MARKETING
The 10 Best Image Search Engines
These days, image search engines are more advanced than ever. No matter what kind of image you want to find, chances are, with the right keywords, search filters, and tools, you’ll find it.
That’s not all, though.
Need to find a source for an image? Do a reverse image search.
Want a high-res image to use in your next marketing campaign or on your website? Use advanced image search filters to find images with the correct usage rights.
Even if you just want a big, beautiful photo to use as your desktop wallpaper, there’s an image search engine for that, too.
Here are the best ones, in no particular order.
TinEye is a reverse image search engine that helps you source images and finds where they appear on the web.
The tool lets you search by both URLs and uploaded images. Just click the arrow icon in front of the search box and upload any image from your computer to find where it appears online.
There’s also a TinEye Chrome extension for faster reverse image searches. It allows you to right-click on any image and search for it using TinEye’s technology.
You can’t beat Google Images for basic image searches. Just enter a keyword and go.
For more in-depth searching, there are lots of filters, too.
For example, when I search for “bluebird”, I can narrow down photos to just cartoons, vintage drawings, and illustrations, or even tattoo designs.
Even further, clicking “Tools” gives you access to more filters: size, color, usage rights, type of photo, and when it was uploaded/created.
This is super-handy for finding exactly the kind of image you want, as well as images that are royalty-free.
Google Reverse Image Search
Google Images also offers a reverse image search tool. To access it, click on the camera icon in the search box.
Another option for image search engines is Yahoo Image Search.
This tool looks similar to Google Images, but the results are slightly different.
You’ll also notice the filtering tools aren’t hidden, but easy to access.
Want an alternative to Google?
Bing Image Search is a little different because you start out seeing a feed of popular/trending images.
The layout and features are still pretty close to Google, though, and you’ll see similar results:
One interesting feature is the People filter, which lets you choose photos of people according to how they were photographed (just faces or head & shoulders).
Pretty useful, right?
5. Pinterest Visual Search Tool
Did you know Pinterest has its own visual search tool? It makes sense since it’s an image-based platform.
It’s pretty simple to use:
- Log into your Pinterest account.
- Click on any pin in your home feed (or on any profile or board).
- Click the icon in the bottom-right corner of the pinned image.
The tool will return visually similar results to the image you searched.
Pinterest has quite a large database of images thanks to user-created pins, so this is a source you shouldn’t rule out when you need to find a particular image.
Looking for an image search engine with more varied results? Try Picsearch.
You won’t get results as specific as what you’ll find in Google, Bing, or Yahoo, but if you don’t need that, this could be a good tool for finding interesting photos that broadly match your keyword.
There’s also a nice feature in the Advanced Search option that lets you filter images by size, including wallpaper-size.
Flickr is a different kind of image search engine because the pool of images comes from amateur and professional photographers sharing their work on the platform.
If you enjoy browsing and searching for beautiful photos, this is your spot.
If you’re looking for photos to use in commercial or marketing projects, make sure you filter your searches by the correct usage license.
For beautiful stock photos, check Getty Images.
You can search by keyword or search by image – just click the camera icon in the search box.
If you search by keyword, the auto-suggest feature has some helpful options to narrow down your search.
Getty Images has an incredible array of search filters, too, so there’s no way you won’t find the exact type of image you’re looking for.
Keep in mind: You’ll have to pay for a royalty-free license for whatever photo you want to use. Getty Images offers this licensing on an image-by-image basis, or you can purchase packs of photos for a flat price.
Another, cheaper image search engine for royalty-free stock photos is Shutterstock.
Their image library is just as large as Getty Images, and their search filters just as in-depth.
Shutterstock offers pre-paid image packs as well as annual plans. Their most popular includes 350 image downloads/month for $169/month.
Another good option for marketers on a budget: get a pack of any 5 royalty-free images for $49.
Looking for high-quality digital images, including high-res scans of historical books, maps, papers, sketchbooks, ledgers, photographs, and more?
The NYPL Digital Collections has a vast archive of images in the public domain, which means you can use and reuse the images any way you like.
It’s a great image search engine for finding unique photos.
Once you start searching, it’s fun to explore the different digitized items.
For example, this search led me to an illustrated page from a book on New York fauna.
Quite simply, these are images you won’t find anywhere else.
Image Search Engines Are Bursting with Potential
Overall, image search engines are better than ever. Don’t settle for just one – use the tool that best suits your needs.
Make sure you play around with keywords and search filters to find those hidden gems.
Furthermore, dare to stray from the confines of Google. You never know what you’ll find – you just might be pleasantly surprised.
