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YouTube, has introduced a “Breaking News” section on its homepage, it shows a collection of videos pertaining worldwide news and events. The feature appears on both mobile, as well as desktop.

Barcelona attack being the very recent major incident happened across the world, the Breaking News section was showing the videos related to it. The section shows region-specific videos displayed in horizontal scrollable format, the section includes options like ‘Recommended’, ‘Watch It Again’, and ‘Recently Uploaded’.

If users do not wish to see the Breaking News section, they can remove it from their homepage, by clicking on ‘X’ if using a desktop or ‘Not Interested’ if using mobile.

Still, it is not clear if the ‘Breaking News’ will appear daily or only when some major incident occurs. The feature is live on live on the iOS and Android YouTube apps, as well as the desktop site.
 

Google is big, like really big, like civilization level big! So when a company this big introduces something, even the most apathetic person gets excited. And this year at annual I/O, They introduced a lot of cool new things, but the one that got everyone’s attention was the “Google Lens”. 

Although there have been several unsuccessful attempts in the past to launch the same technology, this time it looks that the image recognition technology will finally be able to take off. Since the Google’s AI has become more sophisticated, it seems that now the Camera lens can be used in many more ways than just taking the selfies.

The main highlights of the Google Lens are: 

Business Details: Just point your mobile camera at store fronts and Google will provide you with knowledge graph and other vital details about that business. 

Connect WiFi: No need to manually enter the password, just click an image of the default username and password and your phone will automatically connect to the WiFi.

Image Recognition: Now you can get results based on what you are seeing. Just take a picture of the flower you want to know more about, and Google will provide you with all the details.

Exciting, isn’t it! Here’s the video.

2015 brought some of the biggest changes and updates in digital marketing. Be it the launch of mobile friendly algorithm, several Phantom Quality updates, 28th Panda Update in July, death of Google Plus, Google as a subsidiary of Alphabet or the RankBrain, 2015 was jaw dropping from every aspect.

As predicted, Mobile remained the focal area of Google in every facet. Not only has Google declared that a mobile optimized website is essential to rank higher, but it also launched AMP (Accelerated Mobile Pages) which took their mobile obsession one step further.

Overall we can say that 2016 is shaping up as a year of immense opportunity for website owners. But before we step into the future let’s have a look at what we got right & where we went wrong in 2015.

RECAP OF 2015

1.    Google and HTTPS
Google continues to push site owners to get HTTPS. They are not only displaying “Unsecured Connection Warning” in Chrome but also sending “Google Console Warnings”. Those warnings cover several practice error issues with SSL/TLS. Ignoring this will result into zero HTTPS boost for you.

2.    Facebook Modification 
Facebook worked tirelessly & as predicted they made a direct play for search, unleashed Atlas targeting to a great extent, expanded into Mobile Payments and upgraded their messaging functionality. All these changes resulted into an enormous boost, both in their overall usage numbers & stock price. So far, Facebook played really well & it seems like they are going to shine in 2016 too.

3.    Wearables Becoming Popular
Apple created a lot of Buzz when they launched Apple watch back in 2015. SEO & digital marketers' happiness was different from that of Apple enthusiasts. They were happy because now wearable gadgets are coming in fashion and it will unlock a whole new world of opportunities as they can provide us with real time data. However, the Apple watch wasn't a hit. But at-least they tried!

4.    SEO Code of Ethics
Everyone thought that the SEO code of ethics will formalize in 2014. Then we thought that it will arise in 2015. But it never happened. And that’s good, because it would have done more harm than good. If you'd like to know why? Click here.

5.    Mobile-Optimized Content
Site owners who were quick to react relished immense benefit by optimizing their website for mobiles. Google Mobile-Friendly Update also encouraged Mobile content, which was a win-win for everyone. 

6.    Google Algorithmic Updates
Google owned the stage by launching algorithmic updates back-to-back. They rolled out a brand new Panda update, Mobile-Friendly Update, Multiple Phantom quality updates and is about to launch a penguin update in upcoming days.

NOW LET'S LOOK AT WHAT DOES 2016 HAVE IN STORE

1.    Structured Data will become a Ranking Factor 
Structured data is going to play a big role in 2016. Google will also focus on Rich Snippets, Knowledge Panels & Featured Snippets. They are about to publish guidelines on “How to get Featured Snippets”. Basically, Google is trying to say that we haven’t made structured data a ranking signal yet, but we will do it eventually! So it's better that you get on-board already.

In case you are thinking what type of Structured Data will be good,  you can go with JSON-LD, as Google is really fond of it.

2.    2016 will bring more updates to Local Search
Google revamped Local Search to a great extent. The removal of Google plus from the equation, enabling users to easily set the city location, shrinking the local pack from 7 to 3 results & increased number of ads totally changed the local SEO.  But they are not done yet.

