Advertising

The Ward Group Helps Us Navigate the Constant Changes in Paid Search Advertising

The Ward Group Posted On August 2, 2022

The Changing Creative Landscape in Paid Search Advertising

For years now, pay-per-click (PPC) professionals have relied upon expanded text ads as the primary paid search ad type in Google Ads. As a consumer, if you’ve seen a text ad on Google (trust us, you have), it was likely an expanded text ad that the business serving the ad to you created in Google Ads. Expanded text ads, or ETAs, consist of three headlines and two descriptions.

ETAs were once the new version of regular text ads (hence the name “expanded”). Formerly, Google text ads only consisted of two headlines and one description. ETAs came along, giving advertisers more space to convey their brand message to their target audiences, while regular text ads were done away with. Now, ETAs are old hat themselves.

As we’ve covered extensively in the past, Google is a platform that is constantly shifting & changing, and the newest update to the platform causing paid search advertisers everywhere to adjust is the deprecation of expanded text ads effective June 30, 2022.

Responsive Search Ads – The New Frontier of PPC Advertising

Now that ETAs are officially removed forever from the Google Ads platform, what remains in its place are responsive search ads, or RSAs. As Google has shifted in recent years to a heavier emphasis on machine learning & algorithms, responsive search ads were introduced to fit the dynamic nature of the way Google’s search engine works nowadays.

Whereas text ads and expanded text ads were static in nature, with a pre-determined group of headlines & descriptions showing for every search triggered within an ad group, responsive search ads allow PPC advertisers to create up to 15 headlines and 4 descriptions in the same ad. The ad will still serve the same way as an expanded text ad. Only up to 3 headlines and 2 descriptions are eligible to show in any given ad. But with RSAs, different ad versions are able to be constructed by Google in real-time, depending on the search that triggers the ad. This allows Google some flexibility to piece together a more relevant, differentiated ad combination to just about every user.

The advertiser also benefits from an ease of setup standpoint. Rather than needing to piece together several static ad versions to test against each other, and change messaging every so often to keep things from getting stale, RSAs essentially serve as multiple different ad variations in once to keep messaging fresh. Those who choose to create multiple RSAs are still able to, but the need to have multiple ad versions is not quite as high for those who don’t have enough time.

Is Everyone on Board with RSAs?

Although RSAs will be the only text ad version going forward, they aren’t new. Responsive search ads have been around since the summer of 2018. Since then, they have coexisted with expanded text ads, and paid search advertisers have been able to test the two ad types against each other.

One common knock against responsive search ads is the lack of transparency in reporting. Although advertisers are able to see some level of granularity as to which combinations of headlines and descriptions drive the highest levels of performance, it’s still lacking compared with the full control over messaging advertisers retain with expanded text ads.

Another common gripe with RSAs is the reliance on Google Ads to serve the right headlines & descriptions to the right searches in your ad group. Theoretically, RSAs provide the opportunity to include multiple keywords in the same ad group, with each keyword phrase as its own headline, and Google should choose the proper headline when each respective keyword is triggered. However, the lack of complete perfection in Google’s ad serving algorithms (along with the aforementioned lack of reporting transparency) has led many PPC managers to resist adopting RSAs to retain full control over their ads and campaigns.

Increase Your Response with RSAs

At The Ward Group, our PPC specialists have adopted RSAs from the introduction of the ad type four years ago, and we are well prepared for the change. Contact The Ward Group to see how paid search fits in your overall advertising strategy!

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Advertising / Social Media

What in the World is Happening on Instagram? Moroch’s Jake Bullington Explains

Moroch Posted On July 29, 2022

written by
Jake Bullington
Social Media Strategist/Manager

An Instagram ‘petition’ garnered over 1.5M likes, including from several members of the Kardashians clan, compelling Instagram CEO Adam Mosseri to send out an emergency dispatch from his incredibly hip and stylish home to let us know it’s all going to be OK.

The change folks aren’t happy with? The proliferation of Reels, Instagram’s copycat TikTok feature.

For a lot of creators – and just normal people sharing photos of their dinners and their cats (that’s all I share, anyways) – the platform’s hard and fast pivot to algorithmically delivered vertical video has been a lot to swallow.

Look, we as a society are afraid of change. Or at least allergic to it. And Instagram as a platform has been no stranger to change. Its logos, layouts and algorithms (remember the chronological feed?) have been changed periodically since its introduction into the mainstream over a decade ago.

What in the World is Happening on Instagram? Here's What You Need to Know.

Image via amritpaldesign.com

But Mosseri, Mark Zuckerberg, and the litany of other Facebook names that haunt us social media managers as we navigate the whims of their platforms’ directions, aren’t backing off on their quest to copy TikTok.

