Advertisers Question How Google Helps Them In Print

from the yes,-but... dept

Remember a few months ago with all that buzz about how Google was getting into print advertising? It didn’t make much sense to us at the time, as they couldn’t really offer the same benefits they offer online (mainly the contextual display right when people are looking for something) and with no ability to “click” on things, about the only advantage was Google’s ability to buy in bulk and sell to advertisers who couldn’t afford a full page magazine ad. The one thing that did seem surprising was that at least one of the participating advertisers claimed that the ad was worth more to him because of the association with Google. One guy specifically said he wished the Google brand was more prominent on the ad — which seems a bit odd when you’re advertising your own thing. Anyway, it appears that the good feeling of being associated with Google perhaps wore off pretty quickly. Business Week tracked down a bunch of the advertisers who took part in the first test, and the vast majority say it wasn’t worth it. They didn’t see nearly the return they would need to do it again. And, remember, this was the highly publicized first time they did this — meaning it was much more likely that people were actually out looking for that ad. If, even in those conditions, advertisers weren’t happy, it makes you wonder what sort of return advertisers will get without the promotion.


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Comments on “Advertisers Question How Google Helps Them In Print”

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3 Comments
Scooter (profile) says:

What kind of advertisers?

I wonder if the advertisers were mostly the small business types who are used to adwords and have little experience in print advertising.

When you advertise in print, it is rare you will see a return on your first run. This is why people who advertise in magazines or newspapers frequently buy up ads in blocks of multiple issues.
Not because they see immediate results, but because it takes a long time to see results.

Sohrab says:

No Subject Given

Overhype? Arent we jumping the gun on this one? It seems as if this site has gone from Tech news you dont hear to bash every single company out there. It takes a long time for a small business to get noticed. Just because somebody see’s one add, it will not make them turn their current business provider down. Over time, they will begin to recognise the name and thats when advertising helps. not “omg, i saw an add, i must buy” so by claiming overhype, arent we jumping it?

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