Appvertising: Google Gaming more addictive than crack

Back in deepest darkest September, the 12th to be specific, I made up a word.

Appvertising: branded web application

It had 3 Google entries all referring to the Appalachian Mountain Range. My challenge to myself was to see if I couldn’t up the Google listings a bit, which for the sake of pure entertainment, we’ll call Google Gaming (even better played on a Wii).

I wrote a few posts about appvertising revelling in it’s perfectly formed wordiness, the prodigal child of advertising and application I approached the marketing directors of EasyJet and Virgin to tell them all about the appvert we could build them and how digi funky they’d be. Figuring I was writing from a weight gain company they never replied.

I checked in on Google two weeks later and the listings number has risen to 9. I attended the Future of Web Apps conference where I marvelled at the hats worn and tagged my profile, ‘appvertising’, that sure gave it some Google juice and 2 days later there were 36 entries. I started to feel like I imagine Isambard Kingdom Brunel must have felt like when he built a steamship. Amazed it could still float.

Some baffling things then started to happen. I’d check Google daily and it would say 129 entries, but when I tried to scroll through all the entries it recalibrated to 36. Was I actually witnessing the famous algorithm at work? If I could touch it, I could steal it and put it in a box and sell it on ebay. Gaming addiction plays hell with your moral core.

Then Seth Goldstein gave a talk in Silicon Valley entitled, Appvertising: The Future of Social Advertising. I can only think he must have Googled the word first and seen my entries. I still lay claim to 5 of the top 10 listings and sit proudly in first and second position.

Seth and I have gifted appvertising somewhat different meanings, though my branded web application does encapsulate his social network ad delivery proposition, which is to be honest, a little creepy, serving ads based on your news feed and generally feeling like someone has already read your mail.

I couldn’t sleep last night the Google Gaming had really gotten to me after an evening spent stuck on the refresh button. I wanted to see some real change, it was time for the prodigal child to hit puberty.

Sleep deprived, jittery from too much coffee and pondering whether I could get away with a pink sweatshirt I entered appvertising into Google and hit search.

1,200 results and no I did ‘not mean advertising’.

Staggering, my now spotty prodigal youth had well and truly wrestled the Google algorithm to the floor and was talking laminate with it.

I was so happy I hit page 10 and to my horror that flirtatious algorithm recalibrated and reported only 54 entries. What did this mean? Google Gaming is more addictive than crack and I needed a stint in rehab.

I’m sending the spotty youth to boot camp and when he returns he’ll tear that Google algorithm a new poop hole.

(aside: I purloined this picture of Mr. Kingdom Brunel from here where it is accompanied by the caption ‘The thing I like about this photo is Brunel’s cocky poise, like a bolshy teenager, inspite of being dwarfed by giant industrial machinery. Especially as, given the cameras of the day, he must have had to stand holding that cocky poise for a good few minutes.’)

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