Weekly Marketing Rundown - May 23, 2025

Weekly Marketing Rundown - August 1, 2025 Welcome to this week’s edition of Kavanah Media’s Weekly Marketing Rundown! In this issue, we explore how AI tools are reshaping the internet, introduce Meta’s new Design Check app on Canva, unpack ByteDance’s latest controversy over user data collection, and more. Enjoying the Weekly Marketing Rundown? Support our work and keep it free for missions teams worldwide: https://www.kavanahmedia.com/donatetoKM AI Is Eating the Internet AI is fundamentally reshaping how we discover and interact with information online. Generative AI tools like ChatGPT and Google’s AI Overviews now provide instant answers—often without users clicking through to website links—which has caused organic site traffic to drop by as much as 50% in some cases. Additionally, as AI tools are increasingly used to generate online content, users are beginning to avoid so-called “AI slop” and are returning to trusted sources such as newsletters, private communities like Discord, and Substack. For Mission Teams: This shift means content strategies need a rethink. As website traffic decreases, teams may be forced to explore alternatives like optimizing for AI-powered summaries, engaging private communities, newsletters, or interactive platforms. The focus should move from chasing clicks to creating high-value experiences that inspire trust, human connection, and engagement beyond traditional SEO. https://fika.bar/paoramen/ai-is-eating-the-internet-01K10JG1SHGZQHN61HPGWPXN60   Meta’s Recommended Ad Copy Lengths Meta recommends keeping primary text under 125 characters and headlines under 40 characters to avoid being cut off, especially on mobile. While longer copy can still work, it should be purposeful and high quality. The system will test multiple combinations, so clarity and brevity are key. For Mission Teams: It is recommended that teams strive to keep headlines and primary text concise. If longer copy is necessary, steps should be taken to ensure quality. Additionally, Meta allows up to five headline and primary text variations, so teams can include both shorter and longer options to give the algorithm greater flexibility. https://www.jonloomer.com/qvt/recommended-ad-copy-length/   Meta Ads: What Drives Performance Jon Loomer highlights four key drivers of Meta ad performance that matter most: Performance Goal – Meta’s algorithm optimizes delivery toward that task - literally. Select the correct performance goal for your strategy. For example, if a team desires messages, be sure to select "Maximize the number of conversations" as the performance goal.  Attribution – Proper setup of Meta Pixel and Conversion API is essential so your ads are accurately tracked from website actions. While often less relevant due to Meta's Religious Data Source Limitations, many teams still utilizing landing pages or websites should ensure their Pixel and Conversions API are set up properly. Copy and Creative – Without quality design and messaging, even the right targeting and budget won’t perform well. Budget – While this is particularly relevant for ads using sales objectives—where a sufficient budget is needed to exit the learning phase and generate around 50 conversion events per week—budgets that are too low can hinder optimization and reduce effectiveness across all ad objective types. Although smaller budgets can still drive engagement, poor performance could be a budget issue. https://www.jonloomer.com/meta-ads-performance/   ByteDance’s AI Tool Caught Secretly Collecting User Data Security researchers discovered that ByteDance’s new AI coding tool, Trae, was secretly collecting data from users—even when analytics were turned off. In just seven minutes, the app sent 500+ outbound requests totaling 26MB of data to servers under byteoversea.com. This included detailed hardware specs, OS info, project file paths, and mouse/keyboard activity. For Mission Teams: For mission teams using AI tools in sensitive areas, this highlights the need for caution. Even seemingly mundane apps and sites can quietly collect data that risks your privacy or security. Choose platforms with transparent data policies and the ability to function offline when possible. https://www.techradar.com/pro/security/bytedance-ai-tool-caught-spying-on-users   UK VPN Downloads Surge After Age Checks Begin After Reddit, X, and adult theme sites began enforcing age verification under the UK’s new Online Safety Act, VPN apps have surged to the top of Apple’s App Store. VPNs let users bypass content restrictions by masking their location. One app, Proton VPN, reported an 1,800% spike in UK signups. Half of the top 10 free apps in the UK are now VPNs. For Mission Teams: Mission teams running digital ads or platforms may notice increased traffic from countries they aren’t actively targeting. This could be due to users in restricted areas, like the UK, using VPNs to appear elsewhere. It’s important to factor this into ad reporting and engagement strategies to avoid misinterpreting where interest is truly coming from. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cn72ydj70g5o?