Big platform updates don’t just change dashboards, they directly affect where and how customers discover your brand.
These are the changes that matter this month, and the actions that'll give you a competitive edge (we'll handle the heavy optimisation!)
Google Ads
What’s New: Demand Gen reporting now breaks out YouTube ad placements, so you’ll get a clearer read on where your creative is working best (In-Stream, In-Feed, or Shorts), and we can shift budget to the best-performing spots.
→ Take Action: Talk to your strategist about splitting testing and budgets by placement: Shorts for hooks; In-Stream for longer demos. Promote winners for BFCM.
What’s New: Instagram has rolled out Reels linking, enabling creators to connect multi-part clips into a mini-series format with in-stream prompts (e.g., “Watch Part 2”). A win for audience retention, the update reinforces episodic viewing with better continuity for tutorials, launches and multi-SKU stories.
→ Take Action: Plan 2–3 part Reels with clear hooks and cliff-hangers. Publish in sequence and measure completion/“next part” taps to decide which series to scale.
TikTok
What’s New: TikTok’s new Symphony Creative Studios & Assistant joins the suite of increasingly sophisticated AI image generation tools available to advertisers globally, speeding production of on-brand video variants.
→ Take Action: Start experimenting with Symphony now. Turning your creative assets into quick, on-brand video variations for testing throughout Sept/Oct will give us a BFCM shortlist to work with.
Where PH Digital Can Help
August’s platform updates are a reminder that paid strategy doesn’t stand still. Brands that stay agile – and align content, compliance and conversion goals – will be best positioned to outperform competitors as we gear up for the busiest trading period of the year.
Need help adjusting your paid media strategy to keep pace with platform changes?
Get in touch with us below. We’ll help you stay relevant, discoverable, and one step ahead.