MARKETING
YouTube Ad Specs, Sizes, and Examples [2024 Update]
Introduction
With billions of users each month, YouTube is the world’s second largest search engine and top website for video content. This makes it a great place for advertising. To succeed, advertisers need to follow the correct YouTube ad specifications. These rules help your ad reach more viewers, increasing the chance of gaining new customers and boosting brand awareness.
Types of YouTube Ads
Video Ads
- Description: These play before, during, or after a YouTube video on computers or mobile devices.
- Types:
- In-stream ads: Can be skippable or non-skippable.
- Bumper ads: Non-skippable, short ads that play before, during, or after a video.
Display Ads
- Description: These appear in different spots on YouTube and usually use text or static images.
- Note: YouTube does not support display image ads directly on its app, but these can be targeted to YouTube.com through Google Display Network (GDN).
Companion Banners
- Description: Appears to the right of the YouTube player on desktop.
- Requirement: Must be purchased alongside In-stream ads, Bumper ads, or In-feed ads.
In-feed Ads
- Description: Resemble videos with images, headlines, and text. They link to a public or unlisted YouTube video.
Outstream Ads
- Description: Mobile-only video ads that play outside of YouTube, on websites and apps within the Google video partner network.
Masthead Ads
- Description: Premium, high-visibility banner ads displayed at the top of the YouTube homepage for both desktop and mobile users.
YouTube Ad Specs by Type
Skippable In-stream Video Ads
- Placement: Before, during, or after a YouTube video.
- Resolution:
- Horizontal: 1920 x 1080px
- Vertical: 1080 x 1920px
- Square: 1080 x 1080px
- Aspect Ratio:
- Horizontal: 16:9
- Vertical: 9:16
- Square: 1:1
- Length:
- Awareness: 15-20 seconds
- Consideration: 2-3 minutes
- Action: 15-20 seconds
Non-skippable In-stream Video Ads
- Description: Must be watched completely before the main video.
- Length: 15 seconds (or 20 seconds in certain markets).
- Resolution:
- Horizontal: 1920 x 1080px
- Vertical: 1080 x 1920px
- Square: 1080 x 1080px
- Aspect Ratio:
- Horizontal: 16:9
- Vertical: 9:16
- Square: 1:1
Bumper Ads
- Length: Maximum 6 seconds.
- File Format: MP4, Quicktime, AVI, ASF, Windows Media, or MPEG.
- Resolution:
- Horizontal: 640 x 360px
- Vertical: 480 x 360px
In-feed Ads
- Description: Show alongside YouTube content, like search results or the Home feed.
- Resolution:
- Horizontal: 1920 x 1080px
- Vertical: 1080 x 1920px
- Square: 1080 x 1080px
- Aspect Ratio:
- Horizontal: 16:9
- Square: 1:1
- Length:
- Awareness: 15-20 seconds
- Consideration: 2-3 minutes
- Headline/Description:
- Headline: Up to 2 lines, 40 characters per line
- Description: Up to 2 lines, 35 characters per line
Display Ads
- Description: Static images or animated media that appear on YouTube next to video suggestions, in search results, or on the homepage.
- Image Size: 300×60 pixels.
- File Type: GIF, JPG, PNG.
- File Size: Max 150KB.
- Max Animation Length: 30 seconds.
Outstream Ads
- Description: Mobile-only video ads that appear on websites and apps within the Google video partner network, not on YouTube itself.
- Logo Specs:
- Square: 1:1 (200 x 200px).
- File Type: JPG, GIF, PNG.
- Max Size: 200KB.
Masthead Ads
- Description: High-visibility ads at the top of the YouTube homepage.
- Resolution: 1920 x 1080 or higher.
- File Type: JPG or PNG (without transparency).
Conclusion
YouTube offers a variety of ad formats to reach audiences effectively in 2024. Whether you want to build brand awareness, drive conversions, or target specific demographics, YouTube provides a dynamic platform for your advertising needs. Always follow Google’s advertising policies and the technical ad specs to ensure your ads perform their best. Ready to start using YouTube ads? Contact us today to get started!
MARKETING
Why We Are Always ‘Clicking to Buy’, According to Psychologists
Amazon pillows.
MARKETING
A deeper dive into data, personalization and Copilots
Salesforce launched a collection of new, generative AI-related products at Connections in Chicago this week. They included new Einstein Copilots for marketers and merchants and Einstein Personalization.
To better understand, not only the potential impact of the new products, but the evolving Salesforce architecture, we sat down with Bobby Jania, CMO, Marketing Cloud.
Dig deeper: Salesforce piles on the Einstein Copilots
Salesforce’s evolving architecture
It’s hard to deny that Salesforce likes coming up with new names for platforms and products (what happened to Customer 360?) and this can sometimes make the observer wonder if something is brand new, or old but with a brand new name. In particular, what exactly is Einstein 1 and how is it related to Salesforce Data Cloud?
