Finding a niche in holistic living

Every morning at 7 a.m, you’ll find Andi Eaton on her meditation cushion to center herself and get the creative juices flowing. She spends her days creating content on holistic living, wellness and mystical thinking for her Oui, We girl blog and social media accounts. She also leads classes on “the art of lunar living,” writes books, and produces her podcast, where she offers “a mix of cosmic ideas and practical, actionable advice.”


Pandemic-weary people are seeking ways to de-stress and reconnect with themselves, and each other. Andi, “your woo woo best friend,” has created an online community for kindred souls to do just that. A former corporate executive, Andi discovered her niche by following her passion and trusting in herself. Now her blog attracts more than 500K readers a month, and Andi is a full-time content creator, spiritual coach, speaker, author and business consultant. 

Andi sits at her laptop in her LA home office, wearing a brown-and-white print sundress.

Andi creates the Oui, We girl blog from her home office in Los Angeles.

Taking a cosmic leap

Andi spent the first part of her career in marketing for a beauty products company, managing their spas and salons in New Orleans. In 2014, she switched gears, moving to a small village in Spain where she could walk to a Buddhist temple. “There, everything started to shift for me,” recalls Andi. She had been publishing a blog for women traveling alone and began weaving in elements of astrology. Interest in the blog soared, leading Andi to publish a Bohemian travel guide. 

Over the next few years, Andi developed her Oui, We blog and brand. Her brand of holistic living and wellness content — mixed with yoga, meditation, astrology, and feel-good, spiritual “woo” — took off. “We grew tenfold in 2019,” she shares. “And that’s how I went from the corporate world to doing a full-time blog.”

Andi wears a pink dress and raises her arms in a field of wildflowers overlooking the ocean, on the cover of her Bohemian travel guidebook.

Andi’s first blog on women’s solo travel led her to publish a Bohemian travel guidebook.

She founded Andi Eaton Creatives, a team of digital marketers who helps her curate blog content, develop digital programming, manage partnerships, and run other aspects of her growing business. 


Andi chatted with us from her home office in Los Angeles to share a few tips on what it takes to make your own magic and be a successful web creator — no matter woo you are. 


Learn to spot hot content 

Andi follows her heart … and her Google Analytics. She pays close attention to keyword searches and how her site ranks on Google Search. “We were ranking organically on the first page of Google for quite a few different categories,” Andi says. “We thought OK, this is what people are coming to the site for. So let’s create more content like that.” High-ranking blog posts on full moon rituals and North Node Astrology were ripe for additional content creation. “The number one way we get new people to the site is through organic search,” Andi shares. Tapping into these popular topics helps shape Andi’s content strategy. 


Create a content plan 

Andi maps her content ideas on a yearly calendar, paying attention to seasons, holidays and events. 

“We are constantly brainstorming new ways of creating moon-specific posts,” she says. Then, I create social media content on Instagram, Facebook and Pinterest that aligns with that. I've also built out courses from that content.” 

People seated in a circle on a red print carpet around Tarot cards and crystals.

Andi’s blog posts on full moon rituals are among her most popular.

Get to know SEO 

“If you want to make money doing this, you need people coming to your website,” Andi notes. “So you're going to need to learn SEO [search engine optimization]. We can write really beautiful posts and with beautiful photos, but if nobody's showing up, you don't have a business. There are great SEO tools and resources out there.” Andi also encourages website visitors to sign up for her email newsletter with a free “8-Step Guide to Manifestation Magic.” “We’re getting about 1,500 new subscribers each month with that freebie alone.”
Andi wears a flowy peach top and skirt in a photo for her spirituality and empowerment podcast, “Your Woo Woo Best Friend.”

On her podcast, "Your Woo Woo Best Friend," Andi shares her approach to spirituality and tips for living a more empowered life. 

Nurture your creative self

Most importantly, Andi says to be clear about your values and what you want to do with your web presence. “Find your people and every day, do something for yourself that grows your self worth and confidence.” Beware of the inner critic that leads to “imposter syndrome” in so many creators, particularly women, Andi says. “Because that's the stuff that will take you down and off the path — if you don't stay in a place of belief that this is possible.”
Andi wears a two-piece leopard-print swimsuit as she leaps into a green pool of water

“Soul strategist” Andi Eaton took the plunge into full-time content creation (pictured here in Tulum, Mexico).

