advertisers to make themselves aware of the changes and prepare to be in compliance with the new requirements.

The upcoming updates are to Google’s Cryptocurrencies and related products policy for the advertisement of Cryptocurrency Coin Trusts. The changes are set to take effect on January 29th, 2024.

Cryptocurrency Coin Trusts are financial products that enable investors to trade shares in trusts holding substantial amounts of digital currency. These trusts provide investors with equity in cryptocurrencies without having direct ownership. They are also an option for creating a more diversified portfolio.

The policy updates by Google that are coming in 2024 aim to describe the scope and requirements for the advertisement of Cryptocurrency Coin Trusts. Advertisers targeting the United States will be able to promote these products and services as long as they abide by specific policies outlined in the updated requirements and that they also obtain certification from Google.

The updated policy changes are not limited to the United States. They will apply globally to all accounts advertising Cryptocurrency Coin Trusts.

Google’s announcement also reminded advertisers of their obligation for compliance to local laws in the areas where the ads are targeted.

Google’s approach for violations of the new policy will be to first give a warning before imposing an account suspension.

Advertisers that fail to comply with the updated policy will receive a warning at least seven days before a potential account suspension. This time period provides advertisers with an opportunity to fix non-compliance issues and to get back into compliance with the revised guidelines.

Advertisers are encouraged to refer to Google’s documentation on “About restricted financial products certification.”

The deadline for the change in policy is January 29th, 2024. Cryptocurrency Coin Trusts advertisers will need to pay close attention to the updated policies in order to ensure compliance.

Read Google’s announcement:

Updates to Cryptocurrencies and related products policy (December 2023)

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Nov 28 2023

New Microsoft Tool Aims To Help You Maximize Ad Earnings via @sejournal, @MattGSouthern

Microsoft Advertising has announced the launch of Monetize Insights, a new analytics dashboard aimed at helping publishers monitor and optimize their advertising revenue streams more efficiently.

The dashboard is now available globally within Microsoft’s supply-side platform, Monetize.

Monetize Insights Features

Monetize Insights provides publishers with visual graphs and comparison charts for a quick, holistic view of their performance.

The dashboard allows you to filter data and drill down into specifics around revenue drivers, inventory metrics, and significant changes over time. This lets you quickly identify issues, trends, and opportunities to maximize yield.

“User-friendly data analytics can help publishers identify issues sooner, diagnose issues faster, and ensure revenue is not left on the table,” said Christopher Walmsley, Senior Product Manager at Microsoft. “With Monetize Insights, publishers can easily monitor key monetization metrics and efficiently dive into the details of revenue drivers.”

Two key features of the new dashboard are the Total Revenue and Bid Rejection tabs. The Total Revenue tab simplifies business performance tracking across channels, buyers, and brands. You can view trends in revenue, impressions, ad requests, fill rates, and more.

The Bid Rejection tabs provide transparency into blocks impacting revenue, such as ad quality settings, price floors, and demand issues. This helps you understand the monetary effect of your inventory settings and potentially adjust to unblock significant revenue.

Monetize Insights Benefits

Microsoft designed Monetize Insights to streamline publishers’ workflows. The guided navigation and configurable metrics aim to save you time configuring dashboards or running manual reporting.

The analytics dashboard is now live for all Monetize platform users globally.

Publishers interested in leveraging the new tool can sign into their Monetize accounts and activate Monetize Insights.

How This Can Help You

As a publisher, having clear visibility into your advertising performance data is essential for making smart optimization decisions.

With the launch of Monetize Insights, Microsoft Advertising is aiming to provide you with an efficient analytics hub to monitor and understand what’s driving your revenue.

If you’re looking to identify issues faster, reveal opportunities, and save time analyzing granular reports, this new dashboard may be worth exploring.

Featured Image: Tada Images/Shutterstock

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Nov 27 2023

39 Emotions Digital Marketers Can Use In Advertising via @sejournal, @gregjarboe

In a previous article, How To Make A Video Go Viral, I mentioned research that shows videos that evoked the emotion of hilarity, inspiration, astonishment, and exhilaration tended to be shared the most. People shared videos that elicited “high-arousal” or intense emotions twice as much as ones that elicited “low-arousal” or moderate emotions.”

