Google's Fight for iPhone Search Traffic
Empire Flippers
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Hello, sunshine!
Today’s trend of the week is “crocheting”.
Macklemore inspired millennials to wear their granddad's clothes, but Gen Z is embracing their inner grandma by bringing back the art of crocheting.
On TikTok, a favorite platform among Gen Z, videos tagged with 'crochet' have over 15.5 billion views. The keyword "crochet pattern" is also searched roughly 90,000 times a month.
Crochet enthusiasts aren’t just in it for fun, it’s also a sustainable choice. Many Gen Z crafters crochet their own clothes to be more self-sufficient and reduce the environmental impact of fast fashion.
To cash in on this trend, you could sell crochet patterns as digital products on your site or offer crochet kits and accessories through your eCommerce store. You can even make your own crocheted dolls and clothing for those who want to enjoy the trend without doing the hard work themselves.
Today we have for you:
And:
Alright, let’s dive in.
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Chrome vs. Safari: Google's Fight for iPhone Search Traffic
Google is trying to reduce its reliance on Apple’s Safari browser for iPhone search traffic due to a U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) investigation into its search engine dominance.
A key issue is Google's revenue-sharing agreement with Apple, which makes Google the default search engine on iPhones. Google pays Apple over $20 billion each year for this deal, which the DOJ says limits competition.
If the judge rules against Google, this partnership could end, significantly impacting Google’s search traffic on iPhones.
To prepare for this, Google is encouraging iPhone users to switch to its Google Search or Chrome apps. Over the past five years, Google has increased iPhone search usage through its apps from 25% to around 30%, but this is far below its goal of 50% by 2030.
Despite marketing efforts showcasing features like Lens image search and improvements to the Discover feed, the preinstalled Safari browser remains a big hurdle.
The antitrust lawsuit is a major threat to Google’s business. If Google loses, it could lose access to about 70% of searches on iPhones, which make up roughly half of the U.S. smartphone market.
This could seriously hurt Google’s mobile search advertising revenue, which was worth over $207 billion in 2023. It will also have a big impact on advertisers using the Google Ad network.
To tackle these challenges, Google has hired new talent, like former Instagram and Yahoo product executive Robby Stein, who is leading efforts to make Google’s mobile apps more attractive, possibly with generative AI.
Another idea was to make the AI Overviews feature exclusive to Google and Chrome apps, but Google decided against this.
As Google struggles to shift iPhone search traffic away from Safari, the outcome of the DOJ investigation is critical. A decision in the antitrust case is expected in the next few months and will have significant implications for both Google and independent advertisers.
ECOMMERCE
UK TikTok Shop Merchants Get a Boost While US Ad Spend Declines
TikTok is incentivizing UK merchants to use its platform through a new initiative called the '£1 Million Club’.
The program is aimed at helping new UK-based merchants achieve £1 million in revenue through a series of special incentives and support, all at no extra cost.
The '£1 Million Club' provides five key benefits for new businesses of all sizes:
Meanwhile, in the U.S...
Major advertisers have started cutting back on their TikTok ad spending in response to the looming TikTok ban.
Overall TikTok ad spend declined in both April and May, with big brands like Target, DoorDash, Bayer, and Procter & Gamble significantly reducing their ad spend by up to 30%.
Despite these cutbacks, TikTok still has a large audience that can be leveraged in the short term. The platform remains popular, meaning less competition and more opportunities for smaller advertisers.
For now, advertisers must make a judgment call. TikTok offers excellent reach and engagement, but diversifying your advertising strategies is wise given the platform's uncertain future in the U.S.
HIDDEN GEM
Listing #77919 - $389,900.00
Avg. Monthly Profit - $8,861.00
AMAZON FBA, ECOMMERCE | SUPPLEMENTS, HEALTH & FITNESS | 44X
Created in January 2020, this streamlined business sells 8 easy-to-manage SKUs for supplements.
This is a well-optimized business generating the majority of its sales from Amazon FBA. There is also a Shopify store included in the sale, currently generating a small amount of passive revenue and fulfilled entirely via Amazon multi-channel fulfillment.
We’re highlighting this business this week because of its following strengths:
Recommended by LinkedIn
Google's Gary Illyes Debunks Common Signal Myths
In a recent interview, Google's Gary Illyes revealed that signals controlled directly by site owners and SEOs, such as authorship details, aren't typically trusted by Google's algorithms.