Learn more from Andi about “Finding success through authenticity as a web creator.” And check out more of her Creator Insights videos on the Google Web Creators YouTube channel.

Stadia Savepoint: September updates

It’s time for another update to our Stadia Savepoint series, recapping the new games, features and updates on Stadia.

In September, the Stadia Pro library grew to more than 30 games for subscribers to claim and play, with newly-added titles like PGA TOUR 2K21, ARK: Survival Evolved, Darksiders II Deathinitive Edition, Little Big Workshop, Wave Break, Legend of Keepers: Career of a Dungeon Manager. That’s a lot of games to play through, but subscribers can play them instantly once claimed, as long as they’re subscribed to Stadia Pro. In addition, last month included Free Play Days with Pro subscribers getting the chance to play games like Watch Dogs: Legion, Rainbow Six Siege and Madden NFL 22.

In addition, the Stadia store added new titles in September including Life is Strange: True Colors, the long-awaited sequel in the award-winning narrative adventure series from Square Enix. Players also sailed the high seas in Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag and fought to restore the balance between good and evil on Earth in Darksiders III. In fact, every Stadia player can now try From Space, a free multiplayer demo of the new top-down online co-op action game. With FIFA 22 Ultimate Edition, players who pre-ordered were able to play the new soccer title prior to launch.


September also brought new Stadia features for players:

Phone Link

Connect your Android or iOS phone to your compatible TV as a touch controller or use your phone to link your favorite compatible third-party controller. Find more information on our support page.

This video shows how Phone Link, the newest controller input option on Stadia, works to connect to games on your TV.

With Phone Link, playing Stadia on your TV is easier than ever.

Ubisoft+ expansion

Play a library of Ubisoft games for free with an Ubisoft+ subscription, now available in every territory where Stadia is available.


Stadia Pro updates

September content launches on Stadia:

New content coming to Stadia announced in September:

  • The Falconeer: Warrior Edition


That’s all for now — we’ll be back next month to share more updates. As always, stay tuned to the Stadia Community Blog, Facebook, YouTube and Twitter for the latest news.



A shoppable TV screen with YouTube

Whether kicking back with a movie or kicking their fitness routine into gear, more people are choosing to experience YouTube on the big screen. When they do, they can watch longer, enjoy multiple shows back to back, and experience it all from the comfort of their couch with friends and family. Many even build a routine around it. In the U.S., over 120 million people streamed YouTube or YouTube TV on their TV screens in December 2020.1

To help consumers more easily learn about the products and services they’re interested in, we’re making YouTube ads on connected TVs more shoppable. Today, we’re expanding Video action campaigns to CTVs to help advertisers drive more online sales or generate leads, and grow their business. 

With a quarter of logged-in YouTube CTV viewers watching primarily on TVs,2 the living room is becoming an essential place for brands to drive incremental conversions with new audiences. In early experiments for Video action campaigns on TV screens, over 90% of conversions coming from CTV would not have been reachable on mobile and desktop devices.3

Drive online sales and leads on the TV screen with Video action campaigns 

If your goal is to drive online sales or generate leads, we recommend using Video action campaigns. Video action campaigns make it easy to find new customers efficiently in a single campaign by combining inventory from across YouTube and Google video partners — and now YouTube CTV. For the first time, performance advertisers can take advantage of YouTube on CTV to drive and measure conversions.


When a viewer sees a Video action campaign on their TV, they are invited through a URL at the bottom of their screen to continue shopping on the brand’s website from their desktop or mobile device — without interrupting their viewing session. 

Advertisers can also take advantage of the Conversion Lift beta on TV screens to get actionable results in real time. Conversion Lift measures the impact of YouTube ads on driving user actions, such as website visits, sign ups, purchases and other types of conversions.

Video action campaigns on TV screens are now globally available through Google Ads. Reach out to your Google team or visit the Help Center to learn more.

