Paid Media News & Opinion #97

5 big updates for advertising on TikTok

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> What’s happening

TikTok has announced 5 big updates across its performance tools, measurement capabilities and privacy technologies, as follows:

1. Smart+ – an update for the Smart Performance Campaigns, available across conversions objectives (Web, Catalog, App, and Lead Generation), with more AI-powered setup and optimisation

2. GMV Max – automated solution for bidding towards ROI across both paid ads and organic content

3. Out Of Phone: Retail – additional in-store digital advertising for retailers to show product content on screens in physical retail locations, available globally

4. Conversion Lift Studies – measurement of incremental sales achieved by ads

5. Privacy-Enhaning Technologies – integrations for advertisers to unlock insights with 1st party data, working with Conversion Lift Studies with a focus on privacy measures

The platform continues to grow as a key part of many businesses' marketing strategy, with TikTok claiming that 61% of users purchase something after seeing content, and that 79% of purchases are not attributed to the platform via traditional measurement.

These new tools are designed to help advertisers leverage TikTok even further.

> Why we care

The details on Smart+ and GMV Max, such as exactly how they work and how Smart+ differs from the existing (now old) Smart campaigns, are still cloudy. However, these solutions combined are a clear advancement for the platform in terms of driving performance and we’re excited to see how they can be leveraged.

On the measurement side, given that TikTok is often an inspirational platform for users, providing a way to more accurately measure the impact of ads will prove invaluable for those with gaps in their attribution. Privacy and consumer journeys are more complex than ever, making it difficult to understand the true value of campaigns across paid media – these tools should mark a large step forward in improving that.

Smart+ campaigns, on paper, look similar to Meta’s Advantage+, which has had mixed results for advertisers. We’re keen to test these new campaigns and see if the AI and automation within them actually delivers.

Google is rolling out Store ratings for shopping search results in the UK, CA, Auz and India

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> What’s happening

Google has rolled out store ratings on shopping search results to additional locations, including the UK, Canada, Australia and India. Previously only available in the US, these ratings help to give consumers confidence in your store and the services you offer. 

There has previously been seller ratings visible at the top of ads, but this offers a lot more detail and even includes specific customer reviews in detail, as well as additional information on shipping, return policies and more.

> Why we care

Credibility and validation from customers is a key factor in building trust for potential new customers to buy from you. Google shopping is a competitive landscape, so any opportunity to highlight your USP’s and increase consumer confidence in your business is likely to have a positive impact on your conversion rate and ROI.

There’s a link in the article to sign up to the free Google Customer Review program, or to gather your reviews from independent review websites, so make sure you do so today.

AI video announcements from Meta & Google

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> What’s happening

Meta has introduced new generative AI video tools, available early next year. The "Video Expansion" feature adjusts video assets to fit different aspect ratios by generating unseen pixels, while "Image Animation" turns static images into videos for Instagram Reels.

Google Product Studio also just launched a similar AI generation video tool in the US, soon to be released in other countries. Their tool can enhance images and highlight product attributes.

> Why we care

Although these tools are not yet available to us, they’re still exciting. Tools as such will have a big impact on scalability, producing multiple variations of videos quickly, which can then create highly targeted content.

It feels like every platform has jumped on the AI bandwagon recently, understandably they cannot afford to miss out on the competitive advantage AI offers.

What else we've been talking about:

• What Google’s new Performance Max controls mean for advertisers

• Google AI Overview ads launch on mobile in US