I was watching "That 70s Show" last night (yes, Rand, I was only pretending to watch the Seahawks game) when something caught my eye in a Pontiac commercial. I usually ignore TV ads unless they're during the Superbowl, as they more often than not serve to annoy me, but suddenly, in the middle of a Pontiac ad, was the Google search page and the announcer was crooning,

"Don't take our word for it, Google "Pontiac" to find out!"

Uh, what? Oookay...Pontiac is using Google to promote their website, I got that much. But why? At the end of the commercial, after the Google promotion announcement, there's the Pontiac website at the bottom of the screen. (You can find a version of the Pontiac ad linked in a related article at the Local Zing Blog, also credited with the photo above.)

From a Business Week article on Google's search for the advertising edge:

Says GM sales and marketing chief Mark LaNeve: "We're touting Google, frankly, because it stands for credibility and consumer empowerment, and we like the association." Recalls (Tim) Armstrong [Google's national sales chief]: "I remember one guy in Detroit who cut us off, saying we didn't understand advertising." Now it's the advertisers that are busy trying to understand Google.

I guess the command to "google it" is a better call to action than simply listing the site. So I googled Pontiac to see what came up. Pontiac's site is, indeed, number one. The first time I Googled it on our network, their Adwords ad was right there at the top of the screen, too. But I haven't seen it since so I guess they might have blocked our IPs after one impression to preserve their CTR.

Funny enough, after the Pontiac homepage, I didn't see the scores of positive review sites and affiliated sites I assumed Pontiac would have SEO'd into the top-10. Instead, there are listings for the city government of Pontiac, Michigan (unsurprising), the Pontiac Silverdome, a restaurant called the Pontiac Grille (way to link, guys!), several Pontiac clubs, and a truly SEO-rrific (/sarcasm) site, Camp Pontiac. They're really giving Google a free promotion just for that? There's so much potential here! And why aren't local dealerships cashing on Pontiac's huge investment in search?

I think it might be a challenge. Anyone want to rank for the term "Pontiac"?