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=rss   Meta Expands Threads API with New Features Meta upgraded its Threads API to include polls, location tagging, real-time notifications, click tracking, advanced search, media options, and moderation tools. For Mission Teams: With it's full integration with Ads Manager, continued development and increasing user base, Threads may become a viable platform for digital marketing strategies. https://developers.facebook.com/blog/post/2025/07/25/do-more-with-the-Threads-API/   Meta Partners with Canva to Boost Short-Form Video Ads Meta and Canva have teamed up to help brands create more effective Reels ads, responding to the rise of short-form video content. Creative quality remains a key driver of campaign success, accounting for about half of results since 2017. Reels ads offer a 24% higher brand lift, and influence over 60% of viewers to consider a brand or product. Both companies collaborated to build the new Meta Design Check app on Canva which gives instant feedback on ad quality and compliance. (https://www.canva.com/your-apps/AAF-xrdmb-Q/meta-design-check?q=Meta+Design+Check) For Mission Teams: Optimizing ads for Reels formatting is an effective way to boost engagement rates. The new Meta Design Check app on Canva is a free tool that helps ensure your creatives meet quality and compliance standards. https://technologymagazine.com/news/canva-meta-plot-a-course-for-a-new-era-of-advertising   Stay Equipped for Digital Engagement At Kavanah Media, we’re committed to helping mission teams use digital tools to make God known around the world. Whether you’re looking for inspiration, practical insights, or in-depth strategy, we’ve got resources to help: Kavanah Media Blog – Learn from our experiences serving hundreds of mission teams worldwide. We share practical lessons, real stories, and best practices to help your team avoid mistakes and grow in digital outreach. Subscribe here. YouVersion Reading Plan– Jon Ralls, CEO of Kavanah Media, just launched a powerful 8-day devotional on YouVersion called "Living in Tension." Subscribe here Digital Strategies got you stumped? Reach out anytime—we’re ready to help. Contact Us Thanks for reading this edition of Kavanah Media's Weekly Marketing Rundown! For more up-to-date insights in digital marketing, make sure to follow us on Instagram @kavanah_media and stay connected through all our social media channels via the link below. https://linktr.ee/kavanah_media Authors: Cody A. and Cherry Messimer Article Published: August 1, 2025

Weekly Marketing Rundown - June 27, 2025 Welcome to this week’s edition of Kavanah Media’s Weekly Marketing Rundown! In this issue, we’re diving into Meta's latest updates to Advantage+ Campaigns, the U.S. government's restriction of WhatsApp on official devices, a new phenomenon called 'alert fatigue,' and more. Enjoying the Weekly Marketing Rundown? Support our work and keep it free for missions teams worldwide: https://www.kavanahmedia.com/donatetoKM Advantage+ Campaign Creation: Simplified but Not Revolutionary Meta’s new Advantage+ campaign setup streamlines ad creation for Sales/Conversions objectives. It automatically applies default settings—like lowest-cost bidding, Dynamic Creative, automatic placements, and preset attribution windows. For Mission Teams: For mission teams this means faster campaign setup and less manual tweaking. However, all of the previous settings available for Adv.+ Creatives, Budget, Placements, Original Audience controls and more, are still present. The interface is different and many settings are simply more difficult to locate, but this is not necessarily bad. Meta has recognized, as has the Kavanah Media Team, that the AI tools often lead to better ad performance, so Meta has buried the settings more in order to encourage marketers to utilize the Advantage+ systems. Kavanah Media recommends using Advantage+ whenever possible for best performance when targeting and placements can be broad. However, if more control is necessary, such as when targeting specific genders or age groups- teams can and should turn off Adv.+ settings. https://www.jonloomer.com/advantage-plus-campaign/   Meta Ads Campaign and Opporunity Score Revisited Meta’s new Opportunity Score and Campaign Score help advertisers evaluate how closely their ad setup follows recommended best practices. Both scores (from 0 to 100) offer guidance on improving things like creative quality, audience targeting, and signal strength. For Mission Teams: These scores can be a helpful diagnostic tool. If your ads aren’t performing well, a low score may highlight weak spots like poor tracking or missing creative types. While you don’t need to chase a perfect score, the automated suggestions—such as adding Reels placements, improving data signals with the Conversions API (often not possible with religious data sources- i.e. evangelism websites), or enabling Advantage+ Audience—can make ads more effective. You can even set up recommendation adoption rules to automatically apply changes that meet your criteria. However, a low score on a successful ad can be ignored. Treat the scores like a coach’s feedback: potentially helpful guidance for improving your outreach, especially when you’re unsure what to fix, but not as Gospel Truth. Meta's algorithms are designed for business goals and often do not align with the goals of missions teams utilizing digital engagement strategies.  