The biggest shift of all, is that all videos uploaded to Instagram are Reels. For real!

Here’s what advertisers and brands need to know about how Instagram’s pivot to Reels will impact your strategy on the platform:

Before, the videos you uploaded were pretty much limited to your followers, and any keyword or hashtag searches.

Now, anybody who Instagram deems potentially interested, could see your content. Similar to TikTok’s For You Page, you’re no longer talking to just your audience, you’re talking to the internet at large.

This is exciting for its potential expanded organic reach, something Instagram has been otherwise struggling to provide us. But at the same time, it presents some interesting creative challenges. When you’re talking to an established audience, there’s a certain set of knowledge or familiarity you assume viewers may have. Now, you’re starting with a blank slate of brand awareness every time.

But what about photos? The origin of the app, after all, is pics & filters! Well, Mosseri claims that technically they still have a place on the app. But anyone who’s posted a photo to their timeline in the past few months has seen the dramatic drop off of traction photos get.

The key takeaways for us advertisers, brands and agencies should look at with these changes:

Instagram, like it or not, is a video-first platform now.
Think vertical. Reels is a vertical format (again, copying TikTok!). Let your video team know that you’ll be needing more 1080×1920 than before.
The timeline is getting a lot heavier on ‘suggested posts’ and ads lately. For the followers who actually want to see your stuff, you’ve got to make it stand out and not look like just another ad. It wouldn’t hurt to make your timeline posts be instantly visually recognizable as your brand so folks don’t scroll on by.

Reach out to Moroch.

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Advertising / Media

Nike Chooses PMG for North America Media Agency

AdChat DFW Posted On July 28, 2022

Independent agency PMG and Interpublic’s Initiative are the big winners in the Nike global media review, which began late last year.

PMG has been awarded media planning and buying duties for North America as well as global digital responsibilities and Initiative will take on global chores outside the NA region.

The sports shoe and athletic-wear giant spent an estimated $345million on media in 2021, according to agency research firm COMvergence. That includes about $120 million in the Asia-Pacific region and $170 million in North America. The rest is spread throughout Europe, The Middle East, Africa and Latin America.

COMvergence estimates that more than 60% of the company’s ad expenditure is now digital.

In its fiscal 2021 annual report Nike said total ad and promotional expenses, which it collectively calls “demand creation expenses” totaled $3.1 billion. Promotional costs include product giveaways, endorsements and events.

Incumbents on the business included Wieden + Kennedy (which continues to do creative work for the client), WPP’s Mindshare, Stagwell’s Assembly and others.

Consultant R3 was hired to assist Nike with the review.

Nike issued a statement confirming the awards: “We are excited to confirm our partnerships with two agencies. PMG will support our integrated media in North America and be our global digital capabilities partner. Initiative will serve as our partner for integrated media globally” outside of NA.

Nike said the review is “part of our standard operating procedures to ensure Nike continues to have the best-in-class paid media agency partners around the globe.”

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Advertising

Fortunato Creates Fun Spot for TGI Fridays to Launch Hot New Menu Item, FRIjitas

Fortunato Posted On July 28, 2022

Dallas-based TGI Fridays recently enlisted the help of Fortunato to create a fun spot for the introduction of their new bold tasting Fajitas, branded FRIjitas. The new menu items offer something for everybody.

Kara Gasbarro, VP, Brand Marketing at TGI Fridays, stated, “For the launch of our new FRIjitas, we wanted a fresh approach to creative that was as colorful, playful, and diverse as the guests that walk through our doors every day. It also needed to be as bold as our adventurous new take on the typical fajita. The Fridays brand has always been a place for people of all stripes that like to live a little louder, and we think this new work captures that spirit.”

Rodrigo Maycotte, Partner & Creative Director at Fortunato added, “This was a super fun challenge for us – to deliver a fresh approach that allows us to show people what the Fridays experience looks like through a diverse, multicultural lens. Fun and celebration have always been at the center of the Fridays brand and we wanted that to come through in the work.”

Check it out…

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Advertising

LERMA/ Named Ad Age Gold Small Agency of the Year

LERMA Posted On July 28, 2022

Yesterday, LERMA/ was named Ad Age Gold Small Agency of the Year: 11-75 employees at the 14^th Annual Ad Age Small Agency Awards. The newly independent firm has evolved from a multicultural aficionado to a cross-cultural powerhouse.

“Multicultural marketing used to be an afterthought, but our country has changed, and we have evolved with it,” Pedro Lerma Founder & CEO of LERMA/ said. “As an independent certified minority-owned agency, it is exciting to be recognized for all the work we have accomplished, and we are eager to dream even bigger.”

