Google Ad Planner service fleshes out the suite of web analytic tools and does so at a great price — free. On June 24, big “G” announced Ad planner as new service aimed at media planners. The service will allow media planners to find target audiences easily based on demographic information, site traffic and other metrics. According to emarketer the ad planning service can be even more granular with filters for age, gender education and household income.
I find it interesting that several months ago I was prompted in my Google account with the following message:
I keep clicking the “remind me later” tab until I can figure out what the data will be used for. Clearly the data is being digested by Google’s new ad planner. As with all of Google’s services the amazing feature rich applications always come with the cost of privacy.
The service has launched free and will continue to build a test audience to further deploy the ad planner. It will likely be a free service for the long haul with subscription fees for more robust features.
It’s interesting to point out that Google is throwing its’ weight directly against long-time analytic competitors like Hitwise, Comscore and Nielsen Online. The Experian purchase of Hitwise for $250 million is looking pretty expensive with Google’s recent ad planner news.
Google continues to trump the advertising market and expanding into analytics is only one of many services the business will release. The current market share says it all:
In conclusion, Ad Planner appears to be an amazing service and should be a boon for the little guy and small businesses. Google proves once again, it will provide the tools neccessary for people to garner information and you certainly can’t be the price – FREE.
“Google’s deep pockets allow the company to create free offerings, such as Ad Planner, as a useful come-on to marketers to gain their ad business,” said David Hallerman, senior analyst at eMarketer. “However, continued uncertainty about which company’s Web measurements are most accurate could get exacerbated—or clarified—by another analytics service.”
If anyone has used Google’s new ad planner service, please leave comments on your findings.
