It’s been five years since Yahoo and Microsoft (Bing) formed their search alliance, yet during that time, their combined effort hasn’t taken the market share from Google. Yahoo has now shifted away from the Yahoo/Bing alliance to pursue their own mobile ad platform – Yahoo! Gemini – for native and search ads.
This move is indicative of the growing importance of mobile. According to Yahoo, 15% of the traffic on the Yahoo/Bing network is mobile and 60% of that mobile traffic is served on Yahoo properties. The launch of Yahoo! Gemini is a case study for both fragmentation and convergence. It’s a a clear example of the continued trend toward more granularity in digital marketing. We believe it is an area worth exploring in a carefully managed and strategic way.
While this new platform is an opportunity for advertisers to get more granular in their search strategy and optimization, it’s going to take some additional effort too. Yahoo must convince advertisers of the platform’s value in order to encourage early and on-going adoption. This new rollout will affect advertisers quickly as Yahoo’s current goal is to have 100% of their accounts migrated and set up by the end of April. So, what can you do right now to get ready for the switch? To start, read our brand new POV: “Yahoo! Gemini: A New Opportunity in Mobile Search” today. We’ll walk you through the transition, recommendations, and what this means in the larger context of digital marketing.
Yahoo appears to be planning for the long game – building a foundation upon which to construct a larger, more sophisticated network. Initially, however, they run the risk of splitting the vote, so to speak, in the race against Google for advertisers’ attention and budget. Only time will tell if their current play will pay off.
