For $6 billion, Microsoft buys huge slice of online-ad pie
Microsoft on Friday announced the biggest acquisition in company history in a bid to grab more of what Microsoft estimates is a $40 billion global digital-advertising market from arch-competitor Google. The Redmond company that made its fortune building software will pay a premium price of $6 billion for aQuantive, a Seattle-based pioneer in next-generation advertising.
The high-stakes deal, which will be reviewed by regulators, is the latest in a string of recent advertising acquisitions that promise to reshape how commercials are bought, sold and presented online -- and who profits.
The global technology giant has shied away from transactions of this size, spending $1 billion or more on acquisitions only four other times in its history. Its tendency has been to acquire smaller companies or just their technology, avoiding the potential pitfalls of combining large work forces.
If the combination with aQuantive goes well -- a process the companies will be planning in the next two months -- Microsoft executives could be emboldened to go after other major deals, said Mark Anderson, a technology analyst in Friday Harbor.
More high-profile acquisitions could also juice Microsoft's stock price, Anderson said, which has been largely stagnant over the past six years, much to investors' chagrin.
Microsoft shares dipped slightly on Friday to close at $30.83 each. Meanwhile, aQuantive stock skyrocketed almost $28, or 77.8 percent, to $63.79 a share. Microsoft is planning to pay $66.50 in cash for each aQuantive share.
No bargain buy
Microsoft is paying a premium price -- well above what several analysts thought aQuantive was worth -- likely because of a competitive bidding process and a frenzy of recent acquisitions in the industry.
In April, Google, which makes most of its money selling advertising next to results from its market-leading Internet search engine, announced a $3.1 billion purchase of DoubleClick, the biggest seller of online-display advertising, such as the banners that run along the top and sides of Web sites.
Microsoft was rumored to be a bidder for DoubleClick and has since complained to regulators that the deal puts too much control in the hands of one company -- the same charge that landed Microsoft in the protracted antitrust battle over its monopoly of computer operating-system software.
"Yahoo! was making moves, everybody was making moves, and Microsoft had visibly lost out on a couple of these battles at a time when they've got more money than God in the bank," Anderson said.
Asked whether the acquisition is in part to prevent a competitor from getting aQuantive -- one the last large independent digital-advertising houses -- Johnson talked only of the opportunity.
"We looked at how rapidly this industry is consolidating and unfolding, and we felt like now was the time to put a stake in the ground that says we are going to take our advertising platform to the next level and we are committed to this industry for the future growth of our company," Johnson said.
Happy go lucky
Saturday, May 19, 2007
10 Must DO's For Best Online Ad Copy
1.) Be reader-centered, not writer-centered.
Many ads, brochures, and Web sites we see talk endlessly on and on about how great their products and companies are. Hello? Customer, anyone? Think of your reader thinking, “What’s in it for me?” If you can, talk with some of your current customers and ask them 1) why they chose you, and 2) what they get out of your product or service. TIP: To instantly make your copy more reader-focused, insert the word “you” often.
2.) Focus on the benefits —
not just the features.The fact that your product or service offers a lot of neat features is great, but what do they DO for your customer? Do they save her time or money? Give her peace of mind? Raise her image to a certain status? Here’s an example: If you go buy a pair of Gucci sunglasses, you’re not just looking for good UV protection. You’re buying the sleek, stylish Gucci look. So that’s what Gucci sells. You don’t see their ads talk about how well made their sunglasses are. Think end results. Now, what does an insurance broker sell? Policies? No — peace of mind. (See? You’ve got it.)
3.) Draw them in with a killer headline.
The first thing your reader sees can mean the difference between success and failure. Today’s ads are chock full of clever headlines that play on words. They’re cute, but most of them aren’t effective. There are many ways to get attention in a headline, but it’s safest to appeal to your reader’s interests and concerns. And again, remember to make it reader centered — no one gives a hoot about your company.Bad: “SuccessCorp Creates Amazing New Financial Program” Better: “Turn Your Finances Around in 30 Days!”
4.) Use engaging subheads.
