Google: Print Ads for Europe? 2008 must be the year.

In 2007 Google launched the print ads programme in the US. From their heritage in online media they started to break out into classic media and quickly signed up the New York Times, The Boston Globe and the San Francisco Chronicle. Advertisers pay through their Google accounts to get into the print titles. This will be the year it comes to Europe.

The model is simple. The advertiser places a bid to get their advert into a newspaper. They create a framework for the transaction and the publisher has a choice whether or not to accept the advert. Google are positioning themselves as an introducer. For the newspapers it’s a seductive model, that’s why by the start of 2008, 600 paid daily newspapers have already partnered with Google in the US. To make the model more efficient, Google has invested in the development of tools that will allow advertisers to create ads that can transform text into print quality advertising. The templates are simple, but the model is elegant with images and logo uploads and a range of creative solutions within a click or two. The model is powerful but could never be cracked by print titles working together.

It’s ironic that it takes a dotcom pureplay to solve one of the perennial problems newspapers have wrestled with. The fact it’s a free service means that much of the copy is getting reused with or without the Google transaction. For the search giant that’s unlikely to be a problem

As for Google’s view? When they say, “it’s not available in Europe, yet” the word ‘yet’ is the key. This is a great business model that delivers massive market efficiencies and achieves goal alignment between advertisers, newspaper publishers and customers. 2008 has to be the year it explodes out of the US market. Local outdoor media, radio and television are bound to be the media channels next in line.