📦 - Google’s latest change for multiformat ads

Machine Fingerprinting, Google Video Reach Campaigns, Winterize With Evergreen, Last Minute Gifts Tuesday, December 19, 2023 Good morning. We are less than one week away from Christmas which means it's time to tout your expedited shipping options so customers can get those presents under the tree. What you’ll find in today’s DTC: - Google has rolled out more formats for Video Reach Campaigns like YouTube Shorts ads. - A way to winterize your brand with evergreen content once the holiday rush is over. - And…still looking for the perfect last minute gift? We’ve rounded up some of our best subscriber recommendations from yesterday’s newsies (check out the gift guide below!). You’re reading this newsletter along with new subscribers from: Spa Fairies, Creative Way Studios, and Bee Joyful 👋 This newsletter is brought to you… IN PARTNERSHIP WITH SMART RECOGNITION 🔎 Uncover The Hidden Potential of Your Website Traffic With Smart Recognition Hey you - yes, you! Do you want to: 1️⃣ Identify email addresses and intent of anonymous website visitors with an AI ‘Machine Fingerprinting’ tool? 👀 2️⃣ Connect the dots and capture leads like never before — Increasing your lead generation by 10X without requiring an opt-in form? 3️⃣ Maximize your ROI and revenue with real-time lead delivery to your ESP/CRM or network audience? If you answered yes to any (or all) of the above and are a US-based ecommerce brand, lead generation media buyer, or newsletter company, then[Smart Recognition may just be your secret weapon](… See how you can try it out for free and unlock the power of Smart Recognition today! ⚡🔓 [Click Here To Get Started]( GOOGLE AD UPDATE 📥 Reach more customers with new multi-format ads For advertisers, Google has made some updates to their Video Reach Campaigns (VRC) to widen your reach and make it easier to get in front of your target audience. Within ad campaigns, there are new additions for multi-format ads. Along with in-stream ads, advertisers can now get ads shown in-feed and as YouTube Shorts ads. New types of ad formats available: In-Feed Ads: Ads for your brand or product are shown alongside relevant YouTube content. Shorts Ads: These ads can be static images or videos that appear in the Shorts feed. What this means: This is a huge opportunity for advertisers. YouTube Shorts have taken off this year and have quickly become a breakout feature for the video platform, garnering [70 billion daily views](. That means more engagement on your ad campaigns and at a lower CPM. 👀 📰 NEWS - [$51 billion of global online sales]( were influenced by AI during Cyber Week - Rising interest rates in 2023 caused [U.S. bankruptcies to rise 30% YoY]( but luckily relief is on the way for next year. - TikTok asks advertisers to [spend 50% to 150% more]( in 2024 Q1 PREP 🌲 Winterize your brand with evergreen content Now that we are finishing our final holiday push, let’s redirect our attention to evergreen advertising content. This is the perfect time to start planting some evergreen content. Yes, while we are still in Q4. This week there will be tons of messages around last-minute gifting, but this type of content is short-lived and has low return. Consumers have become numb to the same messaging every year. So let’s mix in some evergreen content and refresh those ads. Ride the higher-than-normal purchase intent wave and mix in some evergreen content into your paid ad campaigns so you are set up for success going into Q1. By evergreen, we mean brand specific styles that showcase your brand distinguishing factors and content that only looks like you. Hype content, if you will. Now don’t mistake branded content for using more of your dominant brand’s color and logos - Meta puts a heavy tax on those creatives and often won't give you the highest conversions. At [Pilothouse](, the majority of their clients' highest-earning ad creatives, both in Q4 and transitioning into Q1, are evergreen, meaning they remain effective over time. Time to winterize! 🎁 LAST MINUTE GIFT IDEAS Here’s some great last minute gift ideas from a few of our subscribers. 🍭 Can’t say no to a surprise sweet treat. Rather than presenting just a gift card, throw in a bag of their favorite candy so they don’t suspect what it is. Great idea Stephanie! 🍷 Adding a little vino always works. We are with you Laci. Giving away a lovely bottle of wine, a pair of wine glasses, or snacks to pair with their favorite wine are all great last minute options! 😀 Give the gift of quality time. Our reader Katelyn suggests purchasing a virtual escape room and printing out a gift card voucher in Canva so you can still give them a physical keepsake. 🌐 IN THE SOCIAL SPHERE If you’re grasping at straws for content ideas, consider creating daily or weekly segments on your Tik Tok channel so viewers know what to expect. Building episodic content is a great way to drive more traffic and build credibility in your space. Can't view the image? [Click here]( 🧰 THE TOOLKIT 😤 Filing claims on Amazon is frustrating. [TrueOps]( can do that for you. Maximize your refunds and reimbursements and get 2% of your revenue back! Sign up and get your first $10,000 for free [here](. * 🤖 Have too many words to input into ChatGPT at once? We’ve all got that annoying error message in return… try splitting your text block with a [chat splitter]( for ease of input! SPONSOR DTC 📥 Promote your product to 160,000 digital marketing professionals DTC Newsletter + Podcast reaches a highly qualified audience of Shopify merchants, eCommerce founders, and digital marketers. [Talk to our team to learn more](. 👀 BANTER Have you heard our latest podcasts? - 😆 [AKNF 362:]( Is CPC for Clowns? Meta Ads BFCM Recap - 🤯 [Shocking the Gatekeepers]( – Auto Aftermarket Goes DTC with Sean Reyes from Shock Surplus. - 🤫 [AKNF 360](: The Power of the Double Tap + The Secret Tool For Instant Email Scale (And How to Use it Safely) - 👏 [Breaking Barriers in Menstrual Health]( with Nadia Ladak CEO of Marlow - 💰 [AKNF 358:]( BFCM Results Breakdown with Pilothouse - 🌊 [Santevia Revolutionizes Water and Conquers Amazon]( with Matthew Gohl Don’t forget to [rate the DTC Podcast]( on Apple (⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️) Got an awesome DTC brand story to tell? Calling all brand-side founders and team leaders! Fancy joining us on the DTC Podcast as a guest? [Tap the link to toss in your application](. DTC Newsletter is written by [Rebecca Knight](, [Frances Du](, and [Michael Venditti](. Edited by [Eric Dyck](. Was this email forwarded to you? Sign up [here](. NEED MORE DTC? 🚀 [Advertise]( in DTC Newsletter. Please note that items in this newsletter marked with * contain sponsored content. [Direct To Consumer]( Pilothouse, 1011 Government St., Victoria, BC V8W 1X6, Canada [Advertise with DTC]( | [Work With Pilothouse]( [Preferences]( | [Unsubscribe](