LERMA/ is innovating the industry on all fronts with the development of its Brand Inclusivity Performance Index (BIPI), a first-of-its-kind communication tool that measures brands’ commitment to multiculturalism. Continuing to further its commitment to innovation and thought leadership, LERMA/ has partnered with The University of Texas to publish ongoing reports about Millennials and Gen Z, with a key focus on multicultural insights.

With over 400 entries nationally, the Ad Age Small Agency Awards recognizes standout independent agencies with fewer than 150 employees that are producing both noteworthy creative work and strong business results.

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Advertising

Plot Twist Creates Red Carpet Treatment Spot for Coca-Cola SW Beverages, Sponsor of Special Olympics Texas

Plot Twist Creativity Posted On July 26, 2022

At Plot Twist Creativity, we’ve created another promotional video for Coca-Cola Southwest Beverages with the help of our creative team Wendy Mayes and Bo McCord. Here are the details.

Greg Artkop, Director of Brand Communications at Coca-Cola Southwest Beverages, approached us with the story of their VIP tent during Special Olympics Texas. His team told us how they had set up this special VIP tent at a few different events and many of the athletes never visited because they didn’t think they were, in fact, the VIPs. So we created a spot that featured the athletes prominently and showed how Coca-Coca Southwest Beverages was literally and figuratively rolling out the red carpet for all the athletes at Special Olympics Texas. It was a nice bonus that a red carpet and Coca-Cola red are pretty similar.

We really love how this spot is all about the athletes that participate in the Special Olympics….it just happens to be brought to you by Coca-Cola Southwest Beverages. They are an amazing local company doing so many wonderful things in their local communities. We’re grateful to be their partner and have the opportunity to bring this story to life.

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Advertising

Firehouse Adds Creative Director, Niki Drellow to Their Growing Team

Firehouse Posted On July 25, 2022

Niki Drellow is a Creative Director with a flair for copy. His industry experience has seen him cover a diverse range from boutique creative shops like Vitro and Mutt Industries to larger agencies like AKQA and even client-side at Brooks Running.

Drellow prides himself on team-building — especially helping mentor and develop younger creatives so they have great formative experiences and shirk some of the conventions of older ways of thinking about the creative process. He also advocates that if individuals can feel unafraid to raise their hands when they need help or when they can offer it, the whole team can be free to make better work overall.

In addition to Creative Director, Drellow has held less official titles like motorcycle racer, fat biking enthusiast, midship grinder, boatswain, backpacker, gravel cyclist, ADV rider, sim racing nerd, Carhartt spokesperson wannabe, and spiritual seeker. His next adventure is in Dallas at Firehouse, and he couldn’t be more excited.

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Advertising

BeautifulBeast Creates Their First Spot for El Rio Grande’s Hiring Campaign

BeautifulBeast Posted On July 20, 2022

At BeautifulBeast, we are proud to share the first spot we produced for El Rio Grande!

This video is part of a hiring campaign that is currently running. As you can imagine, as labor hiring is still challenging for most companies and industries, ERG is not exempt from the situation. People still have the option to choose where to work. Therefore, we needed a different approach, away from the simple “Now Hiring” approach all around us.

We wanted to represent an opportunity for people with a good attitude and disposition to work that wants to grow professionally in a family atmosphere and impact their communities, regardless of their sociocultural background. El Rio Grande represents a career opportunity.

The central message of this communication effort is: Your future at El Rio Grande is more Grande.

Edgar Padilla, Marketing manager at El Rio Grande, added: “We want our customers to think: Of all the places I can apply for a job, El Rio Grande seems like a place where I feel I’m part of my community and can grow within the company. It is a place of friendly service with co-workers that feel like family. Most important, not only can I provide for my loved ones, I will advance my career path.”

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Advertising

Spire’s Julia Cardali Offers Brands 5 Steps for a Successful Brand Launch

Spire Agency Posted On July 18, 2022

At Spire Agency, we’re big on building, refreshing, and elevating B2B brands—in strategy, messaging, design, and marketing. And while many think the buck—and the budget—stops there, the Spire team rolls up their branded The North Face® quarter-zip sleeves and says, “We’re just getting started.” It’s one thing to build a brand and it’s another thing entirely to launch the new brand in-market, which is no simple feat. Luckily, Spire is here to help the “many” understand the importance of a proper brand launch and guide you through the process.

