via techcrunch.com
Google rarely advertises. Until February of this year the search giant left the commonplace creation of the television spot to other technology companies. Since then, Google has created a number of high quality ads (more like short stories) showcasing their products and their products' features.
For Google, popularity and advertising go hand-in-hand: Google earned the majority of its 2010 revenue ($29B) by selling ads, they also own the most popular web site in the world. A Google+ mass media advertisement shouldn't come as a surprise, then. But it does.
So, what implications does the first Google+ ad, a further bend in Google's communication road map, signify for the social network?:
- Social networking sites have become mainstream. Already evidenced by Google+'s unprecedented social network adoption rates, comfort with and awareness of social networking sites is further confirmed by Google's decision to advertise in a mass media channel
- To make money, Google+ needs users. Brands will buy ads and maintain brand pages if Google+ boasts enough users to make a business case. TV spots are a great way to raise Google+'s awareness among potential users, because
- watching TV and spending time on the computer are becoming common parallel activities. While Americans spend increasing amounts of time online, it is not at the complete expense of other activities, like TV watching.
While Google only recently entered mass media advertising space, they are blazing the trail in terms of approach -- tapping (TV + PC)'s complementary nature to compete for users.