For the past few months, I’ve been searching for a new way to categorize emotions and I stumbled across a post on LinkedIn that said, “Here it is! The DAIVID Field Guide to Emotions in Advertising with each of the DAIVID 39 emotions.”

The LinkedIn post said,

“As every good creative knows, make people feel something and it will have an effect on brand and sales.”

So, I downloaded their field guide and read all 56 pages in one sitting – like a whodunit. It even opens with a killer quotation by Jonathan Haidt,

“The rational mind thinks it’s the Oval Office when actually it’s the press office.”

The field guide draws from research conducted at the University of California, Berkeley; Stanford University; and the Ehrenberg-Bass Institute for Marketing Science at the University of South Australia.

The field guide categorizes 39 emotions into 6 “emotional cohorts” and acknowledges,

“Emotions in advertising are nothing new. Intuitively, gifted storytellers have taken us through lows and highs to make us feel good and well disposed towards brands through the years.”

It explains, “What we have lacked up to this point though, is a clear codification. Whether something is ’emotional’ or not has often been decided subjectively and with the poor emotional lexicon that we humans have.”

And it concludes, “That’s why we have the DAIVID 39, which gives us a common language to communicate this through the advertising process and brief with feeling.”

So, here is the all-important language that digital marketers can use to define and, therefore, replicate advertising success through emotion.

39 Emotions Digital Marketer’s Can Use In Advertising

Empathy

According to the DAIVID Field Guide to Emotions in Advertising, there are 11 emotions in the Empathy cohort that digital marketers can put on their palette when creating a campaign:

Admiration: A feeling of profound respect or approval.
Calmness: To be free from agitation, excitement, or disturbance.
Empathetic pain: A specific variant of empathy that involves recognizing and understanding another person’s pain.
Gratitude: an expression of grateful thanks and appreciation for benefits received.
Hope: An audacious desire accompanied by the expectation of, or belief in, fulfilling it.
Pride: Complex with definitions such as self-esteem and satisfaction in oneself, pleasure that comes from an association, relationship, or achievement, or a feeling of solidarity.
Relief: The removal or alleviation of something oppressive, painful, or distressing.
Sadness: An expression of grief or unhappiness.
Satisfaction: The fulfillment of a strongly desired need or want.
Trust: The extent to which a person or thing is accurate, honest, safe, and dependable.
Warmth: The quality or state of being warm in feeling.

The field guide includes a link to a video, “seen in the wild,” for each emotion. And that will certainly help if digital marketers are unclear about the definition of an emotion.

But I looked for videos that I’d seen, which I could use to illustrate the creative effectiveness of “Empathy.” And I didn’t need binoculars.

In Google Analytics 4 Should Trigger Reorganizations & Agency Reviews, near the end of the article, I said digital marketers could use YouTube’s Director Mix to create customized videos at scale, swapping out different elements to tailor content to specific audiences.

As an example, I mentioned that Mondelēz India had designed its Not Just a Cadbury Ad Campaign Video employing YouTube Pin Code Targeting, YouTube Director’s Mix, and Google Maps API.

This enabled the brand to produce thousands of customized AI-generated ads for 270 pin codes across 8 cities. This hyper-localized campaign helped 1,800 local retailers grab business during Diwali in a global pandemic.

The campaign delivered incredible business results, including doubling the sales for the retailers featured in the ads and over 32% more business growth than they’d forecast.

What I didn’t mention back then was the name of Mondelēz International’s strategy: “Empathy at scale.”

So, “Empathy” made people feel something, which influenced branding and sales.

Approach

According to the field guide, there are 11 emotions in the Approach cohort:

Adoration: A state of deep love and respect.
Aesthetic appreciation: The enjoyment of something because of its beauty or some other factor associated with aesthetic preference.
Amusement: Something pleasantly entertaining or diverting.
Entrancement: The feeling of being carried away with delight, wonder, or rapture.
Craving: An intense, urgent, or abnormal desire or longing.
Inspiration: The state or power of moving the intellect or emotions.
Interest: A feeling that accompanies special attention to a person or thing. It engages attention and stimulates further observation.
Joy: To experience intense pleasure or delight evoked by well-being, good fortune, or by the prospect of owning what one desires.
Knowledge: The condition of knowing something gained through experience.
Nostalgia: A sentimental longing or wistful affection for some past period or irrecoverable condition.
Romance: A feeling of excitement and mystery associated with love.