Google will continue to push home services ads & move SMBs to a pay-to-play model. Be ready to witness more of this kind of ads.

3.    Increased focus on User Experience
Providing a great user experience is Google's paramount goal and they are just trying to serve their goal by pushing Accelerated Mobile Pages (AMP), mobile-friendly content, HTTPS, and page speed. If you want to rank higher in 2016, take a mobile-first design approach.

4.    Improvement in the digital assistant space & wearables
2016 seems to be really good for digital assistant space. While Cortana & Siri are getting better & better, there's one player that will join the game and bring variety to it. And that is none other than Facebook's highly ambitious project “M”. Unlike Cortana & Siri it will be backed by both human/digital assistance making it unique among others.

Also, we can expect to see a lot of wearable gadgets in 2016. Thus, we recommend you should at-least be aware of wearable SEO, so when needed you can employ and reap the benefits of being aware and prepared.

Beacons will become more popular overtime and they will make it easy for you to connect with your existing customers. Also, you can expect new players such as Yext & their Xone beacons to enlarge nationally, as a medium to track offline customers online & then target them with re-marketing ads.

5.    Virtual Reality Monetization
Samsung gear VR was one of the top Christmas items of 2015. It comes at a minimal price of $99, thus making it affordable to masses. Also since we all know that Facebook acquired Oculus Rift, we can expect to see more advancements in the VR space.

It is estimated that the VR revenues will go up to 1 billion dollars in the coming year and will escalate to 4.4 billion dollars by 2019. So the company which will provide the best VR gear will reign supreme and will get to have the biggest piece of the 1 billion dollar cake.

6.    The downfall of Yahoo
Yahoo is still going through hard times and it seems like they will have to sell their search units to someone else. However, they have made deals with Google and Bing, but they are not getting fruitful results and the company is still struggling to survive on various aspects.

Many investors are now losing patience and blaming Marissa Mayer for not having a clear vision. Many experts are predicting that Yahoo may sell their assets to AT&T while some are claiming that Google will be the best bet.

7.    Google will roll out major algorithms which will make site audit tougher
Google will roll out both Panda & Penguin updates in 2016. They can be rolled out at the same time and that will be a major issue for website owners who keep getting hit (negatively) by these algorithms.

Till 2015, it was a bit easy to identify the issues which got you penalized, but since Google's expectations from a website are growing, they are making more complex algorithms. So for SEOs it will be tough to identify the exact cause of penalty in 2016. If you are an SEO expert, it's better to understand how to correctly audit a site & surface all website issues.

Final Takeaway

Your actions, predictions, and preparations will decide whether this year will be great or worse for you. We recommend that you gather as much information as you can and closely monitor any updates thathave the potential to influence the digital marketing space. That way you can achieve your goals in 2016.

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The top 20 updates for local search in 2016

The mobile-friendly update began on April 21st. Fourteen days later, Google announced that more Google searches now take place on mobile devices than on computers in 10 countries, including the US and Japan.

Google Adwords has adapted over the years to be more accommodating to mobile search, and to help advertisers measure cross device conversions.

This month, Google introduced several new products and innovations that allow you to “measure every moment that matters,” understand the full impact of your PPC campaigns and make better decisions for your business. Click here to read more. 

The impact of Google’s Mobile-Friendly Update, as measured by MozCast (a weather report showing turbulence in the Google algorithm—the hotter and stormier the weather, the more Google’s rankings changed) was, in the short-term, much smaller than expected. 

Though the impact of the mobile-friendly update may be less than apocalyptic, in a blog called “How Far Did the Sky Fall,” Dr. Peter Meyers, Moz Marketing Scientist, wrote: “Google’s push toward mobile-first design and their clear public stance on this issue strongly signal that mobile-friendly sites are going to have an advantage over time.” 

If your website is not mobile-friendly, we advise you to move very quickly in that direction! 

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Online preorders for Apple’s first smartwatch began on April 10th at 12:01 a.m. PT and sold out in under six hours. Nearly one million U.S. consumers preordered Apple Watch, though some of those buyers are attempting to cash in on the high demand and short supply—an eBay search for Apple Watch, as of this writing, returns over 1,600 results!

Users won’t be able to run a Google search on the tiny watch screen. But in the future...who knows? Click here for more details about the first generation Apple Watch. 

Email marketing (newsletters, nurture campaigns, the occasional notifications about products, services, promotions, etc.) keeps your business on the minds of your customers and generates leads and sales. Nurture campaigns can be set up to send automatically, but it’s important to audit your content and make sure it’s up-to-date.

According to a recent report from Mailjet, personalization is a big factor in improving email open rate and engagement, but only about 17% of U.S. marketers personalize email messages. Tailor your emails to customers based on information they’ve provided and their purchasing behavior and you’ll set yourself apart from other businesses that don’t take the time to personalize their emails.