1. YouTube Internal Data, US, December 2020. 
2. YouTube Internal Data, US, December 2020. (In December 2020, over 25% of logged-in US YouTube CTV viewers watched content almost exclusively (>=90%) on the TV screen.)
3. Google data, Global, Jun 2020.

A shoppable TV screen with YouTube

Whether kicking back with a movie or kicking their fitness routine into gear, more people are choosing to experience YouTube on the big screen. When they do, they can watch longer, enjoy multiple shows back to back, and experience it all from the comfort of their couch with friends and family. Many even build a routine around it. In the U.S., over 120 million people streamed YouTube or YouTube TV on their TV screens in December 2020.1

To help consumers more easily learn about the products and services they’re interested in, we’re making YouTube ads on connected TVs more shoppable. Today, we’re expanding Video action campaigns to CTVs to help advertisers drive more online sales or generate leads, and grow their business. 

With a quarter of logged-in YouTube CTV viewers watching primarily on TVs,2 the living room is becoming an essential place for brands to drive incremental conversions with new audiences. In early experiments for Video action campaigns on TV screens, over 90% of conversions coming from CTV would not have been reachable on mobile and desktop devices.3

Drive online sales and leads on the TV screen with Video action campaigns 

If your goal is to drive online sales or generate leads, we recommend using Video action campaigns. Video action campaigns make it easy to find new customers efficiently in a single campaign by combining inventory from across YouTube and Google video partners — and now YouTube CTV. For the first time, performance advertisers can take advantage of YouTube on CTV to drive and measure conversions.


When a viewer sees a Video action campaign on their TV, they are invited through a URL at the bottom of their screen to continue shopping on the brand’s website from their desktop or mobile device — without interrupting their viewing session. 

Advertisers can also take advantage of the Conversion Lift beta on TV screens to get actionable results in real time. Conversion Lift measures the impact of YouTube ads on driving user actions, such as website visits, sign ups, purchases and other types of conversions.

Video action campaigns on TV screens are now globally available through Google Ads. Reach out to your Google team or visit the Help Center to learn more.

1. YouTube Internal Data, US, December 2020. 
2. YouTube Internal Data, US, December 2020. (In December 2020, over 25% of logged-in US YouTube CTV viewers watched content almost exclusively (>=90%) on the TV screen.)
3. Google data, Global, Jun 2020.

Don’t stop the music!

Introducing a new YouTube Music app listening experience
From introducing personalized mixes for your everyday moods and moments to bringing you the most popular music from every part of the globe, YouTube Music looks to provide its users with the most immersive music experience imaginable. Every new update to YouTube Music begins by listening to people, and we’ve heard you loud and clear: Keep the music playing. 

Today, we’re excited to announce that we will begin rolling out background listening to music listeners in Canada, free of charge, beginning on November 3, 2021! Canadian music lovers using the YouTube Music app will be the first to enjoy this new feature before it becomes available to listeners around the world. 

This update will allow people to continue listening to YouTube Music while using other apps or when your screen is off. Within this, you can engage with the YouTube Music app through an exciting ad-supported, radio-like experience featuring the artists, songs, and albums you love, plus personalized mixes on shuffle without the hassle of having to keep the YouTube Music app open on your device. 

Here’s what you’ll get: 

  • Listen to your music in the background: You can now keep your music playing after minimizing the app or turning off your screen. Go on a run, answer a text, or check some emails without stopping your music. 
  • Enjoy continuous stations and shuffle: Dive into this new playback experience with continuous radio stations based on your favorite songs, albums, and artists. Further your listening through personalized playlists on shuffle, like Mixed for you on the Home tab, which features mixes inspired by your ever-changing music ecosystem. If you've uploaded songs on the YouTube Music app, you can continue to play them anytime, and you can also keep streaming music and videos, on-demand, with the YouTube app. 
  • Focus on what’s important: With Google Assistant driving mode, drivers can now keep their focus on the road while staying safe and entertained with a hands-free YouTube Music experience. 
Stay tuned for additional information and expansion plans. In the meantime, sit back, relax and don’t stop the music! 

If you don’t already have YouTube Music, download the YouTube Music app in the Play Store or App Store. 

