Washingtonpost.Com Launches Widget on Google Content Network
washingtonpost.com, an award-winning news and information Web site, today launched an interactive widget that allows users to search for apartments near Washington, D.C. subway stations.
The widget will be available through washingtonpost.com as well as in the iGoogle widget directory and distributed on the Google content network, reaching hundreds of thousands of sites. The widget is sized as a standard Google widget ad unit and can be targeted to relevant sites around the Web.
“Building widgets is all about taking washingtonpost.com content and tools directly to the consumer to be used when and how they want it. By collaborating with Google, we are able to use a new model to distribute these pieces of our site more broadly,” said Goli Sheikholeslami, Vice President of Classifieds and Local Products at Washingtonpost.Newsweek Interactive.
The widget brings Web users sponsored content via a widget distributed through the Google content network. By combining washingtonpost.com’s apartment locator powered by Apartments.com with Washington, D.C.’s Metrorail map, users will be able to search for apartments not only based on price and number of bedrooms, but also by proximity to a Metro stop. The listings results will populate on a mash-up of a Google Maps and WMATA’s Metrorail map.
By distributing washingtonpost.com content throughout Google’s content network, the widget creates an integrated sponsorship opportunity. As the widget’s exclusive sponsor, residential real estate company The Bozzuto Group receives prominent placement on the widget through a fixed banner ad and a special user-initiated advertiser message that scrolls across the tool. These advertisements remain on the iGoogle Gadget as it is distributed throughout the Google content network.
“We are always looking for new ways to work with our advertisers. Here we were able to customize a program for them by aligning their brand with relevant content, and helping to extend their message across innovative, nontraditional channels,” said Sheikholeslami.
“We’re continually seeking innovative ways to market to our core audience and to further our reach,” said Israel Carunungan, Director of Property Marketing, The Bozzuto Group. “Sponsoring the washingtonpost.com widget is an exciting new way for us to increase our online presence.”
About Washingtonpost.Newsweek Interactive (WPNI)
The online publishing subsidiary of The Washington Post (NYSE: WPO), Washingtonpost.Newsweek Interactive strives to produce thought-provoking and engaging content on its suite of Web sites, which include washingtonpost.com, Newsweek.com, Slate.com, TheRoot.com, Budget Travel Online and Sprig.com. Reaching a combined 16 million unique users each month, WPNI aims to inform and to stimulate debate while encouraging audience participation.
The company is headquartered in Arlington, VA. Google and Google Maps are trademarks of Google Inc.
Contact: Jennifer Lee Washingtonpost.Newsweek Interactive 703.469.2671 jennifer.lee@wpni.com
SOURCE: washingtonpost.com