Step 1: Establish a Comprehensive Budget

Since budget is always top of mind for marketing managers and executives, it should be noted that the deployment of the new or refreshed brand is equally as important as the re-brand itself. As such, if companies are willing to invest in rejuvenating their brand, they must also be willing to invest in the proper launch of the brand. Otherwise, the former is not only a waste of dollars but can cause confusion in the market, which has the potential to lead to customer dissatisfaction and thus decreased revenue.

“Brand marketing improves not only the brand but other components as well, such as the return on marketing investment (ROMI) on performance marketing, customer advocacy, and even employee satisfaction. The bottom line: B2B companies that underinvest in brand marketing are literally selling themselves short.”

— Boston Consulting Group

B2B companies typically spend 5% of revenue on marketing annually. With this in mind, a brand refresh could cost anywhere between 10% to 20% of the overall budget, ranging anywhere from $100,000 to $300,000 and beyond, depending on each brand’s specific needs. Based on the sheer number and volume of assets that need to be developed / updated and rolled out in a brand launch, this range shouldn’t be a surprise.

Yes, it’s true, a brand refresh and proper launch are not inexpensive feats, but it is incredibly important to get them right. It would be a shame for a newly flipped brand’s entrance into the market to flop due to a lackluster launch execution, and vice versa. That’s why it is important to factor the proper launch of the brand into the overall refresh budget from the beginning.

Step 2: Set a Realistic Timeline

Given the plethora of components that need to be considered and updated amid refreshing an entire brand (or creating a new brand), it’s easy to become overwhelmed by the process. To further complicate things, each element of a brand refresh—from social media channels to sales collateral to an entire website—requires its own unique production process and timeline. That’s why it is crucial to put together a plan before embarking on such a multi-faceted endeavor.

“If You Fail to Plan, You Are Planning to Fail.”

— Benjamin Franklin

In developing a brand refresh plan, it is important to consider the order and cadence of the plan’s tactics and deadlines. For instance, you can’t get started on a logo until the brand name is established. And even if the brand name will remain the same, as another example, you can’t get started on designing a brochure until core messaging, tone, and color palette are established. Keeping all these specific project complexities and various lead times in mind is critical when establishing a plan.

At the same time, you need to be cognizant of the preferred launch date and ensure that all project deadlines are backed out from that date. Speaking of launch date, it is best to be realistic when choosing launch timing.

Brand and/or product names can take weeks to months for legal review and registration; messaging may involve interviews with busy stakeholders or traveling executives and takes time to craft; and website content development, design, and programming alone can take anywhere from six months to one year to complete, depending on the size and complexity of the site. Given the large investment and importance of getting the moving targets aligned prior to launch, this is not a process that should be rushed.

Step 3: Determine Your Initial Touchpoints

Each brand is unique and has different needs. However, there are elements that are more or less required as a first step towards a successful external brand rollout, including:

Name
Logo
Website
Brand Positioning & Strategic Messaging
Collateral & Sales Enablement Tools
Business System
Social Profiles & Email Signatures

Depending on how experiential you want the launch to be, there are further tactics and initiatives that you may want to consider. This is hardly an exhaustive list, but consider how you can scale your new brand or refresh your old one with:

Name
Trade Show Booth
Customer Notification (may include gift item, personal phone call, email, etc.)
Swag
Company Automobiles, Uniforms, Office or Storefront, etc. (if applicable)
Press Release and/or PR Event
New Brand Awareness Campaign
Paid Search
Etc.

This list goes on and on, and, again, is different for every company, depending on its specific needs, budget, and goals.

Step 4: Create a Meaningful Employee Rollout

The only thing more critical than the external brand launch is the internal brand launch. And yet, somehow, this crucial rollout step is so often missed and/or undervalued by companies. So, you might be asking yourself, what makes the internal launch so important?

First, employees are stewards of brand—both inward, to each other, as well as outward, to the world (including customers, prospects, and potential future employees). So, it’s critical that they are not just made aware of the shift in brand, but that they understand it, connect with it, and embrace it. According to the Harvard Business Review, “…when employees live [the] vision, customers are much more likely to experience the company in a way that’s consistent with what you’ve promised.” If employees are empowered to live the brand, passion and loyalty will shine through.

“When employees live [the] vision, customers are much more likely to experience the company in a way that’s consistent with what you’ve promised.”

— Harvard Business Review

With the great power of the internal brand rollout comes great responsibility. It takes time for a brand to come together from soup to nuts. During that time, only the core marketing team should be aware of the goings on, and more importantly, involved in decision-making for the new brand. It is vital that the efforts are not dribbled out (this is still not a drip campaign, people) so that surprise and excitement are maximized around the finished, unified product.