Like mini-headlines, subheads help readers quickly understand your main points by making the copy “skimmable.” Because subheads catch readers” eyes, you should use them to your benefit! Read through your copy for your main promotional points, then summarize the ideas as subheads. To make your subheads engaging, it’s important to include action or selling elements. Bad: “Our Department’s Successes.” Better: “Meet Five Clients Who Saved $10K With Us.”
5.) Be Converational
Write to your customers like you’d talk to them. Don’t be afraid of using conversational phrases such as “So what’s next?” or “Here’s how do we do this.” Avoid formality and use short, easy words. Why? Even if you think it can’t possibly be misunderstood, a few people still won’t get it.
6.) Nix the jargon.
Avoid industry jargon and buzzwords — stick to the facts and the benefits. An easy way to weed out jargon is to think of dear old Mom reading your copy. Would she get it? If not, clarify and simplify. (This rule, of course, varies, depending on who your target audience is. For a business audience, you should upscale your words to what they’re used to. In these cases buzzwords are often crucial. Just make sure your points don’t get muddled in them!)
7.) Keep it brief and digestible.
No one has time to weed through lengthy prose these days. The faster you convey your product or service’s benefits to the reader, the more likely you’ll keep her reading. Fire your “biggest gun” first by beginning with your biggest benefit — if you put it toward the end of your copy, you risk losing the reader before she gets to it. Aim for sentence lengths of less than 20 words. When possible, break up copy with subheads (see no. 4), bullets, numbers, or em dashes (like the one following this phrase) — these make your points easy to digest.
8.) Use testimonials when possible.
Let your prospects know they won’t be the first to try you. Give results-oriented testimonials from customers who have benefited immensely from your product or service. Oh, and never give people’s initials only — it reminds me of those ads in the back of magazines with headlines like “Lose 50 Pounds in Three Days!” Give people’s full names with their titles and companies (or towns and states of residence) — and be sure to get their permission first.
9.) Ask for the order!
Tell your reader what you want her to do — don’t leave her hanging. Do you want her to call you or e-mail you for more information? Order now? Call to schedule a free consultation? Complete a brief survey? Think about what you’d most like her to do, and then ask her. It’s amazing how many marketing materials I come across every day that don’t make it clear what the reader should do. If you wrote interesting copy, your reader may forget you’re trying to sell something. Tell her what to do, and she’ll be more likely to do it.
10.) Have your copy proofread!
Good. Now have it proofread again. Don’t risk printing any typos, misspellings, or grammatical mistakes that will represent your company as amateurish. Hire a professional editor/proofreader to clean up your work and double-check your grammar. Remember, you only get one chance to make a first impession! Oops — *impression*.
1.) Be reader-centered, not writer-centered.
Many ads, brochures, and Web sites we see talk endlessly on and on about how great their products and companies are. Hello? Customer, anyone? Think of your reader thinking, “What’s in it for me?” If you can, talk with some of your current customers and ask them 1) why they chose you, and 2) what they get out of your product or service. TIP: To instantly make your copy more reader-focused, insert the word “you” often.
2.) Focus on the benefits —
not just the features.The fact that your product or service offers a lot of neat features is great, but what do they DO for your customer? Do they save her time or money? Give her peace of mind? Raise her image to a certain status? Here’s an example: If you go buy a pair of Gucci sunglasses, you’re not just looking for good UV protection. You’re buying the sleek, stylish Gucci look. So that’s what Gucci sells. You don’t see their ads talk about how well made their sunglasses are. Think end results. Now, what does an insurance broker sell? Policies? No — peace of mind. (See? You’ve got it.)
3.) Draw them in with a killer headline.
The first thing your reader sees can mean the difference between success and failure. Today’s ads are chock full of clever headlines that play on words. They’re cute, but most of them aren’t effective. There are many ways to get attention in a headline, but it’s safest to appeal to your reader’s interests and concerns. And again, remember to make it reader centered — no one gives a hoot about your company.Bad: “SuccessCorp Creates Amazing New Financial Program” Better: “Turn Your Finances Around in 30 Days!”
4.) Use engaging subheads.
Like mini-headlines, subheads help readers quickly understand your main points by making the copy “skimmable.” Because subheads catch readers” eyes, you should use them to your benefit! Read through your copy for your main promotional points, then summarize the ideas as subheads. To make your subheads engaging, it’s important to include action or selling elements. Bad: “Our Department’s Successes.” Better: “Meet Five Clients Who Saved $10K With Us.”
