This Week’s Industry News
Compiled by the Rocket Clicks Team
Top Stories
Google Hiding Addresses in Maps Listings
Continuing its constant tweaking of the local search experience, Google has been spotted hiding addresses from searchers when they click through to the Maps listings via the Local Pack. The motive for hiding addresses is unclear as of yet, but it is likely just a test as most search results are actually returning listings with addresses included. Source: SEO Roundtable
AdWords Discontinuing Campaign Experiments
Although Google launched the Campaign Drafts and Experiments feature just earlier this year, they have recently announced that they will be discontinuing it in the following month. You will no longer be able to make new Campaign Experiments starting October 17th 2016. Google also announced that any active experiments will “automatically end and all unapplied experimental changes will be removed.” They recommend all advertisers end their experiments before the deadline hits. Source: Search Engine Roundtable
Image Thumbnails Becoming More Prevalent in Organic Mobile Listings
In an official announcement via Google+, Google has revealed its plan to add more images to the organic listings on mobile. This is technically being rolled out as a test for select SERPs, but will likely turn into a prominent feature for all queries. Source: The SEM Post
AdWords to Release Call-to-Action YouTube Video Ads
Google has recently announced a new TrueView video ad which allows users to create call-to-action buttons. These buttons can be adjusted to fit each specific video ad with calls-to-action like “Learn More” “Sign Up” or “Get a Quote.” In addition, they can be added to current video ads that are being displayed on YouTube. Source: The SEM Post
90 Percent of Consumers on Mobile Start with Search, According to Google
Google recently revealed the data from a survey it conducted of smartphone users. The survey’s most notable finding is that 87 percent of smartphone users turn to search as the first step in their “buyer journey.” Another intriguing finding was that 70 percent of consumers that bought a product in-store began their journey on a mobile device. Source: Search Engine Land
Additional Commentary
Are Competitor Campaigns Really Worth It?
Author Jacob Baadsgaard seems to have a bone to pick with bidding on competitor keywords. Although this has become common practice for PPC experts, Baadsgaard notes that it also has its downsides. He notes an example where a client’s Branded CPC’s started to steadily increase due to their competitor targeting campaign causing a branded term bidding war. This brings the author to ask: “Does the value justify the cost?” as he begins to note the inevitable low-quality scores competitor targeted keywords will give you, leading to an increase in CPC. Analysis: Jacob Baadsgaard, Search Engine Land
Introducing Progressive Web Apps: What They Might Mean for Your Website and SEO
In this guest post for Moz, author Pete Wailes forecasts what sort of impact progressive web apps might have on SEO in the coming years. To start, Wailes explains the unique value proposition of progressive web apps and gives examples of scenarios where a PWA might be useful. Then, throughout the remainder of the post, Wailes lays out a very detailed process for building a JavaScript heavy PWA. Analysis: Pete Wailes, Moz Blog
