Is Google Watching You?

“Just because you're paranoid doesn't mean they aren't after you”  Kurt Cobain

Data is the driver to growth and profitability for the online advertising community.  No one knows this better than Google.  Every day, they are gathering more and more data on consumers and many consumers are completely unaware of this fact.  While lots of folks are sitting at home shredding mail, cutting up old credit cards and proclaiming that they will “never shop online”, Google sits by quietly watching every move they make online.

USA Today recently featured an article titled, “Google's G1 phone makes it easy to track surfing habits” written by Leslie Cauley.   The article goes into great detail as to the data that Google has (or will have) on consumers.  One key driver to the acquisition of this data is the G1 Mobile phone.

The G1 makes things much easier for Google to watch your every move.  Jeffrey Chester, executive director of the Center for Digital Democracy says, “It’s like a walking surveillance device”.  Cell phone and mobile devices are generally not shared; they are just used by one person.  This means that the data collected from that device is highly personalized to that individual and incredibly accurate.

Think about the power of an advertising company (yes, Google is an advertising company) would have knowing who your friends are on Facebook and MySpace, or tracking the videos you watch on Youtube.  Go beyond that and understand that Google would know where you bank, where you shop and even how you are feeling.  By using Gmail, Google Calendar and Docs applications Google sees your contacts, email, documents, instant messages, phone calls, online browsing habits, calendar, downloads, music selections and even your specific location at any given moment.  The GPS enabled smartphone can send location information back to Google servers tracking every move you make… spooky, huh?

Sure there are other location based services like Loopt and Brightkite but they don’t have the ability to tie that information to every other aspect of your life.

So why does Google care about you and me so much?  Easy… money.  Mobile advertising will quickly become “locally relevant”.  This means that if you are strolling through Bryant Park on a warm summer day in New York, an ad for the Jamba Juice across the street may show up on your phone.  Click it and Google makes money.  Mobile advertising today is only about $800M annually.   By 2012 it will swell to $2.2B driven largely by “locally relevant” advertising and targeting based on your interests, connections and habits.

Today Google falls only under their self-imposed privacy guidelines (This from a company not exactly known for its transparency).  In 1999 legislation was passed that allowed consumers an “opt-in” choice for phone and cable companies controlling the use of personal data for commercial purposes.  Trust me when I tell you this will be a hot topic in the months and years to come on Capital Hill.  Consumer privacy is a big deal and something we should all be concerned about.

So if you have a G1 remember the minute you turn it, Google is watching you.  Tracking every move you make and, unlike other consumer data, you can’t see what information has been collected nor is there a way to modify it.  But don’t worry; we can always trust Google to do the right thing… right?  

For information on how Google and others will be using locally relevant data read this excellent article from by BW's Steve Baker and watch the accompanying video.

Google recently joined me and millions others by setting up a Twitter account.  Their very first tweet said, "I'm 01100110 01100101 01100101 01101100 01101001 01101110 01100111 00100000 01101100 01110101 01100011 01101011 01111001 00001010" binary code meaning "feeling lucky".  Well Google, I'm 01110111 01100001 01110100 01100011 01101000 01101001 01101110 01100111 00100000 01111001 01101111 01110101 :)

Tom  Cuthbert

Obnoxious Facebook Ads

I recently posted a tweet on Twitter complaining about obnoxious and misleading Facebook ads.  You know the one's I am referring to... "Would You Like to Make $5,000 a Month Posting a Link on Google?" or one's from the "Emillionaire Institute" "Get Rich Working from Home for Google".   These companies have nothing to do with Google and Facebook should not be running misleading ads.  According to the Google blog site, they aware of these ads and are apparently doing nothing about it.  I can't imagine that brand infringing and degrading images like this one would not get the attention of a $20B adverting powerhouse.

A recent article from the Sydney Morning Herald stated, "Facebook repeatedly accepted ads for a get-rich-quick scam it apparently knew was defrauding users in a desperate attempt to earn revenue.  Google does not pay people to sit and home and "post links". The article continued, "A spokesman for Google said the search giant's legal team was reviewing the scam sites and would "take appropriate action as necessary".  There are companies that pay people to sit at home and click on ads, hurting advertisers.  But these guys are just plain ripping people off.

The article mentions  that, "People on the RipOffReport.com website said they were charged hundreds of dollars and attempts to obtain a refund were fruitless."

A follow up article asked, "Why can't Facebook shut down the scammers?"  I am going to go out on a limb and guess that Facebook is making money from the ads... c'mon Facebook!  I am a fan and have encouraged lots of folks to join.  Respect your members and  get your act together on this before the negative PR buzz drip to a flood.

Tom

IAB Click Measurement Guidelines

On the first day Click Forensics was formed, January 2nd, 2006, we called for standards to be developed around click measurement.  Our work and our focus has been to ensure advertisers get what they pay for.  There has been a need for standards and guidelines to help ensure this happens.  Today, the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) released the highly anticipated Click Measurement Guidelines.  This document is the result of a task force that took form in September of 2006.  Click Forensics was a founding member and along with Google, Yahoo, Microsoft, LookSmart and other members of the IAB, the document is ready for public comment... your comment.

Since the IAB is a publisher driven organization, we have felt a responsibility to advertisers to ensure your voice is heard throughout this process.  During the public comment phase, we want to help encourage and inject advertiser comments into the process.  It is important for you to take time and review the document.  Think about the benefits that it may have to you as a buyer and question aspects that are missing.  All ideas are good ideas and the IAB and our entire task force are eager to get feedback.  You can download a copy of the document and provide comments directly to the IAB here.  You are also welcome to provide feedback to us directly by commenting in the box below.  