Posted by Jason Robinson, Product Manager, YouTube Music

A celebration of strength and resilience this World Teachers’ Day

According to Google Trends, over the last 18 months, searches for “missing my students” increased 150%, and searches for “bulletin board ideas” dropped to an all-time low in April 2020. 

Visual drawing of searches of “missing my students’ increasing by 150% over the last 18 months.

Some of the top questions searched were things like “How can educators support students who are struggling with distance learning?,” “How can students and teachers build a useful virtual classroom community?” and even “What does remote learning mean?” Clearly, educators — at home or in the classroom — have had plenty of challenges. So for this World Teachers’ Day, we put together a place where you can see other education and learning-related searches and trends from the past year.

Despite the many questions, I’m inspired by the strength of our incredible global educator community. On this World Teachers’ Day we’re sharing stories of how they found a way to teach during a year that has taught us so many lessons.  

Ann sits at her desk where she teaches her students both virtually and in-person.

Ann Kerr — Administrator, California, USA

Like many districts around the world, Ann saw an increase in stress across staff and students. To help students who were struggling, she tutored in the evenings after school to help students navigate the changes. Her efforts helped one student not only understand how to use Google Classroom but also their assignments, and the student raised their grades above passing before the end of the year. Even though they had only met through Google Meet, they made a real connection.

Jeff teaches students in person at Norwalk Public Schools.


Jeffrey Bradbury — Lead Instructional Coach for Digital Learning, Connecticut, USA
Jeff also saw a need to support the mental health of his students. This year, he led Norwalk Public Schools to launch a brand new Digital Learning Department to support teachers with not only using digital tools, but also to provide social and emotional support both in and out of the classroom.

Vanessa teaches her students in a computer lab in Brazil.

Vanessa Almeida — K-12 Public School Teacher and Pedagogical Coordinator, Amazonas, Brazil
Vanessa started preparing her school for online teaching in 2017, years before the pandemic — but nothing could  have prepared her for what was to come. She set out to create a more connected and efficient usage of the technology resources; at one point she worked for 48 hours straight to make sure all students had Google Workspace for Education accounts. This meant that her school continued its classes uninterrupted during the transition from face-to-face to remote learning. Even today, Vanessa offers her lunch break to teach students on various online tools.

Suyanti teaches Biology to her students remotely.

Suyanti Witono — 10th and 12th grade Biology Teacher, Jakarta, Indonesia
Suyanti is also no stranger to working overtime for her community. Once a stranger to remote learning, Suyanti spent her summer break going back to school herself. She took online courses and webinars to push herself to be prepared for whatever the upcoming academic year would bring. She learned about new online tools and how to use them to support her students from afar. After completing these courses, Suyanti was able to come back to the unknown with confidence. This extended to her students and the second wave of remote learning was not only easier, but more collaborative. Aside from lesson plans, she focused on engaging students with critical thinking, enhancing creativity and promoting effective communication  by using collaborative tools like Google Slides and Pear Deck.

Janice at her desk at Muirtown Primary School in Scotland.

Janice MacRae —  Head Teacher, Highland Council, Scotland
Janice and the Muirtown Primary School in Inverness, Scotland knew it would be important to  maintain extracurriculars no matter what the circumstances, given how beneficial they are for kids. Every year, they host the “Muirtown’s Got Talent” show, which usually takes place at school with in-person voting. The curtains still rose this year, but on a very different stage: The performances were recorded and uploaded to a Google Site, and parents voted via Google Forms (which actually garnered more participation).

Renee sits at her desk with a mask teaching her students.

Renee Bogacz — Instructional Technology Teacher, Illinois

Like many other teachers, Renee found a silver lining to the struggles of the school year. “The last school year may have been the most challenging school year of every educator’s career, but it will also be the most memorable,” Renee says. “It will be the one where we all came together to find thoughtful and creative ways to support our kids in ways we never dreamed.” 

This last year is a reminder of the incredible strength and resilience of educators. I saw firsthand how passionately students wanted to learn and grow, and how incredibly they performed when given the right environment and resources.

I’m so lucky to work with and learn from inspiring educators from around the world every day. Thank you to teachers everywhere for your strength and Happy World Teachers’ Day. You can celebrate further by   joining a Google teacher community in your area.