Yes, there’s a link to a video, “seen in the wild,” for each of these emotions.

However, I didn’t need a spotting scope to find examples of different approaches that have generated measurable outcomes. Let me highlight a recent one.

In 10 YouTube Marketing Strategies & Tips (With Examples), I included an example of inspiring video content of the UAE’s tourist experiences, cultural events, and enjoyable adventures.

It was created for the second season of the World’s Coolest Winter campaign and entitled A Winter Through My Eyes.

The short documentary film asks, “Can a country be truly enjoyed by someone who cannot see?” It tells the story of Clara, an 11-year-old Lebanese girl who has been visually impaired since birth.

Now, this award-winning video got 8.9 million views, which is remarkable – because the World’s Coolest Winter is primarily a domestic tourism campaign, and the UAE has a population of about 10 million, which is equivalent to the population of Michigan.

But it’s worth noting that the campaign helped to:

Increase hotel revenues in the UAE to AED1.5 billion, a 50% upsurge over the previous year.
Boost the number of domestic tourists to 1.3 million, a 36% jump over the campaign’s first season.
Raise hotel occupancy rates to 73% in 2022, a 7% gain over 66% in 2021.

So, this “Approach” not only made people feel something, but it also influenced branding and sales.

Positive Adrenaline

According to the field guide, there are four emotions in the Positive Adrenaline cohort:

Awe: Variously combines dread, veneration, and wonder that authority, the sacred, or sublime inspires.
Excitement: A feeling of great enthusiasm, eagerness, or thrill.
Sexual Desire: A physical attraction and desire for physical intimacy.
Surprise: The response to an unexpected or astonishing event.

I haven’t written about the following case study before, but I’ve used it in the class I teach on “Engaging Audiences Through Content” at the New Media Academy in Dubai. It consists of two videos.

The first is entitled, See you at Dubai Expo | Emirates and now has 5.3 million views and 87,800 engagements.

The second video is entitled We did it again | Emirates. This video takes a behind-the-scenes look at how Emirates took its A380 for a spin around the Burj Khalifa for the making of its new advertisement.

This video now has 13.9 million views and 211,000 engagements.

So, these videos made people feel something. But did they also influence branding and sales?

Well, Expo Dubai, the first event of its size and scale held since the start of the global pandemic, recorded over 24 million visits and was hailed as a tremendous success.

A couple of months after its videos went viral, Emirates Group announced that revenue increased by 86% over the previous year, with strong customer demand as worldwide travel restrictions eased.

Correlation or causation? You be the judge.

Negative Adrenaline, Primal Urges, And Rejection

Now, you may not want to put the last 13 emotions on your palette when creating a campaign, but you should be able to identify them if you see them in the wild:

Fear: An unpleasant, often strong emotion caused by anticipation or awareness of danger.
Horror: A painful and intense dread, fear, or repugnance.
Anger: A strong feeling of displeasure and usually of antagonism.
Awkwardness: A feeling of discomfort or being out of place in response to a situation.
Disgust: A strong feeling of dislike aroused by something highly distasteful.
Embarrassment: A feeling of shame, self-consciousness, or awkwardness.
Guilt: A feeling of deserving blame for offenses committed by yourself or others.
Shame: An uncomfortable feeling of guilt because of your own or someone else’s immoral behavior.
Anxiety: An apprehensive uneasiness over an impending or anticipated harm.
Boredom: Being weary and restless through lack of interest.
Confusion: Uncertainty about what is happening, intended, or required.
Contempt: Despising someone or something.
Distrust: To doubt the honesty or reliability of a person or thing.

Yes, I know that Halloween has just been held again, and some people enjoy watching horror movies.

But you should think twice before using any of the negative emotions in these last three emotional cohorts.

Why? There are three key reasons:

The field guide says, “Generally, it’s advisable for … brands to leave us with a positive emotion.”
According to a recent article in Think with Google, 7 in 10 people say they try to be optimistic despite the latest political, ecological, and economic news.
As Yoda says, “Fear is the path to the dark side. Fear leads to anger. Anger leads to hate. Hate leads to suffering.”

