An experiment at Google involving advertisers not being able to see their ads unintentionally ran for years, becoming the longest split AB experiment online. Analysis revealed a 3% increase in searches from users with ads compared to those without, validating people preferred search results with ads. Despite being costly, the experiment was crucial as it provided valuable insights into user behavior and preferences.
It used to feel like magic. Now it can feel like a set of cheap tricks. Is the problem with Google — or with us? And is Google Search finally facing a real rival, in the form of A.I.-powered “answer engines”?
- RESOURCES:
- “A Fraudster Who Just Can’t Seem to Stop … Selling Eyeglasses,” by David Segal (The New York Times, 2022).
- Subprime Attention Crisis: Advertising and the Time Bomb at the Heart of the Internet, by Tim Hwang (2020).
- “Complaint: U.S. and Plaintiff States v. Google LLC,” by the U.S. Department of Justice (2020).
- “Fake Online Locksmiths May Be Out to Pick Your Pocket, Too,” by David Segal (The New York Times, 2016).
- “‘A’ Business by Any Other Name: Firm Name Choice as a Signal of Firm Quality,” by Ryan C. McDevitt (Journal of Political Economy, 2014).
- In the Plex: How Google Thinks, Works, and Shapes Our Lives, by Steven Levy (2011).
- “The Anatomy of a Large-Scale Hypertextual Web Search Engine,” by Sergey Brin and Lawrence Page (Computer Networks and ISDN Systems, 1998).