0:00

Six months from now, you could

0:02

be running a 5K, booking that

0:04

dream trip, or seeing thicker, fuller

0:06

hair every time you look in

0:08

the mirror. Through hers, you can

0:10

get dermatologist trusted, clinically proven prescriptions,

0:12

with ingredients that go beyond what

0:14

over-the-counter products offer. Whether you prefer

0:17

oral or topical treatments, hers has

0:19

you covered. Getting started is simple.

0:21

Just fill out an intake form

0:23

online. And a licensed provider will

0:25

recommend a customized plan just for

0:27

you. The best part. Everything is

0:29

100% online. If prescribed, your

0:31

treatment ships right to your

0:34

door. No pharmacy trips, no

0:36

waiting rooms, and no insurance

0:38

headaches. Plus, treatments start at

0:40

just $35 a month. Start

0:42

your initial free online visit

0:45

today at forhers.com/talk. That's f-o-r-h-e-r-s.com/talk.

0:47

Contundant products are not FDA

0:49

approved or there are five

0:51

for safety effectiveness or quality.

0:53

Prescription required. Price Marys, both

0:56

on product and subscription plan.

0:58

See website for full details,

1:00

restrictions, and important safety information.

1:02

Imagine the Kitchen of your dreams.

1:04

It's a call away at the

1:07

Creative Kitchen Company Company. We specialize

1:09

in designing. completely transform your

1:11

kitchen to fit how you

1:13

live and entertain. From Beautiful

1:15

Kitchen Islands to clever storage

1:18

solutions. They make every meal

1:20

and gathering a special experience.

1:22

Let them bring your vision

1:24

to life. The Creative Kitchen

1:27

Company. Visit the Creative Kitchenco.com

1:29

or call us at 614-971-3448

1:31

for a free in-home consultation.

1:34

It's Friday April 25th. This

1:36

week. Shares are the new

1:38

legs. Meta admits engagement is

1:40

slipping. Google backpedals on cookies.

1:43

Threads ads get the side

1:45

eye. AI is eating your

1:47

clicks. And on X, drag

1:49

Elon, lose reach. I'm Steph

1:52

Gunn sitting in for Todd

1:54

Maffin. Here is your wrap-up

1:56

of the week in digital

1:58

marketing. We

2:00

start as always with the news

2:03

that broke in advertising this week.

2:05

In a major U-turn, Google announced

2:07

that it will keep supporting third-party

2:09

cookies in Chrome and won't roll

2:12

out a new standalone prompt for

2:14

them, meaning ad tech companies can

2:16

still use targeting tech in the

2:18

world's most popular browser. While this

2:20

marks a shift in Google's Chrome

2:23

cookie deprecation strategy, the privacy sandbox

2:25

project will continue. With upcoming initiatives

2:27

like the IP protection for Igcognito

2:29

user slated slated... for Q3.

2:32

Google's Q1 results are

2:34

in, with ad revenue

2:36

climbing 8.5% year-over-year, totaling

2:38

$66.9 billion. While this

2:40

marks a slight slowdown

2:42

from the previous quarter's

2:44

10.6% growth, it still

2:46

exceeds analysts' expectations. YouTube's

2:48

ad revenue was up

2:51

10.3% from last year,

2:53

reaching 8.93 billion dollars

2:55

in the first quarter

2:57

of the year. Overall,

2:59

alphabet reported 90.23 billion.

3:01

billion in revenue, a

3:03

12% increase surpassing analyst

3:05

forecasts. AI overviews now

3:07

have 1.5 billion users

3:10

per month. Checkout on Merchant

3:12

is now available for demand-gen campaigns in

3:14

the US, letting shoppers go from finding

3:16

a product to adding the product to

3:19

their cart or checking out on the

3:21

merchant site. The feature is now available

3:23

for campaigns on YouTube in stream. Merchants

3:26

can enable this by adding a URL

3:28

template of the checkout or cart page

3:30

in Google Merchant Center. Alternatively, enable it

3:33

at the product level by providing the

3:35

checkout link template attribute in your product

3:37

feed in GMC. This is available to

3:40

all US advertisers Advertisers. using product feeds.