So, there you have it: A digital marketer’s palette of 39 emotions to use – or avoid using – in advertising.

Disclaimer: All statistics not linked are from a gated Tubular Labs report.

More resources:

Featured Image: Roman Samborskyi/Shutterstock

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Nov 20 2023

Customer Generation: Experts Reveal Paid Media Strategies For SaaS Success via @sejournal, @hethr_campbell

Growing your customer base without draining your budget can be tough, especially in today’s dynamic market.

With constant search engine updates and ever-evolving user behaviors, how do you drive revenue for your business while keeping your customer acquisition costs low?

How do you know where to focus your ad spend for maximum ROI?

If you’re looking for a game-changing solution, join us on December 6 as we reveal a proven formula to help you supercharge your strategy.

In this webinar, we’re cracking the code to customer acquisition and walking you through a unique methodology that has driven low-cost growth for hundreds of SaaS brands – from startups to publicly traded companies.

Sign up and discover actionable ways to grow your pipeline and revenue (all backed by real data from over $150 million in SaaS ad spend per year!)

Here’s a sneak peek at what you’ll take away from this live presentation:

The Power of First-Party Data: Learn how and why leveraging first-party data rather than third-party data is the key to campaign success.
Financial Modeling with LTV:CAC: Discover how to analyze channel performance through use of the Customer Lifetime Value to Customer Acquisition Cost (LTV:CAC) ratio for better budget allocation that your CFO will love.
Getting Personal with Your Pipeline: Develop laser-focused psychological marketing tactics and use gift-giving to boldly identify and emotionally resonate with your precise target personas at your ideal accounts.

With Garrett Mehrguth, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Directive, we’ll dive into key insights on Customer Generation, the proven methodology that makes sure you never miss your growth goals again.

Get ready to unlock the secrets to SaaS success and arm yourself with the strategies you need to boost your customer base and revenue.

Attend live, and you’ll even get the chance to chat with your industry peers and ask Garrett your most burning questions.

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Nov 15 2023

Microsoft’s AI Ad Plans Revealed Through New App Deal via @sejournal, @MattGSouthern

Microsoft Advertising has announced a new partnership with Baidu Global, the international division of Chinese tech company Baidu.

The partnership will enable Microsoft to bring sponsored content recommendations powered by artificial intelligence (AI) to Baidu’s mobile keyboard app, Baidu Global Keyboard.

This is accomplished by integrating Microsoft’s Chat Ads API into the Chat AI feature of Baidu Global Keyboard, allowing advertisers on Microsoft’s platform to reach keyboard app users.

Keyboard App Offers Valuable New Channel for Brands

According to Microsoft, integration with Baidu Global Keyboard allows brands and advertisers to engage younger demographics, mainly Gen Z users.

Additionally, because Baidu Global Keyboard customizes features based on the app environment a user is in, brands can reach users with relevant ads across multiple platforms. This context can drive increased purchase intent and conversion rates.

AI Could Enable More Personalized Experiences

Microsoft hinted at the potential for richer ad personalization and relevance for desired audiences.

While not confirmed, the AI powering the ad recommendations may look at full context, like message content, user interests, location, and time of day.

This could allow for ads tailored to a user’s needs. For example, the AI might detect a user messaging about dining spots and serve a relevant restaurant ad.

However, the specifics of the AI capabilities and contextual factors it can leverage still need to be confirmed. If the integration enables real-time ad adjustment based on usage context, personalized ad delivery would be an advancement.

Launch Planned For Early 2024 In Key Markets

Microsoft expects the integration to roll out later this year, with an official launch in early 2024. The partnership will launch in the U.S., Canada, the U.K., and Australia.

For advertisers, Microsoft noted that they can take advantage of the opportunity by ensuring their Microsoft Advertising campaigns are set up to target the entire network and have positive mobile bid adjustments in place.

Microsoft Looks To AI to Transform Advertising

In its announcement, Microsoft positioned the deal as part of its broader vision for AI in advertising.

The Baidu Global Keyboard integration is the latest move to bring more engaging, personalized AI-powered ad experiences to new platforms and audiences.

The company plans to evolve conversational ad products based on advertiser feedback.

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