Seems the guys at Google have got all festive suddenly!

Has anyone else noticed the images alongside the paid search results?

They only appear under seasonal search terms, such as “Christmas”, and are no doubt doing wonders for improving the CTR.

As the data shows us, despite the credit crunch, online is doing well: people are spending like mad! Although despite showing us all a little bit of festive spirit, this could also be a ploy be Google to make their ads stand out even more. But at least it feels like Christmas when you’re online!

Did anyone else have Didit’s press release slip under the radar?

They announced that they’re going to start running Performance Trust Accounts up to a $1million in value, such is their confidence that they’ll deliver on paid search.

If they don’t meet the pre-agreed targets, you get your money back and more.

Now that’s self-confidence.

Last week Yahoo announced a riduculous number of job cuts.

I didn’t find this the least bit funny, but it amused me that they shunned Microsoft’s massive offer of $CRAZY million dollars a few months ago, and now the company’s shares have plummeted vastly below what they refused.

Now, even Microsoft is looking a bit panicky though, this morning releasing news that they’re expecting online revenue growth to slow to between 6% – 10 % in the next quarter, with display advertising being dramtically affected by the economic environment. Note: Display, NOT Paid Search, which could mean great rates for advertisers.Despite this slightly pessimistic prediction, Micrcosoft’s online functions still just made a cool $770m (£495m) these past THREE months and, a slight slap in the face for Yahoo, Microsoft just posted quarterly results of $21bn MORE than Yahoo’s entire market cap of $17.5bn (£11.2bn).

A new breed of begger is about to be born? Spare some change, anyone?

Confusion time! PPC is can be more natural than SEO.

I’m completely putting this on a random idea that crossed my mind whilst wandering the fruit ‘n veg aisles of my supermarket:
PPC (PAID search) is exactly like cress, the most wonderfuly natural thing in the world.

Reasons for this?

Think back to science class, when you grew cress in a variety of conditions: One lot of cress in the dark, one lot without water, one lot without soil etc.

If you imagine PPC as the cress seeds:
Budget/bids are sunlight
Decent account management is water
Keyword and adgroup structures are soil
Strategy is warmth

If you get the mix right, then the campaign will grow and grow and grow, like a box of cress. Then you can plant more and do it all over again.

Just an obscure thought.

The wonderful thing about the digital world is that everything can be recorded. Inevitably, the usual privacy/infringement issues arise, but for marketing-men (and women) , this is brilliant. By recording user information, patterns, online data etc. almost instantly, advertisers can see if a campaign is working or not. Following the entire process from start to finish in such detail, they can indentify where users become disinterested or excited, they can tell how users react to specific offers, products, services and websites, they can collect and assess and conclude data like you wouldn’t believe.

Actually, that’s the theory. I’ve seen quite a lot of poorly-run campaigns over time (I’m not the only one); doesn’t matter what they are: PPC, Affiliate, SEO, Display… You could have the best campaign idea ever, but if the strategy isn’t right, I can assure you that it won’t achieve it’s full potential. Digital is about quick response – in this sense, it’s direct marketing at it’s finest: Ads targeted at relevent users, responses that can be traced and assessed, strategies that can be tweaked and fine-tuned for maximum effect. Because of this, it’s a total no-brainer that whilst the economy is down, digital is on the up.

From a marketing perspective, digital is inexpensive, trackable, changeable and direct. Far cheaper than TV, Radio, Press or Outdoor, in the current economic climate, it will practically guarantee money well-spent and yeild a return on investment. (Providing any campaign is well-run). It even enables SME’s to successfully compete with bigger players (all the more important right now). From a user’s perspective, the internet can provide more services, information and products than they would find offline – usually at cheap, comparable prices.

It’s a win-win situation for everyone and, with the slump we’re seeing offline, where people are opting to try and save money, it’s no suprise that the digital world has grown enormously these past few months. I’m seeing it everyday and I imagine that it’ll soon be pretty apparent to even the most digital-shy technophobes.

As an addendum, I found this. It pretty much proves my point.

In case it’s escaped anybody’s attention – possibly those without a computer or any form of intelligence – Google are celebrating their tenth birthday.

So, from humble beginnings a decade ago, Google turns double-digits and simultaneously is recognised as the worlds most powerful global brand, as charted by research-consultancy firm, Millward Brown. Interestingly, out of the top-ten brands on this list, four are computing-based: Alongside Google (1), there sits Microsoft (3), IBM (6) and Apple (7). Furthermore, China Mobile (5) and Nokia (9) bulk up this techno-team. Unquestionably, this is a reflection on the importance of technology in modern everyday life, but perhaps any questions should be directed towards Google and the massive monopoly they’re building for themselves?

There are hundreds of articles and blogs floating around surrounding the ethics of Google, particularly in their data-collecting/retaining methods. Whilst I’m totally for companies being allowed to make profits, no matter how big the amounts involved, I like to try and understand the motivation behind the cash. When Google bought DoubleClick, I was worried – and partly, I still am – that the biggest search engine on earth was buying one of the biggest measurers of ad-trafficking and measurement. Not only does this possibly stamp out competition, but the issues raised surrounding data and the fact that Google will soon be Big-Brother-esque in their knowledge of users. (Therefore able to increase revenue even further). It just seemed to be a bit bullying when it happened, and a far cry from the informal Google “Don’t be evil” slogan. Other stuff happened this year, such as Brand-protection no longer being allowed on PPC-ads, so competitors could appear on each other’s terms; another money-maker for the company.

Whilst Google undeniably do a great deal of good, both online and off, (from free source coding and decent email through to setting up a $1bn charity fund and uniting knowledge-sharing), it nevertheless remains that some of it’s business practices can be viewed to sway slightly away from what the company preaches.