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 The Guidelines are an important  foundational step for our industry.  While no one document can solve the problem of click fraud or mitigate invalid traffic, it is encouraging to us to be at this point.  We look forward to continuing to work to represent your voice and contribute toward building standards that enhance the value for online advertisers.  We are grateful to the IAB, the Media Rating Council and all the members of the task force for the hard work put in over the last few years.  Together we are making meaningful progress in building trust and making online advertising more transparent and effective.

Tom Cuthbert
President and Founder

Unleashing the Data Dragon- IAB Conference Update

Right off the bat, you need to know that quality traffic is NOT a commodity.

I am attending the Interactive Advertising Bureau's Ecosystem 2009 conference in Orlando.  There are over 500 attendees at the beautiful Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress hotel and of those, I have found five advertisers.  There is no doubt, nor is the fact hidden, that the IAB is a  publisher driven organization.  But it has struck me just how narrow that view is as I heard Wenda Harris Millard speak last night.  The title of her presentation was titled, "Am I in the Wrong Class? Why Advertising Isn't and Shouldn't Be (Just) Math and Science" .  It could have easily been titled, ‘Too Much Emphasis On Data Is The Problem, Not A Solution’

Wenda is very smart and has obviously been quite successful, but to me, she seems to be missing the obvious.  It is the science aspect of online advertising that differentiates it from traditional media.  Online is much more measurable, has easier to access data that is more accurate and can be enhanced from a performance standpoint by leveraging the data wisely.  Randall Rothenberg, CEO of the IAB, noted, "We need a creative renaissance in interactive advertising, the business has lived under the tyranny of the click for too long"  

The tyranny of the click?  Isn't it the "click" that has driven the growth of online?  While traditional media flails in the wind (or gets blown away completely, think print...) online has lots of upside.  The renaissance we need to better leverage data to improve traffic quality.

I was part of an agency for eight years and understand the value of good creative messaging and branding.  But I deliberately moved into online because of the measurability and accountability it can create.  At Click Forensics, our goal as a company is to enable advertisers to get what they pay for.  That is delivered through transparency, accountability and measurement.  The successful seller of digital media will embrace these ideas and work to demonstrate their commitment to quality.  They will look through the lens of the advertiser to deliver traffic that meets the goals set out in the campaign.  The IAB is doing a great job in developing standards to enhance measurement and we continue our efforts as part of the Click Measurement Working Group.  I applaud their work and am pleased to be a member.

But now is time for us to find better ways to communicate the value of online advertising.  Let's give the people what they want.  Let's prove to them that quality traffic is NOT a commodity.   Instead of trying to "tame the data dragon" we should should work together to unleash the beast.

Tom Cuthbert

The Magic of March Madness

I am a fan of competition.  The idea of pitting one team versus another or better yet, one person against another is both entertaining and healthy.  Competition is good for business, good for our economy and  good for sports.  Life lessons can be learned from winning and losing and competition drives success.

For me, March Madness is the quintessential competition.  It is a pure and simple format that fairly matches teams against in each, generally on neutral sites.  65 teams in a single elimination,  winner take all format with no consolation games.  31 teams get an automatic bid by winning their conference and the remaining teams are selected based on merit.  There is no ridiculous controversy like, "South Dakota State would have won it all if they had just gotten the 65th spot".  These are the best teams in the country... period.

There is no doubt there are problems with college basketball.  Graduation rates are low, gambling is prevalent and players sometimes misbehave.  But generally the sport is clean, the players are committed and the game is fair.

After a season lasting months and a tournament lasting weeks, it all comes down to one game... a true championship game (do you hear me BCS?).  There is something pure and honorable about a format that enables the two teams that have made it through the competition to face each other in one final game.  That... is quintessential competition.  

March Madness is just around the corner.  So bust out your bracket, sit back and enjoy the ride.  Once again this year, it will be a great spectacle of upsets, buzzer beaters and quintessential competition.  And by the way, the odds of getting your bracket perfect are 9,223,372,036,854,775,808 to 1... good luck with that!

Tom

Why I Like Amtrak

OK sure Amtrak only exists because the government props it up.  The subsidy actually comes out to $210 for every 1000 passenger miles.  For those folks who live in a giant state like Texas, the idea of taking the train anywhere is nuts.  However, for people on the east coast, it works brilliantly.  I actually enjoy it get much more done on the train than I would on most flights.

This trip, for example, I flew nonstop to Baltimore for a meeting.  Then, it is a easy 2 1/2 hour train ride on the Acela and poof, you are in midtown Manhattan.  There are three things I like about Amtrak vs flying:

1) No security lines  (Sure it's fun to remove de-rob and wait in long lines but I am willing to sacrifice it to ride a train!)
2) No screaming babies in the seat behind me (I almost always choose the "quiet car")
3) Outlets!  It's hard enough to find a plug at an airport (ie Las Vegas), on the train I have my very own

I have put together this fascinating two minute video of my most recent trip... enjoy :)

Yes, my trip cost the government (meaning me) $41.72.  Despite that, I am glad Amtrak exists and will continue to enjoy it on the east coast.  San Antonio to Lubbock?   Not so much...

Happy travels!

Tom

If I could change just one thing about Google, it would be...

We all love Google but nobody's perfect!  We hear suggestions all the time from advertisers that start, "If I could change just one thing about Google, it would be..."  It was this type of feedback that lead to the Click Quality Council's "Eight Principles to Ensure Click Quality".  We shared this list with Google and Shuman took time to respond with some great feedback.  Last Fall, we released a Report Card, providing an update on how Google and others are doing on the Eight Principles.

So I thought, let's compile a new list!  Send me your thoughts and I will share them back with you and with Google.  To make it easy, just jot your idea, comment or suggestion in the box below.  Thanks!

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Tom Cuthbert