Click here to read more about the strong ROI of email marketing.

Statcounter.com reports that mobile internet usage in the US grew by 73% in 2014, to reach 24.4% in August and mobile usage has overtaken desktop in several countries. Your website has to be user friendly, and in 2015, that means mobile friendly too. 

A website that is mobile friendly: 

• Avoids software that is not common on mobile devices, like Flash 
• Uses text that is readable without zooming 
• Sizes content to the screen so users don’t have to scroll horizontally or zoom 
• Places links far enough apart so that the correct one can be easily tapped 

Additionally, Google recommends making it easy for users to directly connect with you by simply tapping a phone number (click to call). 

InsuranceWebDesigns offerss responsive mobile websites. Not an InsuranceWebDesigns client? Try out Easy Online Mobile!

The big news at the 2015 Consumer Electronics Show and posted on Google’s blog: 

This spring, Sony, Sharp and TP Vision, with its range of Philips TVs, will start shipping televisions powered by Android TV. These have all the goodness of Android TV built in so you won’t need to plug anything extra into your television. You can use a single remote to watch live TV channels and play games, movies or shows from Google Play and your apps. 

Where Google goes, advertising follows!

The sign on your business is in disrepair. Packages delivered to your business are blocking your doorway. What do you do? You repair the sign and you move the boxes. You make sure your business is easy to find.

The same care is required for your local online presence. You won’t rank well if you have conflicting information on any one of the thousands of sites where Google and other search engines gather local listings data. And, consumers are confused when they see discrepancies—they’re likely to go to a competitor whose listings are clean and consistent.

Give us a call and we’ll tell you more about local listings management.

In February 2013, Facebook announced plans to buy Atlas, Microsoft's ad tracking and serving business. When, Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg said that the corporation had "no plans" to create a network to serve Facebook ads on third-party webpages. (Source: Inside Facebook).

Facebook now has a plan for Atlas and it does involve serving PPC ads on third-party web sites.

According to this Wall Street Journal article, "Atlas is aiming squarely at Google's DoubleClick, the dominant ad-serving, management and tracking tool for agencies and advertisers.".

Visit this site to get more information about Atlas and its potential to "connect online campaigns to actual offline sales, ultimately proving the real impact that digital campaigns have in driving incremental reach and new sales.".

Visit here to review Ello, a new-ish social media platform that's being called the "anti-Facebook" given that it's ad-free and doesn't provide user data to third parties.

According to an article in Time magazine: “Companies have been promising the dawn of the smart home–a futuristic dwelling full of gadgets working seamlessly to satisfy your every whim–since the ’50s. Yet early efforts failed to deliver because of clunky tech and consumer wariness.” 

A company called SmartThings has built a platform that allows the objects in your home–doors, locks, lightbulbs, even sprinkler systems–to talk to one another and prioritize your needs. 

SmartThings has competition from other companies with more familiar names, such as Apple, AT&T and Google. But according to the Time article, “SmartThings, though smaller and less resource-rich than the tech titans, is well positioned to lead the pack. Unlike bigger companies, it doesn’t have an established business model to protect, so it can reimagine the connected home from scratch.” 

This month, SmartThings was acquired by Samsung. 

Click here to read This Startup is Trying to Create—and Control—the Internet of Your Home. 

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Social media can be the perfect spot for small business owners to communicate with customers and attract the attention of prospective customers. Click here to read “Nine Small Business Social Media Success Stories.” 

Many small business owners have neither the time nor the inclination to become fluent in the language and etiquette of social media. Even those who do attempt to figure it all out will struggle to design, implement and fine-tune the campaign. 

Outsourcing is certainly a good option, but no one knows your company like you do. When you hire an individual or a firm to manage your social media, keep in mind that you’re an important part of the team—the one who ensures that social media interactions are authentic and represent the essence of your company. 

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Three years ago, a company called Aereo began offering subscribers a cloud-based television antenna that accessed live, over the air broadcast television. Membership included a remote cloud-based DVR to set and watch recordings. According to the company’s website, the basic monthly membership was available to consumers in select areas for $8 a month. This is all in the past because Aereo has been effectively shut down. 

On June 25th, in the case of American Broadcasting Companies v. Aereo, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 6-3 against Aereo, finding that the service provided by Aereo violated copyright laws. Click here to read Aereo’s response to the ruling. 

Justices Scalia, Thomas and Alito dissented. Scalia wrote: “The Court should be in no position to make judgments on recently new technologies, and it is instead Congress’s job to determine if the copyright laws should be modified to address these issues.” 

Aereo is encouraging consumers to “Contact legislators through Twitter, Facebook and Email and protect your right to use a cloud-based antenna.” 

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According to a recent study by Bunnyfoot (a usability and user experience design firm), an estimated one-third of people who use Google Search don’t recognize the difference between a paid ad and an organic result. In other words, a significant number of people think the item at the top of the page is there because it’s the best match for their search query. 