Una celebración de la fuerza y solidez este Día Mundial de los Docentes

Según Google Trends, en los últimos 18 meses, las búsquedas de"extraño a mis alumnos" aumentaron en un 150% y las búsquedas de "ideas para el tablero de anuncios"disminuyeron a un mínimo histórico en abril de 2020.

Diseño visual de cómo las búsquedas de "extraño a mis alumnos" aumentaron un 150 % en los últimos 18 meses.

Algunas de las principales preguntas que se buscaron trataban temas como: "¿Cómo pueden los educadores apoyar a los alumnos que tienen dificultades con el aprendizaje a distancia?", "¿Cómo pueden los alumnos y maestros construir una comunidad de aulas virtuales que sea útil?" e incluso, "¿Qué significa el aprendizaje remoto?". Está claro que los educadores, en casa o en el aula, se han enfrentado a muchos desafíos. Así que, con motivo de este Día Mundial de los Docentes,preparamos un lugar donde ustedes pueden ver otras búsquedas y tendencias relacionadas con la educación y el aprendizaje del año pasado.

A pesar de que aún hay muchas preguntas, me inspira la fortaleza de nuestra asombrosa comunidad global de educadores. En este Día Mundial de los Docentes, compartimos historias sobre cómo encontraron una forma de enseñar durante un año que nos hizo aprender muchas lecciones.

Ann está sentada frente al escritorio donde da clases a sus alumnos, tanto de manera virtual como presencial.

Ann Kerr — Administrator, California, EE. UU

Como en muchos distritos de todo el mundo, Ann fue testigo de un aumento de estrés en todo el personal y los alumnos. Con el fin de ayudar a los estudiantes con dificultades, dio tutorías en las tardes, después de la escuela, para ayudar a los alumnos a adaptarse a los cambios. Su labor ayudó a un alumno no solo a entender cómo usar Google Classroom sino a hacer sus tareas, y dicho alumno vio cómo sus calificaciones fueron superiores al nivel de aprobación antes de finalizar el año. Aunque solo se han conocido por Google Meet, entablaron una buena relación personal.

Jeff da clases a los alumnos de manera presencial en las escuelas públicas de Norwalk.

Jeffrey Bradbury — Profesor de instrucción principal para el aprendizaje digital, Connecticut, EE. UU

Jeff también vio la necesidad de apoyar la salud mental de sus alumnos. Este año, él impulsó que las escuelas públicas de Norwalk lanzaran un Departamento de Aprendizaje Digital totalmente nuevo para apoyar a los maestros en el uso de herramientas digitales, pero también para brindar apoyo social y emocional tanto dentro como fuera del aula.

Vanessa da clases a sus alumnos en un laboratorio de informática en Brasil.

Vanessa Almeida — Maestra de escuela pública de jardín de niños al 12.º grado y coordinadora pedagógica, Amazonas, Brasil

Vanessa empezó a preparar a su escuela para el aprendizaje en línea en 2017, varios años antes de la pandemia, pero nada podría haberla preparado para lo que estaba por ocurrir. Se propuso establecer un uso más conectado y eficiente de los recursos tecnológicos. En cierta ocasión, trabajó 48 horas seguidas para asegurarse de que todos los alumnos tuvieran cuentas de Google Workspace for Education. Esto significó que su escuela continuara con clases ininterrumpidas durante la transición del aprendizaje presencial al remoto. Incluso en la actualidad, Vanessa dedica su hora de comida a enseñar a los alumnos sobre diversas herramientas en línea.

Suyanti da clases de Biología a sus alumnos de manera remota.

