SYDNEY, Australia, 16 January 2008 – Professors across Australia have partnered with Google Inc to introduce students to the world of online advertising and around 600 Australian students are ready for the challenge.
The Google Online Marketing Challenge is a hands-on exercise which will give undergraduate and post-graduate students direct experience of online advertising whilst they study. Student groups will receive the equivalent of US$200 (around A$220) to spend on Google AdWords™ advertising, working with a local business to devise effective online marketing campaigns. They will outline a strategy, run the campaign, assess their results and provide the business with recommendations to further develop their online marketing.
Students will have three weeks to mastermind the strategy and will pit their marketing minds against thousands of students worldwide. During the three-week period, the different student groups will have to submit two competition reports, one before they begin the Challenge and one after the campaign has ended. Entries will be judged by an international panel of professors and winners will be chosen based on the success of the campaigns and quality of the reports.
Seven Australian universities have already registered for the competition and there are still two week’s left for other universities to sign up. The Challenge starts in February 2008 and is open to any higher education institution from anywhere in the world.
Deepak Ramanathan, Marketing Manager, Google Australia, said:
"Online advertising is now an essential business requirement, yet, businesses tell us there are not enough people in the workforce with online advertising experience. Universities are ideal places for students to learn the practical skills needed in the workforce, so following demand from professors and students across the world we joined forces to develop this Online Marketing Challenge. It is a practical and fun way for universities and local businesses in Australia to join forces and stimulate interest in this key business area.
"We set a target of 200 participating classes worldwide and we are delighted that we have already reached that target. Seven Australian universities are already registered covering around 600 students. But, there is no limit and there is still two weeks to register so we look forward to more Australian classes signing up."
Jamie Murphy, Associate Professor at the The University of Western Australia Business School said:
"Professors across the world have contributed to this challenge because it gives students relevant and direct online marketing experience whilst they are studying. Such practical and hands-on experience is priceless and the challenge is a direct response to feedback we have heard from businesses of all sizes across the world. They need and want graduates with skills in online marketing.
"The Challenge is a win-win-win. Unlike most student competitions that spend pretend money or craft pretend marketing plans, the Challenge uses real money for real clients. The students get real business experience, the businesses get free online marketing and the professors get great classroom discussions."
The seven Australian universities who have already registered classes for the Challenge are:
Online advertising is an efficient and affordable way for businesses of all sizes to drive traffic towards their website. There are many search engines that offer online advertising space. The most traditional form of online advertising is text-based advertising. Text-based search ads are adverts targeted on users’ search queries. So for example when a user types "cheap flights" into their computer, text ads for travel companies or airlines will appear. Advertisers choose how much they are willing to pay for their ads to appear and only pay when their ad is clicked on so they are in full control of their online advertising budget. AdWords is Google’s text ad offering. When a user types in a search query in the Google search box, relevant AdWords ads appear above and alongside the natural search results. Google ads are labelled ‘Sponsored Links’ to clearly differentiate them from the natural search results. A growing number of small Australian businesses, from cafes to cosmetic dentists, are using Google AdWords to reach customers at the precise moment that they are interested in a particular topic.
Jamie Murphy and Deepak Ramanathan are available for interview.
Press enquiries: Rob Shilkin, rshilkin@google.com, 02 9374 4000
Google’s innovative search technologies connect millions of people around the world with information every day. Founded in 1998 by Stanford Ph.D. students Larry Page and Sergey Brin, Google today is a top web property in all major global markets. Google’s targeted advertising program provides businesses of all sizes with measurable results, while enhancing the overall web experience for users. Google is headquartered in Silicon Valley with offices throughout the Americas, Europe and Asia. For more information, visit www.google.com.
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Google and AdWords are trademarks of Google Inc. All other company and product names may be trademarks of the entities with which they are associated.
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