Marketing Midday - March 13, 2023
Welcome to Marketing Midday, an up-to-date report on the latest digital marketing headlines. In this post,
we discuss 4 top headlines:
1. Google’s February 2023 product reviews update is completed, after a 14-day launch period. We’ll discuss what this means for marketers.
2. Google released a statement claiming that Bard is separate from Search, despite Bard becoming synonymous with generative AI features coming to Search.
3. DuckDuckGo entered the AI race as the latest search engine to launch an AI-assisted feature, called DuckAssist.
4. Google’s VP of global ads responded to the DOJ lawsuit, including what next steps the tech-giant plans to take.
1. Google’s February 2023 Update is Complete
According to Search Engine Land, Google’s February 2023 product reviews update is finished rolling out, after a 14-day launch period. Unlike previous product reviews updates, the February update impacted more languages than English, including Spanish, German, and French. Should marketers be concerned about the update? If your website offers product review content, Search Engine Land suggests checking to see if your rankings were impacted, for better or worse. Moving forward, marketers should focus on putting detail and effort into their product review content to set it apart from competitors on the web.
2. Google Stated That Bard is Separate From Search
Search Engine Land reported that Jack Krawczyk, product lead for Bard, stated that Bard is not Search, despite confusion within the industry. What is the reason for the confusion? Danny Goodwin of Search Engine Land writes: “Google is to blame… it introduced Bard at the same time as it teased ‘AI-powered features’ coming soon to search.” Partly because Bard was hurriedly launched to compete with Bing’s ChatGPT integration, Bard became synonymous with Google’s generative AI features, just like ChatGPT became synonymous with generative AI. To dispel some confusion, a Google spokesperson wrote: “Bard is separate from Search, so talking about the Search screenshots in the context of Bard isn’t accurate. Bard is one thing… generative AI features in Search are separate. Bard is a standalone experience…”.
3. DuckDuckGo Releases DuckAssist
DuckDuckGo recently entered the race with DuckAssist as the newest search engine to use generative AI technology. According to Search Engine Journal, DuckAssist uses direct answers from Wikipedia and related sites and is available on DuckDuckGo’s browsing apps and browser extensions. Like other AI tech, DuckAssist generates a summary of what it finds on Wikipedia to provide a direct answer to the user’s query. Unlike other AI systems, DuckAssist is not built to generate a response to any query; it should only summarize information from reliable sources, such as Wikipedia. Search Engine Journal writes: “you’re most likely to see DuckAssist in search results when asking straightforward questions with clear answers in Wikipedia.” Thus, DuckAssist won’t generate a response all the time. We’re interested to watch the evolution of the newest player in the AI race!
4. Google Responds to DOJ Lawsuit
Marketing Brew provided insight into Google’s response to the lawsuit against the tech giant by the US Department of Justice and eight additional states. By way of reminder, the suit charges Google for “allegedly operating an ad-tech monopoly and violating antitrust laws,” Marketing Brew writes. How will Google respond? Google’s VP of global ads, Dan Taylor, answered this question on a recent Marketing Brew interview. Taylor responded to the question of what comes next: “We’ve always been supporting an ads-based business model for the web because we think it’s core to our mission. An internet that provides free content to users only stands up today on an ads-based business model… As I’ve said to multiple folks, we really look forward to defending this business.” We plan to continue reporting on the lawsuit as it progresses.
Keep Up With The Latest Digital Marketing Headlines
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Meet the Author
Matt Scroggs
Senior SEO Strategist
Hi, I'm Matt Scroggs, a digital marketing strategist. For two decades I served as the senior digital marketer for several global, iconic brands. Today, I'm the chief marketing officer at RivalMind, an agency 100% dedicated to helping companies thrive by driving transformational growth through innovative digital marketing. I'm also a lifelong Cubs fan, a faithful family man, and a web analytics junkie—relentlessly tracking conversions, loyalty, and advocacy, which are often as elusive as the pennant!
Specialties: Marketing Savant, Idea Guy
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