Yesterday’s Columbus AMA June Luncheon featured a presentation by Google’s Head of Retail, Mark Marinacci. After delivering last year’s most heralded presentation, Mark was invited back — this time to discuss Google’s latest search innovation.

Keeping the presentation relevant to the marketing community, Mark discussed Procter and Gamble’s research on the importance of the First Moment of Truth (FMOT). In 2005, P&G defined FMOT as “the first interaction between a shopper and a product on a store’s shelf.” This has become a foundational concept in any academic marketing curriculum and, though only five years old, is an absolute given in B2C marketing.

“Yes, and...?” is, as Mark puts it, Google’s approach to everything – they accept truths but always look further. Google decided that, while FMOT is inarguably true, its antecedent must also be true: and so the Zero Moment of Truth (ZMOT) was born. Backed by research in IRI’s 2009 Economic Longitude Study and validated to the general public by John Battelle‘s 2005 The Search, ZMOT is the phenomenon that says a majority of interaction between a brand and a consumer occurs before the consumer ever sees the product on a shelf. With access to – and creation of – data exploding, the ZMOT occurs online.

Where Consumers Are Making Their Purchase Decisions

Having now built rapport with the audience, Marinacci jumped right into his talk about Google’s innovation in search. All else aside, I walked out the door certain of two things:

1. As evidenced by its Super Bowl campaign this year, Google believes (as strongly as ever) in the importance of search
2. With overwhelming evidence on its side, Google believes that the future of the internet is in mobile.

While it might not seem like it, Google is selling out for those two beliefs. Need proof? Look no further than Android. Yes, Google and Apple are battling to be your mobile platform of choice, but as MG Siegler says, they’re doing it with different motives:

At the end of the day, Android exists so that Google can get more people searching — and keep them searching as mobile devices overtake computers. The iPhone exists to be one of the mobile devices that overtakes computers so that Apple can keep selling high-margin machines.

There is no doubt, either, that Google understands that search is fundamentally changing. Just because they’re selling out for search, doesn’t mean they’re selling out for the search we remember from 2005. The six trends Mark says Google is using to innovate search are personalization, language, localization, realtime, video and, of course, mobile.

After looking at these trends, it’s definitely not hard to see why Google believes in mobile. First and foremost, experts are already in agreement that, sometime between 2013 and 2015, mobile devices will surpass desktop computers as the primary vehicle with which we access the internet.

Taking that assumption as a given, mobile is clearly where search can best be personalized, localized, and delivered in realtime. While I’ll be accessing google from the palm of my hand via iPhone, I’m certainly looking forward to everything Google has in store for my mobile search future.

Dynamit was honored as one of the “Best Places to Work” in 2010 & 2011 by Columbus Business First newspaper and Interactive Agency of the Year. Times are even better in 2012 and we’re hiring a Web/Graphic Designer for our aggressively growing team.

This is an exciting opportunity to work on cutting edge projects for well-known brands in a dynamic, entrepreneurial and highly creative environment. Please email resumes/cover letters and portfolio information (documents or links to online examples) to Gary Moneysmith via gmoney@dynamit.us.

A web/graphic designer on the Dynamit team will:

• Be well versed with Adobe Creative Suite: Strong knowledge of Photoshop, experience with Illustrator and InDesign.
• Have a strong understanding of Usability & Web Trends: Experience with user interface design, knowledge of best practices & examples of this in a portfolio or live site/application design. They will also be up-to-date on web trends and design tactics with examples.
• Have experience in user experience design (UXD) designing application and system interfaces. This experience is crucial for this position.
• Have Basic Programming Knowledge: We’re not looking for a developer here, but the designer should have the ability to design for web with a knowledge of the boundaries and how to design for execution by a programmer.
• Have a Strong Portfolio: We’d like to see much more web work than print.
• Be eager to learn, with a passion for design & the web. The designer should have a strong internal drive for industry knowledge and be committed to furthering the craft.

Experience is important, but personality is key. Our culture is what drives us, and we’re looking to build our team with someone who both fits and contributes to it.

The position is full time at our office in the Arena District in Columbus, Ohio. We offer a competitive salary and benefits package as well as a fun, high-energy, intellectually-stimulating work environment.

Benefits Include

• Competitive salary (compensation will be based on skills and experience)
• Fully paid medical/dental insurance for employees
• Paid parking
• Unlimited vacation time (within reason)
• Office bar + climbing wall — not recommended together

Don’t sit back. If you want to work in a fast paced work environment with great people who love what they do, apply today.

About Dynamit
Dynamit is a digital agency based in the Arena District in Columbus, Ohio. We work with clients and brands on digital initiatives that include strategy, design, user experience and development. We influence communication and commerce. Client work includes Hilton Worldwide, Charley's Grilled Subs, McGraw-Hill, British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), E-Z-GO, American Electric Power (AEP), Columbus College of Art & Design and the Ohio State Medical Center (OSUMC) to name but a few.