What is Google's strategy? Reducing Google's strategy to just one thing is impossible, but Internet marketers (and marketers in particular) should think where Google wants to take the industry, because even if in the end Google can't go where it wants to go, the industry will still change. Looking at Google helps us understand not only where Google is going, but also where others might be going. So, what's behind all the actions we've seen Google take over the years? Some reasons are simple. Google's revenue is based on advertising, so it needs more and more places to show its ads to increase its revenue. Therefore, it makes sense to expand your reach through the AdSense contextual advertising network. The same goes for the DoubleClick acquisition. Both of these moves allow Google to place ads on web properties it doesn't own. Likewise, Google has steadily acquired properties that serve as locations for its ads, such as Blogger and YouTube. Google has also pioneered new offerings that attract audiences to its ads, such as Gmail. But Google's strategy is much richer than simply adding new locations for the same type of ads it shows on search results pages. Google knows that the reason its ads have commanded premium prices (compared to banner ads) is because Google ads attract customer attention. When someone searches for something, they are interested in ads, while web surfers may not be. Google understands that the attention paid to a message is a key part of why it has high value to an advertiser. Therefore, the focus is more than just real estate. Showing a display ad does not guarantee real customer attention. True attention is a function of relevance. Google already attracts attention with its search ads, a... medium of paper... is not enough to convince people to part with their privacy. Ongoing work is also slow because users don't understand the benefits of personalized search. Google is well aware of this danger, so it remains to be seen whether it can avoid it. It's always dangerous to try to summarize a company's entire strategy in a short blog post - Google's strategy is much more diffuse and nuanced than that. But it helps us try to simplify things down to their essence, even at the risk of oversimplifying, because it helps us understand the forces at play in Internet marketing. Understand that what Google wants to do may not happen, but it will certainly influence what others do and what ultimately happens in Internet marketing. If you pay attention to these overarching themes as you think about your marketing strategy, you'll be better prepared for whatever comes next..