https://www.jonloomer.com/opportunity-score-campaign-score/   Iran Pushes Citizens to Delete WhatsApp and So Does U.S. House Iran urged users to delete WhatsApp, accusing it of sharing data with Israel—a claim Meta denies. Additionally, U.S. House staff have been ordered to remove WhatsApp from all official devices due to security concerns flagged by the Office of Cybersecurity, citing poor data transparency and limited encryption protections. For Mission Teams: This underscores the need for alternative communication channels, clear messaging around privacy protections, and contingency plans for sudden platform restrictions. It also highlights the importance of strong cybersecurity hygiene. Teams are advised not to use WhatsApp for secure messaging. https://time.com/7295424/iran-urges-residents-delete-whatsapp-israel-privacy/ https://www.axios.com/2025/06/23/whatsapp-house-congress-staffers-messaging-app   YouTube Goes Full AI as Shorts Explode to 200B Daily Views YouTube Shorts now see 200 billion views per day, tripling since 2024, and YouTube is leaning further into AI with tools like Veo 3, which creates videos from text prompts. With 1 billion daily hours watched on TV, 1 billion monthly podcast viewers, and over 20 million videos using auto-dubbing, YouTube is positioning itself as a dominant, AI-powered video platform. For Mission Teams: Teams should leverage these tools and short video formats in their digital strategies. https://www.socialmediatoday.com/news/youtube-expands-ai-powered-tools-shares-trend-insights/751149/   Too Many Alerts? Users Tuning Out A new study shows that frequent news alerts—sometimes up to 50 per day—are overwhelming users, leading to “alert fatigue.” Nearly half of non-recipients say they disabled notifications, and publishers risk app deletions if they don’t find a better balance. For Mission Teams: Understanding the reality of ‘alert fatigue’ is important—both for online responders who are constantly bombarded with notifications and for the potential contacts who see our ads. Managing multiple online channels can become overwhelming, so teams should prioritize regular offline time and accountability. Likewise, when messaging contacts, teams should be mindful of alert fatigue and send only timely, relevant updates to avoid overwhelming them. https://www.theguardian.com/media/2025/jun/20/increase-alert-fatigue-phone-users-disable-news-notifications-study-finds   Massive Password Breach Puts Billions at Risk A newly discovered breach compilation exposes 16 billion leaked credentials tied to major companies like Google, Meta, and Apple. Though not a fresh hack, this archive fuels mass cyberattacks, especially through infostealer malware. For Mission Teams: Experts urge immediate use of multi-factor authentication, passkeys, and secure password storage. https://www.axios.com/2025/06/20/data-breach-passwords-leaked-google-apple-meta   CapCut’s Terms Spark Privacy Concerns for Creators and Newsrooms CapCut’s latest policy update gives ByteDance broad rights over user content, raising serious concerns for creators. Uploaded footage—including raw, embargoed, or geotagged clips—can be reused or monetized, and creators may be publicly identified in ads by face, voice, or username without consent. For Mission Teams: This poses a huge risk to missions teams, especially those serving in more secure locations. If possible, teams utilizing CapCut should consider an alternative platform. https://www.journalism.co.uk/news/capcut-s-policy-update-raises-major-red-flags-for-newsrooms/s2/a1257632/   Stay Equipped for Digital Engagement At Kavanah Media, we’re committed to helping mission teams use digital tools to make God known around the world. Whether you’re looking for inspiration, practical insights, or in-depth strategy, we’ve got resources to help: Intentional Newsletter – Be encouraged each month with stories of transformed lives, ministry milestones, and the latest updates from our team. Subscribe here. Kavanah Media Blog – Learn from our experiences serving hundreds of mission teams worldwide. We share practical lessons, real stories, and best practices to help your team avoid mistakes and grow in digital outreach. Subscribe here. Christian Media Marketing Podcast – Tune in for weekly deep dives with CEO Jon Ralls on everything from digital strategy to cybersecurity. Subscribe here or on your favorite podcast app. Digital Strategies got you stumped? Reach out anytime—we’re ready to help. Contact Us Thanks for reading this edition of Kavanah Media's Weekly Marketing Rundown! For more up-to-date insights in digital marketing, make sure to follow us on Instagram @kavanah_media and stay connected through all our social media channels via the link below. https://linktr.ee/kavanah_media Authors: Cody A. and Cherry Messimer Article Published: June 27, 2025