Suyanti Woo — Maestra de Biología de 10.º y 12.º grado, Yakarta, Indonesia

Para Suyanti tampoco fue algo nuevo trabajar horas extra para su comunidad. Como el aprendizaje remoto fue algo nuevo para ella, Suyanti pasó sus vacaciones de verano en la escuela. Tomó cursos en línea y seminarios web para impulsarse a estar preparada para lo que el siguiente año académico trajera consigo. Aprendió sobre nuevas herramientas en línea y cómo apoyar a sus alumnos a distancia, entre otras cosas. Al terminar los cursos, Suyanti pudo retomar lo desconocido con seguridad. Lo mismo ocurrió con sus alumnos y la segunda ola de aprendizaje remoto no solamente fue más fácil, sino también de mayor colaboración. Además de los planes de estudio, se enfocó en captar la atención de sus alumnos mediante el pensamiento crítico, el mejoramiento de la creatividad y el fomento de la comunicación efectiva mediante el uso de herramientas colaborativas como Google Slides y Pear Deck.

Vemos a Janice en su escritorio en la Escuela Primaria Muirtown en Escocia.

Janice MacRae — Maestra titular, concejo de Highland, Escocia

Janice y la Escuela Primaria Muirtown en Inverness, Escocia, sabían que sería importante conservar las actividades extracurriculares, sin importar las circunstancias. Cada año, organizan el espectáculo "Muirtown tiene talento", que, por lo general, se lleva a cabo en la escuela con votaciones en persona. El telón también se abrió este año, pero en un escenario muy distinto: las presentaciones se grabaron y se subieron a Google Site, y los padres de familia votaron mediante Formularios de Google (lo cual, de hecho, generó una mayor participación).

Renee está sentada frente a su escritorio con una mascarilla dando clase a sus alumnos.

Renee Bogacz — Maestra de tecnología educativa, Illinois, EE. UU

Como muchos otros maestros, Renee les encontró un lado positivo a los desafíos del año escolar. "Posiblemente, el último año escolar haya sido el más desafiante de la carrera de todos los educadores, pero también será el más memorable", señala Renee. "Será el año en el que todos nos unimos en busca de formas inteligentes y creativas de apoyar a nuestros niños en formas que jamás soñamos".

Este último año es un recordatorio de la increíble fuerza y resiliencia de los educadores. Fui testigo de primera mano de la pasión con la que los alumnos deseaban aprender y crecer, y de la forma tan asombrosa en la que se desempeñaron al darles el entorno y los recursos adecuados.

Soy muy afortunada por trabajar y aprender de educadores ejemplares de todo el mundo todos los días. Muchas gracias a los maestros en todas partes por su fuerza y feliz Día Mundial de los Docentes. Si desea seguir celebrando, únase a unacomunidad de maestros de Google en su región.

Google Workspace Updates Weekly Recap – October 1, 2021

New updates 

Unless otherwise indicated, the features below are fully launched or in the process of rolling out (rollouts should take no more than 15 business days to complete), launching to both Rapid and Scheduled Release at the same time (if not, each stage of rollout should take no more than 15 business days to complete), and available to all Google Workspace and G Suite customers. 



New look and feel for Workspace Updates email subscriptions 
We’ve improved the look and feel of the emails you receive when you subscribe to Workspace Updates. 
  • The emails themselves will be sent from [email protected], so be sure to update any inbox filters or labels you may have and check your spam folders if you don't immediately see them. 
  • Emails for the Workspace Updates Blog in non-English markets will update to this new format in the coming weeks. 
  • If you have any feedback about these emails after September 29th, please feel back to let us know in the linked form. 
Available now | Available to all Google Workspace customers and users with personal Google Accounts. | Workspace Updates Blog Email Subscription Feedback 



Porting in Google Voice now available in Canada 
If your organization has existing phone numbers with another service provider, you can port (or move) those numbers to Google Voice in Canada. | Learn more.



Previous announcements 

The announcements below were published on the Workspace Updates blog earlier this week. Please refer to the original blog posts for complete details. 



Live translated captions in Google Meet available in beta 
Launching in beta, live translated captions help video call participants communicate better by translating a spoken language to captions in another language. | Learn more here and here. | Available to meetings organized by Google Workspace Business Plus, Enterprise Standard, Enterprise Plus, Education Plus, and Teaching & Learning Upgrade customers. | Apply to beta 



Add image watermarks in Google Docs 
You can now add image watermarks directly into Google Docs. This watermark image will repeat behind the text on every page of your document. | Learn more. 



