Be in The Know
🔍 Google simplifies the SERP.
💰 Meta is making billions from fraudulent ads.
🍔 Wendy’s launches “Project Fresh” to revitalize the brand.
🛣️ Google PMax gets Waze ads & channel performance reporting.
🛒 With $19 billion in quarterly sales, TikTok Shop now rivals eBay.
📝 Shopify just became the biggest company to launch a Substack newsletter.
🍕 Sigh. Pizza Hut offers 6 7 deal.
PPC: Lower CTR Might Be Better
For PPC, a high CTR is a win.
But… more clicks doesn’t necessarily mean more success. A lower CTR can actually signal stronger targeting, higher-quality traffic, and ultimately, a better return on investment.
Here’s why: If your ad attracts too broad an audience, you’ll pay for unqualified clicks that never convert. Ads with lower CTRs often pre-qualify users, setting clear expectations and filtering out those who aren’t a good fit.
To determine ad success beyond CTR, use impression-based metrics like:
- Conversion per Impression (CPI): Conversions ÷ Impressions
- Revenue per Impression (RPI): Revenue ÷ Impressions
And when you’re optimizing campaigns, ask yourself:
- Who am I actually attracting with this ad?
- Am I setting the right expectations for my landing page?
- How can I discourage unqualified clicks?
Remember, a slightly lower CTR paired with a higher conversion rate almost always beats an ad that brings in clicks but not customers.
Head to Search Engine Land for more.
Q for You
Tools
Gempod
Gempod is a bookmarking app powered by Apple’s on-device AI for saving, organizing, and rediscovering your bookmarked links.
It automatically analyzes and categorizes links the moment you “drop a gem.” If you’ve copied a URL, the gem icon instantly appears, allowing you to tap to save to an organized library.
From there, Gempod’s AI suggests categories, tags, and even a brief summary. Everything runs privately on your device and syncs through iCloud.
Watch
ThAInksgiving
Google is in its AI-generated ad era.
“Tom Turkey” is its first spot created entirely using Google Veo 3 and developed by Google Creative Lab.
We meet Tom, a turkey desperate to fly the coop and find an airline ticket through Google’s new AI Mode in Search. You can guess why he’s in a rush.
Judge for yourself whether or not it holds up to the “warm holiday ad” genre.