5.) Be Converational
Write to your customers like you’d talk to them. Don’t be afraid of using conversational phrases such as “So what’s next?” or “Here’s how do we do this.” Avoid formality and use short, easy words. Why? Even if you think it can’t possibly be misunderstood, a few people still won’t get it.
6.) Nix the jargon.
Avoid industry jargon and buzzwords — stick to the facts and the benefits. An easy way to weed out jargon is to think of dear old Mom reading your copy. Would she get it? If not, clarify and simplify. (This rule, of course, varies, depending on who your target audience is. For a business audience, you should upscale your words to what they’re used to. In these cases buzzwords are often crucial. Just make sure your points don’t get muddled in them!)
7.) Keep it brief and digestible.
No one has time to weed through lengthy prose these days. The faster you convey your product or service’s benefits to the reader, the more likely you’ll keep her reading. Fire your “biggest gun” first by beginning with your biggest benefit — if you put it toward the end of your copy, you risk losing the reader before she gets to it. Aim for sentence lengths of less than 20 words. When possible, break up copy with subheads (see no. 4), bullets, numbers, or em dashes (like the one following this phrase) — these make your points easy to digest.
8.) Use testimonials when possible.
Let your prospects know they won’t be the first to try you. Give results-oriented testimonials from customers who have benefited immensely from your product or service. Oh, and never give people’s initials only — it reminds me of those ads in the back of magazines with headlines like “Lose 50 Pounds in Three Days!” Give people’s full names with their titles and companies (or towns and states of residence) — and be sure to get their permission first.
9.) Ask for the order!
Tell your reader what you want her to do — don’t leave her hanging. Do you want her to call you or e-mail you for more information? Order now? Call to schedule a free consultation? Complete a brief survey? Think about what you’d most like her to do, and then ask her. It’s amazing how many marketing materials I come across every day that don’t make it clear what the reader should do. If you wrote interesting copy, your reader may forget you’re trying to sell something. Tell her what to do, and she’ll be more likely to do it.
10.) Have your copy proofread!
Good. Now have it proofread again. Don’t risk printing any typos, misspellings, or grammatical mistakes that will represent your company as amateurish. Hire a professional editor/proofreader to clean up your work and double-check your grammar. Remember, you only get one chance to make a first impession! Oops — *impression*.
Monday, April 23, 2007
Google- the next king of the world
Who rules the world? A majority of you would answer United States and would immediately start blurting about its achievements and failures. The most recent being Iraq. But who really owns it. Microsoft whose software and operating system powers almost 90% of the world’s computers or is it Wal- mart whose retail hegemony has sweeped almost every nook and corner of the first world and is raring to go in third world nations. Well if you tell me to pick my choice it would be the new kid on the block Google. The rapid and enormous growth it has shown in the past five years in its own field which defies every marketing thesis or hypothesis. The Google juggernaut is expanding at such a rapid pace that it seems like swallowing every other company which comes its way. The liquid resources (cash) it has spawned many affiliates to rake in great moolahs. It has shown the world and is continuously showing the world how to become a behemoth if one has right combination of talent, skills and yes the sense of business opportunity. Google is moulding itself on the lines of AOL and other media houses and it’s objective is same .To become the no.1 in the world. One may not like the ways of it in pure sense but its pure business ruthlessness reminds one of Alexander the great one who won the world too soon. Let’s hope this momentum continues and we pay salutation to the new king on the block
Long live the king.
Long live the king.
Wednesday, April 18, 2007
Google Bomb
A Google bomb (also referred to as a 'link bomb') is Internet slang for a certain kind of attempt to influence the ranking of a given page in results returned by the Google search engine often with humorous or political intentions. Because of the way that Google's algorithm works, a page will be ranked higher if the sites that link to that page use consistent anchor text. A Google bomb is created if a large number of sites link to the page in this manner
The first Google bomb known about by a significant number of people was the one that caused the search term "more evil than Satan himself" to bring up the Microsoft homepage as the top result.
