The latest on Google's June 2019 core update, Instagram's Paid Partnerships, the rise in digital ad fraud, junk food ads aimed at children banned, Google faces DOJ investigation

The big news this week is the rollout of Google's latest core algorithm update, which started on June 3rd and (as of today) is still ongoing. We've taken a look at what the industry knows about the effects so far. In good news for brands who work with influencers, Instagram is making it easier than ever to use their content. The social media platform has announced a new tool that could benefit both influencers and brands. A new report has suggested that ad fraud could result in costs of up to $30 billion this year, which will likely be put on the shoulders of smaller companies. The ASA has announced that eight well-known food brands had ads banned from Google after they were shown alongside content…

Google search results update, LinkedIn's ad tab, Instagram data breach, digital ad complaint increase and Pinterest does Pride Month

This week has seen a few interesting announcements, including the fact that Google is updating how its search results look, impacting the way paid results are showcased. LinkedIn has announced that it is aiming to improve transparency with a new ad tab for company pages while Facebook is investigating a possible Instagram data breach. On top of this, the ASA has released data on advert complaints, showing that complaints about digital ads now outpace those about TV adverts. Finally, Pinterest has revealed some interesting data around Pride Month, as well as some new features to help celebrate it. Find out more about these stories with our latest news roundup.  

Google updates mobile search results

Google is updating the way its search listings look,…

Consumers don't trust influencers, Facebook launches 3 new ad tools for small businesses, Amazon storing UK biometric data, Facebook relaxes cryptocurrency ad rules, Google's new consumer privacy plans, Facebook removes "dangerous users", digital ad revenues top $1bn, Facebook political ad warning and Singapore passes 'fake news' law.

This week has seen a number of big digital and marketing stories in the headlines. We've taken a look at some of the biggest, including new findings that show only 4% trust information shared by celebrity influencers, bloggers and vloggers. On top of this, Facebook has announced three new advertising tools that are aimed at helping small businesses make the most of the platform. There are also concerns being raised about a new Home Office contract that could see Amazon storing biometric information belonging to millions of people in the UK. Other Facebook news reveals that the platform is loosening its rules on advertising related to cryptocurrencies…

Singapore proposes a new law to stop fake news, Mark Zuckerberg calls on government internet regulation, Amazon stops aggressively marketing its own brands and the ASA uses tracking technology to assess ads aimed at children

This week has seen Singapore suggest a new law that could ultimately fine tech giants for failing to stop the spread of fake news. If passed, companies could be fined up to SGD$1 million for breaking the regulations. While Singapore's suggest law has met with criticism, Mark Zuckerberg is calling for more regulation when it comes to the internet. The Facebook founder wants governments to be more involved with updating current rules in four key areas. Amazon has stopped aggressively marketing its own products following complaints, opting for a softer approach to showcasing its own brand items on its platform. Finally, the ASA has used tracking technology for the first time to see what ads are being served to…

Everything you need to know to maximize the revenue of your digital inventory

It used to be that advertising meant newspaper ads and flyers. In today’s digital world, advertising has reached new levels. Advertising has evolved into a global marketplace and now requires many relationships that extend further than the typical publisher/advertiser bond we’ve all become familiar with. But no matter how complicated and complex this global industry may become, the relationships between publisher and advertiser (and everyone in between) are crucial in keeping up with changing practices. [si_guide_block id="N5697" title="Download our Premium Resource – Digital marketing planning spreadsheet" description="This Microsoft Excel spreadsheet has been created to help you create a clearer acquisition plan to improve leads and sales. The spreadsheet will enable you to create a budget for the year ahead to define and then optimize your investment in search marketing, display advertising, affiliate marketing and online PR."/]

Advertising relationships before the digital age

During…

Facebook's new smart speaker, LinkedIn's re-built Pages, Twitter cracking down on "suspicious" follows, $100 billion worth of digital ad spend and the UK increasing festive ad spending in 2018

Social media platforms have made some interesting announcements over the next month. From re-building a part of the platform from the ground up to help improve engagement to launching smart speakers. Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter are all in our weekly news roundup once again. We're also exploring the success of digital ad spend so far this year, showing that traditional forms of advertising are taking a back seat to social media and video. Of course, we can't get away from taking a look at Christmas advertising, especially with the John Lewis advert being released this week. It seems that Christmas ad spending in the UK is getting a boost as the high street hopes to increase footfall. Find out more by reading five of the…

Where is the digital advertising industry today?

When the digital advertising industry broke out, many digital marketers used to rave about the fact that it’s much more transparent and traceable than traditional forms of advertising, such as radio and TV. Today, the digital advertising world makes up almost half of the advertising industry and is faced with some challenges, of which, transparency and traceability seem, ironically, to be holes in the system manifesting in issues like ‘ad fraud’ for instance. The estimated cost of fraud in digital advertising in 2018 is around $19 billion and that figure is expected to grow by over 230% by 2022 to hit $44 billion (statista), according to the current variables. Much of the losses come from ‘non-human traffic’ or what’s known as ‘bot traffic’ but there are also other types of waste like ad-blocking software. Fraud losses will amount to 22% of video spending, according to…

Digital advertising trends have shifted from desktop to mobile in recent years. This mobile-first approach is quickly taking over as the preferred method for digital advertising and is on the cusp of being the most focused on medium for ad campaigns.

But mobile-first is not the only digital advertising trend that has pushed to the forefront of the marketing sector. We’ve researched what the future holds for digital advertising, and have come back with some deep and interesting insights into five advertising trends that will have a strong impact through the rest of 2018: Mobile-first advertising Personalization in digital marketing The effectiveness of video advertising Impact of location-based targeting The effect of micro-moments on consumers

Mobile-first advertising

Mobile-first was intended to notify consumers that a company cares for its websites and digital forms of communication while remaining…