At Google TV Ads, we're constantly working to improve our platform to help advertisers find and target the right audiences. To this end, we're proud to announce a partnership with Nielsen's PRIZM lifestyle segmentation product, yet another feature which allows advertisers to hone in on the right audiences with Google TV Ads.

This partnership brings more layers of audience data to our existing targeting tools. In addition to demographic and interest dimensions from Nielsen and Equifax already available in our targeting tools, advertisers will now be able to layer on PRIZM segments to find their audience on TV through Google TV Ads. PRIZM categorizes US households into 66 unique segments, using attributes such as lifestage, income, social group, home ownership, employment, and education.

Sample PRIZM segments include:

• New Empty Nests – with their grown-up children recently out of the house, New Empty Nests is composed of upscale older Americans who pursue active–and activist–lifestyles. This is the top-ranked segment for all-inclusive travel packages;
• New Homesteaders – young, middle-class families with comfortable, child-centered lifestyles; and
  
• Young Digerati – the nation's tech-savvy singles and couples living in fashionable neighborhoods on the urban fringe.
  

How does it work? Advertisers simply select a PRIZM cluster in the Google TV Ads interface, and receive recommendations on which TV networks, dayparts, and programs are popular with that cluster. Advertisers can then add the media they'd like to target and air ads within 24 hours of building a campaign.

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This extended relationship between Nielsen and Google complements and builds on our existing audience targeting tools and offers advertisers better targeting capabilities. We hope that all of these tools and data sources will help advertisers target their TV Ads more effectively, while allowing inventory owners to increase the value of their content.

Do you know where to find your target audience on TV? Use Nielsen PRIZM through Google TV Ads to find out today!

Posted by Bob Meese, Business Development Manager for Google TV Ads

Small businesses often think that television advertising is too expensive and cumbersome for them to use. They assume that they need a fancy, expensive commercial to use in their TV campaign. But Google TV Ads changes all of that — we make it easy and affordable for you to make a TV ad, plan a campaign and reach your customers through the power of television. We launched the TV for All contest two months ago to prove just that.

More than 200 companies submitted commercials for the opportunity to win $25,000 worth of free national advertising on cable channels such as CNBC, Hallmark and Bloomberg using Google TV Ads. Today, we're happy to announce the three winners of the TV for All contest based on votes from the YouTube community.

Amazing Gates, Owners.com and ZAGG.com received the largest number of votes among the 10 finalists. Each of these businesses will receive $25,000 in free national advertising through Google TV Ads advertising.

Check out the three winners and all entries at www.youtube.com/tvforallcontest. For more information on Google TV Ads and how it can help your small business succeed, visit our website at google.com/tvads.

Posted by Deeksha Hebbar, Associate Marketing Manager for Google TV Ads

We launched the TV for All contest on September 1st with the goal of democratizing TV advertising and helping small businesses get their message in front of millions. Over the past few weeks, over 200 companies submitted commercials to the contest for the opportunity to win $25,000 worth of free national advertising on cable channels such as CNBC, Hallmark, and Bravo using Google TV Ads. All entries showcase the hard work and creativity of business owners throughout the country.

Today we're excited to announce the contest's ten finalists based on our judges' ratings. All you need to do is visit the TV for All contest brand channel and vote for your favorite video! The top three submissions will receive $25,000 in free national advertising through Google TV Ads advertising. Vote now at www.youtube.com/tvforallcontest.


Posted by Deeksha Hebbar, Associate Marketing Manager for Google TV Ads

We're thrilled to announce our newest inventory partners: Ovation TV and Sky Angel. Both of these partnerships expand the reach of the Google TV Ads platform, allowing advertisers to access more targeted audiences through our system.

Ovation TV reaches over 33M homes across the US with programming that highlights art, theatre, music, and performance arts. Ovation TV broadcasts classic and original content covering all genres of art such as: American Revolutionaries, Discovering Masterpieces, Everything is Art, La Boheme and Battle of the Nutcrackers. Advertisers can now target Ovation TV's sophisticated and affluent audience through our platform.

Through our partnership with Sky Angel, advertisers can target two new networks - Angel One and Angel Two. Both networks bring faith based and lifestyle programming to an audience of 14M homes nationwide. Programming on Angel One includes today's top ministries and other faith bases shows. Angel Two offers a wide array of content ranging from concerts, cooking and travel shows, to sports and news.

