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Going one step further on:

The grow first, monetize later playbook is what causes louder disapproval of ads.

I think personalized advertising quiets these objections back down.

#TikTokMadeMeBuyIt is the extreme end of this.

Ads feel less like ads if they are perceived to provide value (by getting you to purchase, subscribe, etc).

This is also where the uncanny valley of “they’re listening to me to target ads!” arises.

If privacy advocates and regulators keep pushing, we’ll soon see if I’m right or wrong on this hypothesis.

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Seems inflation makes ad-supported media more appealing

13% of consumers are opposed to ad tiers on streaming platforms, according to the survey, which polled roughly 18,000 US adults. That’s a significant decrease from last year’s 36% who said they were opposed to ads in exchange for discounted streaming.

There are some forms of media where ads are seen as normal:

  • Radio (now podcasts)
  • TV (now streaming)
  • Publications (now digital in oh so many ways)

The grow first, monetize later playbook is what causes louder disapproval of ads.

via Marketing Brew

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Finished reading: Evil Under the Sun by Agatha Christie 📚

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Create Google search ads, with AI!

The conversational experience enables advertisers to generate relevant ad content, including creative and keywords, from a website URL.

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TikTok tests feature to make every post shoppable as social media giant moves to create multibillion-dollar e-commerce business

TikTok looks to be following the Chinese social media app playbook, come hell or high water.

I don’t think an “everything app” will happen in the West. User reaction to the aggressive Shop push is increasing my confidence in this prediction.

users have complained about counterfeit and knockoff products sold on TikTok’s marketplace. Some also say the preponderance of ad-like posts from influencers is wrecking the experience.

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Threads is rising, TikTok is stalling, and Instagram is #1.

I’d venture weathering this latest challenger has Meta feeling nearly invulnerable, which is probably why Zuck feels confident enough to embrace open source for AI and the fediverse for Threads.

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You may have heard the Google Ads rule of thumb that you need 30 conversions before changing your bid strategy to Maximize Conversions. That’s not entirely true.

Max conversions can work on fewer than that. Target CPA or Target ROAS on the other hand, wait for 30.

per a Google Ads rep

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Sending a free copy of something to garner attention?

Send 2

Make it easy to share. Make it easy to spread.

Those who want to share it will identify the right audience better than you will.

via Josh Spector

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Wired: Threads?
Tired: TikTok?

Threads is continuing to grow, having tripled its downloads month-over-month in December

TikTok is still a massively popular app but its growth has started to slow amid consumer complaints that TikTok Shop is ruining the app’s experience.

via TechCrunch

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Meta has started rolling out its “first generative AI-powered features for ad creatives in Meta’s Ads Manager”

  • Background Generation: Creates multiple backgrounds to complement the advertiser’s product images
  • Image Expansion: Seamlessly adjusts creative assets to fit different aspect ratios across multiple surfaces, like Feed or Reels
  • Text Variations: Generates multiple versions of ad texts based on advertiser’s original copy

2 big questions for marketers:

  • Will we be able to opt-out?
  • Will we be able to approve, or at least nudge, the outputs?

I’m hearing the answer to both might be “no”