Hiya,

I hope you’re enjoying the day so far. Let’s make it a little more fun with some digital marketing news, shall we?

• 45% of customers trust AI tools to find brand information, according to data from Yext. You know what that means? *cough cough* Your brand needs a SAIO strategy. Get our free SAIO guide by subscribing to our email list!

• Announcement from Google’s November 2024 core update: “This update is designed to continue our work to improve the quality of our search results by showing more content that people find genuinely useful and less content that feels like it was made just to perform well on Search.” It’s the seventh core update since March 2023. Make sure your SEO best practices align with the goal of creating relevant, helpful content that drives clicks and conversions.

DBE Perspectives 💬

How is SEO content adapting to a world of GenAI search? 

How are people searching on GenAI platforms? 

How can you set up your website for SAIO content? 

Learn the answers to these questions and more in our latest SAIO Content Writing article!

• Think with Google’s Insighter newsletter included this: “The week after Christmas is the fastest-growing sales period of the season.” Google also shares the four mindsets of shoppers during the entire holiday season as “deliberate,” “deal-seeking,” “determined,” and “devoted” in a sidebar link. Happy Holidays and beyond.

• This is an interesting piece from The Drum. Coca-Cola used AI to recreate its “Holidays are Coming” campaign. There are signs that the ad was created by AI (visible in Santa’s fingernail-less hands and the trucks’ wheels not spinning), but people still enjoyed the ad. Author Andrew Tindall points out that the success lay in the decades of brand-building, but that AI campaigns have successfully arrived. The cuts are so quick it’s hard to see the AI deformities. Once you do though, you can’t unsee it. Will people get more adept at spotting AI or will AI get so good people won’t be able to notice? We will see which comes first.

• Marketing Charts shares Sitecore survey data that looks at the 5 pillars of the “digital experience” (DX). The pillars are technology, strategy, content, intelligence, and optimization. No, you don’t see SEO or SAIO optimization because it outlines general marketing or commercial optimization. It’s interesting that responding companies all rated their level of excellence for each pillar at under 30%. Translation: there’s lots of room to grow.

• Social media usage trends roundup from a Pew Research survey of 5,600+ U.S. adults:
• YouTube is still the most-used platform with Facebook next.
• TikTok and Snapchat are popular among ages 18-29.
• X has seen a slight decline in popularity for the % of people who say they ever use the platform. But don’t forget that usage has declined overall in the U.S.

• Meta shifted its primary content metric to “Views” on Facebook to align with Threads and Instagram. Now, you’ll see view counts on your Facebook posts as well. It’s all a part of the goal to keep more people on the platform.

Thoughts to Take With You… 💞

Have you noticed yourself thinking up your response before someone else finishes what they’re saying?

We’re all guilty of it sometimes. That’s okay. Perfection is unattainable, but learning is 100% possible. 

The next time you’re in a conversation, focus on listening to everything first. Then, formulate what you want to say. 

For those afraid of the dreaded conversation lull, this is a reminder that conversational silence is perfectly normal. We don’t have to fill every moment with words. Some of the strongest communication cues occur in the space between phrases.

Best Wishes,

Natalie

Not the biggest fan of turkey? Totes cool. Here are some fun recipes to swap out for the traditional main dish!