3:42

Podcast ad revenues in the

3:44

US surpassed two billion dollars last

3:47

year, increasing 26% year over year,

3:49

per a new IAP report. This

3:51

is a significant jump compared to

3:54

2023, where podcast ad revenues grew

3:56

by only 5%. This growth comes

3:58

despite broader ad into pullbacks with

4:01

total digital ad revenues rising

4:03

15% year over year. As

4:05

time spent with social networks

4:07

flat lines, e-marketer forecast, podcast

4:09

will continue to thrive. 90%

4:12

of listeners have taken action

4:14

after hearing a podcast ad.

4:16

Time spent with podcast continues

4:18

to grow and companies are

4:20

tapping into the trend. YouTube

4:23

is excelling as listeners preferred

4:25

podcast platform. Netflix is reportedly

4:27

ex- exploring video podcasts and

4:29

Spotify has expanded its partner

4:32

program to stay competitive.

4:34

Threads now reaching 300 million monthly

4:36

active users is opening its feed

4:39

to ads. Image-based ads will appear

4:41

between posts as part of a

4:43

global rollout and meta is also

4:46

expanding access to its inventory filter.

4:48

The new threads feed placement will

4:50

be automatically enabled for new campaigns

4:53

using Advantage Plus or manual placements.

4:55

Advertisers can opt out of the

4:58

threads feed via manual placements. Ads

5:00

will be delivered in select markets

5:02

at launch. Meadow will also integrate

5:05

as brand safety and suitability controls

5:07

on threads and users will have

5:09

ad control options. And ads on

5:12

threads might be here, but Digitay

5:14

reports today, the advertisers aren't exactly

5:16

racing to test the new placement.

5:18

While some are eager to test

5:21

the new placement, most are taking

5:23

a cautious. measured approach. Advertisers see

5:25

potential in reaching new audiences, expanding

5:28

creative testing, and possibly lowering CPNs,

5:30

but for now are keeping a

5:32

close eye on performance before shifting

5:34

spent. One marketer sees threads as

5:37

a promising upper funnel tool to

5:39

test reach an engagement before committing

5:41

more budget. Still, most degree conversions

5:43

will be a tough sell in

5:45

the early days. As a result,

5:47

some advertisers plan to keep the

5:49

majority of their meta ad spent

5:51

on Facebook and Instagram. At least

5:53

until threads proves it can deliver.

5:56

And on another note, threads now has

5:58

a new web address, threads don't. has

6:00

acquired the domain and

6:02

is redirecting users from

6:04

the previous threads.net. Now

6:06

over to social media. How does

6:08

your brand's social performance measure

6:11

up to the competition?

6:13

Dash social released its

6:15

2025 social media benchmark

6:17

reports, analyzing KPIs across

6:19

12 industries on Tiktok,

6:21

Instagram, and YouTube. According

6:23

to the data, this

6:25

year, it's not about

6:27

who's watching. It's about...

