Google opened the Google Phone Gallery late Wednesday night showcasing Android-powered devices, Android Product Manager Ben Serridge announced in a blog post. The site features phones that offer Android Market, Google Search, and Google Mobile services such as Gmail, Maps, and YouTube. But go back six years and you might find a different story, when Google Co-Founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin stood in front of a TED audience offering a peek inside the technology company, sharing tidbits about international search patterns, philanthropic efforts of Google Foundation, and dedication to innovation.

I'm not convinced advertisers are ready for the future of advertising, where social signals and metrics become more important than clicks, half of all ad buys rely on real-time bidding, and 75% of ads have some sort of social feature. The majority of marketers and advertisers I meet comprehend the possibilities that technology brings advertising, but not many know how to execute on the strategies.

Searches can be tedious, but if first you don't succeed, modify the keyword terms. That's the strategy for 89% of consumers who will try and try again until they find the answer in queries, though 79% say they will go to multiple search pages if necessary. Others might try multiple engines, according to the 2010 Search Engine Results Page (SERP) Insights Study released Tuesday from Performics and Publicis Groupe. Only 19% abandon the online search, taking it offline if they can't find the information

It's been nearly a week since Google CEO Eric Schmidt chitchatted with Stephen Colbert about data mining and how kids in the future might wipe out their online identity by changing their name. Evidently, the jovial comment Schmidt made to a Wall Street Journal reporter didn't come off as a joke. The biggest problem: Schmidt isn't known for being a funny guy.

Paid search consumes the largest portion of online lead generation budgets, accounting for 28% of spending this year, up from 22% in 2009. That's according to an online study from Econsultancy conducted in May and June. If you're to believe the results from the study, sponsored by online lead generation company Clash Media, then knowing budgets for online lead generation have begun to increase might lift your spirits in time for the holidays.

Retargeting will become a necessary tool for online marketers as the advertising industry moves into cross-channel ad targeting, serving up consumers a consistent message across computer, mobile and TV. Believe me, it's just a matter of time. Yesterday, I wrote about a white paper, "When Money Moves to Digital, Where Should It Go?," published by comScore and ValueClick Media. Today I'm revisiting the topic because marketers should consider viewing search retargeting as a mandatory tool, rather than an option, especially when it comes to branded keyword campaigns.

Bid competition on keywords drives up the cost for unbranded terms. That's a given. But a report published by GroupM Search suggests prices for branded and unbranded keywords in paid search ads may rise sharply after Yahoo and Microsoft combine Internet search advertising services. Does the uptick represent a normal progression for increasing prices or accelerated growth as the market reacts to change?

Google research published earlier this year, but recently resurfaced, provides insight into features that appear to focus on Google Instant. This two-part study measures failure and behavioral signals, suggesting people still struggle with search tasks. The findings have become an important addition to an existing body of research focusing on successful search strategies.

Instant feedback. Instant gratification. Instant results. You'll find in Google Instant many of the gratifications social media brings, though you have probably heard enough on the topic. Well here's one more. Call it what you want, but Google Instant plays on the short attention span humans have developed, not to mention lack of patience, and unwillingness to dig for information in the mounds to which the Internet provides access. Not a bad thing and certainly helpful. The search feature fits nicely into today's society for instant gratification. But who wins and who loses?

Search engine marketing has become a necessity these days. While it can raise a company's position in query rankings through optimizing a Web site, or drive potential buyers to that Web site through paid search ads, it also offers benefits for a variety of online marketing strategies such as attribution management and the clicks that lead consumers to conversions.