Video and Branding in AdWords

Search has always been a branding medium but people have failed to recognize it until fairly recently. But now that blended or universal search has made search safe for video, we’re going to see a steady influx of brand advertising (and dollars) into search accordingly.

This morning comes more evidence and confirmation of Google starting to roll out video in AdWords. Here’s an example I discovered on a search on Google for Smartphones (note the plus box “watch commercial” on the Blackberry ad):

Yahoo! is also doing something similar:

Video in search ads will be quite common eventually. At SEL I recently wrote a post on how search will thus become a branding vehicle in a big way. The innovation here is that the ads only play when the user initiates them. And the power of directional/search marketing also means that those audiences who do are more qualified and receptive to branding messages and related information.

These rich media ad units will become very coveted and highly effective for marketers and, I’m guessing, for audiences as well. With all the SMB video being developed we’re eventually likely to see these ads for local businesses as well as corporations trying to drive local in-store sales and foot traffic.

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Google Operating System has more on video in AdWords here.