No one's ever asked for less efficiency. That's why creative and media agencies alike may be interested in DoubleClick Studio, a new tool from DoubleClick Rich Media, designed to streamline rich media production and workflow processes.

DoubleClick Studio is equipped with simple and robust tools for Flash development to complement a variety of skill levels, as well as a web interface for managing creatives, clients, and campaigns. Ads created through DoubleClick Studio can then be run on hundreds of sites and networks, including the Google Content Network.

In order to use DoubleClick Studio, you must be a creative agency building rich media ads for advertisers or a media agency using DoubleClick's DART for Advertisers for ad management and serving. However, anyone can learn more about the tool on the DoubleClick blog.

If you'd like details about the basics of rich media and what DoubleClick Rich Media offers, check out the DoubleClick site and our post on the Official Google blog. And for some examples of ads, have a look at the DoubleClick rich media gallery.

Posted by Ryan Hayward, Product Marketing Manager

If you have clients using Conversion Optimizer or the Local Business Center, or if you simply enjoy instructional videos, we've got two new resources for you to explore:

• Conversion Optimizer user guide. Along with the new step-by-step instructional video, we've added a downloadable getting started guide, and additional success stories to the Conversion Optimizer site.

• Local Business Center user guide. With this guide, you'll find clear instructions on how to add a business listing to Google Maps and manage it through the Local Business Center. A short video walks you through the process, and text instructions provide additional details.

And if you're interested in more instructional videos, visit the Google Business Channel for topics ranging from Google AdWords to Google Insights for Search.

Posted by Katie Wasilenko, Agency Team

We're excited to announce the launch of Google for Advertisers. Google for Advertisers is a place where we've brought together information about the broad range of our marketing solutions -- and where you can explore and discover the combination of tools that best meet your clients' objectives.

Here are four ways to dive in and get the most from the site:

1. Read up on our various media platforms. This site gives straightforward descriptions of each of Google's platforms (like search, TV, the Content Network or mobile) and all of the supporting tools. You'll learn how to reach your clients' audiences in relevant and useful ways across devices, locations and languages.
2. Take a ride on 'The Marketing Cycle.' We put Google solutions in the context of how they can be applied across all the stages of building an effective advertising campaign -- ways to sculpt your strategy, creative development, media deployment, measurement and optimization -- which together help you better plan clients' campaigns that make an impact and deliver strong ROI.
3. Stick it to a marketing objective. Explore a [very fictional] marketing example that illustrates how Google tools could come together to solve for a particular goal. We hope it inspires you, and offers a chuckle or two.
4. Build your personal 'toolkit.' As you browse the site and find Google tools that pique your interest, you can add them to your online toolkit. This way you can easily hone in on the solutions that are right for your clients and share them with your colleagues.

We invite you to have a look around and afterward, we welcome your feedback.

Posted by Oliver Deighton, Business Marketing

Paid search is a proven direct response tool. But did you know it can be a powerful brand building strategy for travel marketers?

In a recent study, Google and OTX explored how search can impact branding across five product categories: Air, Car Rental, Cruise, Hotel and Online Travel Agency. Join Cynthia Goodrich, Senior Marketing Manager for Travel at Google, and Julie Cannova, Executive Vice President at OTX, on Thursday, April 30, 2009, as they walk through the study results, and show how paid search can lift key metrics for your clients' brands and increase site traffic.

The results may surprise you...and change how you utilize search to market your brand.

What: Google and OTX Present: The Brand Value of Search

Date: Thursday, April 30, 2009

Time: 10amPST / 12pmCST / 1pmEST

Register here

Posted by Veronica San Luis, Travel Marketing

For clients with both an online and brick and mortar retail presence, you're probably often challenged to justify the impact of your search marketing efforts on in-store sales. We get that question as well, so we put the theory to the test by monitoring in-store sales for one of Google's large retail partners during a geographically-targeted online marketing campaign. We found a 300% ROI for the client during the test period.

To test this theory, we worked with the client and agency to select test and control DMAs with store locations. In the test DMAs, we added geographically-targeted search and content campaigns for the furniture category. The control DMAs did not promote the selected furniture lines through online advertising, and other ad campaigns were kept constant. We then partnered with Applied Predictive Technologies (APT), a software and services firm focused on Test & Learn solutions in the retail environment, to analyze sales, unit and transaction data for set times before, during and after the test, which happened in September-October 2008 (as well as the same time periods in 2007).

Despite running a test at the peak of the economic crisis, the client saw a 300% ROI, with $3 in sales for every $1 spent online. In addition, there was a 2% overall in-store sales lift in the test DMAs over the control markets and a lift of up to 5.3% in a select group of under-performing stores. More specifically, the furniture category saw a sales lift of 1.4%, which is noteworthy because the average furniture buying cycle is longer than the five week test period.

What does this mean for you?

1. Use this study to build a case for clients who are predominantly brick and mortar to implement online ad campaigns.

2. Replicate a similar test to demonstrate the benefits directly to your clients, as well as to determine the right targeting and media mix.

For more details on this study, check out the Google Retail Blog. For information on geographic targeting and search strategies, visit the AdWords Help Center. For information on the Google Content Network, visit the Content Network homepage.

Posted by Emma Weisberg, Retail Marketing

In these challenging times, we know you may be looking for new opportunities to maintain a competitive edge and help clients meet their marketing goals. In addition to our robust webinar calendar, Google has partnered with the Search Engine Marketing Professional Organization (SEMPO) to offer you a 20% discount on on-demand, self-paced distance learning courses offered through the SEMPO Institute.

The offerings include beginner and advanced courses on SEO, PPC, and Web 2.0 written by a distinguished group of search marketing professionals. You'll get a Certificate of Completion upon passing a course with a grade of 75% or higher, and your company can earn the designation of “Certified SEMPO Trained” when 20% or more of you pass a course.

If you're interested in one of these courses, sign up by May 6, 2009 and enter code GGLE20 for a 20% discount on the cost of the course (offer expires after May 6, 2009).

Posted by Katie Wasilenko, Agency Team

The Google Content Network can extend the reach of your clients' campaigns to targeted sites across the Web and can be used to drive brand awareness and deliver results for direct response campaigns. But just how effective is the Content Network when looking at cost-per-acquisition (CPA)?

We set out to answer this question—and others about the performance of the Content Network—in our white paper, CPA Performance Trends on the Google Content Network. After examining the performance of Search Network and Content Network campaigns for more than 25,000 accounts globally, we found that the median advertiser showing their ads on both networks has a CPA that's about 2% lower on the Content Network than on search pages. Furthermore, we found that the Content Network delivers nearly 20% of their total conversions.

The full white paper explores these findings in more detail, as well as the positive impact on conversion rates we found from using tools such as the Conversion Optimizer and site exclusion. If using the Content Network hasn't been part of your strategy for building a strong CPA for your clients, we hope this paper will help shed some light on the reasons to take advantage of it.

Posted by Emel Mutlu, Business Marketing Manager