Webflyblog May 2008 (May 20th 2008)

Welcome to the Webfly podcast. 

Webfly is the antidote to search engine marketing jargon. A techno-blog without the techno-babble. The place to find real business information you can use and the place to catch up on the real Internet news.

This month…

• New Google TV ad service hit the streets
• Microsoft drops their Yahoo bid
• Google's new Trademark Words policy
• And why Google when you can Scroogle

First off, the New Google TV ad service…

No. Google has not set up its own TV station. Though I wouldn't rule it out. This new service helps you (or in this case Americans) get their ads onto national network TV. Our first thought was - why on earth should I want Google's help with that? Surely I'd do the sensible thing and employ an agency to create and place my ad. Ah, yes. But this is America where you get more TV commercials per square inch than you do actual TV programmes - so it does fill a gap in the market.

Basically, you have an ad made by an agency and then via the Google service, which looks and operates very much like AdWords, you choose a time slot on a national TV network, pick a programme, choose your budget and off you go. It's simple to use, cost effective and gives you total control over who you target. Watch out for its arrival in the UK. We predict interesting times ahead!    

Microsoft walks away from Yahoo

If Microsoft had been successful in its much-vaunted bid to take over Yahoo would have been the largest transaction of its type in history.

And despite reports, insiders still think it could be. After months of talk and posturing Microsoft pulled out of the deal. But is the walk out part of the game? Who knows? What is for sure is that Yahoo still have their sights on doing a partnership deal with Google. And Microsoft still need to make up ground against Google. So until Google stops being the dominant force in the market place - don't hold your breath - then both Microsoft and Yahoo could be heading down this road again quite soon.

Google's new Trademarked Words policy.

This story even made it into the national press which just shows how important this minor policy change is going to be to you. Prior to 5th May you couldn't add a competitor's trademarked word, usually their brand name, into your list of keywords as part of your Pay Per Click advertising.

But on 5th May, Google changed and now you can use your competitors' brand name to attract potential customers. BUT, before you get too excited, they'll be able to use yours too AND it's not quite that simple. Before you rush to bid on millions of new keywords the advice is clear: Check with your IT people or agency. It's a complex set of new rules and the word on the streets is that there could even be legal challenges to it popping up all over the place, so call us at Edgeworks and we can help you make the most of the new rules…

Finally - Scroogle - ever heard of it?

Well it's a private search engine which, unlike the vast majority of mainstream engines, does not keep a record of who you are and what you've been looking at…Yes - the vast majority of search engines do this so watch out!

Scoogle however does not give you that sweaty, palpitating feeling that you might have done something wrong when you haven't because it's completely private and within an hour of using the site, the search terms are gone forever. Phew!  

That's it for this month - see you next time…

For the full details on all these stories and more visit the webfly blog at www.webflyblog.com