Google Ad Change: Good for the GOOG
February 22, 2016
What’s good for the GOOG is good for the gander, okay? I read “Google Ditches Right-Side Desktop Ads: Who’s Screwed?” Let me congratulate ZDNet for its elegant phrasing. I particularly like the Miltonian touch of “Who’s screwed.” Classy.
The main point of the write up is that Google is shifting around the ads displayed when one does a free search on the Google search engine.
The purpose of a change related to advertising is to increase Google’s revenue. The write up seems to struggle with the impact of this concept. The points which catch the attention of the ZDNet folks are:
- Fewer ad slots on search results pages. Hmm. I thought that there would be the same number of ads but the cheaper ads are mostly a bad idea remedied.
- Organic results—that is, a euphemism for non paid or non SEO’d content—get less opportunity to reach a Google user who only looks at one page of results and rarely bothers to look outside the results which initially display. I am not sure that Google results have been particularly relevant for years, but maybe I am missing the point of Google’s search system. “Search” does not strike me as the vehicle for delivering relevant, on point results.
- Bidding wars will become more intense. Yep, and this makes the job of the online marketing decider that much more exciting.
How does one get relevant search results? Well, that is a good question. Hint: There are other online search systems, but these are getting more and more difficult to use from mobile devices. Give iseek.com a whirl from your mobile phone or try out qwant.com. How are these working out for you? Easier to use Google because, believe it or not, we are raising a generation of expert searchers who perceive information delivered via Google as correct. Do you want a grill for charcoal with your auto parts order?
Stephen E Arnold, February 22, 2016
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