6:29

who's sharing. Shareable content

6:31

is driving results. In

6:33

the last quarter, TikTok

6:35

shares are up nearly

6:37

60% and 12% on

6:39

Instagram. Posting consistently on TikTok

6:41

also pays off. Brands with

6:44

a steady cadence are seeing

6:46

25% more views and 70%

6:48

more shares than they were

6:50

six months ago. Frequency is

6:53

linked to engagement. Instagram growth

6:55

is shifting. While follower growth

6:57

has slowed, engagement remains. strong,

6:59

top performing brands are now

7:02

prioritizing impressions and shares to

7:04

track success. Meta's

7:06

CEO Mark Zuckerberg recently admitted that

7:09

time spent on Facebook and Instagram

7:11

has gone down meaningfully. This comes

7:13

as the company defends itself in

7:16

an FTC antitrust case over its

7:18

acquisitions of Instagram and WhatsApp with

7:20

what's app with Zuckerberg undergoing days

7:23

of questioning in federal court. He

7:25

said that users are shifting direct

7:27

interactions with friends to messaging apps,

7:30

a trend Meta has avoided addressing

7:32

until now. While the company once

7:35

flexed daily... user engagement reporting about

7:37

50 plus minutes per day across

7:39

its apps in 2016, it stopped

7:42

sharing those numbers soon after. That

7:44

silence now seems telling, especially as

7:46

Tiktok usage continues to rise. Recent

7:49

data shows that American Tiktok users

7:51

now spend an average of 108

7:53

minutes per day on the app.

7:56

Facebook users average about 63 minutes

7:58

per day and Instagrams... has dropped

8:00

to 48 minutes. How do you

8:02

get more businesses to pay

8:04

for the blue check?

8:06

Start warning users that non-verified

8:09

pages might not be legit.

8:11

Meta is testing an

8:13

in-app. pop-up that flags business

8:16

profiles as potentially untrustworthy

8:18

if they haven't subscribed

8:20

to Metaverified. It's a calculated

8:22

move to boost subscription

8:24

numbers, especially since most businesses

8:27

haven't opted in yet.

8:29

Metaverified starts at $21.99 per

8:31

month for Facebook or $34.99

8:34

per month for both. The company

8:36

will start testing these prompts and

8:38

labels over the next few months.

8:41

Meanwhile, Blue Sky is bringing

8:43

back the OG Twitter-style Blue

8:45

Checkmarks. The platform has launched

8:47

its new official verification process,

8:49

which combines platform-issued badges with

8:51

a decentralized option for trusted

8:53

organizations. The rollout will be

8:55

gradual with a public request

8:58

form coming soon. For now,

9:00

priority goes to government officials,

9:02

journalists, newsworks, and celebs. Instagram

9:04

is working on a new feature

9:06

called storylines, which lets users collaborate

9:08

on stories with their connections. With

9:10

storylines, Friends You Follow Back can

9:12

add related content to your story,

9:14

creating a larger shared narrative. For

9:16

example, if you host a brand

9:18

event, your connections can contribute to

9:20

their content to build on your

9:22

original story. These stories can be

9:24

seen by your followers, and if

9:26

posted publicly, others can add to

9:28

the chain. And Instagram finally

9:30

launched edits this week, its new

9:33

all-in-one video editing app, and direct

9:35

rival to TikTok Capcut. This app

9:38

lets users manage multiple projects, add

9:40

notes for future videos, and film

9:42

clips up to 10 minutes long.

9:45

It's like a pretty cap cut,

9:47

but without all of cap cuts

9:49

features. Other features include multi-channel editing,

9:52

trending reals and audio search, video

9:54

effects like green screen cutouts and

9:56

AI animations for still objects, and

9:59

users can Also export videos,

10:01

Watermark Free, post directly

10:03

to Instagram, or download

10:06

videos for other platforms.

10:08

Edits also includes auto

10:10

captions, royalty-free music, and

10:13

content performance analytics.

10:15

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months from now, you could be

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running a 5K, booking that dream

10:50

trip, or seeing thicker, fuller hair

10:52

every time you look in the

10:54

mirror. Through hers, you can get

10:56

dermatologist trusted, clinically proven prescriptions, with

10:58

ingredients that go beyond what over-the-counter

11:00

products offer. Whether you prefer oral

11:02

or topical treatments, hers has you

11:05

covered. Getting started is simple. Just

11:07

fill out an intake form online,

11:09

and a licensed provider will recommend

11:11

a customized plan just for you.

11:13

The best part? Everything is 100%

11:15

online. If prescribed, your treatment

11:18

ships right to your door.

11:20

No pharmacy trips, no waiting

11:22

rooms, and no insurance headaches.

