🔍 Why gamifying local reviews might be bad for everybody

Plus, Bing Shopping’s ambitious plan to from search engine to recommendation engine [View in browser]( | [Share]() [Search Engine Land]() Nov 04, 2021 Nov 04, 2021 Good morning, Search Marketer, “Congratulations on reaching this milestone.” That’s from an email Google sent me yesterday in recognition of my fifth anniversary as a Local Guide (and my whopping 81 contributions over that half-decade span). The email had [this snazzy graphic]() on it and, in all honesty, it did compel me to contribute more, which is probably the point. Local Guides contribute so that Google Maps has a steady stream of fresh information, reviews and so on, which keeps the platform useful for other users. The [gamification, however, has drawbacks](): “The first is that it makes a user feel like they have more power (they don’t) and encourages behaviors to gain points for the sake of gaining points,” Ben Fisher, Google My Business Product Expert and co-founder of Steady Demand, said “I once heard a user tell me that they would do ‘check the facts’ and select ‘not sure’ on every answer, just so they could gain points.” Contributing so that all users can benefit is a good thing; it helps keep businesses accountable and lets potential customers know what to expect ahead of time. However, incentivizing contribution presents a conflict of interest which can cascade and potentially impact businesses. And, Google probably doesn’t look good either when users see irrelevant or thoughtless contributions, so what’s the point? George Nguyen,Editor [Google Ads location targeting glitch causes advertiser frustration]() If there's potential for it to affect your campaigns, make sure to annotate your analytics and inform your clients and stakeholders of the glitch. [Read More]() [Google recommends placing videos on dedicated pages for maximum exposure]() Google updated its video best practices SEO guide to say if you want a video to perform well in search, place it prominently on a dedicated page. [Read More]() [How much to spend on SEO: Budget strategies that fit your business]() A steady upward trend in SEO spending indicates that marketers realize the role SEO plays in helping prospective customers find their offerings. In 2020 alone, US businesses invested an estimated $79.3 billion to increase their organic footprint. But even if you know how critical SEO is to your marketing, deciding how much to spend on it is another question. While there’s no single formula to set an SEO budget, here are some strategies you can leverage to find a number that’s right for your business. [Read More]() [Microsoft Bing expands Shopping options for users, gives retailers more options to reach shoppers]() Many retailers would prefer their shoppers land on-site to discover the value of their products and drive value-based conversions. However, the buy now and checkout options could mean lower friction in the final buy. Either way, it’s worth participating in as the Shopping product continues to grow. [Read More]() [Webinar: 3 Ways to Turbocharge Your Team for Greater Marketing Agility in 2022]() Agility in business is nothing new. Businesses have always needed to be agile—experimenting, adapting, and changing—to succeed. But the difference today is the speed and scale of change required. Technologies are constantly evolving and customers, partners, and our own teams have new expectations and demands that need to be met. Learn why marketing velocity will be the new agility in 2022 and what that means for your organization. In this webinar, we’ll discuss three different ways to increase marketing velocity by focusing on optimizing and becoming more agile in your approach. [Reserve your seat.]() [How Google’s continuous scroll can affect impressions and CTR]() Reporting remains the same in Search Console, but eliminating the line between pages may result in new user behaviors, which can create winners and losers. [Read More]() [Google Search Console overcounted mobile page experience data since June 29th]() For over four months, Google has been overcounting some of this data - make sure you communicate this to your clients when you send them your next batch of reports. [Read More]() [Google launches new way for publishers to use first-party data to enhance targeted advertising]() First-party data is information that websites, advertisers, and publishers collect directly from users and searchers (that they give voluntarily). [Read More]() [Next week: Explore the latest in SEO, PPC, content and more at SMX]() Optimizing RSAs, the impact of page experience, embracing automation for PPC, and loads more… check out the critical topics you’ll explore with a team of industry experts at SMX, online November 9-10. [Register for just $289]() [Google News returns to Spain after legislation changes]() The reintroduction of Google News (and other news sources like Facebook) into Spain could benefit advertisers in the area as publications can net more traffic from these news aggregation sources. [Read More]() Shorts - Tracking rage clicks with Google Analytics, Tag Manager and Hotjar. The team over at Portent has developed a [method to get rage click events to appear]() in Analytics reports, be observable recordings in Hotjar and display a survey to visitors to provide feedback on their user experience. Tip of the hat to Rommel Alcobendas, CRO strategist at Portent, and his team for this hack. - Neeva’s trying to get the last laugh. Last week I shared a Squid Game meme from [Suganthan Mohanadasan](). Private search engine Neeva has since retweeted to [take another jab at Google](), but the execution makes me question whether the person who created it has seen the show or understands what Google’s search quality team does. - “I’m proud to announce that we are now Facebook.” Apparently [there’s already a PC company called Meta]() and they have a stunning sense of humor. And, speaking of [name changes]()… From MarTech - [Why marketers should embrace product analytics]() - [Microsoft enters the customer experience space]() - [Why collaboration and teamwork are essential in agile marketing]() - [Driving marketing at scale: Moving from a decentralized to centralized model]() - [Good morning: Are communities the future?]() Know someone who would like this newsletter as much as you? Copy and paste this link to start sharing: [() [Search Engine Land]() Reach the Search Engine Land community. Learn about advertising/sponsorship [here](). This email was sent to {EMAIL}. [Unsubscribe.]() [We respect your privacy.]() This email was sent by: Search Engine Land - a Third Door Media, Inc. publication with headquarters at 88 Schoolhouse Road, PO Box 3103, Edgartown, MA 02539 [Manage my subscriptions.]() © 2006-2021 Third Door Media. All Rights Reserved. Safelist us. [To ensure delivery to your inbox, add us to your address book.]()