We love showrooming: Google adds new globally available Product Listing Ad to mobile

Google’s ramping up mobile monetization today with a new sponsored search result ad type, a product listing ad. It also reduces the mobile search presence of the showroomer’s biggest ally: Amazon.com.

Already available on desktop, the new ad type will now be available globally on mobile, Google says. Similar to desktop Google shopping ads, the ad appears when people search for a shopping-related term like ‘washing machine’ or ‘Tassim0.’

People who see the ad can tap a product to learn more and potentially buy it, or tap the “Shop on Google” link to browse other options on Google Shopping, which are sponsored results paid for by merchants. Or, they can narrow their search criteria by price, location, and availability.

The new ad type will ramp up Google monetization efforts on mobile while also providing more advertising options for business. But it’s also a continuation of a somewhat controversial campaign that some have said is trending towards paid search results, which Google said in its IPO it will never do.

This ad type also lends itself perfectly to the practice of showrooming, which is checking out products in a bricks-and-mortar store while looking for the best prices online.

And it’s yet another shot across the bow of Amazon.com, which owns online retailing in the U.S. and also ranks very high in most product searches. This is one more way Google can get closer to merchants directly, reduce Amazon’s sales and search power, and benefit financially to boot.

Google is hosting a webinar tomorrow, March 14th, in which it will unveil more about the new ad option.

photo credit: edkohler via photopin cc