"Stop and think about that for a second: the top brand in the world belongs to a player that…uhhh…doesn’t advertise."

"Ads by Google" alongside most ads on the internet doesn't count as google advertising its brand?

No more than Gillette razors having "Gillette" written on them does.

Do you show your Gillette razor to thousands of people every day?

No, but millions of people see Gillette on their razors every day.

I don't really think so. When was the last time "Ads by Google" became something people used to discover that nifty search engine? I really can't imagine that. "Hay look it lez me find things!"

Agreed.. people starting using Google before AdSense existed.

I'd say that still gives them more visibility.

I know I wouldn't be aware of their omnipresence as much if they didn't write "Ads by Google" alongside their ads. Insofar as ads is about building brand recognition and I recognize Google better, then "Ads by Google" is an ad within the ad from my perspective (by the way I'm 100% for it).

They've gotten some publicity - remember the ad that was like {first 10 digit prime found in consecutive digits of e}.com?

But for the most part they haven't really advertised in the traditional way. Instead, they've used the best form of advertising - make a product so good that it speaks for itself!

As soon as I saw that ad, I thought "Google." When I got to the office, I checked with Trevor, and sure enough he had already figured it out.