The Top Three

🏆 THE INDUSTRY’S MOST IMPORTANT STORIES TODAY

🥇 INFLUENCER MARKETING IS COOKED

⚠️ Brand deals meet red tape: Influencer marketing budgets in the U.S. are still on track for growth, but uncertainty surrounding TikTok's future and economic factors like Trump-era tariffs could slow the momentum this year. more

eMarketer forecasts spending on influencer marketing is expected to increase by 15% to $10.5 billion in 2025, a significant dip from last year’s 25% rise.

• Ongoing concerns about a potential TikTok ban are unsettling marketers, as the platform drives about 20% of overall influencer marketing spend.

• Tariffs on goods like steel and aluminum are adding to economic uncertainty, making brands more cautious.

• However, an eMarketer analyst predicts growth will pick up again by 2026, once the impact of these issues becomes clearer.

🥈 META WANTS YOUR GOOGLE DATA

Meta META ( ▼ 4.72% ) is expanding access to its Google Analytics integration, some advertisers are now being invited to connect their accounts via a pop-up in Ads Manager. Once connected, Meta can use aggregated Google data alongside the Meta Pixel and Conversions API to provide insights into campaign performance. more

• Advertisers must link Google Analytics to their Meta ads account.

• Ad managers can choose to connect “All traffic sources” or limit it to “Only traffic coming from Meta.”

• System updates will roll out first to those with established connections.

🥉 SNAP’S NEW CUSTOM AI LENSES

👀 Branding potential ahead: Snapchat SNAP ( ▼ 5.85% ) has rolled out a new AR Lens feature for its Platinum subscribers called “Video Gen AI Lenses,” which adds custom animations to videos. Users can capture a video, and Snap’s system will automatically add animations that match the clip, presenting a potential opportunity for brand partnerships in the future.

The launch includes three Lenses: “Raccoon” and “Fox,” which animate animals into your Snap, and “Spring Flowers,” which shows a bouquet of flowers in your hands. more

How it works:

• Snapchat Platinum subscribers can find these Lenses in the Lens carousel.

• Choose your Lens, capture your Snap, and submit it for processing.

• Snapchat will animate it with the selected effect, and the video will be saved in your “Memories.”

Today’s Other News

📰 EVERYTHING ELSE THAT MATTERS

Advertising 📣

• 🚨 New ad type coming soon?: Google Ads’ GOOGL ( ▼ 2.6% ) mysterious new Search Max campaign option has been spotted again, now with a beta label. The feature uses AI to expand keywords, headlines, and landing pages, tailoring ads to user searches. The setup screen includes:

  • Search term matching: Expands existing keywords to find new searches relevant to your landing pages, headlines and descriptions.

  • Text & URL optimization: Selects the best landing pages and ad copy.

• Microsoft MSFT ( ▼ 1.26% ) is testing a new templates design under the Reporting > Templates section in the ads console, along with an updated look for Recommended templates under Reporting Overview.

Google Business Profiles & Merchant Center 🔎 

• If an old, negative review is still haunting your business, you're not alone. Joy Hawkins of Sterling Sky looks at why Google continues to highlight those "7-year-old negative reviews." These snippets, which appear on Business Profiles, only update every 1-2 years and often show a mix of two positive reviews and one negative. While businesses can’t control this, deleting outdated reviews might prompt Google to refresh the featured ones.

• Google Merchant Center now lets users dispute and request reviews in bulk for certain types of issues. This feature is not available for all notices but can streamline the process for some warnings or errors. more

Social Media 📱

• 🪦 RIP fact-checking: Meta will start testing its X-style Community Notes feature next week on Facebook, Instagram, and Threads in the U.S. The notes won’t be public at first, and contributors won’t be able to write notes on ads at launch. more

  • Like X, Meta will let users write and rate notes, but they’ll only go live if contributors across viewpoints agree. It’s also using X’s open-source rating algorithm.

  • Each note will have a 500-character limit, backed by a link, and remain anonymous once they become visible to uses.

Influencer Marketing 🤳 

• Despite a 15% projected growth in influencer marketing spend this year, outpacing digital and social ad spend, there’s confusion over the terms "creator" and "influencer", which can lead to misaligned expectations within marketing teams and when working with talent. eMarketer differentiates the two by their goals:

  • Creators generate content to build an audience and monetize.

  • Influencers are more focused on swaying brand preferences and buying decisions.

Acquisitions 🤝 

• Food delivery service Wonder is biting into digital media by acquiring independent media company Tastemade. Wonder, which also owns meal kit company, Blue Apron, and food-delivery service, Grubhub (which launched an ad business last year), plans to build a retail media business on top of its existing operations that could compete with services like Uber Eats UBER ( ▼ 2.37% ) , DoorDash DASH ( ▼ 5.01% ) , and GoPuff. more

Legal 💼 

• Oracle ORCL ( ▼ 2.14% ) has become the front-runner to help manage TikTok as part of a deal President Trump is working on to comply with last year’s divest-or-ban law, according to several sources. ByteDance management prefers Oracle, and Trump has also indicated support for the company’s involvement. ByteDance still wants to maintain a hands-on role with TikTok’s operations, which could hinder other U.S. bidders interested in buying full control of the app. more

• Meanwhile, at least eight execs have departed TikTok this year ahead of a potential U.S. ban, including its head of North American ad sales, music chief, and head of litigation. These exits come as uncertainty looms over the app's future. more

• 📕 Book bans make best-sellers: An arbitrator has ruled in Meta’s favour against ex-employee, Sarah Wynn-Williams, whose memoir just came out detailing alleged misconduct at the company, including sexual harassment against current policy chief Joel Kaplan. The decision orders Wynn-Williams to stop making disparaging remarks, halt promotion and further publication, and retract previous statements, but it’s unclear how much power the ruling really holds.

  • The book is currently for sale at stores like Amazon and Barnes & Noble… and at the time of writing, it’s #4 on Amazon’s best-seller list.

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