Google Steals Customers From Amazon
February 11, 2013
As the world’s largest online marketplace, offering millions of products from wholesalers and individual entrepreneurs one would think that Amazon has made its own bed and no one would be able to mess up the starch cotton sheets. Wired says otherwise in“Google’s Plan To Snatch Shopping From Amazon Is Working.” Last fall Google transitioned to all-paid product listing display ads in search results, which is making more than a couple bucks role in. Advertisers spent 600% more on Google product listings, says Marin Software, and advertisers will skip to whatever tune Google plays.
Advertisers do not seem that upset about it, because when they pay their products get shown more. Google has drawn the usual criticism, because the search results would be biased. The response is that users click on these ads, because Google is simply putting more effort into them. It is a common concept, put more work into something and it shows.
“What does any of this have to do with Amazon? Lawson and Marin Software CEO Chris Lien say that online shoppers today tend to start in one of two places for product information: Google or Amazon. In effect, Amazon has become a “commerce search engine,” which cuts into Google’s core function. To compete, Google wants to give shoppers every reason not to go straight to Amazon by becoming as reliable a destination not just to learn about products, but to buy them.”
Google wants to nab sales from window-shopping to check out, leaving the shipping and inventory to individual sellers. It provides direct competition to Amazon with their warehouses. The fight is on, but no one is KO yet.
Whitney Grace, February 11, 2013
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Beyond Search
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