Two bits of news today from The Google:

• Urbanspoon, a restaurant discovery iPhone app, is one of two apps testing a new format of Google advertising. Clicking on an ad takes you to a page within the app about the advertiser, including a link to their Website. No word on how conversions are tracked and priced (just the in-app landing page, or a click out?). Google already advertises in mobile browsers; this is just their first foray at helping mobile app developers monetize via ads.
• The WSJ reports that Google and agency holding company WPP are funding a 3-year, $4.6 million research program that will probe the effectiveness of advertising in driving consumer action in both traditional and digital media.  Why? Transaction-oriented advertisers (read: the long tail) have been sold on AdWords’ ability to deliver sales and track performance, brand advertisers (read: the big spenders) have been less interested, preferring generally to send the lion’s share of their budgets to broadcast media even though its impact is unknown. Research demonstrating online advertising’s impact on purchase should help marketers know the devil they currently don’t.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, March 18th, 2009 at 1:17 pm and is filed under Online Advertising. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.