It's your Wednesday subscription fix. Abby here on National Pigs in a Blanket Day. And since meat wrapped in crescent rolls is my second favorite food group, you could say I’m pretty jazzed. Before we pig out, let’s get into subscription.

The Rundown

In resources...

Boosting Love for Your Local Pages with Yext

People search online with intent — and search engines are evolving to keep up with demand. If you want to keep up too, Yext hosts a webinar tomorrow, April 25th, featuring Yext Product Marketing Manager and TimeTrade’s SVP of Business Development — so you can explore the search experience and capture more value from your local pages.

What will they be covering? For a while now search has gotten smarter and more specific. Instead of searching for a business, hitting the homepage, and navigating to the info you want, search engines are bringing you right to the source with local pages. When these specific searches are made it means the user has serious intent. Capitalize on that momentum and turn inquiries into action. In Yext's webinar, Jaci Kent and Cimarron Buser will run through how the search experience works and the elements local pages need to motivate customers to act. They'll also share examples of how other companies are doing it right so you can follow in their footsteps.

WordStream's Top Google Ad Do-Nots

The WordStream blog recognizes the technical boundaries to creating your Google Ad copy, but for the most part, it’s one of the areas in a search account we’re given the most leeway. It’s easy to see how we can slip up and fall short. So they’re compiling the top five mistakes in wildly underperforming ad variants, so you can wildly avoid them.

Let's talk bad ads. It's tempting to stuff as much info into your meta description as possible. Key words are important for SEO, but people don't talk like that. It's probably not a bad idea to include one key phrase, but if your copy sounds like it was written by a fast-talking newsie, you're going in the wrong direction. If you're struggling to keep it short, try using ad extensions. It's a smart way to supplement your copy and get a few extra characters in. Because meta descriptions are so brief, people often forget you still need all the fundamentals of good ad copy in there — namely, a call to action. It can be short and sweet, but if your copy is missing one, it's not really complete. Keep in mind search engines are constantly evolving, and you should be, too. Don't be afraid to experiment and find out what works and what doesn't. And make constant reminder that the ad copy isn't for you, it's for the customer. Keep them in mind through all creation stages, heeding their specific needs and search queries.

In headlines...

TrackVia on Track for Major Growth

The folks over at TrackVia are riding high after a growth investment from Primus Capital to advance its low-code platform strategy.

What's next? The TrackVia crew is well-established in their field, and the Primus investment validates their leadership capabilities, solid business practices, and ability to grow. On the horizon, TrackVia would like to focus on improving customer service, R&D that will make the platform more competitive, and increasing their reach to industry verticals. The timing for investment is right on the money too. According to Forrester, the low-code market is expected to grow to $22 billion by 2020. Businesses want to do more with less, which makes a platform like TrackVia, that relies on IT as little as possible, essential. As the market grows, we'll be watching to see if TrackVia stays on course.

Clash of the Podcasts: Spotify Snubs Luminary on Launch

Freshly launched podcast app Luminary is already turning heads as they declared podcasts shouldn’t have ads, although later declaring the statement a mistake. Now competitors, namely Spotify and the New York Times, are fighting back by pulling their shows, creating quite the testy start for the free app and network of exclusive content. Here’s to hoping for harmony.

Sounds shady. Luminary is a $100 million startup that's putting it all on the line. It's a podcast app like Castbox or Stitcher, except with a monthly subscription attached. The trade off is an ad free experience that still ensures content creators get paid. The economy of podcasts is pretty well established: have a sponsor, do an ad-read here or there, keep the medium free. Several independent podcasters have their own premium subscriptions via Patreon and the like, another way Luminary disrupts the status quo. When Luminary tweeted out an Easter bunny claiming "Podcasts don't need ads," there was a lot of public backlash. In their defense, Spotify is a competing podcast platform, so it probably didn't take much for them to pull the content they own. Obviously, we love subscription, but we have to wonder if the $7.99/mo price tag is worth it. Many podcasts incorporate ads into the show in an organic way. Or, they're tagged with a sound cue that makes it easy to scrub through where necessary. There's also the question of whether or not enough content creators will be on board to make the new model worth it.

Product of the Day

Earth Day may have passed, but caring for our planet is a year round duty. Blueland gets that, so they’re tackling the plastic problem head on. It’s a cleaning supply subscription that works differently. With it, you receive three reusable bottles, accompanied by nickel sized tablets packed with cleaning power, at $29 for a starter kit and $2 a pop for refills. Just add water and elbow grease. They’ve raised $3 million for the initial push, thanks to several investors, including Justin Timberlake. We’ll be here waiting to see if Blueland becomes the Holy Grail of eco startups (and when they go full subscription mode), but we’re feeling pretty good about it.