Google Rolls Out Features to Gauge Effects of Advertising

Google rolled out a new advertising feature that will make it easier for companies to know when Web surfers see their ads, an improvement aimed at getting businesses to do more marketing online.

The effort, called Brand Activate, will signal when an ad impression has been viewed. That means at least 50 percent of an ad has been viewable on a screen for at least one second. Google also will let customers make speedier adjustments to brand campaigns, depending on the responses of online users. Google is trying to get companies to spend more of their ad dollars on the Web, rather than on traditional media such as television and print. The effort will attempt to measure whether an ad for a new summer movie is driving more traffic to theaters or if a marketing effort is encouraging consumers to go to a store to buy toothpaste or shampoo.