Failure is a tough pill to swallow - especially when it's done in the public eye.  As a monster direct marketer, Google has failed in newspapers and radio to name a couple.  Their failure in radio hit the Wall Street Journal as a front page story yesterday.  As I read through the article it seems that they missed a single element that possibly could have created a different outcome for them.

Hey Google - what's your response mechanism?

It's a simple question.  But as I read through the article and it's heavy orientation toward, engineering a technology solution, selling ads through their auction process and the culture of radio advertising sales - it seemed to me that Google lost their way and forgot about a single element that is at the core of their search success.

It is the response mechanism.

Let me explain.  Direct response marketers, including Google, always have a hard mechanism for tracking results.  Consider a few examples:

Direct mail uses mail in order forms and unique phone numbers, source coded or key coded back to each list segment or person.
Catalog marketers use unique phone numbers tied to audience segmentation, etc.
Catalog marketers might also use a unique product code, or promotion code
Retailers use coupons that are tied to loyalty membership numbers, specific store locations or newspapers.
Television uses unique phone numbers and text messaging so the viewer can reply.

So here's the short list for the tried and true response mechanisms:  order forms, coupons, telephone numbers, text messaging, unique product codes.

Oh, and what does Google rely on?  The click-through on each and every ad that is placed on their system.  It's great that they have an impressive auction and pricing system.  Their inventory management system is world class. Their distribution model reaches all corners of the globe.  And yet, it relies on a single, response mechanism that ties human action to the advertisement. - the click through.

Where was this in their radio experiment?  Apparently it was absent and hence a failure in their basic premise - auction demand will raise prices in the market for the radio station.  Hmm... doesn't appear to have played out that way...

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