Martin Sorrell : Going search is like admitting Google won
December 26, 2008
We have received 3 tips that at a recent meeting in London, Martin Sorrell has reportedly stated “going into search is admitting Google won”. First we have to state that we received 3 UNVERIFIED tips.. However if it or some version of this is true, there lays the reason for the declining stock price of WPP group plc
Advertising Agencies as a whole have neglected search to extreme levels, and the stock prices of the holding companies as a collective are reflecting this. SEO is an afterthought, or no thought at all for their clients. The companies have failed to invest in SEO and SMO and the reason is clearly not because they didn’t see it coming, but rather because they didn’t want to admit their model has failed.
Looking at their long list of acquisitions we have yet to see a substantial investment in SEO and Social media firms. The lack of innovation is mind boggling and their silence on the topic is deafening. Well now we know why. It wasn’t money driven… it was an active decision based on pride. They didn’t want to admit they are losing the war against a few dozen data centers and a computer algorithm.
But that is exactly what happened. Make no mistake about it, Google is the world’s largest Advertising Agency, just because you don’t like their model doesn’t mean that it’s not working.
Back in 2006, we noted sarcastically that Ad Agencies have 5 years left doing business the way they always have…. we pride ourselves in the fact that it appears we were dead right.
Amazing stuff..
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Biggest isn’t always best. The Google algorithms you point to work well for SEO … and it just about stops there. To assume they are capable of creative genius (as the world’s largest agency) is a mistake … WPP’s position is not about pride. Google does not have all the marketing disciplines that create great advertising or marketing plans… they are a communication pipe for media …. period.
And they are not very good at understanding agency or marketing process.
Paul: You are right. However what works well for Google much better than all of the agencies combined is that that the sit between customer ==> google ==> seller where before it was customer ==> agency ==> media co. ==> seller. (Hence Google is the single best self serve agency ever created).
What Google has done a really good job at is delivering relevant information. Agencies and media companies help create the demand. Agencies going “search” is like Detroit going Green. Google and Microsoft will become the biggest ad agencies/networks.
If creative is really good can you think of a product you bought from a Superbowl ad over the past 5 years?
Futurist Jacque Fresco says in the future there will be no advertising. Check out Zeitgeist Addendum http://video.google.com/videosearch?q=zeitgeist+addendum&emb=0&aq=f# and what he says about advertising.
[...] TheFounder wrote an interesting post today onMartin Sorrell : Going search is like admitting Google won …Here’s a quick excerptTo assume they are capable of creative genius (as the world’s largest agency) is a mistake … WPP’s position is not about pride. Google does not have all the marketing disciplines that create great advertising or marketing plans… they … [...]
[...] Looking at their long list of acquisitions we have yet to see a substantial investment in SEO and Social media firms. The lack of innovation is mind boggling and their silence on the topic is deafening. Well now we know why. It wasn”t money driven… it was an active decision based on pride.more [...]
WPP owns Outrider, one of the largest SEO firms in the world. It seems odd that Martin Sorrell would act like he was unaware of such an acquisition.
GroupM (a division of WPP) acquired Outrider in early 2007.
I suspect he’s too busy firing everyone at his ad agencies to take notice.
Michael, WPP does not own an SEO firm. Outrider is an SEM firm.. not an SEO firm… they list SEO as an “added service” … … and to boot they are not the largest..close to the largest.. or even remotely near the largest in SEM… forget SEO…
Also worth noting that someone needs to tell Outrider they are Violating Google guidelines… pretty amateur stuff not using the Google Recommended 301 redirect…
http://www.outrider.com/
and
http://search.outrider.com/
both bounce back 200 codes…
http://www.google.com/support/webmasters/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=35769#2
“# Don’t create multiple pages, subdomains, or domains with substantially duplicate content.”