Digital Marketing: latest News from the World – December Part 2
Welcome to our blog, where innovation meets strategy in the dynamic realm of digital marketing! In this post, we’ll examine the latest developments and emerging trends that are transforming the digital landscape. From recent updates in social media algorithms to AI-powered marketing techniques, these changes offer exciting possibilities for brands and marketers.
Get ready to learn how these advancements can revolutionize your campaigns, broaden your reach, and boost your ROI. We’ll analyze the key developments shaping the future of digital marketing, offering detailed insights to help you stay ahead in this rapidly evolving field. Don’t miss this comprehensive look at the current trends and news that are at the forefront of digital marketing!
Google CEO: “search will change (and a lot) in 2025”
Google CEO Sundar Pichai says that, when it comes to artificial intelligence, “we are in the early stages of a profound change.”
Pichai explained during the New York Times DealBook Summit on Wednesday, December 4, that artificial intelligence models will reliably improve in reasoning and task execution in the coming years. Improvements in AI models will have an impact on Google Search, which will “change profoundly” next year, he said.
“I think we’re going to be able to address more complex queries than ever before,” Pichai noted. “I think even in early 2025 you’ll be amazed at the new search capabilities compared to what it can do today.”
According to Stat Counter, Google has nearly 90% of the global search engine market.
Google has already implemented a number of AI-related changes to its search engine this year, including adding AI-created overviews to the top of search results in May. That same month, reports emerged of AI summaries featuring errors, such as recommending eating rocks or putting glue on pizza cheese.
Since their initial launch, AI summaries have become less reliant on sources like Reddit and more reliant on sites with specialized expertise, such as Healthline and Runnersworld, according to a June study by SEO platform SE Ranking.
Last week Google unveiled a new AI model that outperformed the world’s most accurate modeling system in predicting the weather. It even predicted extreme weather events, although it was not trained to do so.
At DealBook, Pichai also said Google is preparing to launch its next generation of AI models.
“I think there’s a lot of innovation ahead,” he concluded.
Artificial intelligence
Sora is now available: OpenAI's tool for making videos with artificial intelligence is here!
Sora, OpenAI’s tool for creating videos through generative artificial intelligence systems, has finally been released to the general public. Sam Altman has confirmed that the coveted functionality is no longer in the testing phase, although only ChatGPT Plus and Pro users can make use of it.
As was the case with OpenAI’s chatbot in its early stages, interested individuals will be able to access Sora through the company’s official website. ChatGPT Plus users, who pay $20 per month, will be able to create 50 videos with a resolution of 720 pixels and a duration of 5 seconds. Those who use the Pro subscription, which costs $200 per month, will be entitled to 500 videos with a duration of 20 seconds and a resolution of 1080 pixels. Only Pro users’ videos will be free of watermarks.
Sora follows the same principle as ChatGPT. The user enters prompts to the extended language model and receives an approximation of the request. The chatbot sends a text output, while Sora builds a video. The technology was announced in February 2024 with results that surprised the internet.
One of the most striking videos in the demo was created from the following simple prompt: “The beautiful, snowy city of Tokyo is buzzing. The camera moves through the bustling city street, following several people enjoying the beautiful snowy weather and shopping at nearby stalls. Beautiful sakura petals are blowing in the wind along with the snowflakes.”
A few months later, OpenAI polished the interface of its system for creating videos and named it Sora Turbo. It describes it as a significantly faster version than the preliminary model and as a standalone product in its portfolio of services. It is capable of creating videos, bringing images to life, expanding, remixing or combining content that the user already owns. However, it warns that it is still a tool under development.
Following the announcement, ChatGPT users flocked to the site to try out Sora Turbo. The influx was such that OpenAI temporarily disabled the login function. For now, the website is the only way to access the platform, and any Sora application or service must, for the time being, be considered a scam. There is no date for the Sora service to be restored.
Artificial intelligence
Google finalizes its November Core Update
This update comes on the heels of the recent march 2024 core update and october broad core update and is part of Google’s commitment to deliver useful and relevant content. Google’s official communication, posted on LinkedIn and other channels, reiterated that this change is designed to highlight authentic content and reduce the visibility of content created solely to rank well in search.
Major Changes to Google’s Algorithm in 2024
Google has implemented several significant core updates throughout the year, including:
- March 2024 core update: This update was notable for being one of the largest in Google’s history, beginning on March 5 and completing on April 19. It was known for its large impacts on site visibility and organic traffic.
- August 2024 core update: Implemented on August 15 and completed on September 3, it also significantly affected rankings and was closely followed by the google helpful content update 2024, which reinforced the focus on useful and reliable content for the user.
Google has stated that, while the full impact of the November core update is not yet known, its goal is to reward sites that deliver high-quality, user-centric content.
