PALO and Google Give Advanced Lesson in Digital Advertising

The World of Digital Advertising is Constantly in Flux…

And attendees of PALO Creative’s inaugural Grow Your Business Workshop Series got the latest insights from the internet’s top digital advertising platform – Google.

Some 60 business owners and decision-makers gathered at Café 422 in Boardman to hear from Josh Weum and Joe Papa, representatives from Google AdWords.

During the hour-long Google Hangouts video presentation, Weum and Papa shared information about the evolution of digital advertising, the benefits of advertising with AdWords – Google’s targeted pay-per-click internet marketing platform – and what companies can expect in the very near future. Among the topics discussed, Weum and Papa addressed the forthcoming algorithm change that will primarily use the mobile version of a website’s content to rank pages from that site in organic search results. This shift away from ranking the desktop version of a site’s content reflects the paradigm shift in user experience, in which most people are searching Google with a mobile device. Sable Beshara-Kyle, project manager with Captain McFinn and Friends, is already planning the next step in response to the algorithm change.

“With Google planning to change its algorithm to rank mobile-friendly sites heavier than desktop, we want to make sure our website is buttoned up so we don’t fall behind in the search rankings,” Beshara-Kyle says. “Overall, I thought the event was a really great offering from PALO that gave us direct insights from Google, which is something we probably wouldn’t have access to otherwise.”

The Google reps also addressed increasing a company’s video content via YouTube by using the YouTube Director app to make quick, low-budget videos. Bryan Waldorf, virtual CIO (vCIO) and partner with Streamline Technology Group in Twinsburg, says his company already plans to use the app to make monthly how-to videos and customer testimonials. With YouTube being the second most used search engine behind Google, he says it opens up a “whole new way of marketing” to clients and prospects.

“Digital marketing is so important, because the internet has changed the market so that the customers are looking for us now instead of businesses looking for them,” Waldorf says. “By attending this event, I’ve learned a lot of new ways to reach out to customers and generate more business.”After the keynote, attendees got their questions answered directly by Weum and Papa. PALO’s digital media director, Jim Komara, closed the evening by breaking down the various Google advertising vehicles that are available. PALO plans to continue its Grow Your Business Workshop Series quarterly, and looks to host the next event in June, says its president and CEO, Rob Palowitz.

“We’re still ironing out the details of what the next topic will be, but the response to this first event has been very encouraging,” Palowitz says. “With the ever-evolving digital marketing landscape, there is no shortage of topics to cover. And we want to help keep our area’s businesses and entrepreneurs ahead of the curve.”