Take our client ACAP Health, for example. Spire worked closely with the client’s core marketing team for over a year on all of the necessary branding and asset updates, which culminated in an internal launch event for employees. During the event, employees were anxiously awaiting the tearing down of brown paper covers to reveal their newly updated office space.

Smiling employees excitedly entered their newly re-branded work-home.

Once inside of the space, the Chief Experience Officer of the company revealed the lobby area as well as some key components of the new brand, including the manifesto, visuals, website renderings, etc.

To learn more about ACAP Health’s brand refresh and rollout, view the work page.

Elements of a successful internal brand rollout include:

Environmental Branding
Employee Gift Box (may include new business cards, branded swag, etc.)
Delivery of Core Brand Assets (e.g., brand standards guide, strategic messaging, etc.)
Timely Shift of Website
Internal Launch Event (may include speech from leadership and/or marketing team: a fireside chat describing the new brand story, unveiling of internal branding, sharing branded treats, etc.)

Step 5: Involve Your Customers

There are many people that need to be made aware of a shift in brand when the time comes. It goes without saying that external brand rollout to customers, prospects, and stakeholders/investors is imperative. When planning how to notify such key audiences, it is important to consider that they may be reached best through different channels. For instance, you may be inclined to send high-value customers a custom, more high-end gift item, whereas you may not want to spend that kind of investment on a smaller customer. Or you may want the sales team to personally call each of their customer contacts as part of the notification strategy, whereas you may not want or need to spend the time calling prospects.

No matter how you go about notifying these key external audiences, take advantage of this worthy reason to reach out to these folks. It’s a chance to continue or begin a conversation. Let them know who the new company is, what has changed, why the change, when it will (or recently has) come into effect, etc. With that, you’ll also want to ensure that the external audience’s transition to the new brand is seamless. It should seem as though a flip was switched overnight versus elements of the brand getting dribbled out over time (this is not a drip campaign).

Even with the new brand rolled out externally, the work is not yet done. Although you’ll want to eliminate all instances of your old brand to mitigate any confusion in the marketplace, a transitional period is necessary to ensure customers and prospects can still bridge the connection from old to new. Within this transitional period, prominent pieces (e.g., website pop-up, email, direct mail, etc.) should have co-branded logos for six months to a year. That way you’re leveraging the credibility of the old brand while driving awareness of the new brand.

A consistent, positive customer experience is a main driver of building trust and loyalty. In fact, a study that surveyed over 200 organizations found that consistent presentation of a brand has been seen to increase revenue by 33%. In a world where it takes five to seven impressions just for people to remember your brand, companies ought to ensure that those impressions are consistent.

While there are ideas to execute and steps to plan for and budgets to consider, no business is alone when they come on board with Spire. As an award-winning B2B branding agency, Spire is here to facilitate all steps in the process to ensure your brand execution and deployment are flawless.

For more tips and marketing insight and to stay up to date on Spire news, awards, and blog posts, subscribe to our newsletter.

Julia Cardali is an Account Supervisor at Spire Agency.

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Advertising / Public Relations

BizCom Harvests More Healthy Growth Winning Salad and Go Account

BizCom Associates Posted On July 14, 2022

Dallas-Fort Worth PR and marketing communications agency BizCom Associates today announced the addition of Salad and Go to its world-class client roster.

Salad and Go is a gourmet salad drive-thru restaurant chain on a mission to make fresh, nutritious food convenient and affordable for all. With more than 50 locations across Arizona and Texas, Salad and Go provides customers with quick, affordable, healthy and delicious meals from a chef-curated menu. Each location features a variety of nutritious options including salads, wraps, soup and more.

The rapidly growing chain embraces philanthropy at the core and this passion for service is made clear by the company’s work in Arizona, where additional ingredients are purchased directly from farmers and suppliers to donate 4,000 salads each week to those in need.

BizCom has been retained by Salad and Go to support the restaurant’s rapid growth and evolution with an integrated PR and marketing communications program. Salad and Go’s continued success has it on track to nearly double in size by the end of the year, with more new locations across Arizona, Texas, and Oklahoma slated for openings throughout 2022.

“Salad and Go is revolutionizing the world of fast food, and we’re honored to support their philanthropic mission to make fresh food as accessible as possible for all. We are determined to amplify that message and increase brand awareness alongside record-setting expansion for the road ahead,” said BizCom Co-Founder and COO Monica Feid. “BizCom pushes the boundaries of PR, just as Salad and Go redefines how freshness and value can coexist. Our extensive experience in the business and food service industries can position Salad and Go for continued success, and we look forward to this healthy partnership.”

More information on BizCom’s range of services is available at bizcompr.com.

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