Renaming “whitelisted domains” to “allowlisted domains” in the Admin console 
We’re updating instances of “whitelisted” in the Admin console to “allowlisted”. This change more accurately describes this action, as well as eliminates a non-inclusive term from our products. | Learn more.



Comment size increasing in Google Docs 
Comment width will intelligently scale based on your browser window to maximize the use of available screen space. | Learn more.



Replace your background with a video in Google Meet on Android 
In addition to replacing your Google Meet background with a static image on web and mobile, you can now replace your background with a video on Android. | Learn more. 



Quickly access Google Drive files in Chrome browser 
We’re adding a card onto the New Tab Page in your Chrome browser that will surface relevant files from your Google Drive, making it easier and more efficient to find the files you need. | Learn more.



View Alert Center notifications directly from the Admin console toolbar 
You can now quickly access Alert Center alerts from anywhere in the Admin console from the toolbar at top of the page. Selecting the new bell icon will surface the ten latest alerts, along with a brief description. | Learn more.



Use the “Slideshow” button in Google Slides 
We’re replacing what was previously the “Present” button in Slides to now say “Slideshow.” We hope this makes it clearer when you are beginning a slide show, and when you are sharing your screen in Meet. | Learn more. 



Review smart home devices used for work in your Admin console
Admins can now view and manage the smart displays and speakers that access work data in the Admin console, alongside other devices managed with Google endpoint management. | Learn more. 



For a recap of announcements in the past six months, check out What’s new in Google Workspace (recent releases).

Support for Responsive Video Ads in Scripts

Today we’re launching support for responsive video ads in Google Ads scripts. If you were using the TrueView for action campaign type, you must update your code to use the new video ad type. If you don’t update, your code will begin throwing errors starting approximately October 10, 2021. The old TrueView for action campaign type is being renamed to Video action campaign along with this change.

You can update your selectors with a new withCondition clause to separate Video action campaigns from other video campaign types in your code.

To get campaigns with the video action type: 

AdsApp.videoCampaigns()
    .withCondition("AdvertisingChannelSubType = VIDEO_ACTION")
    .get();
Or to get video campaigns of other types, which are unaffected by this change: 

AdsApp.videoCampaigns()
    .withCondition("AdvertisingChannelSubType != VIDEO_ACTION")
    .get();
Once you've identified that you're acting on a Video action campaign, create a new type of ad group that can house responsive video ads, and then construct a new type of ad at ad creation time. For other types of video campaigns, this new ad type isn’t available.

For creating the ad group, if you were using: 

videoCampaign.newVideoAdGroupBuilder().withAdGroupType("VIDEO_TRUE_VIEW_IN_STREAM")
Then update that code to: 

videoCampaign.newVideoAdGroupBuilder().withAdGroupType("VIDEO_RESPONSIVE")
For creating the ads themselves, if you were using: 

adGroup.newVideoAd().inStreamAdBuilder()
Then update that code to: 

adGroup.newVideoAd().responsiveVideoAdBuilder()
Check out the reference documentation for the new responsiveVideoAdBuilder for details on its fields and methods.

If you have any questions, please leave a post on our forum so that we can help.
- Mike Cloonan, Google Ads Scripts Team

Review smart home devices used for work in your Admin console

What’s changing

Admins can now view and manage the smart displays and speakers that access work data in the Admin console, alongside other devices managed with Google endpoint management. 



Who’s impacted 

Admins 


Why it’s important 

In addition to computers and mobile devices, the inclusion of smart displays and speakers in Google endpoint management gives admins a more complete inventory of the devices their users are using to access Google Workspace. Further, this allows admins to easily take action if needed, such as signing out of devices as needed and viewing information such as device type and user account information. 


Additional details 

For select Google Workspace editions, admins can view activity on smart home devices as part of device audit logs. You’ll be able to see information such as: 
  • Whether there has been an account registration change, 
  • If a user’s managed account synced on the device, 
  • If the device has been signed out by an admin. 

You can also set an alert to be notified when these activities occur. Visit the Help Center to learn more about device audit logs. 


Getting started 


Rollout pace 


Availability 

  • Available to all Google Workspace customers, as well as G Suite Basic and Business customers 

Resources