The TwoSix team is back and ready to share what’s On Our Radar for August so that you can stay ahead of the always-evolving digital marketing landscape. This month the TwoSix team discusses OpenAI’s new SearchGPT, Facebook Security Concerns, Reddit Lead Generation Ads, and more! Keep reading to find out what we’re keeping On Our Radar for August 2024.

OpenAI’s new SearchGPT prototype is designed to enhance web search by combining the capabilities of AI language models with real-time information from the web. Unlike traditional search engines – like Google and Bing – that provide a short summary and list of links, SearchGPT aims to deliver direct, concise answers with citations to original sources. This conversational interface allows users to ask follow-up questions, making search interactions more intuitive and efficient. For travel marketers, SearchGPT presents an opportunity to optimize content for AI-driven searches. By focusing on producing high-quality, authoritative content – like blog posts or landing pages that feature your most popular travel experiences, marketers can improve their visibility in SearchGPT results. The tool’s emphasis on clear attributions and links can drive additional traffic to your DMO or travel websites, offering the potential for higher online engagement and conversions. Click the button below to read more about SearchGPT here and get on the waitlist!

Things haven’t relented during the last month when it comes to the increase in hacked or compromised social media accounts we’re experiencing. Last week I received three more requests from DMOs asking for assistance in recovering hacked and inaccessible accounts. Unfortunately, not every case ends with positive results. Sometimes, an account is simply not recoverable for one reason or another. These losses especially break my heart because I know how much time and effort goes into creating content, especially Reels and Stories. To be on the safe side, we recommend that you regularly back up your content so that if tragedy strikes, you’ll have a plethora of content to get a new account established in no time. Here are a few tools that can help to make these backups a breeze: Inflact Downloader: The tool will allow you to download photos, videos, stories, and Reels individually. This is great for a particular piece of content that performed extremely well or one that you dedicated enormous effort to. You can even download content for UGC purposes (with permission of course). 4K Stogram: Maybe you want to download your entire Instagram account? This is a perfect tool to use. 4K Stogram can do individual content or an entire account. This is a paid tool, but worth every penny! This option allows you to instantly download everything from your Instagram account, even one that you don’t currently have access to. That can be huge if your account is still out there but you’re unable to gain control of it. Instagram Backup: Instagram also has a backup option that will allow you to download your content. That is, IF you still have access to the account. The download can take up to 30 days to generate. Definitely worth putting into your task list each quarter or so. Of course, there is no shortage of options to back up your accounts. The most important thing is to get it on your to-do list and make it happen. Better to be safe than sorry! Starting from scratch is painful, but a little less painful when your content war chest is overflowing with content that’s ready to be given a second life! Don’t forget to review the steps we featured last month when it comes to securing your accounts.

What’s Happening: Automatic Invites to Control Your Meta Business Portfolio

 

 

Recently, one of clients just flagged a major issue: Facebook automatically invited users that had access to their page to their Meta Business Portfolio. The message they saw was “People who work on Pages will be invited to (client name) Business portfolio starting July 26, 2024”. When we scoured the internet, we saw that others have seen the same thing, but in reverse — they were invited to manage Meta Business Portfolios. Also, I know, that’s a lot of jargon. But I’ll break it down for you.

Why It’s a Security Concern: People With Old Access Could Go Rogue

In the case of our client, someone that had access to their Facebook page, from years ago, seemingly gained a higher level of permissions and actually posted on their Facebook page. Imagine if some random intern from a decade ago had their profile hacked in the meantime and then suddenly got access to your who Meta setup. You’d be in big trouble! We’ve been saying this for years in our Digital/Social Media Audits — check who has access to your page. On the flip side, some users who work for the business have declined the automatic invite and lost access. That’s almost worse. Don’t decline the message if you get it.

What is Meta Business Portfolio anyway? Hint: It’s Crucial for Access

 

 

Okay, so what is Meta Business Portfolio? It’s basically what used to be called “Meta Business Manager”, but with a new design. That’s it. If you’re wondering what Meta Business Manager is, check out our blog “Meta Business Suite vs Meta Business Manager”. It’s incredibly significant because it’s where ownership of Facebook pages and Instagram accounts is located.

