Marketing Pilgrim

Are display ads in the future for Google Image Search SERPs?

Marissa Mayer talked to Bloomberg Radio earlier this week and she didn’t deny the possibility:

We haven’t found a proper way to monetize image search to date. You may see us roll out an ads-image search in the future, but when we do you’ll know that’s because we found a way that ultimately enhances user happiness with the product.

Even more interesting was the information Mayer provided on their previous attempts at monetizing image search:

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If you’re not a fan of Google-related news, you might want to turn away now (we’ll tell you when it’s safe to resume reading).

<Google Overload>

Google held its annual shareholders meeting yesterday and discussed lots of topics. Here are the Pilgrim’s CliffsNotes:

Yahoo: "Excited to be working with them…They were under a hostile attack and we wanted to make sure they had as many options as possible."

YouTube: New ad products in development that are neither pre-roll or post-roll.

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Google has announced enhanced features for custom search engines: the integration of sitemaps and AdSense for Search.

The new features will improve search results in a Google custom search engine for your site if you utilize sitemaps:

Custom Search is built on top of the Google index. This means that all pages that are available on Google.com are also available to your search engine. We’re now maintaining a CSE-specific index in addition to the Google.com index for enhancing the performance of search on your site. If you submit a Sitemap, it’s likely that we will crawl those pages and include them in the additional index we build.

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The guys at the eCommerce & Entrepreneurship Blog would like to point out that Google is trying to redefine search engine optimization (SEO) so that we all focus on the "on page" enhancements, not the "off page" link enhancements–you know the stuff that makes up the bulk of Google’s algorithm.

Here’s how the Google Analytics team recently defined SEO:

OK, there are one of three things going on here:

1. Google’s trying to throw you off the scent deliberately, because they don’t want you to "adjust" your links.

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BusinessWeek would like you to believe that there’s growing tension between Apple and Google–especially Eric Schmidt’s role on Apple’s board.

Google is also increasingly becoming a would-be Apple competitor, making Schmidt’s membership on Apple’s board awkward, if not ultimately untenable. Concerns over a potential conflict of interest have surfaced in the tech blogosphere in the past, but the potential for rivalry takes on added urgency as Apple prepares to launch the next version of its iPhone while Google partners ready cell phones that run Google’s operating system.

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Another Google exec has decided to leave Google to join Facebook. This time it’s Elliot Schrage, vp of global communications and public affairs. He’ll become the vp of communications and public policy at Facebook. He was at Google for two years.

The funny part is how quickly he got on Facebook and started sharing the news. Like the COO hire, this is a strategic hire for Facebook as they try to follow in Google’s stock price footsteps. If enough early stage Google employees go to Facebook they just might be able to recreate that early Google startup feel.

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If I were one of the stressed out digerati–constantly overwhelmed by the demands of social media–I could probably list out a dozen existing tools that Google Reader’s new sharing options borrow from. Instead, I have my social networking habits under control, so will stick with just the obvious comparisons.

First, what did Google Reader announce?

• A new bookmarklet. Add the Google Reader bookmarklet to your browser and you can save any web page–even if it doesn’t have an RSS feed–while also adding your own notes or sharing with friends.

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Raise your hand if you’re tired of hearing about the pending Google-Yahoo and/or Yahoo-Microsoft deals. All right, everyone who isn’t me—you’re excused from reading this post. Me—you still have to write it, even though now there’s no one left out there.

Somehow, it’s suddenly news again that Yahoo might do SOMETHING at SOME POINT. (Can you tell I’m not overly impressed?) Sources tell the WSJ that late yesterday, Microsoft was leaning toward a hostile bid. Moments ago, Reuters‘ sources say that Yahoo and Microsoft talks are intensifying to avoid a hostile takeover. Microsoft’s bid has allegedly gone up several dollars.

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I feel like I’m trying to sell something, but it’s true. Google is running a promotion to encourage people to try Google TV Ads. Details below…

Google TV Ads is out of beta after almost a year. As part of Google AdWords, you can run and track the results of television ads. At first glance the two concepts seem incongruent - online advertising and tv ads.

However, people watch tv and then go online to search, edit Wikipedia articles, go to web sites, and yes, buy products. An iProspect study said 37% of TV watchers go to search engines based on what they see in an ad. It’s also important because your online marketing and offline marketing campaigns should complement each other.

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In recent interview with CNBC’s Maria Bartiromo, Google’s CEO Eric Schmidt spoke out about his biggest concerns. Most pressing issue is the possible merger of Microsoft and Yahoo - which could happen as early as next week. Then there’s the problem of how to make money off YouTube – which is costing the company millions a year in hosting costs.

First, the tale of good (Google) and evil (Microsoft) and the fight over struggling Yahoo. In the interview, Schmidt talks up Yahoo’s strengths and warns about Microsoft’s evilness.

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Last Friday, a scant eleven months after Google’s acquisition of FeedBurner was confirmed, the FeedBurner blog announced that the two sites have finally begun their integration:

In the coming weeks, upon visiting www.feedburner.com, selected publishers will have the opportunity to sign in using their Google Account and experience FeedBurner, now as part of the Google.

FeedBurner says that the early changes won’t be very noticeable, though “it may look a bit Googlier around the edges.” Eventually, it “will start to look and feel more like a set of Google services.”

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"Google has announced the acquisition of Measure Map, an analytics tool aimed at bloggers looking to better understand their audience."

I wrote the above back in February 2006. Since then, we’ve not heard anything out of Google or Measure Map–until today.

About your Measure Map account

Remember Measure Map? A couple of years ago, we gave you an account on an
early alpha test of our blog analytics software. Since then, a lot has
happened. We got acquired by Google, we redesigned their Analytics app, and
we’ve since rebuilt Measure Map from the ground up.

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