Advertisers can target this new inventory today along with the 98+ cable networks also offered through our platform. To learn more about advertising with Google TV Ads, visit www.google.com/tvads. Inventory owners who are interested in becoming a Google TV Ads inventory partner can find more information at www.google.com/adsense/tv.

Posted by Kristin Higaki, Technical Account Manager and Neha Mandal, Marketing Manager for Google TV Ads

One of the best things about our platform is the access to television advertising it gives businesses of all sizes. Chickdowntown.com is one such company that began using Google TV Ads in March 2009 to increase qualified site traffic and revenue. In 2007 Amy Reed, a fashion-minded entrepreneur, founded chickdowntown.com, an online boutique specializing in high-end clothing and accessories. Amy and her team began using Google TV Ads earlier this year to launch contextually targeted TV campaigns that effectively reach chickdowntown.com's fashionable target audience.

By using Google TV Ads' program targeting tool, Amy and her team are able to search relevant keywords such as 'fashion' and 'beauty' to find and target specific programs relevant to those categories. "Basically, we start by targeting programs my friends and I watch because we are the target audience.” Amy says. “Google’s targeting tools then allow us to discover even more relevant programs we hadn’t thought of before, helping us establish more reach."

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“From March to April 2009 after running ads for just one month, we measured a 25% increase in direct traffic to chickdowntown.com,” reports Joey Rahimi of Branding Brand, chickdowntown.com's agency. “We saw another incremental increase in traffic of 25% from April to May, as well as a huge increase in branded keyword searches on Google. Those results clearly show that we’re reaching the right audience through our contextually relevant approach.” Not only did traffic increase, but the average order size has also gone up by 10% since their TV campaigns began airing.

Read the whole story and learn more about how your business can also drive results through a targeted approach to television ads.

Posted by Neha Mandal, Marketing Manager for Google TV ads

We launched the TV for All contest a few weeks ago and have received over 100 submissions since then! Make sure you enter your commercial before the submission period ends on Monday, October 5th. You can check out current entries under the "Gallery" tab on the contest home page.

Google TV Ads' TV for All contest is everyone's chance to advertise on television. You can enter your small business' commercial in the contest for the opportunity to win $25,000 worth of free national advertising on cable channels such as CNBC, Hallmark, and Bravo using Google TV Ads.

Easy instructions for how to enter the contest are here. Our panel of judges will review all entries and select finalists by mid October. The YouTube community will then vote for three winners, each of whom will receive $25,000 in free national TV advertising through Google TV Ads. Winners will be announced on October 30.

Full guidelines, contest rules and tips and tricks are available on the TV for All YouTube contest brand channel at www.youtube.com/tvforallcontest. Be sure to enter today!

Posted by Deeksha Hebbar, Associate Marketing Manager for Google TV Ads

It's been a little over a week since we launched the TV for All contest, and we have already received over 25 submissions! You can check out current entries under the "Gallery" tab on the contest home page.

As you may recall, Google TV Ads' TV for All contest is everyone's chance to advertise on television. You can enter your small business' commercial in the contest for the opportunity to win $25,000 worth of free national advertising on cable channels such as CNBC, Hallmark, and Bravo using Google TV Ads.

Our panel of celebrity judges will review all entries and select finalists by mid October. The YouTube community will then vote for three winners, each of whom will receive $25,000 in free national TV advertising through Google TV Ads. The contest submission deadline is October 5, and winners will be announced on October 30.

We are excited to have assembled a distinguished group of judges including top entrepreneurs, creative agencies, and television luminaries. Tony Hsieh, CEO of Zappos.com, and Steve Hafner, CEO of Kayak will give an internet tycoon's perspective, while Jon Bond, partner at kirshenbaum bond + partners, and Neal Arthur, Head of Strategic Planning at Wieden + Kennedy will provide an expert creative eye. Noted television journalists and authors Daisy Whitney and Shelly Palmer round out our powerhouse panel.

Full guidelines, contest rules and tips and tricks are available on the TV for All YouTube contest brand channel at www.youtube.com/tvforallcontest. Check out our submissions so far, and be sure to enter today!

Posted by Deeksha Hebbar, Associate Marketing Manager for Google TV Ads