Marketing Newsletter Near Me

In Today’s Issue:

🍜 Does the Google “Near Me” hack actually work?

📸 Instagram allows product tagging via third-party apps

📉 Technical jargon decreases product appeal: Study

👥 LinkedIn discloses monthly active user counts — finally

📌 Pinterest sees steady user and revenue growth in Q3

🔍 Google loosens up Local Service Ads display for more advertisers

Wait, Does the “Near Me” Hack Actually Work?!

• Restaurants named after popular Google search term.

• SEO-focused name leads to viral attention and coverage.

• But does it work?

I’m sure you’ve seen them — restaurants, usually, with ridiculous names, all using the same pattern: “Thai Food Near Me” or “BBQ Chicken Near Me.”

Often those are the real names of the restaurants — right down to the business licence. You probably don’t need to be told why… it’s a common Google search term, and Google prioritizes brand names in ranking decisions.

But… does it actually work?

This morning, I spoke with Joy Hawkins of the Sterling Sky local SEO agency. In my opinion, there is no better source on local SEO than Joy and her team.

So there you go — short term gains maybe, not a good long-term strategy.

You can learn more about Joy’s agency at sterlingsky.ca

📱 Instagram Makes Product Tagging Easier

• Instagram updates API for product tagging.

• Third-party tools can now integrate product tags.

• It’s up to those tools to now decide if they’ll integrate it.

Instagram has updated its marketing API, allowing third-party tools to integrate product tags directly.

This applies to feed photos, carousel, and existing feed videos.

Previously, businesses had to manually tag products on Instagram, a process that could be time-consuming.

Instagram has been bulking up its APIs lately — it added the Search Ads placement in March, and Stories scheduling in May.

Of course, this functionality is in the API and may not have yet made it to your third-party tool of choice. If you don’t see it after a couple of weeks, you could always check in with the provider to see if they plan to support it.

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🛍️ Technical Jargon Deters Customers: Study

• Technical language reduces product purchase intentions.

• Simple language highlighting benefits boosts sales.

• Complex terms decrease trust and product understanding.

Marketers often face the challenge of communicating the features of a product. But a recent study suggests that diving too deep into technical details might not be the best approach.

When ads use complex jargon, the study found potential customers are less likely to buy the product.

The paper was published last month in the Journal of Consumer Behaviour — it’s called “When consumers have difficulty understanding ads: How technical language lowers purchase intention.”

In a series of studies, researchers found that people were 15.7% less interested in buying a quilt described with technical language, and 11.9% less inclined to purchase laundry detergent when its ad was filled with technical terms. The reason? Technical language makes products harder to understand, leading to decreased trust.

Instead of focusing on the intricate details, the researchers suggest marketers should highlight the benefits of a product using simple and relatable language.

For instance, instead of mentioning the chemical components of a shampoo, it's more effective to say it "leaves hair silky and shiny."

This doesn't mean technical details should be entirely omitted, especially if they differentiate a product in a competitive market. But, as with so much in our work, the primary focus should be on the benefits to the consumer.

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📊 LinkedIn Reveals Long-Secret MAU Numbers

• EU's DSA requires platforms to disclose monthly active users.

• LinkedIn traditionally shared only total member counts.

• Estimations suggest around 397 million monthly active users globally.

We finally know how many people really use LinkedIn. Thanks to the European Union's Digital Services Act (DSA), social media platforms operating in the EU are now mandated to disclose their monthly active user numbers.

This is a significant shift for LinkedIn, which previously only shared total member counts claiming nearly a billion people. But they never did specify how many of those members were actually using the platform regularly. So anyone who opened an account ten years ago and never went back were counted.

For context, while platforms like Twitter host over 2 billion profiles, only a fraction of those are active, with Twitter's official count being 250 million.

Similarly, LinkedIn's recent disclosure of its EU user counts provides insights into its actual active user base. By comparing these numbers with LinkedIn's reported member counts for each region, it's estimated that approximately 40% of members in each EU region are active users.

Using this data, we can infer that LinkedIn might have around 397 million monthly active users globally. Another estimate — about 215 million daily active users.

📌 Pinterest Reports User and Revenue Growth in Q3

• Pinterest adds 17 million monthly actives, reaching 482 million.

• Revenue hits $763 million, up 11% year-over-year.

• Gen Z emerges as fastest-growing, most engaged user group.

Some numbers from Pinterest's Q3 report showcases its growing relevance in the social media landscape.

The platform added 17 million monthly active users, bringing its total to 482 million. This surpasses its previous peak during the 2021 pandemic spike, where it reached 478 million users. As with most social platforms these days, the growth is most pronounced in the "Rest of World" market, with Brazil and Mexico highlighted as significant growth areas.

But there are challenges. While its user base grows, revenue generation remains concentrated in North America. European and U.S. market growth has been inconsistent, and Pinterest still derives the majority of its revenue from North American users.

The company says the deeper integration of its Conversions API with various commerce partners has helped grow interest in their ad products, and its recent partnership with Amazon is also working well for those brands in the test group.

📊 Google Rotates Local Service Ads More Evenly

• Google makes Local Service Ads (LSA) display more available

• Previously dominant advertisers no longer monopolize LSA spots.

• Smaller businesses benefit with a 25% increase in ad spend.

It looks like Google is loosening the reins on Local Service Ads (LSA).

Historically, dominant advertisers would frequently appear in the LSA spots on Google Search results. This meant that advertisers with a strong account history could dominate a market, making it challenging for newer advertisers to gain visibility.

But a small study has now validated that Google is rotating many more advertisers into the top LSA positions.

Sterling Sky (that’s Joy Hawkins’ company; you heard from Joy earlier) logged LSA data every hour for 4 days. They looked at 124 repeated queries and noticed that Google is now rotating 10 different advertisers in the LSA top spots.

This was first reported by SEO consultant Crystal Horton. You can learn more about her at crystalhorton.com.

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And finally…

• Google launches .ing domain with early access period.

• Domains like think.ing and buy.ing priced at premium rates.

• .meme domain to be available from December 5th.

The Google Domain registry is getting read to usher in a playful twist to domain names with the introduction of the .ing top-level domain.

You know — like think.ing, or listen.ing (neither of these have owners right now; don’t bother clicking them)

The official opening of public registration is December 5th, but buyers can get ahead of that line by buying their way there with a one-time fee.

Even if you manage to get one, will it be worth it?

The domain buy.ing is currently listed for $130,000.

Per year.

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