Ad Auction

The ad auction on the Internet is interesting. I like the fact that it opens up the market to everyone...big and small companies alike. I also like that it keeps your bid right above the highest bid of you competitor. I watched a story on CNBC where a small, custom cowboy boot company garnered success from using AdWords. By simply bringing their self to consumers who actually were searching for content similar to the product offered, they gained success. I think that's the key. Although it is advertising, in a way, consumers generate the content in terms of what is being advertised to them. It isn't intrusive or congested like other ad media. It works and is a very smart way to advertise.

I definitely think this will be how more media will begin to advertise: they will allow users to generate content. I think there are many models that can be created on this premise. For example, many mobile apps are based on very specific and unique content, especially more of the lifestyle apps. If advertising is added, as most are or will be, advertisers can easily target whatever segment they want. It makes a great deal of sense to me. It's almost like cable television. The channels essentially segment the market according to whatever content they provide...and advertisers really take advantage. I know the ads I see on ESPN everyday will not be the same ads that show up on Lifetime, two totally different markets. The future is bright.

[Week 10] Search Engines (Yahoo!)

After reading the history of Yahoo!, I found the similarities to Google. I mean both were born of two Stanford students. I guess we can thank the institution for the web monsters we have today. It is interesting to hear about how something like this gets started. No one understands the web. No one knows exactly what consumers want or what the next big thing will be...or even SHOULD be for that matter. It absolutely crazy. There's no way to forecast or predict these things. I really wonder how they pitched this to all the bigs they met with. I guess numbers don't lie...and investors just care about investing in something that has just the slightest potential to be big.

I remember Yahoo! growing up though...when I was still still on a Windows 95 PC. It was interesting...we didn't say "Yahoo" anything to find it. I still remember using the yellow pages to find numbers and locations around this time. I remember using encyclopedias. I remember using Encarta when that came out since it was on the computer rather than using books. Its just crazy how far we have come in just over ten years. I cannot imagine what childhood will be like for my children. They will probably have NO similarities between theirs and mine. I guess that's what we have to come to terms with living in these days. Amazing stuff =).

[Week8] GOOOOOOOOGLE.

Let’s start by saying I simply LOVE Google. These essential open letters that Larry and Sergey take turns authoring are great for the public. It really allows you to trust the company as they make it seem like they’re laying everything out for you right there—there’s nothing to hide. I also can appreciate each of the presidents taking on the visual aesthetics of the letter and personalizing it for themselves: Larry, the more traditional, cut and dry type and Sergey, the more image oriented, visually interesting approach. I can appreciate that. It is clear that they haven’t lost themselves since they started Google in 1998. They keep it open, giving new meaning to the term open source.

One thing that I really like about all this is how they stay true to what Google was founded on: the search. They work diligently and continue striving to create a better product with that, as that is their most successful and important feature. Without Google search, the world would be a lot different. Accessing information would be a lot different, and they know this. I love how they break down their most important projects for consumers to understand what exactly is going on. You can read the 2007 report and see things discussed in terms of GoogleDocs and Android and see the finish products out today for out use.

The biggest thing that stuck out to me in the 2009 report was the mention of the Chrome OS. That is scary. I’ve heard great things about the Chrome web browser but if Google took over my entire OS, which would be amazing and scary at the same time. I am a traditionalist. I have a Mac. I use Safari. I don’t like Firefox and have no desire to try Chrome. But for others, it’s totally different. It should be interesting to the see how the relationship between Apple and Windows is after an OS is introduced. I know Apple isn’t happy with the Android OS competing against the iPhone so it should be interesting. At the end of the day, I trust Google. They have the consumer’s benefit in mind with everything they do, as they know the impact of their products. We have seen what these first 11 years have done to the Google-lized web. Let’s see what happens with the next ten.

Media Update Presentation Topic(s)

I presently have two things that I'm interested in topic wise. I think both would be beneficial to everyone and present interesting information that is relevant now and will be relevant later.

The first one is based on this article:

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/05/technology/05google.html?_r=2&ref=media

Google TV (and anything related to the giant) is very important to know and understand for the future. Like I expressed earlier in the semester, staying ahead of the curve and up to date is a must for us coming out of school. You honestly never know what the next game changer will be so considering and understanding everything is the best way to go. I can present the information in this article while also introducing the whole concept of Google TV to the class.

This second article presents my second topic:

http://www.realtimeadvertisingweek.com/2010/09/how-consumers-react-to-different-kinds-of-ads-on-their-online-travels.html

This is interesting because we always wonder how consumers react to online advertising. This research, commissioned by AOL, gives us some insight into it. I'm not sure if I can have a full 10-minute presentation on the topic from this one article BUT it is a good starting point. I know this information is interesting to me and fits into the same thinking I have where we need to consume as much information as possible to get ahead.