SEO Wash-up Monday 7th August

Privacy group files a complaint with the FTC over Google’s Store Sales Measurement program 

As companies keep growing, their consumer data is also growing from a numerous number of sources, so privacy will be more important than ever. It’s important for privacy advocates to understand what’s going on before they actually file any complaints to the regulatory bodies.

Google first began the Store Sales Measurement in 2014 and was rolled out in the US earlier this year. In contrast to the statement in the EPIC complaint, Google does not receive or have access to personal credit card transaction data. However, Google is getting is anonymous, aggregated information from credit card companies but they don’t see specific purchases and can’t identify individuals.

However, a privacy group called the Electronic Privacy Information Center filed a complaint with the FTC over Google’s Store Sales Measurement program. The group is arguing that Google has collected data of credit card transactions, containing personal customer information such as credit card companies and many more information that links those records with the activities of the internet user, including product searches and location searches.

Bing is setting the Stage for Remarketing in Paid Search

Bing launched the Universal Event Tracking in 2014 that set the stage for future search remarketing capabilities with Bing Ads. UET replaced the conversion tracking functionality offered in Campaign Analytics and follows last-click attribution for assigning conversions.

Below are a few features of Universal Event Tracking.

• It has 4 different goals as the foundation for audience remarketing
• It allows cross-device tracking if Bing knows the different devices belong to the same user
• UET also tells you what types of engagement your keywords have

Bing’s Shopping Campaigns lets advertisers structure their campaigns the same way as Google Adwords

Bing’s Shopping Campaigns now let’s their advertisers structure campaigns and bids the same way they do on Google Adwords. Below are a few features that Bing Shopping Campaigns give advertisers.

• The shopping campaign allows advertisers to import from Google Shopping Campaigns
• The shopping campaign has an easier management system with more control of your product ads
• You can see your catalog data within the campaign UI so you can make a more informed bidding choice.
• The shopping campaign gives a deeper insight into how your product ads are performing. Allowing you to look at performance data on all your products.