Still need convincing?

Hitwise reported that Google’s share of executed searches in March rose 10% from 2006.  Nielsen/NetRatings said last Thursday that searches on Google rose 40% from a year ago. 

Fact is, YouTube had something to do with that.  Directly, perhaps not.  But the impact is undeniable.

“The core business is search and ads,” said Eric Schmidt, Google’s CEO. “We are still at the beginning of that business. It is a huge business, and we have a lot of room to grow.”

Google, in many ways, views its search and ad businesses like a publication.  Why would someone choose Google over Yahoo or Microsoft?  The answer can no longer be as simple as, “Google does it better.”  Some think Google’s search is decent, at best. 

In large part, it’s the nature of the word “Google,” and the fact it’s everywhere, every day.

You can’t open a news site without reading an article about YouTube.  The Wall Street Journal and New York Times cover it daily.  So does CNET, Reuters, and CNN.  It would take a weekend to make a list of the other publications worldwide that say something about it on a regular basis.  We’re one of them.  Think all that free press has anything to do with Google’s increasing traffic numbers, and overall stranglehold on search? 

In the course of all the press, lawsuits, and controversy, YouTube has become a category name.  Want to find a clip of something?  YouTube it.  A friend from Australia described a TV comedy the Aussies love.  “You have to see this,” he said.  Then he remembered: “Just Youtube it, mate.”

Doubters say online video hasn’t proven it can monetize the traffic.  You think Google cares?  Just talking about online video makes Google more money. 

Analysts said Google bought eyeballs when it acquired YouTube.  They actually got much more.  It wasn’t just YouTube’s eyeballs they were after.  Google bought an image.

To think about the issue from a different angle, imagine if Yahoo had purchased YouTube.  I’ll pause for you to consider….

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It’s inconceivable.  Yahoo would never buy something like YouTube.  And their announcement that profits fell 11% in the first quarter from a year ago doesn’t help the picture.  I mean…talk about bad timing.  They can’t even make an excuse.  “We’re going to unleash project ‘Panama,’” they’ve been saying.  Project Panama, whatever it is, will save Yahoo.  Has anyone else started feeling sad for these guys? 

Fact is, Yahoo shied away from YouTube’s legal issues; Google embraced them.  Some say Yahoo was smart and Google will pay for it in the long run.  Come on. 

Yahoo has a bigger problem here: Google is synonymous with interesting ideas.  Some don’t like the way Google plays the game, but at least they’re playing it.  People who stand on the sidelines are boring.  Yes, Yahoo is boring.  Hearing about their struggles is boring.  Reading about their plans for “Panama” is boring. 

I want them to do something crazy.  Take a chance.  Spend a lot of money on something surprising.  I want Terry Semel to do something nuts before he’s fired.  Go out in flames, Terry, since you’re going out anyway. 

At GDC this year, the companies getting the most foot traffic to their stands weren’t the ones with the coolest gear; they were the ones with the best “Booth Babes.” The thing is, if you’re clever, a Booth Babe doesn’t have to be a scantily clad woman that could care less about the product. 

Google brought a Booth Babe to GDC, but it wasn’t just any Booth Babe.  I actually don't if they even had a booth.  But they had quite a Booth Babe.  Her name is YouTube.  The tech equivalent of Gisele.  And the traffic numbers reflect it.  So does the bottom line.