Is this thing on? *taps microphone* 🎤

It is? Fantastic! We’ve got some digital marketing to cover, so hold onto your hats (and I know you’ve got a lot of them if you’re in marketing like me)!

Let’s start with a quick quiz from our August editions!

1. Pick two big AI platform “reveals” we covered in August.
a. ChatGPT is using Google Search as a source in its responses.
b. Microsoft signed a deal to replace Copilot with ChatGPT.
c. Google Gemini is personalizing results based on past chats.
d. Claude is changing its name to Claudette.

2. Which company had a whistleblower say its ads platform performance was artificially boosted?
a. Google
b. TikTok
c. Meta
d. Don’t they all artificially boost performance?

3. What percentage of marketers in North America cite data analysis and insights as the top bottleneck slowing down marketing cycles?
a. 33%
b. 43%
c. 53%
d. 63%

4. AI Mode announced new features just in time “for the back to school season” including which one of these uses?
a. Outline templates for writing essays
b. Providing summaries of required reading assignments
c. Uploading PDF slides from a lecture and asking follow-up questions
d. I don’t know and I don’t care because I stopped going back to school years ago

5. Bonus Question: Which of these companies were highlighted in our weekly Do Good Spotlight?
a. Autism Housing Network
b. Outdoor Alliance for Kids
c. Habitat for Humanity
d. Project Innerspace

• EXTRA, EXTRA! 🗞️ GOOGLE DOESN’T HAVE TO SELL ITS CHROME BROWSER! However, the Federal judge’s ruling said Google has to share “some of its search results with qualified competitors.” It remains to be seen who those qualified competitors will be and if AI search platforms will be included. So, while we have some answers on the impact of the monopoly ruling, questions remain. Stay tuned. 

• Just as Google’s ranking algorithm remains unknown, AI search platforms’ methods for selecting information and citations are similarly unclear. “Let’s Look Inside An Answer Engine And See How GenAI Picks Winners” from SEJ takes a stab at breaking down the LLM content selection process into 4 stages:
  • lexicological retrieval (i.e. keywords usage), 
  • semantic retrieval (i.e. a more topical and connected approach to the content), 
  • re-ranking (i.e., can the content be used as a direct answer), and 
  • clarity and structure (the least important stage that could be seen as a tie-breaker for selection).
    These stages may sound new, but the context behind them should sound familiar….

• These tips are not only for helping your brand appear in AI Mode — they’re for better site content overall. My fave tips:
  • Publish like a journalist, not an SEO – write content from an original idea to be seen as a thought leader
  • Invest in Digital PR – Publish on third-party websites to build authority on your own.

• Reminder: Social media space is rented, not owned. Which of your channels is owned? EMAIL. 📧 MarketingProfs reviews how to move your social audience to email, including the Flodesk tool that can automatically segment your email audience.

• Some ad campaigns dramatically miss the mark. (Hello, cancel culture.) “The speed of culture has outpaced ad tech,” said Crystal Foote of Digital Culture Group.
  You: [skeptical] Where are you going with this?

Me: [smirking] I think you know.

You: No…

Me: Yesss.

You: AI…?

Me: BINGO! 🙌

Brands are using AI to find blind spots. But that still shouldn’t be your only cultural QA. Let me reword that…. Please don’t let that be your only cultural QA.

Alzheimer’s Association is working to accelerate global research to drive risk reduction and early detection for Alzheimer’s and all other dementia. Through quality care and support, their organization leads the way to ending the diseases. Learn more: Alzheimer’s Association.

Think of a hearty laugher in your life.

As their chuckles bounce off the walls, you start to feel lighter. The air surrounding you becomes remarkably less dense, while the buzz with the jubilation temporarily floats the weight of burden from your back.

Laughter is a medicine sometimes prescribed by doctors.

All the success in the world would lose its shine if fun was strewn aside along your way.

What I’m saying is: Enjoy the process. Perceived failures are opportunities for learning and laughing. Having fun is fun. So, have more of it.

Keep on keepin’ on! ✌️

Natalie

Did you see a pattern to the correct answers in today’s quiz?

1. a) ChatGPT is using Google Search as a source in its responses and c) Google Gemini is personalizing results based on past chats.  Though Claudette does have a nice ring to it.
2. The story we covered was about c) Meta. We would also accept the skeptics answer d) Don’t they all artificially boost performance?
3. c) 53%
4. c) Uploading PDF slides from a lecture and asking follow-up questions
5. Bonus Question: They all were highlighted in our weekly Do Good Spotlight. Here’s where you can get details on each: Autism Housing Network, Outdoor Alliance for Kids, Habitat for Humanity, and Project Innerspace.