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Fascinated by definitive reactions to ChatGPT Search. As always with genAI, first impressions can be misleading. The main thing about it for me is it's a reminder that LLMs aren't a search solution (though might be an interesting part of it), and that search engines are HARD. So a few initial thoughts: 1) One of the most interesting things is the weight an interface like this puts on the user. For it to be helpful you need a really strong sense of the answer you're looking for. Traditional search is often a search for a place/link as much as an answer 2) It's intriguing to see how they're trying to mitigate this, initially with trending subjects. I'm not sure it totally helps. In some ways the four very disparate topics just seem a bit mad. I'm completely fascinated to see how these differ from more typical search trends 3) But if they want people to really use this on a consistent basis then they're going to need to open it up in useful and interesting ways to serendipity. Right now it's barely an Alpha, so will need to give it time 4) The index is an issue too. Try searching for a company that hasn't signed a deal and the results are really not great. That obviously could change over time, but it's another reminder that the LLM bit isn't really the crucial feature here. Ranking and indexation are 5) Final thought on accuracy. I enjoy people describing it as a 'Google killer' hours after release and with no idea about the levels of hallucination or consistency. I certainly haven't been able to judge it, but as we'd expect, there are quite a few people pointing out issues

🍏 What do you think about brat being word of the year? 🍏 Anyone that knows me IRL is sick of hearing me talk about 💚 brat 💚 and how it's more than just an album. I've waxed lyrical about it being a lifestyle, a lesson in PR and marketing, an even bigger lesson in community building and to be fair, a really well produced album with lyrics that most of us can relate to. To see it transcend the music scene and become a viral moment across nearly every social media platform shows the power of putting something out there that is TRULY authentic, and now brat is word of the year? What a pop culture phenomenon for the ages. Plus, I really doubt that Charli xcx thought that anyone on Linkedin would be talking about brat yet here we are, obsessed. I'd love to hear your thoughts in the comments! P.s brat being green and Sprout's signature colours being green is a happy coincidence.

Brands turning everything into an “experience.” The other day I was on instagram and 3 ads, one after the other talked about ✨experiences✨ (including one which was a pub offering a “roast dinner experience” on Sundays). Recently, I went into the Apple shop for a new charger and the guy said “are you looking for a faster charging experience?” This actually happened. I said: “Am I looking for WHAT?!” And then it was like he awoke from his hyperbolic branded trance and instead asked: “Do you want faster charging?” “Yes,” I said. And bought the charger which probably cost about £50 because… Apple. The sheer beautiful delusion of the marketing directors of these basic and essential products. I don’t want a brushing experience or a unique cleaning experience, I just want to effectively repeat some basic everyday tasks. 💜

This may sound about a decade late, but hear me out -- I think social media is (still, somehow) an untapped opportunity for business. I don't mean in the sense of brand accounts, unless you're a breakout star like Duolingo or Beyond Meat. I mean in the sense that individuals using personal social media, identified as leaders and employees of the organization, help to humanize it and build and amplify employer brand. People want to interact with people. Hearing from the people behind the scenes is much more interesting than getting bland corporate content in marketing language. Employee social media content typically gets many multiples of engagement as compared to content from brand accounts. Improved brand recognition is a great boon to marketing of course, and there can also be measurable downstream effects like boosting sales and attracting new talent. At the same time, individuals get to develop their own personal professional identity, which likewise comes with a range of career benefits. Journalists have been on the forefront of this kind of mutually beneficial arrangement. Most have public social media where they distribute and promote their stories, building their own brand and access while also increasing readership and audience. The gotcha is that many organizations are still uncertain as to social media policy for their employees -- what guidance do they give people, what requirements and restrictions do they delimit, and then when people end up in trouble due to their social media, even if unfair or unwarranted, what support do they give. Newsrooms provide a good case study here too. As they've come to recognize the importance, or even the necessity, of their journalists being online, they've also started to develop guidance for how to stay safe. For example, the NYT has guidance around proactive security measures (linked in comments below), and almost all the newsrooms I've talked to provide something like DeleteMe for scrubbing data brokers as a workforce protection benefit. Confronted with the uncertainties and risks, a lot of business has leaned towards an avoidance strategy regarding employees' personal social media. This is where I think the opportunity lies. There's a lot to be gained by tapping employees to be the literal faces of the company. Just make sure you're looking out for them, too.

🤫 Psst! Want to know a secret? Fake Friday is the NEW Black Friday! 🤫 Cyber Monday is back in December for the first time in 5 years, and that means one thing: It's time to rethink your holiday game plan. What's new this year? Fake Friday is about to blow things up 🚀 🤔 What IS Fake Friday? It's the Friday before Black Friday (November 22nd this year), and it's poised to be almost as big as Black Friday itself 🤯 Here's why: 🗓 Fake Friday falls on what was Black Friday last year, as no one in the UK knows when Thanksgiving is anyway, you have a unique moment to capitalise on consumer confusion as they will be in the market looking for deals, so why not meet them with some!🦃 📈 Google predicts "twin peaks" in search traffic, with searches for offers on Fake Friday rivalling Black Friday in volume. Last year we saw 87% of "Black Friday" search volume on Fake Friday. That means DOUBLE the opportunity to rake in those holiday sales. 💰 Shopper Savvy: Customers are more price-conscious (comparison queries are up 15% so far this year). They're actively hunting for deals. Fake Friday offers the perfect opportunity to capture those savvy shoppers early on. 🤑 Payday Power: Fake Friday falls right around payday, meaning customers are flush with cash and ready to spend. 💸 And here's the real kicker: Clicks on Fake Friday last year were 17% cheaper than Black Friday. 🤯 You can capture the same (or even more!) customers at a lower cost, boosting your ROI like never before. So, this holiday season, don't just focus on Black Friday. Get ahead of the game and make Fake Friday your secret weapon. Search on, fake it 'till you make it, and sleigh the season🛷, Sophie XO #ecommerce #marketing #retail #blackfriday #fakefriday #holidaymarketing #google #seo #payday #deals #shopping