Common Effects of the November 2024 Core Update
Core updates can significantly affect the rankings of websites in search results. Among the most common effects of this update are:Changes in Rankings: Many sites are likely to experience fluctuations in their position in search results. Sites with low-quality content or outdated information may lose visibility, while those with deep and useful content are more likely to see improvements in their rankings.
Impact on SEO Strategies: As with other recent updates, this core update maintains the focus on content that provides real value to the user. Google continues to encourage sites to align with the expectations of its google algorithm 2024 update in terms of quality, trustworthiness and relevance.
What to Do if your Site is Negatively Affected?
If your website is negatively impacted by the November 2024 core update, Google offers some general tips, which have been consistent across several updates:
- Focus on Quality Content: Google recommends prioritizing the creation of content that is useful to the user and not just the search engines. Make sure your content is detailed, well-researched and provides complete answers to user questions.
- Evaluate User Experience (UX): The core update emphasizes the importance of a good user experience, including smooth navigation, optimized mobile design and fast load times. This is also reinforced in the google helpful content update 2024, which highlights the importance of user satisfaction.
- Consider Google’s Guide to Helpful and Trusted Content: Google continues to promote its helpful page on creating helpful, trusted and user-centric content, especially in the wake of the march 2024 core update and may 2024 google algorithm update. This guide provides recommendations on how to create content that Google can identify as valuable to the user.
- Patience between Updates: Google has mentioned that some sites may see improvements between core updates, but the biggest changes are usually seen after another update. There are no specific “catch-up” actions, so it is important to focus on long-term strategies.
SEO
Google Clarifies: When to Use Noindex and When to Disallow in your SEO Strategy?
Shopify, the leading commerce platform, today announces the Winter 2025 Editions update. This new release optimizes existing tools to deliver the best possible experience for your merchants. With over 150 updates, this edition puts the focus on reliability, integration and performance, showing why Shopify continues to lead the future of commerce.
“At Shopify we believe that doing commerce should be simple. Editions Winter ’25 is all about polishing, integrating and improving what we already offer, so merchants can focus on what they do best: growing their businesses. This approach, which focuses on the ‘behind the scenes’ of our platform, is an evolution of the engine that drives global commerce innovation” notes Gonzalo Torres, country lead for Shopify Spain.
The power of the everyday
Far from what might seem like a conventional launch, Editions demonstrates that the essential is also the transformative. Key enhancements include:
- Optimized checkout: up to 50% faster loading speeds and new features such as customizable checkout blocks available for all plans.
- Enhanced customer accounts: a unified, password-free experience that makes it easier to manage orders, returns and personalized data, now with advanced functionality for B2B customers.
- Power in retail: features such as metafields visibility at the point-of-sale (POS) or support for Bundles make physical store sales more seamless and personalized. In addition, merchants in all areas that have POS will now be able to accept payments in person with Tap to Pay (the functionality for the merchant to accept contactless payments from their mobile device). For Spain, at the moment, it will only be available on Android.
- Advanced AI integration: with Semantic Search a customer can search for products in a retailer’s store window using everyday language (e.g. “something warm for the winter”), giving them a richer way to find the items they are interested in, without relying on exact keyword matches.
- Klarna among Payments options: the popular Swedish payments platform is now available to merchants using Shopify Payments and will function similarly to other payment gateways with seamless onboarding.
“Semantic Search has transformed the search experience in our online store, allowing customers to find what they need quickly and accurately. We are delighted that it is now available in all languages, which further expands our capabilities. We also believe that Bundles could help us offer a more engaging experience to our customers, increasing perceived value and simplifying the shopping process – Bundles is definitely something we will explore in the future as well!”, says José Gimeno, Ecommerce Manager at Gobik, a leading cycling brand in Spain.
A vision that prioritizes retailers
The philosophy behind Editions is simple: build software that works perfectly, without distractions. Updates are the result of listening to retailers and prioritizing improvements that eliminate friction and optimize day-to-day operations.
In a market where many companies are committed to launching flashy features, Shopify defies that norm with an unwavering commitment to excellence and stability. This approach allows merchants to trust that every tool serves its purpose, every day.
An engine for commerce today and tomorrow
In addition to reinforcing the foundations of commerce today, Editions Winter ’25 prepares merchants for the challenges of tomorrow. Optimizing processes, such as integrating advanced features into custom orders, reinforces Shopify’s commitment to innovation and scalability
Artificial intelligence
Google drops bombshell: Gemini 2.0 arrives
It was supposed to be OpenAI and its AI innovations, including the launch of Sora to create videos and a new model capable of reasoning; but it seems that Google is not willing to allow it, and they have ‘trolled’ OpenAI’s launches by presenting their own innovations, practically at the same time.
Google started to trip up OpenAI with the launch of Veo, its video-generating AI with a very different approach and philosophies to Sora. And now, shortly after the unveiling of the o1 model for ChatGPT, Google has announced the release of Gemini 2.0, the new version of its rival. But this announcement is more than just a simple ‘troll’, because it may be the most important for Google’s near future.