What to Do: Accept Any Invites & Check Who Has Access

 

 

First, if you get a message inviting you to a Meta Business Portfolio, please accept it! You do not want to get locked out. Second, check who has access to your Facebook page and remove anyone who shouldn’t be there. You can do this by switching to your Facebook page, clicking on the page icon in the top right, clicking “Settings & Privacy” and “Settings”, then navigating to “Page setup” on the left and then selecting “Page access”. Third, check on who has access to your Meta Business portfolio. You can do so by going to https://business.facebook.com/latest/settings/business_users/.

In the last 4+ years, marketers have spent a lot of time preparing for the death of the cookie. After new privacy regulations were passed in places like California and the EU in 2020, digital marketers have been scrambling to find new ways to find high-value, relevant audiences online while complying with new standards. Thing began getting serious for the industry at large with the release of the iOS 14 update in 2021, which gave users the option to opt-out of tracking from apps, as well as new privacy protection of Apple’s Safari web browser. Around the same time, Google announced that it would be phasing out Cookies completely in 2022. Since then, almost every ad platform has come up with their own solution to reaching and tracking users who have opted out of third-party tracking, like Meta’s Conversion API, for example, but with limited success. Google’s initial announcement to phase out cookies was probably the scariest for marketers, given how much advertising happens through their platforms and the reliance on Google Analytics 4 (GA4) for tracking website use. So when Google announced that it wouldn’t be phasing out cookies after all, many of us were left scratching out heads, wondering what all the effort and trouble from the last 4+ years was for? So while the death of cookies being canceled makes for a great headline, it’s not quite the whole story. Google will not be phasing out cookies, but it will be giving Chrome users the option to ask websites not to track them – very similar to what we already saw with IOS 14. This will no doubt impact a significant amount of traffic. Marketers should continue to expect to have access to less user data, less third-party data, and continue to find new creative ways to harness first-party data to drive results.

We talked last month about Reddit’s conversation ads, well they’re making headlines again with the launch of their lead generation ads. Many platforms now have the ability to collect leads, here at TwoSix we have found great results using Meta to collect leads for our destinations, but they are popping up on several other platforms such as TikTok and Reddit and they seem to be doing pretty well.

 

 

The ads are simple and more mobile friendly making it easy for users to fill out the forms. During the beta test, advertisers reported seeing a decrease in cost per lead and an increase in lead submission compared to other conversion campaigns they were testing. TikTok is also utilizing an instant form similar to Meta and could help contribute to an increase in video views if users go to your profile and an increase in leads as well.

These may be something to consider if you’re looking to expand your lead generation campaigns in the future.

As we discussed last month, Email Newsletters are an essential part of your DMOs marketing strategy. In case you missed it, the key reasons to prioritize email marketing are its substantial ROI and massive influence over consumer’s buying decisions. Over the past month, I have seen more and more professionals in the marketing space discussing the power and popularity of email. The verdict is- newsletters are so back.

 

 

Newsletters are arguably bigger than they’ve ever been. With it becoming increasingly difficult to organically reach your followers across social media platforms, marketers are looking for a more direct way to stay in touch with consumers.

As people move back to email, it’s important to understand the best practices and trends to stand out from the crowd. Some trends to keep in mind while building out your email marketing strategy are:

• Artificial Intelligence: Use AI tools to help create unique and intriguing subject lines and determine the best times to send emails for your audience.
• Automation: Using automated emails such as welcome or reengagement email series can strengthen your email strategy and create active subscribers that look for your content.
• Segmentation & Personalization: While segmenting out lists of subscribers and creating personalized email are not new concepts in email marketing, they are becoming more valuable tools in 2024. Personalized emails receive higher open and click rates than generic ones, so segmenting your lists is a great habit to get into.
• Optimizing for Mobile: One of the most important best practices for email newsletters in 2024 and beyond is optimizing your email templates for mobile. I’d be inclined to bet that a vast majority of your email opens are coming from mobile devices, so making sure they appear correctly in this format is essential. Be sure to test all of your emails on mobile devices (and in dark mode), keep your email copy as concise as possible, keep all email content easily skimmable, and create templates that keep your content in the correct order on all devices.
• Interactive Emails: While there aren’t content options for interaction on all email platforms yet, this is a great trend to keep on your radar moving forward. Keep an eye out for image carousel options, quizzes, surveys, and polls, along with embedded videos and clickable menus. These types of tools will help to spice up your emails and keep readers engaged in your content!

