Is Google's new 'friend ranking' a novel invention or just regurgitated spin to gain digital ad spend? The head of one connected marketing agency finds out.

Google has recently filed a patent in the U.S. called Network Node Ad Targeting. Its premise is to use social network analysis to analyse profiles on online social networks, identifying people who share common interests, ranking influence within communities, then displaying relevant ads on the web pages of those people deemed to be the most influential members of their particular community.

The question from network scientists is: what makes Google's patent application 'novel and non-obvious'? They argue that there's nothing particularly new here -- social network analysis tools have been used to identify and target influencers within markets such as the pharmaceutical industry for decades. They have a point, although the guess is that Google have some new algorithm that makes a difference on the ad serving side, and that's what they're trying to patent. 

Others think this patent application is a defensive move, or just one of many applications being thrown at the wall to see what sticks.

Personally, I'm not sure why anyone would want to go to all the trouble of identifying 'influencers' on social networks, just to serve them some adwords or banners. It's like using the Caxton press to print handbills to promote the town crier.

Influence is an outcome, not a set of characteristics such as connectedness or popularity. This is something that those claiming to be experts in online PR and their clients should understand before they start sucking up to A-list bloggers -- unless they see influence as simply having opinions that kickstart conversations, regardless of what, if anything, those opinions and subsequent conversations help achieve.

What intrigues me about Google's patent application is whether or not serving contextual ads on the web pages of the people they rank as influential will actually help shape the purchasing behaviour in a particular community. Maybe my expectations are greater than their clients', or maybe this is all about Google telling a good story to get more of that ad spend that's being diverted to digital media. I think it's the latter, given that the value of adwords is now being called into question -- a particular concern being that their use may lead to longer-term commoditisation.

Ultimately, I can't help being underwhelmed by the news of Google's patent application. That's because I have to admit that I'm with the folks at Trendwatching.com when they say that 'experienced consumers couldn't care less about commercials, ads, banners and other fancy wording and imagery that is forced upon them.' Trendwatching.com argues that brands need to find more interesting ways of igniting conversations with and between their consumers. Advertising in this context is seen as the problem, not the solution, regardless of any advances in who and how you target. As Albert Einstein noted: 'We can't solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them.'

This seems to sum up the inherent problems with Google's Network Node Ad Targeting. Of all the companies that should be helping businesses find new ways to connect with their customers and ignite conversations, you'd have thought Google would be right up there. Yet in reality, when it comes to advances in marketing communications, they've done little more than map the classified ad model of the telephone directory onto the web.

After over 14 years in the digital marketing industry, I shouldn't be surprised that some changes are more glacial than seismic. But the move by brands towards direct to consumer (d2c) marketing models is finally gathering pace. So it will be interesting to see how these d2c models fare, particularly in terms of delivering ongoing customer loyalty. That said, I won't be too surprised if old habits die hard as usual, with brands continuing to try and gain market share via advertising -- albeit with more accurate (and therefore more intrusive and controversial) targeting through the likes of Phorm, or whatever may materialise from Google's Network Node Ad Targeting patent application.

Justin Kirby is CEO, DMC.