💾 Good Riddance 2023

TOGETHER WITH

In Today's Issue

• The Efficiency Economy Is Back

• Back That Data Up!

• Teens, Social Media and Technology 2023

• Digital Marketing Industry Updates: December 2023

• Google Sheets Data Visualization: Comprehensive Guide

• Why Small Businesses Need Your Help

• Google's EEA Consent Update: What You Need To Know

The Efficiency Economy Is Back

I’m not sure about you, but 2023 was a trip down memory lane. It reminded me a lot of the market correction that happened in 2008, and from my experience, that’s good for the economy's long-term prospects. But the changes we’ve seen are also uncomfortable if you have failed to reach your short-term goals as a result of factors outside your control.

The first half of 2023 started as planned for many, with economic growth continuing despite rising interest rates and inflation. But then, during the dog days of summer, it started to feel like the economy was shifting. Americans ran out of savings. Agencies started to lay off employees. Many businesses didn’t hit their revenue goals.

If you had to let go of key team members or were a victim of downsizing, here’s a good reality check from the Forbes Agency Council: How to make strategic marketing cuts that don’t sacrifice Growth. Not all expenses are the same, and spending marketing dollars on optimization and acquiring new customers are always good bets.

In our next issue of this newsletter, I’ll share a series of predictions for 2024 from all over the marketing world. But for now, I wanted to share my thoughts on how to thrive in the new economy. It’s the same way my agency thrived in 2008.

The way to thrive for the next several years is by focusing on delivering efficiency as opposed to spending on growth at all costs. Of course, that doesn’t mean growth isn’t important. It’s just taking a back seat to more efficient operations, profitable campaigns, and accountability of every expense. This is what happens when money gets expensive.

So how do you win in the efficiency economy? By focusing on delivering real value and results as quickly as possible. Businesses are making strategic cuts, not cutting off spending entirely. There is money to be made in an efficiency economy. My marketing agency grew 875% from 2008 to 2013 by singing the tune of efficiency. So this is my favorite place to be!

Back That Data Up!

On July 1, 2024, your Universal Google Analytics data will be gone. Decades of analytics data will vanish into thin air, and you’ll log in to see a big fat nothing burger on your screen.

But there is a solution you can use to back up your data proactively and it won’t break the bank. Back up your old Google Analytics account for $99 per view with Analytics Canvas (some restrictions apply).

📱 Teens, Social Media and Technology 2023

YouTube continues to dominate, but most teens are using the same core four technologies year over year. See all the interesting data from Pew Research.

☁️ Cloudflare 2023 Year in Review

Could you have guessed that Internet traffic grew 25% year over year in 2023? I would not have guessed that, given my own consumption habits. There is a lot of interesting data in this report from CloudFlare, with Google Analytics continuing to be “by far” the #1 analytics tool and Hubspot being the #1 marketing automation tool.

📅 Digital Marketing Round-Up December 2023

A solid round-up of marketing platform changes we saw in December was provided by the folks at Omnitail. As our research team gets onboarded for this newsletter, you can expect similar round-ups from us moving forward.

• Digital Marketing Industry Updates: December 2023 - Two Octobers

Google Sheets Data Visualization: Comprehensive Guide

As someone who always gets frustrated with Google Sheets's “lack” of data visualization capabilities, I find this article refreshing. Does it change my conclusion about using Sheets for data visualization? A little bit. I have learned about a few techniques I didn’t know were possible in Google Sheets. But I’m still more of a fan of Looker Studio.

For pure Google Sheets content, make sure you subscribe to Ben Collins’ excellent Monday newsletter, which will provide you with tons of Sheets insights.

Why Small Businesses Need Your Help

Google is pushing Performance Max campaigns onto unsuspecting small business advertisers to try and claw back their cash cow. And small businesses are suffering. According to our study of over 300 agencies, advertisers paid more to Google yet got worse results in 2023.

That’s why we are hosting a series of workshops geared toward helping agencies add Google Ads services to their business. This workshop is the perfect place to start if you want to add a lucrative business line (or improve your existing services).

• Leveraging Cash - Business Unfiltered Podcast

• Google's EEA Consent Update: What You Need To Know - Data Driven on YouTube

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