Gemini 2.0 leaves behind the original AI architecture and goes completely for ‘agents’, independent systems that perform automated functions based on AI. Agents are not a new concept, but there is a certain consensus in the industry that they are the future of AI; for example, Microsoft has opted for agents in Copilot to perform tasks related to productivity and the enterprise.
Thanks to agents, Gemini 2.0 is able to perform tasks automatically and without the need for user action. For example, Google is launching Project Mariner, a Google Chrome extension that allows AI to use the browser for us by typing and clicking on tabs, although it will ask for confirmation for certain “sensitive actions,” such as making purchases; it has also announced Jules, a programming-focused agent to help developers address problems in source code.
Google has also previewed agents for games, and is already collaborating with developer Supercell and games such as Clash of Clans to create virtual playmates. For example, these agents could use Google search to find cheats and guides for our games at the same time as we are playing.
Of course, Gemini 2.0 also brings improvements in efficiency and potential, including the ability to generate images and audios in different languages. But Google clarifies that it is only launching an “experimental preview” today. In reality, today’s release is Gemini 2.0 Flash, the scaled-down version of the model and designed for low-power devices such as smartphones; however, Google claims that this Flash model is as good as Gemini Pro, so it will be a major leap even if the full version is not yet available to the general public.
For the near future, Google’s plan is to use Gemini 2.0 in absolutely all its services and products, so it will be the replacement for the current version of Gemini for Android mobiles and the one available on the web and the various Google apps.
YouTube
Language barrier removed on YouTube
YouTube facilitated the use of its Artificial Intelligence (AI)-powered tool that dubbed videos with knowledge and information content into other languages, making them more accessible.
The technology firm sought to eliminate the language barrier between content creators and viewers around the world.
One way to do this was with the AI-powered dubbing tool they introduced last year at VidCon.
The tool generated an automatic dubbing into other languages, which the creator could review to approve for release.
At the moment, it was available from English to Spanish, Portuguese, French, German, Italian, Hindi, Indonesian and Japanese; and from other languages to English.
YouTube had already implemented this automatic dubbing tool in the YouTube Partner Program for channels with content focused on knowledge and information, although they planned to extend it to other content “soon”.
The company qualified that “this technology is fairly new and will not always be perfect.”
Therefore, they confirmed that they were working “to make it as accurate as possible, but there may be times when the translation is not quite right or the dubbed voice does not accurately represent the original speaker,” as stated in YouTube’s official blog.
Currently, they were working to make the dubbing “more accurate, expressive and natural”, something they hoped to achieve with the help of other tools such as Expression Speech, which would help “emulate the tone, emotion and even inflections of the original speaker”.
Latest Tech and Digital Marketing Updates
📌Google acknowledges indexing problems. They confirm delays in search indexing, although it only affects a “few” sites. They say they will soon fix it with an update.
📌What I was telling you in the intro. As every year, Google compiles the most repeated searches of the year in Spain, in categories such as current affairs, science, sports, entertainment and politics. Discover all the lists here.
📌TikTok tries to save itself in the U.S. They have filed a motion to temporarily suspend the law that forces them to divest the app or ban it in the U.S.
📌Meta will allow you to save the sanctions. They have launched an option that allows you once every 12 months to appeal sanctions for violating the Community Policies. You will simply have to appeal the sanction and take a short educational course.
📌Google Product Studio expands to 15 more countries, bringing the total to 30. This AI tool helps brands create professional product images and videos easily.
📌Vulnerability affects 6 million sites. The popular WordPress plugin WPForms had a serious vulnerability in versions 1.8.4 to 1.9.2.1. Attackers could modify data, cancel subscriptions or issue refunds. Upgrade to the latest version to protect yourself.
📌The madness of X and its AI Grok. This Wednesday the feature to generate images went live for all users, and being uncensored, you can already imagine the creativity of the users. Try it out by logging into X from here.
📌Adobe makes you more productive. They have announced their AI Assistant for Acrobat in Spanish. It generates summaries, answers document questions accurately, cites intelligently with clear, verifiable attributions…
📌Upload Reels to Instagram Trial. The Trial feature, allows you to upload a Reel that will be shared with users who do not follow you. It will not appear on your profile and in 24 hours the app will give you insights on its performance, so you can decide whether to upload it publicly.
📌Google AI search study. AI-generated answers in search results (not yet available in Spain) appear in 47% of search results, and occupy almost half of the screen space.
📌 Facebook will reach $100 billion in advertising revenue, thanks to the ability to conquer Generation Z and AI.
📌In this week’s collaboration of the week…. KFC, Ibai and Netflix. In the style of “The Squid Game” series they’ve dubbed it “The Menu Test”. 456 participants, a cash prize and a menu that fuses the Korean style of the series with KFC chicken.
