Expert Predictions – What Will Change in 2017
With 2017 fast approaching it is traditional for digital marketing professionals to predict trends and changes for the year ahead. While these are predictions and not guarantees they are based on a deep knowledge of the industry, some insider tips and years of experience in spotting trends. Here are our thoughts on changes to Google Shopping that we may see in 2017.
Bigger Google Shopping Ads
When Google hits on a winner that is popular with searchers and advertisers alike and therefore increasing revenue, they tend to give more of the search page space over to that platform. Think about Video & Image 3 – 5 years ago where places listing with local search and the increased prominence of both the display and shopping ads.
Following this trend forward it is expected that the Google Shopping Ads will become bigger and more prominent, possibly with multiple images or even video incorporated into the advertisement.
Tougher to get started
Although Google Shopping Ads have been around a while there are still some retailers that have yet to fully commit to using them as part of their digital marketing strategy. Some smaller retailers may have tried them a few years ago and not found the interface an easy environment to work in choosing instead to drop the platform.
These retailers are going to find it increasingly difficult to break into the listings, one way to overcome this deficit is to team up with a Google Shopping Expert who knows the platform and how to make the most of the clients budget.
Mobile No Longer The Fastest Growing Platform
Mobile will no longer be the fastest growing platform that searches are made from, it will be the dominant platform. Desktop searches will drop into second place.
This means that the Shopping Ads will be the most prominent this displayed for product searches to the majority of searchers.
If your Ad can grab the searcher’s attention and entice them to click, they will not even see the ads of your competitors. This is a major opportunity for marketers with great products, trusted reputation and keen pricing.
The Internet of Things
What happens when your smart watch realises you need a new pair of running shoes and wants to pull together a list for you to choose from, this will be a new form of internet search. One that Google and the other platforms will be keen to supply results and ads to.
As for predictions, this could come in the shape of a new bidding category like we have for mobile and desktop or via some other method. However, it works Google will be keen to monetise the internet of things and as digital marketers, this is an exciting new area that will require some new skills to sell to.
Voice Search
With mobile fast becoming the dominant way we search, the internet voice is becoming more and more popular as a way of accessing those searches. This means we are moving away from a “keyword” based search world into one of “questions” and semantic language queries. Google needs to understand what is being searched for and then deliver the appropriate results.
This may also need a different bidding platform in Google.
Conclusion
These are all predictions that are possible in 2017 although the internet of things may take longer to gain popular usage in most homes.
It does, however, seem very likely that Mobile will be the dominant search. Voice searches will increase in popularity and Google will give more prominence to the Google Shopping Ads at the top of the page.
Increasing their visibility with rotating images or video would also be an easy thing for Google to incorporate. This would attract the eye and get more clicks on the revenue generating Shopping ads.
For further information about how Onefeed could increase revenue and decreases the Cost of Sale for you, please call us on 0800 130 3140 to speak to the Google shopping experts.