11:24

Plus, treatments start at just

11:26

$35 a month. Start your

11:28

initial free online visit today

11:31

at forehurs.com/talk. That's f-o-r-h-e-r-s.com/talk. Tontundant

11:33

products are not FDA-approved or

11:35

verify for safety effectiveness or

11:37

quality. Prescription required. Price marries

11:39

based on product and subscription

11:42

plan. See website for full

11:44

details, restrictions, and important safety

11:46

information. To the Evolving World of

11:48

AI. Several recent studies have found

11:50

that Google's AI overviews are killing

11:53

click-through rates. Danny Goodwin covered two

11:55

of these studies. on search engine

11:57

land, noting that AI overviews are

11:59

significantly decreased. increasing clicks to

12:01

traditional organic listings, especially for

12:04

non-branded informational queries. One study

12:06

shows a 35% drop in

12:08

average click-through rates for top-breaking

12:10

pages with AI overviews compared

12:13

to similar informational keywords without

12:15

them. Another report indicates a

12:17

15% average click-through rate decline

12:20

when AI overviews are on

12:22

the page. Similar web data

12:24

shows 20% fewer clicks on

12:27

search results with AI overviews.

12:29

Meanwhile, Google's AI overviews are

12:32

coming to YouTube. Sort of.

12:34

Instead of text summaries, YouTube

12:36

is testing a new video

12:38

results carousel with AI-picked snippets.

12:40

When users search for certain

12:42

topics, the platform will surface

12:44

clips from videos it thinks

12:46

are most relevant. YouTube said

12:49

the AI overviews are most

12:51

likely to appear for product-related

12:53

searches, as well as location-based

12:55

queries. First it came for

12:57

search. Now its browser? If

12:59

the DOJ forces Google to

13:01

sell Chrome, Open AI might

13:03

be first in line to

13:05

buy it. ChatGPD's head of

13:08

product told a judge the

13:10

company would be interested in

13:12

snapping up the browser. The

13:14

comment came during the remedies

13:16

phase of the US antitrust

13:18

case where the court is

13:20

considering breaking up Google's

13:22

dominance in online search.

13:24

Now for marketing in a trade

13:27

war, e-commerce giants Timu and Shin

13:29

have confirmed price hikes for American

13:31

shoppers starting today due to President

13:34

Trump's tariffs, which China now facing

13:36

tariffs up to 245% Sheen had

13:38

urged customers to shop now at

13:41

today's rates to secure the best

13:43

deals before the price increases, which

13:46

will start today due to rising

13:48

operating costs. Both companies will also

13:50

be hit by the removal of

13:53

the de minimis exemption starting on

13:55

May 2nd, which previously allowed shipments

13:57

under $800 to enter duty. free.

14:00

Starting June 1st, retailers will

14:02

also reportedly have to pay

14:04

$150 tariffs on each package.

14:07

While tariffs are up, values

14:09

are down. As the Trump

14:11

administration continues to target DEA

14:13

efforts across the US, Two

14:16

major ad agencies, WPP and

14:18

IPG, have scaled back their

14:20

initiatives. Marketing group reports that

14:22

both companies have recently removed

14:25

diversity-focused language from their websites.

14:27

WPP deleted a paragraph from

14:29

its belongings webpage, which had

14:32

emphasized a commitment to building

14:34

a diverse workforce and promoting

14:36

gender balance and racial equity.

14:39

IPG removed a section from

14:41

its diversity and inclusion page

14:44

detailing how CEO compensation was

14:46

tied to diversity goal. with

14:48

consequences for failing to

14:51

meet them. Now over to

14:53

the psychology behind the buy. Research

14:55

shows that products with multiple related

14:58

benefits generate 40% more sales than

15:00

those with just one. The study

15:03

recommends presenting benefits that are closely

15:05

related. For example, a cream that

15:07

hydrates and softens your skin. Consumers

15:10

are more likely to choose and

15:12

recommend products with multiple related benefits,

15:14

rather than those with just a

15:17

single benefit or with unrelated benefits.

