Daily Edition · Page 9

THE DAILY INDEX

Technology, AI, software, security, crypto and business

NEWS & TRENDS

TLDR Marketing

FIRST-TIME SUPER BOWL ADVERTISERS LOOK TO TACKLE STIFF COMPETITION

Häagen-Dazs, Instacart, and Duracell are running Super Bowl ads for the first time, spending up to $8M for 30 seconds of airtime. New advertisers must work harder to make their brands memorable, as established brands like Budweiser and Doritos already have strong associations with the game. Some, like Angel Soft, are using unconventional strategies, while others, like MSC Cruises and Häagen-Dazs, are leveraging celebrity endorsements. Many first-time advertisers spent years building brand awareness before their Super Bowl debut to maximize impact.

GOOGLE FALLS AS INSTAGRAM AND TIKTOK NOW LEAD BUYING JOURNEY FOR GEN Z

Social media is overtaking search engines for product discovery. 30.4% of Gen Z use Instagram and 23.2% use TikTok, while Google now ranks third. Social commerce is growing, with 72% of Gen Z and 65% of Millennials making purchases directly through social apps. Short-form video (1-3 minutes) is the most engaging format. US social commerce sales are expected to surpass $100 billion in 2025, reflecting a 22.4% increase from the previous year.

6 COMMON MANUAL BIDDING MISTAKES TO AVOID

Google will phase out enhanced CPC (ECPC) by March, leaving advertisers to choose between manual and automated bidding. Poorly optimized manual CPC leads to inconsistent results, but regular performance reviews with proper lookback windows prevent reliance on outdated data. Gradual bid adjustments, long-term reviews, and using bid modifiers like audience and device settings can improve efficiency and ad performance.

WHEN IT COMES TO BRAND ENGAGEMENT, MESSAGE MARKETING IS GETTING RICH

Rich Communication Services (RCS) is transforming mobile marketing by offering an app-like experience directly within messaging apps. 55% of consumers prefer swipeable product galleries, and 50% are open to text-based purchasing, making RCS a powerful engagement tool. Retailers adopting RCS see higher conversion rates and stronger loyalty by delivering personalized, interactive messaging without requiring an app download.

INVESTIGATING CHATGPT SEARCH: INSIGHTS FROM 80 MILLION CLICKSTREAM RECORDS

ChatGPT now refers users to over 30K unique domains daily, up from less than 10K in July 2024, driving more traffic to smaller sites and expanding content discovery. While traditional SEO remains important, brands should optimize for AI-driven search with increased mentions and listicle formats. With 70% of queries falling outside traditional search intent, AI search is more about branding than just traffic.

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