In addition, since all major search engines make use of link analysis, they can be affected: a search for "miserable failure" or "failure" on September 29, 2006 brought up the official George W. Bush biography number one on Google, Yahoo! and MSN and number two on Ask.com. On June 2, 2005, Yooter reported that George Bush is now ranked first for the keyword 'miserable', 'failure' and 'miserable failure' in both Google and Yahoo!. And on September 16, 2005, Marissa Mayer wrote on Google Blog about the practice of Google bombing and the word "failure." Other large political figures have been targeted for Google bombs: on January 6, 2006, Yooter reported that Tony Blair is now indexed in the U.S. and UK versions of Google for the keyword 'liar'.
Some Google Bombs :-
French military victories
Out of Touch Executives (try in Yahoo search)
The first Google bomb known about by a significant number of people was the one that caused the search term "more evil than Satan himself" to bring up the Microsoft homepage as the top result.
In addition, since all major search engines make use of link analysis, they can be affected: a search for "miserable failure" or "failure" on September 29, 2006 brought up the official George W. Bush biography number one on Google, Yahoo! and MSN and number two on Ask.com. On June 2, 2005, Yooter reported that George Bush is now ranked first for the keyword 'miserable', 'failure' and 'miserable failure' in both Google and Yahoo!. And on September 16, 2005, Marissa Mayer wrote on Google Blog about the practice of Google bombing and the word "failure." Other large political figures have been targeted for Google bombs: on January 6, 2006, Yooter reported that Tony Blair is now indexed in the U.S. and UK versions of Google for the keyword 'liar'.
Some Google Bombs :-
French military victories
Out of Touch Executives (try in Yahoo search)
Vertical search
Vertical search, part of a larger sub grouping known as “specialized” search, is a relatively new tier in the Internet search industry consisting of search engines that focus on specific businesses. While Google, Yahoo!, and the like will continue to dominate the online consumer search market, research analysts say myriad specialized search engines are emerging to address the particular information needs of niche audiences and professions.
Vertical search vs. broad-based search
To see how these sites differ, it’s helpful to know how they are designed. The term “search engine” refers to a software program that searches the Web and Usenet groups to find documents for a specified keyword and returns a list of documents in which the keyword was found.
Broad-based search engines such as Google or Yahoo fetch very large numbers of documents using a Web crawler. Another program called an indexer then reads these documents and creates a search index based on words contained in each document. Each search engine uses a proprietary algorithm to create its indexes so that, ideally, only meaningful results are returned for each query.
What’s driving growth in vertical search?
Advertisers on vertical sites are able to reach potential customers who are much closer to making a purchase decision than the average user on Google or Yahoo, The cost of advertising on the large search engines is also likely to drive more marketers to vertical search.
“Increasing competition and rising keyword prices should motivate search marketers to look for newer, viable opportunities to diversify their incoming traffic.
Vertical search vs. broad-based search
To see how these sites differ, it’s helpful to know how they are designed. The term “search engine” refers to a software program that searches the Web and Usenet groups to find documents for a specified keyword and returns a list of documents in which the keyword was found.
Broad-based search engines such as Google or Yahoo fetch very large numbers of documents using a Web crawler. Another program called an indexer then reads these documents and creates a search index based on words contained in each document. Each search engine uses a proprietary algorithm to create its indexes so that, ideally, only meaningful results are returned for each query.
What’s driving growth in vertical search?
Advertisers on vertical sites are able to reach potential customers who are much closer to making a purchase decision than the average user on Google or Yahoo, The cost of advertising on the large search engines is also likely to drive more marketers to vertical search.
“Increasing competition and rising keyword prices should motivate search marketers to look for newer, viable opportunities to diversify their incoming traffic.
Google juice
Google juice is an internet slang for the ability or power of a website to turn up in Google searches. A website that commonly turns up as the first or second entry in a variety of searches — especially for keywords that are not part of the site's name — can be said to have a lot of Google juice. It is frequently used by bloggers and webmasters Google's PageRank system plays a large role in ranking results for a given search. It works by counting how many times a page has been linked to and by the "quality" of those links — namely how many times the page that is linking has itself been linked to. In this way, sites with high Google rankings (i.e., lots of "Google juice") can offer to "share" or "give" Google juice to a less popular site. A link from a site with less Google juice can also be helpful in this regard to a lesser degree: there is less juice to give.
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