The Tech Herald

Google guides sheep with celebrity-endorsed advertising

by Steven Mostyn - Sep 20 2011, 08:35

I'm already influenced by Kim K... but not to buy through Google. Image: Damian Morys Foto/Flickr.

If you have no sense of identity, enjoy being told what to do, and have a propensity for being led as opposed to leading, chances are you’ll be thrilled to learn that Google is planning to launch celebrity-endorsed advertising.

Building on the current ‘+1’ recommendation system utilised by its Google+ social network, the California-based search titan is now looking to lure Web surfers towards paid online search results by highlighting products and web destinations given the ‘+1’ by celebrities.

“We’re always testing new ways to make advertising more compelling to our users and advertisers,” outlined a Google spokesman.

“Some advertisers use celebrity endorsements in their ads,” he continued. “This test extends the option of celebrity endorsement to online campaigns.”

Google’s new system of allowing sparkly shepherds to guide their willing flocks is presently undergoing a trial period in the United States, where the likes of The Kardashians have already signed up to peddle wares and expand their global brand.

Google’s +1 celebrity endorsements are expected to arrive in the UK and other major markets in the not too distant future.

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