Even Google's AdSense Engine is Feeling the Market Crunch

Seems it a week for publishing improvements to existing profitable businesses (LinkedIn for example - problems not withstandin), or to (somewhat) preemptively show that work is being done to help customers improve their revenue and reduce costs (Google, as below).

Just received this notice (as an AdSense publisher):

Dear Publisher,

We understand that the recent economic turmoil has created a lot of uncertainty in the lives of AdSense publishers. During these difficult times, we're continuing to invest in innovations that improve publisher monetization and advertiser value in the content network.

We're focusing on further developing our product offerings and boosting ad performance for publishers. We recently announced advancements in AdSense for search and experiments to make ads more effective. We're bringing DoubleClick technologies to AdSense publishers, and we'll continue to launch new products and features. We're also continuing to improve our offerings for AdWords advertisers, making it easier for them to target the Google content network. Features for advertisers, such as the new display ad builder, are designed to improve ad performance on AdSense publisher sites.

We'll keep driving technological progress, but our best asset will always be our publisher partners. The strength of AdSense lies in the value of the content you bring to users and the quality of the sites you bring to advertisers. Our success is tied to yours. We look forward to partnering with you for the long term, and remain dedicated to helping you succeed.

Sincerely,

Kim Scott
Director AdSense Online Sales & Operations

Google Inc.
1600 Amphitheatre Parkway
Mountain View, CA 94043

Of course, the Google cash cow has been taking a beating this year, and the valuation of the stock has come down over 50% in the last 12 months as a result.

The good news, is that the smarter marketers understand that they need to adjust their operations constantly, and have a good read on the metrics that ultimately drive to sales, and what affects their costs of closing business.

So the question is... how smart is YOUR marketing? Driven by information? data? gut feel?

Always curious to hear how people are handling their marketing at any time, but especially with a tough economy, for those who are thriving or at least maintaining, let's hear what's working for you.