Google trademark rights decision causes impact
Many customers choose to use Google as their first port of call on the web when looking for holiday products. From Monday this week any companies advertising on Google can bid against trademarked keywords for their company name to come up in the sponsored links section during searches on those trademarked names. A move which is ultimately damaging for its own customers. Simon Thompson, chief marketer at lastminute.com explains more.
“A range of high-profile brands from other sectors are looking to review their paid-search strategy in light of the changes to Google’s policy, and we are no different.” Said lastmimute.com CEO, Ian McCaig.
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“Our brand is our biggest asset. The impact of Google’s recent decision to take away trademark rights from its advertisers is potentially massive and could be highly damaging.
The move will see us have little control over our brand on Google and means other companies, both reputable and non reputable, will be able to trade off our very strong name that we have spent 10 years investing in. It is an issue every big brand in the UK now faces.
When online customers search for lastminute.com, 93% of them end up on our site according to internet traffic monitor, Hitwise. It is therefore obvious that consumers are looking for lastminute.com specifically and not a last minute holiday.”
Google users will find this change a frustrating one as they will find it harder to reach the website they are looking for and they could be misdirected to other sites.
lastminute.com does not believe the policy change is justified by European case law and are looking at its legal position.
Based on its experience of Travelocity, its parent company, in the U.S, it estimates this could cost lastminute.com up to a seven figure sum (€) per annum in an increase in costs and potential loss of bookings through customers being re-directed elsewhere.
Google has a monopoly on internet searches in the UK (around 80%) while its monopoly on brand searches and in the travel industry is even higher. Its next competitor Yahoo is only just into double figures.
This move will undoubtedly have a bigger impact on the travel industry with direct brand searches higher than in any other industry.