As always, if you have any questions about email marketing, building your list, or would like assistance with creating a robust email marketing strategy, be sure to contact us! Happy sending!

 

OpenAI announced its long anticipated search product this month: SearchGPT. The product is still a temporary prototype that’s limited to just 10,000 users and publishers at launch, but we’ll likely see this concept carve a new path for AI-driven search and possibly gain traction as a widely used search engine.

Many people are already using ChatGPT like a search tool, asking it basic questions, and receiving responses from its knowledge based on trained data.

SearchGPT aims to combine OpenAI’s conversational models with relevant information and direct sources from the web.  You’ll be able to ask follow-up questions, like you would in a conversation with a person, as the algorithm builds shared context with each query.

In addition to launching the prototype, OpenAI is also working on launching ways for publishers to manage how they will appear in SearchGPT search results, which is something to keep an eye on as opportunities arise to optimize your site for AI-driven search engines, and the possibility of prioritized placements being offered within the platform.

SEO Best Practices for AI-Driven Search Engines:

If you haven’t already, it’s time to gear your SEO towards AI-driven search results. Here are a few ways to do so. You may already recognize these as proven, fundamental SEO strategies, but the following tactics will be particularly crucial in AI-Driven Search.

Structure your content for AI

Optimize your content for featured snippets. Featured Snippets are the short answers that appear on top of search results.

 

 

Use clear headings and subheadings, and include bulleted or numbered lists when appropriate. Keep your content concise and direct, and answer common questions and trending topics. You can use Google’s “people also ask” section to get an idea for what other common questions or phrases people are searching for related to your topic.

 

 

Take Advantage of Long-Tail Keywords

Long-tail keywords are specific phrases that are longer and more detailed than traditional keywords. They tend to be more conversational and natural-sounding; therefore, people are more likely to use them when speaking to AI assistants like Siri or Alexa.

Voice search optimization involves creating content that’s optimized for the way people speak, rather than the way that they type. To find the best longtail keywords for your website, consider the questions that your target audience might ask when searching for your product.

For example, instead of using the keyword “restaurants near me” you might use the long-tail keyword “where can I find the best restaurants to eat at near me?”

In addition to being more conversational, long-tail keywords are also more targeted. Someone searching for “restaurants near me” could be searching for jobs at restaurants, or restaurants with delivery. Meanwhile, someone asking “where can I find the best restaurants to eat at near me?” is ready to dine at that location as a customer.

Create Thorough and Authoritative Content

Creating high-quality content is also an important aspect of SEO for AI search engines. Your content should be comprehensive and cover a topic thoroughly. You can use subheadings and bullets to break up content and make it easier to digest for the user.

Content should also be authoritative. Creating content that is well-researched, cites several sources, and provides accurate information will help AI to recognize it as a thorough and trustworthy source.

Use AI to AID your Writing Process, not write for you.

Although AI can write a blog post for you with as little as a prompt and a single click, it won’t necessarily be as properly sourced, optimized for search or relevant as it could be without uniquely human expertise. A high-quality and comprehensive article is still easily recognizable when placed side-by-side with a fully AI-written article.

Rather, use tools like ChatGPT to streamline your workflow and improve the effectiveness of your content.

Don’t be misleaded by the title of this article, because it’s unlikely Google will be going anywhere anytime soon. Google has built decades worth of infrastructure, and an unparalleled index of web pages. Not to mention, it has solidified its place as the default search engine for many and integrates well with a powerful array of tools and features like the Google Suite, Google Maps, YouTube, and other elements of the Google Search experience.

As Google continues to hold around 90% of the search-engine market share and faces antitrust trials, it will be interesting to see how SearchGPT could impact the narrative.

With the ever-changing digital marketing world, we are here to keep you informed of new digital trends and what we are keeping on our radar each month. Have any questions? Contact us! We’re here to help. Be sure to subscribe to our newsletter  to receive monthly updates on trends and insights in the digital marketing and tourism industries straight to your inbox! Click the buttons below to connect with us on social media and stay in the loop on all things TwoSix Digital.