Heya,

Digital marketing news never stops, so here’s your catch-up!

• Google’s May Core Update rolled out with significant ranking volatility. There’s no specific guidance with this one, but here’s a summary of Google’s previous advice. Pick your favorite source: Search Engine Land or Search Engine Roundtable. 

• (Almost) a hip-hip-hooray! 🎉 Google is introducing Search Generative AI performance reports in Search Console. The “beta” version will only provide aggregate Gen AI (AI Overviews and AI Mode) Impressions data for pages — no Query, Clicks, CTR, or Position yet. (Not like Bing Webmaster Tools AI Performance features that offer both Grounding Queries and Pages.) When will this new GSC feature be available to you? We’re still waiting to see AI Assistant as a default channel group in GA4, which was announced almost a month ago, so don’t hold your breath.

• ChatGPT early-access launched conversion ads on June 5th. NOTE: ChatGPT still says to treat their ads as a test channel rather than a performance one, soooo take this all as you will…. 

• Mini-dramas. That’s what TikTok’s new course is calling “a new program that will provide training on how to write short, episodic narratives, and tap into the key themes that make these short-form soap operas a hit.” Basically, you thought mini-series were too short, here come miniscule series on America’s favorite video-first platform. Here’s Social Media Today’s coverage.

• Speaking of series, Meta is testing a new Reels “Series” feature that lets select creators organize videos into episodes with a dedicated hub on their profile, mirroring TikTok’s functionality.

• People aren’t just typing keywords into Google anymore. Google Ads introduced AI Brief to allow advertisers to advertise based on a prompt instead of keyword lists. This, again, runs into the issue of trust and corporate AI usage rules. This may be a great feature for smaller businesses, but larger, stricter companies may have to wait until further testing is done to advertise.

• AI appears to be a double-edged sword when it comes to paid search hiring ads. It is cutting performance in two directions: 
  • First, AI is reducing headcounts (so less hiring and less need to market job openings). 
  • Second, traffic from GenAI sources to US retail sites surged 393% YoY in Q1 and apparently converted better than paid search and email (which may mean there may be less of a need to use paid search altogether).

Outright is fighting for the rights of LGBTIQ people everywhere. With staff in more than 12 countries, they partner with local organizations that work directly with the community to help push for change in governments globally. They even have a permanent presence in the UN in New York: Outright International. Happy pride, y’all!

Many kids pick up language before learning to walk.

As kids grow into adults, learning languages does not come as easily. (This is for a whole bunch of neurological reasons.) BUT DON’T THROW IN THE TOWEL JUST YET!

Duolingo’s article points out a bunch of great tips to keep your brain learning, but my favorite is “willingness to make mistakes.”

As adults, we swerve to avoid making mistakes, but the best way to learn is after making them (research for my doubters).

More mistakes = better learn!

I mean, “learning.” 😉

Peace out rockstars, 🤘

Natalie

That’s how many days Duolingo and I have been tight… because one day I will speak conversational Russian with my fiance’s family. (How many nuanced endings can one noun have? Too many for one girl to keep up.)

*cue “Seasons of Love” from Rent for my folks who tried to sing the lyrics while reading “1,329 Days”… or was that just me?*