Google Gadget Ads will turn the Web (and Advertising) Inside Out

[abbottsys]

First, to clear up confusion, a Google Gadget Ad is actually a "mini-application" program. The term "Ad" is somewhat misleading. So given that, how might these things change the advertising landscape big time?

Like this - they could let you deliver your website functionality all across the web, so folks could use it without even visiting your site. I say "could" because Google is very close to this model but not exactly there yet.

Take our website for example. It contains the usual educational content, but the real business of the site is to let visitors find doctors and make online appointments (we're in the highly specialized medical area of infertility treatment). That's how we make our money. And thanks to AdWords we make a ton of money by running ads and driving traffic to our site.

So, how would Gadget Ads possibly change this model? Easy.. we just package the appropriate snippts of site functionality into Gadget Ads and use AdWords to distribute these snippets across the entire Internet. Our website has then "gone distributed" big time.

Users can get helpful services from our site by interacting with the Gadget Ads and not necessarily even coming to the site. In other words, visitors don't come to the website, the website goes to them. That's a fundamental change and is equivalent to turing a website "inside out".

Google is close to this, but has several hurdles to cross. Not technical hurdles, the technology is totally there now, but business model hurdles - user/advertiser/publisher model hurdles.

The first person who turns the Web inside out will stand to make staggering revenue. Call it advertising revenue if you want, but this is a very different form of advertising. And "staggering" means Google's current revenue is just the tip of the iceberg.

Google is closer than anyone else. But a trip is still possible. Remember how they almost tripped big time with AdWords by rolling it our under a CPM model. It flopped until they introduced the "AdWords Select" PPC model, and the rest is history. Well, with Gadget Ads the stakes are far higher.

I don't know who Google's Product Manager for Gadget Ads is, but a hell of a lot is riding on them. I for one hope they don't trip on the last step.

[beu]

So true abbottsys, unlike traditional Rich Media "Gadget Ads" are open source AJAX, built with HTML and/or Flash and have no serving or hosting costs. Because they are their own platform, Google Gadget Ads are really an all new format.

[abbottsys]

Originally Posted by beu

So true abbottsys, unlike traditional Rich Media "Gadget Ads" are open source AJAX, built with HTML and/or Flash and have no serving or hosting costs. Because they are their own platform, Google Gadget Ads are really an all new format.

Yes indeed. I totally agree. You imply Gadget Ads are a whole new platform - so very true. These are mirco-apps with the amazing benefit of AdWords distribution *and* a built-in revenue model. Assuming of course Google gets the revenue model right.

Here's what they need to balance...

1) users - want it for free, expect it for free (well yes, but is this always true?)

2) publishers - want to make money for running ads, *and* would prefer if they could make the money without the traffic leaving their website. Now this is something to ponder.

3) advertisers - well, what do they really want? They want action and measurement. These guys don't ask much

Can Google balance all the above at the same time? Their track record is reasonable but not great. The Product Manager for Gadget Ads needs to think very seriously about this stuff. Did I mention that I'm *very relieved* I'm not the product Manager for Gadget Ads. The pain must be starting

[beu]

1. yeah!

2. Publishers may find that they make more money due to their ad "living" on users' iGoogle homepage and because serving as well as hosting costs are foregone.

3. I'm not sure Google has much to do with "Action" as you say but, from what I understand 60 or so unique types of interactions can be tracked via the report center in AdWords and URLs can be tagged with analytics code to track referrals.

[abbottsys]

Originally Posted by beu

1. yeah!

2. Publishers may find that they make more money due to their ad "living" on users' iGoogle homepage and because serving as well as hosting costs are foregone.

3. I'm not sure Google has much to do with "Action" as you say but, from what I understand 60 or so unique types of interactions can be tracked via the report center in AdWords and URLs can be tagged with analytics code to track referrals.

Agreed. When I said "action" in my point #3 I was really referring to my biggest fear about Gadget Ads. It's a simple fear - that publishers shun them and the distribution does not happen. By action I just mean "massive distribution".

We all know that AdWords has huge distribution capabilities, but the only thing that's worked for me so far is the good old text ad. It's worked big time, and I'm super happy with it. All the other ad formats I've played with over the years come nowhere close. So, I really hope that Gadget Ads take off, get huge distribution.. and deliver the action!!!

My second biggest fear? I hope that Google thinks very carefully about the pay model for Gadget Ads. PPC is the way to go of course, but is it necessary for the click to involve taking the user to some other website