“Data Cloud is built on the Einstein 1 platform,” Jania explained. “The Einstein 1 platform is our entire Salesforce platform and that includes products like Sales Cloud, Service Cloud — that it includes the original idea of Salesforce not just being in the cloud, but being multi-tenancy.”
Data Cloud — not an acquisition, of course — was built natively on that platform. It was the first product built on Hyperforce, Salesforce’s new cloud infrastructure architecture. “Since Data Cloud was on what we now call the Einstein 1 platform from Day One, it has always natively connected to, and been able to read anything in Sales Cloud, Service Cloud [and so on]. On top of that, we can now bring in, not only structured but unstructured data.”
That’s a significant progression from the position, several years ago, when Salesforce had stitched together a platform around various acquisitions (ExactTarget, for example) that didn’t necessarily talk to each other.
“At times, what we would do is have a kind of behind-the-scenes flow where data from one product could be moved into another product,” said Jania, “but in many of those cases the data would then be in both, whereas now the data is in Data Cloud. Tableau will run natively off Data Cloud; Commerce Cloud, Service Cloud, Marketing Cloud — they’re all going to the same operational customer profile.” They’re not copying the data from Data Cloud, Jania confirmed.
Another thing to know is tit’s possible for Salesforce customers to import their own datasets into Data Cloud. “We wanted to create a federated data model,” said Jania. “If you’re using Snowflake, for example, we more or less virtually sit on your data lake. The value we add is that we will look at all your data and help you form these operational customer profiles.”
Let’s learn more about Einstein Copilot
“Copilot means that I have an assistant with me in the tool where I need to be working that contextually knows what I am trying to do and helps me at every step of the process,” Jania said.
For marketers, this might begin with a campaign brief developed with Copilot’s assistance, the identification of an audience based on the brief, and then the development of email or other content. “What’s really cool is the idea of Einstein Studio where our customers will create actions [for Copilot] that we hadn’t even thought about.”
Here’s a key insight (back to nomenclature). We reported on Copilot for markets, Copilot for merchants, Copilot for shoppers. It turns out, however, that there is just one Copilot, Einstein Copilot, and these are use cases. “There’s just one Copilot, we just add these for a little clarity; we’re going to talk about marketing use cases, about shoppers’ use cases. These are actions for the marketing use cases we built out of the box; you can build your own.”
It’s surely going to take a little time for marketers to learn to work easily with Copilot. “There’s always time for adoption,” Jania agreed. “What is directly connected with this is, this is my ninth Connections and this one has the most hands-on training that I’ve seen since 2014 — and a lot of that is getting people using Data Cloud, using these tools rather than just being given a demo.”
What’s new about Einstein Personalization
Salesforce Einstein has been around since 2016 and many of the use cases seem to have involved personalization in various forms. What’s new?
“Einstein Personalization is a real-time decision engine and it’s going to choose next-best-action, next-best-offer. What is new is that it’s a service now that runs natively on top of Data Cloud.” A lot of real-time decision engines need their own set of data that might actually be a subset of data. “Einstein Personalization is going to look holistically at a customer and recommend a next-best-action that could be natively surfaced in Service Cloud, Sales Cloud or Marketing Cloud.”
Finally, trust
One feature of the presentations at Connections was the reassurance that, although public LLMs like ChatGPT could be selected for application to customer data, none of that data would be retained by the LLMs. Is this just a matter of written agreements? No, not just that, said Jania.
“In the Einstein Trust Layer, all of the data, when it connects to an LLM, runs through our gateway. If there was a prompt that had personally identifiable information — a credit card number, an email address — at a mimum, all that is stripped out. The LLMs do not store the output; we store the output for auditing back in Salesforce. Any output that comes back through our gateway is logged in our system; it runs through a toxicity model; and only at the end do we put PII data back into the answer. There are real pieces beyond a handshake that this data is safe.”
-
WORDPRESS7 days ago
8 Best Banks for ECommerce Businesses in 2024
-
SEARCHENGINES5 days ago
Daily Search Forum Recap: October 9, 2024
-
AFFILIATE MARKETING7 days ago
How to Choose Your Battles Wisely at Work
-
WORDPRESS5 days ago
The Market Dominance and Technological Advantages That Make WordPress Nearly Irreplaceable as a CMS
-
SEARCHENGINES6 days ago
Google Showing Competitor Ads Above Local Reviews
-
WORDPRESS6 days ago
Hostinger Review: Website Creation Made Easy
-
SEO5 days ago
WordPress Announces New Executive Director
-
SEARCHENGINES3 days ago
Daily Search Forum Recap: October 11, 2024