Authorship, once seen as crucial for SEO due to its potential alignment with Google's quality guidelines, has lost favor. Illyes noted that attempts to manipulate authorship data often resulted in spammy practices, which made Google less reliant on it for ranking.
Illyes clarified that SEO-controlled data, including rel-canonical tags and meta descriptions, are viewed more as suggestions than directives by Google. This means they have less impact on search results compared to factors determined by Google's algorithms.
When discussing algorithmically determined authorship signals, Illyes suggested they might be more accurate but questioned their overall usefulness. This cautious approach shows Google's wariness of relying too much on metrics that SEOs can easily manipulate.
Understanding that SEO-controlled data isn't a reliable signal is crucial because search marketers often attempt to manipulate Google by using fake author profiles, misleading reviews, and metadata tailored specifically to rank for keywords.
Illyes advises SEO professionals to focus less on metadata controlled by site owners and more on things like content quality and user experience as these are the factors Google values most when ranking websites.
This interview with Illyes provides valuable insights into optimizing websites effectively. You can view the full interview here.
READ ALL ABOUT IT!
Google launches free AI course: available in English, Spanish and Portuguese
How to launch, manage, and grow an affiliate program: step-by-step guide
13 custom GPTs to generate content: create copy, images, videos, logos, etc
eBay's new financing product for sellers: up to $1 million in working capital
CYBERSECURITY
The Rising Threat of Cyberattacks: Protecting Customer Data
Cybercrime is on the rise. Malicious cyberattacks have more than doubled since 2020, leading to a staggering $2.5 billion in financial losses, quadrupling since 2017.
As we pass the halfway mark of 2024, we have already witnessed some of the most damaging data breaches in recent history. Over 1 billion records have been stolen, including vast amounts of personal and medical data.
On July 4th, a file containing nearly 10 billion individual passwords was posted on an online hacking forum. This could be the largest compilation of leaked passwords ever seen, including passwords from both recent and older breaches worldwide.
The availability of so many passwords increases the risk of credential-stuffing attacks, where hackers use compromised passwords from one account to break into another.
WordPress has also been particularly hard-hit by cyberattacks. Hackers are targeting WordPress plugins, using stolen credentials similar to those mentioned above to infiltrate plugin code. In response, WordPress temporarily halted plugin updates and enforced password resets for plugin authors to combat these threats.
Earlier this week, Apple issued threat notifications to iPhone users in 98 countries, warning of potential spyware attacks. This follows a similar alert sent to users in 92 countries in April.
With cybercrime on the rise, protecting customer data is more crucial than ever. About 40% of U.S. consumers rank data protection as their top concern when shopping online. Additionally, 58% of consumers are likely to switch to merchants offering secure payments and credentials vaults.
You can boost the security of your website or eCommerce store by investing in secure payment systems and credentials vaults to protect customer data, as well as enabling multi-factor authentication on your site.
Inform customers about common scams and how to avoid them, and keep your security software up to date to protect against the latest threats.
ECOMMERCE
Etsy Revamps Product Categories to Avoid A ‘Race to the Bottom’
Etsy, known for its handmade and vintage items, is updating its product categories to maintain its unique appeal and compete with giants like Amazon, Temu, and Shein.
The platform will now classify items into four categories: “made by,” “designed by,” “handpicked by,” and “sourced by.”
This change means:
With fast fashion and cheap, mass-produced products flooding the eCommerce market, Etsy wants to make sure buyers know they're getting something special and not just another generic product.
In 2013, Etsy allowed sellers to use outside help to make products, which broadened the range of items available on the platform but also led to some concerns. Some sellers took advantage of this to sell mass-produced goods as handmade, which was a significant issue during the 2022 Etsy seller strike.
To combat this, Etsy is enhancing its site features and launched a high-profile Super Bowl ad to reinforce its commitment to genuine craftsmanship. The new categories are designed to reassure shoppers that they are buying authentic, artisan-involved products and address complaints from true artisans about being overshadowed by mass-produced goods and AI-generated content.
The new policy is all about keeping the human touch that has always made Etsy special.
This move comes at a critical time as Etsy aims to differentiate itself from competitors and retain market share over increasing competition from Amazon, Shein, and Temu.
MEME OF THE WEEK
Been somewhere cool or seen a meme that made you chuckle?
Send us a DM on Instagram (@empireflippers) with your favorite meme or nomad shot and we'll include it in the next email!