15:19

The researchers suggest that when we

15:21

see a... product with multiple

15:24

related benefits, we see the

15:26

benefits as connected and reinforcing

15:28

one another. This leads us

15:30

to believe that the product

15:32

will be more effective at

15:35

achieving its main goal than

15:37

a product focused on a

15:39

single benefit. On the other

15:41

hand, when a product offers

15:44

multiple unrelated benefits, we tend

15:46

to think its effectiveness is

15:48

diluted as it attempts to

15:50

address different needs. And finally,

15:53

after trolling Elon Musk

15:55

in December, a far-right

15:57

influencer's reach on X,

15:59

This wasn't an isolated incident.

16:02

Several other users experienced a

16:04

sudden drop in visibility following

16:06

their public feuds with Musk.

16:08

The New York Times reports

16:11

that these accounts saw a

16:13

dramatic decline in engagement overnight,

16:15

raising concerns that Musk might

16:17

be using his power to

16:20

punish critics, contradicting the expectations

16:22

of free speech advocates. So

16:24

speak freely, but not about him.

16:29

That's your digital marketing roundup for

16:31

the past five days. Want news

16:34

sooner? Get it delivered straight to

16:36

your inbox every weekday at 5

16:38

p.m. Eastern. It's free. Sign up

16:40

at today in digital.com/newsletter. I'm in

16:42

the hot seat for Todd today

16:45

because he's super busy with his

16:47

big Nanimo infusion weekend And you

16:49

haven't been following along on Todd

16:51

socials. The premise is simple He

16:53

invited Americans to come to Canada

16:56

for the weekend to basically support

16:58

the economy and they delivered So

17:00

the big event is going to be

17:02

tomorrow at 1 p.m.m. Eastern He told

17:04

me he will be live streaming it

17:06

on his YouTube channel, which you can

17:08

find at Todd Maffin video I'm on

17:10

the other side of the country from

17:12

Todd, so I will just be fan-girling

17:14

from home following along on his socials.

17:16

I hope you have a great weekend.

17:18

I'm Steph Gunn. Thanks for listening. We

17:20

will talk to you next week. Six

17:30

months from now, you could be

17:32

running a 5K, booking that dream

17:35

trip, or seeing thicker, fuller hair

17:37

every time you look in the

17:39

mirror. Through hers, you can get

17:41

dermatologist trusted, clinically proven prescriptions, with

17:43

ingredients that go beyond what over-the-counter

17:45

products offer. Whether you prefer oral

17:48

or topical treatments, hers has you

17:50

covered. Getting started is simple. Just

17:52

fill out an intake form online,

17:54

and a licensed provider will recommend

17:56

a customized plan just for you.

17:58

The best part. Everything is 100%

18:01

online. If prescribed, your treatment

18:03

ships right to your door.

18:05

No pharmacy trips, no waiting

18:07

rooms, and no insurance headaches.

18:09

Plus, treatments start at just

18:11

$35 a month. Start your

18:13

initial free online visit today

18:15

at forehurs.com/talk. That's f-o-r-h-e-r-s.com/talk. Tontundian

18:17

products are not FDA approved

18:19

or there are five for

18:21

safety effectiveness or quality. Prescription

18:23

required. Price Marys, both on

18:25

product and subscription plan. See

18:27

website for full details restrictions

18:29

and important safety information. Imagine

18:31

the Kitchen of your dreams.

18:33

It's a call away at

18:35

the Creative Kitchen Company Company.

18:37

We specialize in designing. to

18:39

completely transform your kitchen to

18:41

fit how you live and

18:43

entertain. From Beautiful Kitchen Islands

18:45

to clever storage solutions. They

18:47

make every meal and gathering

18:50

a special experience. Let them

18:52

bring your vision to life.

18:54

The Creative Kitchen Company. Visit

18:56

the Creative Kitchenco.com or call

18:58

us at 614-9713448 for a

19:00

free in-home consultation.