After hundreds of tests over the past decade, the team at Bunnyfoot concluded that, “... it is very difficult to predict what customers’ knowledge or understanding is. When you do the tests, you are often humbled and surprised with how far off your assumptions are.” This is a good reminder that it’s unwise to assume you know what your customers are thinking.

Google, Facebook, Twitter and AOL have joined together to launch TrustInAds.org, with the mission to keep the user experience positive for everyone on the web and keep ads safe. 

From the TrustInAds website:

...There are scammers that try to “game the system” to find ways to exploit consumers by getting harmful and deceptive ads published on reputable websites. In many cases, these ads - on the surface - appear normal and harmless, but may surreptitiously redirect a person to webpages that can install malware to a computer or mobile devices, direct them to scam or phishing websites, or try to sell them counterfeit goods.

Any effort to thwart the bad actors on the internet helps the upstanding businesses that depend on leads from their PPC advertising campaigns. Click here for more information about TrustInAds.org.

Every March, millions of people fill out a NCAA tournament bracket (or two, or three...), join the office pool, watch the games and track who’s in and who’s out. Workplace productivity takes a big hit during the three weeks of March Madness.

Social media, where people go to get updates on games, celebrate wins and grumble about losses, is now a huge part of the phenomenon that is March Madness.

Twitter reported that during the championship game, there were more than two million Tweets around the world containing terms related to the telecast. And on Facebook, from early buzz and bracket building after Selection Sunday, through the Final Four and championship games, more than 15.3 million U.S. users posted, commented on or “liked” tournament-related content 46 million times.

Consumers are all over social media and every business should be there with them. It’s never too late to get started on a social media marketing campaign!

The laptop freed us from the desktop computer. The smartphone and tablet took us mobile. If recent Google news (Google is Finally Getting Serious About Wearables) and popularity of SXSW conference sessions on the topic of wearable devices are any indicator, we’ll all soon be suited up with smartglasses, smartwatches and other tech devices.

The standing room only SXSW “Accelerator” event consisted of five-minute pitches by 16 new businesses selected from 500 companies that applied. Companies selected for the wearable technologies category were:

• BioNym - presented the Nymi, a wristband that uses an electrocardiogram as a means to connect people to devices and services without requiring passwords.
• Wearable Solar - showed off its clothing designs that feature cells that charge a phone when the clothes are worn for two hours in direct sunlight.
• Skully (winner in the category) - demonstrated the Skully motorcycle helmet with an advanced situational awareness system, showing navigation and blind spot data. The company has already partnered with Harley Davidson.

Imagine the marketing opportunities when wearable technology becomes ubiquitous!

In January, Google paid 3.2 billion cash for Nest, a company that designs and manufactures sensor-driven, Wi-Fi-enabled, self-learning, programmable thermostats and smoke detectors.

Marcus Wohlsen of Wired wrote, “The value Google sells its customers—that is, advertisers—lies in its peerless understanding of our online behavior...One area of human behavior Google has yet to colonize as successfully is what we do when we’re not directly interacting with a screen...That in theory changes with Nest.”

When asked if customer data will be shared with Google, Nest founder Tony Fadell said, “Our privacy policy clearly limits the use of customer information to providing and improving Nest’s products and services. We’ve always taken privacy seriously and this will not change.”

There was a time when Google put users’ privacy first—from 2002: Google uses cookies to track user trends and patterns to better understand our user base and to improve the quality of our service. Google may also choose to use cookies to store user preferences. A cookie can tell us, “This is the same computer that visited Google two days ago,” but it cannot tell us, “This person is Joe Smith” or even, “This person lives in the United States.” Now, compare that to Google’s current policy.

Considering Google’s privacy policy evolution, some question Fadell’s assurance that Nest’s privacy policy won’t change. Tech industry blogger Sam Biddle tweeted, “If your house is burning down you’ll now get gmail ads for fire extinguishers.”☺

In an August 2013 interview, Pinterest CEO Ben Silbermann said, “The big-picture assumption of the company is that there is a direct link between the things you pin and the things that you eventually spend money on. In there, we think, lies a model where we can actually make Pinterest more useful. And we can help businesses by bringing in more customers and helping them sell things and connect with people.”

Pinterest’s investors have helped boost the company’s value to $3.8 billion and now the pressure is on to start generating revenue. Though it has experimented with Promoted Pins, Pinterest has yet to develop a viable advertising product. That could soon change.

Earlier this month, Pinterest acquired VisualGraph, an image recognition and visual search platform. Currently, Pinterest’s search functionality relies largely on user-generated, haphazard descriptions of pinned images. In theory, with VisualGraph’s image recognition technology, Pinterest could detect items in the pinned images and deliver ads to users based on the products and services represented in their pins.