⏳ Gatekeepers.

Big updates in the ad world, need-to-knows about building Twitter audiences, and more. July 21, 2022 [Read in browser]( [logo] [sponsor]( Good morning. If you need a break from the heat wave, try thinking about something cold. … [Like outer space](. The images from the James Webb Space Telescope are stunning, and quite moving. They certainly give us the chills. In a good way. ADVERTISING Google’s new asset library, Reels boosts, Netflix ads… [article-image] Lots happening in the sleepless world of advertising… Google is building a library: You can use their [improved asset library]( in collaboration with team members across your Google Ads account. The main upside is that you no longer need to reupload your creative assets across multiple campaigns. Instead, your team can keep them all neat and organized in a centralized place. … also, you can create videos from Google Ads: In other words, you can create YouTube Ads in minutes. You can choose a template, add branding assets, pick a track from the audio library, and voila, your ad is ready to debut. You can also add [voiceover to your video ads]( using text-to-speech technology… Neat. Instagram is boosting Reels: Literally. You can finally [turn your organic Reel into an ad]( that will appear in the feed, Stories, and Reels tab of the explore page. Just make sure it’s less than 90 seconds long, vertically filmed, and doesn’t contain any copyrighted material. … and Netflix is hitting pause: Originally they planned to release an ad-supported tier before the end of 2022, but now the date has been pushed back to the start of 2023. There, that wraps up the ad updates… for now. BIG TECH The EU is leveling the digital playing field It’s official… In a bid to prevent “gatekeeper” platforms like Google, Amazon, and Apple from abusing their monopoly powers, the European Council has [approved the Digital Marketers Act (DMA).]( A list of do’s and don’ts: The rules of the DMA require gatekeepers to… - Give users access to marketing and advertising data. - No longer rank their own products and services above others’ products and services. - Stop pre-installing apps and software—and preventing users from uninstalling them. - Allow developers to use third-party payment platforms for app sales. … and lots more. Why we care: As big tech platforms are forced to “open up” to competition, the entire European tech landscape could change. For instance, an iPhone user will be able to install any app store, use any browser as default, use any third-party payment provider, [and so on.]( The DMA will also likely present new opportunities and challenges to marketers as well. It will be interesting to see what those are as the bill takes effect. SPONSORED BY SEMRUSH Free your website of technical issues in minutes and boost your ranking [article-image]( At any given time, your website faces 130 possible SEO issues. Broken images. Complex JavaScript issues. Load speed problems. Any one of these issues could prevent your website from ranking higher on Google… and stop you from getting more organic traffic. [With Semrush’s All-in-One Auditing Tool](, you can locate these issues in minutes. It’s the same tool that Forbes, IBM, Samsung, and Tesla use to maintain pristine websites. And it follows a simple 3-step process: - Enter the name of any domain you want to audit. - Set the crawl parameters. Do you want to crawl the entire root domain, a specific subdomain, or a set of subfolders? - Get your results. [You’ll get a full report]( on your site health score and a prioritized list of errors, warnings, and notices about your site’s issues. [Ready to make your website flawless?]( GOOGLE How do you compare to your competition? You can find out with these Google Ads metrics [article-image] Keep this handy the next time your CMO asks how your pay per click (PPC) campaigns stack up against your competitor’s… Google Ads contains competitive metrics you can use to identify: - Who your real competitors are. - How aggressive they are. - Causes for fluctuation in your own data. In his Search Engine Land article, Jason Tabeling shows you [how to use three metrics to understand and improve your Google Ads performance](. Let the competition begin… 1 - Search Outranking Share: This metric shows you which domains are outranking ads and at which frequency. This is extremely useful for identifying “hidden” competitors or discovering whether a particular brand is selling their product through affiliates. 2 - Search Overlap Rate: This tells you how often a specific brand or domain appears next to you on the search engine results page (SERP). This metric is helpful for getting a sense of the brands your customers see when they search for your keywords. 