Google Ads on the Air
Google has begun beta testing selling radio spots through the AdWords platform that marketers use to bid on pay-per-click search ad placements.
A post late Thursday on the company’s official “Inside AdWords” blog says Google has begun a U.S. test of audio ads with a small group of current AdWords advertisers. The test leverages the ad insertion technology Google bought earlier this year with its acquisition of dMarc Broadcasting.
The ads are being sold on a cost-per-thousand-impressions basis, and advertisers can target audiences by demographic, time of day, geographical location and type of station. The Google post says “several hundred” radio stations across the U.S. are taking part in the beta test; press reports put the number of participating stations at around 700.
Advertisers in the test must submit their ads as 30-second MP3 files. Those who are new to radio spot production can choose a production service from a directory Google has compiled, with costs for those services ranging anywhere from $100 to $1000, according to the company.
Currently, the test is by invitation only. Google has already extended invitations to some eligible AdWords advertiser. Others who would like to sign up can apply online, but all testers must have an AdWords account.
Google hasn’t set any date for bringing audio ads out of beta into general release.
At the time Google announced its intention to buy dMarc, the company said it would combine dMarc’s targeting capabilities with its own ad-auction platform. DMarc helps radio advertisers automate the purchase, scheduling and delivery and reporting of radio ads. The company pioneered the field of sending targeted text to cars radios using LCD display screens.
Last August, Google announced it would partner with XM Satellite Radio to sell radio ads on the network’s talk programs using the dMarc platform.
