In the Deep Link Ad Game, Google Scrambles to Keep Up with Facebook

Users spend roughly 80 percent of their time with smartphone apps, whereas 20 percent or less of their time is spent on websites.

facebook google deep link ad gameIndexing AppURL links within mobile apps lets people search for content on mobile apps in ways similar to Web searches. Google, for example, is suggesting that companies use deep links to tag pages within their website that are similar to content sections of their mobile app.

The company has been indexing content inside mobile apps and links pointing to that content featured in Google’s search results on smartphones. But as users spend more time on mobile apps, Google’s traditional search engine risks becoming less relevant — along with its $50-billion advertising business — and the company is struggling to keep up with Facebook’s success with ads that prompt users to install apps.

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