3 - Position Above Rate: This metric reveals how often a competitor’s ad is shown above yours when they’re together. It also tells you when you’re bidding against each other for the same keywords. Of course, that’s just the surface. Jason also discusses the most important data points for each of these metrics, including impression share, “lost due to rank,” and more. Definitely a good read if you want to sharpen your Google Ads tools a bit or impress the CMO the next time you’re asked about the competition. SPONSORED BY PAVED How to make real profits from your newsletter [article-image]( Finding sponsors for your newsletter can be difficult… Trust us, we know how it goes! But with Paved, it’s easier to start generating revenue with every newsletter you send. The [Paved Ad Network automates your sponsorship program]([,]( while maintaining ad quality and brand style. Which frees you up to focus on growing subscribers and improving your content. Newsletters like Morning Brew manage sponsorships with Paved… Why not you? [Test Paved today!]( THE CREW’S INSIGHTS Should you try to build an audience on Twitter? [article-image] So everyone’s been telling you to tweet, build an audience, leverage that audience for sales… And odds are, you’ve thought about building an audience on Twitter anyway. Lots of marketers and founders do, and plenty are successful. But is it the right decision for you? [On a recent Twitter Space](, Sahil Bloom talked about things founders should know before they begin building an audience on Twitter. Ask yourself these questions: - Can I post consistently? … At least once a week, ideally more? - What are the topics I’m confident in talking about? - Am I willing to post consistently for months or years before I get a serious audience? The Crew’s insight: While building an audience on Twitter sounds great, it takes a lot of work—and it’s only worth it if you have ambition and an attainable goal in mind. In other words, if you only feel like you should be posting on Twitter, then you may want to reconsider the idea. Twitter isn’t easy. One final tip: It’s a lot easier to jumpstart your Twitter growth if you have friends or investors with large followings on Twitter. When you post something you’re proud of, send it to them and ask for their genuine engagement if they feel it’s a valuable post. A lot of founders and influencers on Twitter use this tactic. It definitely helps. ROUNDING UP THE STACK [E-COMMERCE](: Great news for Shopify merchants… The e-commerce platform is now offering insurance up to $200 for eligible labels purchased through Shopify shipping. So that’s one less thing to worry about… [META:]( Back to school. Meta recently launched Small Business Studios Workshop, which offers training in brand building, Reels tutorials, photography workshop, and more. Worth checking out if you’re using Meta products to promote your business… and who doesn’t? [INSTAGRAM:]( … goes local? The platform is releasing a searchable map that lets you explore popular local businesses nearby. There’s also an option to tag local brands in your posts and stories. Nice! [GOOGLE:]( Uh-oh… Now Denmark has a problem with Google. The government’s data protection agency ordered the municipality of Helsingør to stop using Chromebooks and Google Workshops because the search giant “doesn’t meet GDPR standards on several points.” [E-COMMERCE:]( For shoppers, it's the holiday season. For marketers, it’s the most hectic time of the year. If you need some help preparing, Reddit has a 2022 holiday guide for you. [GOOGLE:]( Don’t TXT… You can now verify your domain in Google Search Console using a DNS CNAME record. That’s convenient! BRAIN TEASER I can't be bought, but I can be stolen with a glance. I'm worthless to one, but priceless to two. What am I? You can find [the answer here](. [poolside-logo] POOLSIDE CHAT Forget Amazon and FedEx… [article-image] Rocket Lab is taking next-day delivery to a whole new level. Their next-day shipping program lets you drop off your payload and have it [floating in space 24 hours later](. There’s just one catch: You can’t just show up any old day to put your order in orbit—you need to discuss the specifics at least a few months in advance. Which has us wondering… Do you get a tracking number? We all know how easy it is to lose things in space… SHARING IS CARING Stacked Marketer is better with a beverage. So how about a special mug to go with your coffee, or tea, or… whatever you start the day with? All you have to do is share our newsletter with other smart marketers. Once you get to 30 referrals, we’ll send you a free mug. Plus, you unlock other prizes along the way, like: - The Crew’s Top 10 Insights (2 referrals) - Access to the growing library of The Crew’s Insights (4 referrals) … And lots more. Sip. Mmm, not bad. Share the referral link below to get started. [article-image]( [CLICK TO SHARE]( Or copy your referral link: [ [SUBSCRIBE]( | [INSIGHTS]( | [ADVERTISE]( You are receiving this email because you want to know what is going on in digital marketing. 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