Abstract: Methods, systems, and apparatus, including computer programs encoded on a computer-readable storage medium, for providing content, comprising: identifying a social action that includes a preference designation for an object; determining a location of an individual user associated with the social action or a location associated with the object that is the subject of the preference designation; attributing the preference designation to both the location and to the individual user, where the attributed preference designation can be used to target further content to either the individual user or other users; and receiving a request for content that is related to the location and providing, responsive to the request, one or more content items based on the attributed preference designations.

Abstract: Methods, systems, and apparatus, including computer programs encoded on a computer storage medium, for long-term targeting. In one aspect, a method includes: assigning a user a unique identifier and recognizing the user when the user interacts with a content system; logging user actions and preferences as the user interacts with one or more web based resources over a long time period where the long time period exceeds a life of one session and an expiration of one or more cookies residing on a user device; identifying logged user actions and preferences that are associated with a same time period in a previous year, including identifying immutable and mutable aspects of the logged user actions and preferences that are time-related; adjusting the mutable aspects based on the current date; and providing, to the user, content based on the immutable aspect, the adjusted mutable aspects, and information included in a content request.

Abstract: Methods, systems, and apparatus, including computer programs encoded on a computer storage medium, for determining influence in a social community. In one aspect, a method includes identifying a user in a community; determining an influence score to be associated with the user in the community for a particular topic, including: determining a reach of one or more communications that relate to the particular topic that have been distributed from the user to other users in the community, and evaluating the reach as compared to the reach of one or more communications distributed from other users in the community for the particular topic; and storing the influence score in association with the user.

Abstract: Methods, systems, and apparatus, including computer programs encoded on a computer storage medium, for providing knowledge panels. In one aspect, a method includes determining an entity that is referenced by a received search query. Content items relevant to the entity are identified. A set of knowledge modules is selected for presentation in a knowledge panel for the entity. The knowledge panel can be a portion of a search results page in which knowledge modules are presented. Data that causes the knowledge modules to be presented in the knowledge panel is provided to a user device.

Abstract: Methods, systems, and apparatus, including computer programs encoded on a computer-readable storage medium, and including a computer-implemented method that includes identifying, using one or more processors, a creative for processing. The creative includes a title portion and a body portion. The body portion includes a plurality of lines of text includes a first line of text and a second line of text. The method further includes evaluating the body portion including determining when the body portion includes a complete phrase. The evaluating includes applying a test to one or more words in the body portion. The method further includes promoting, using the one or more processors, the complete phrase into the title portion. The method further includes providing the creative includes the title portion with the promoted complete phrase.

Abstract: Methods, systems, and apparatus, including computer programs encoded on computer storage media, for identifying resources responsive to a search query. One of the methods includes maintaining an index for a collection of resources, where each resource is associated with zero or more respective entity tags, and each entity tag includes a respective entity name, receiving a search query from a user device, identifying resources that satisfy the search query, determining that the search query satisfies one or more descriptive query criteria, processing each entity tag that is associated with a respective identified resource, generating a results page that includes user interface elements, each selectable by a user operating the user device to initiate an entity-specific search, and sending the results page to the user device.

Abstract: Methods, systems, and computer program products are provided for tracking user interactions with interfaces and determining social data. One example method includes receiving from an entity an indication of interfaces that are used to interact with users, registering the user interfaces, tracking user interaction with the interfaces, and using the tracking information to determine all actions associated with a given user that are to be attributed to the entity.

Abstract: Methods, systems, and apparatus, including computer programs encoded on a computer-readable storage medium, and including a method for providing creatives. The method comprises identifying a creative for processing, the creative including a title portion, a body portion and optionally a reference portion. The method further comprises evaluating the body portion and the reference portion including determining when either portion includes one or more candidate words or candidate reference that can be added to the title portion. The method further comprises determining when, if promoted, the candidate one or more words or candidate reference would be redundant to content already included in the title portion. The method further comprises promoting the candidate one or more words or candidate reference into the title portion when no unacceptable redundancy is determined.

Abstract: Methods, systems, and apparatus include computer programs encoded on a computer-readable storage medium, including a method for providing content. A search query is received. Search results responsive to the query are identified, including identifying a first search result in a top set of search results that is associated with a brand. Based at least in part on the query, one or more eligible content items are identified for delivery along with the search results responsive to the query. A determination is made as to when at least one of the eligible content items is associated with a same brand as the brand associated with the first search result. The first search result and one of the determined at least one eligible content items are combined into a combined content item and providing the combined content item as a search result responsive to the request.

Abstract: Methods, systems, and apparatus, including computer programs encoded on a computer-readable storage medium, and including a computer-implemented method for providing creatives. The method comprises identifying, using one or more processors, a creative for processing, the creative including a title portion and a body portion, where the body portion includes a visual uniform resource locator (URL), the visual URL comprising a visual portion and a link to a resource. The method further comprises evaluating the visual URL for inclusion in the title portion, including determining when promotion of the visual URL satisfies one or more promotion criterion, and if so, promoting the visual URL for inclusion in the title portion. The method further comprises providing the creative including the title portion with the promoted visual URL.

Abstract: Methods, systems, and apparatus include computer programs encoded on a computer-readable storage medium, including a method for providing content. Search results responsive to a query are identified including a first search result in a top set of search results, the first search result associated with a first entity. A first eligible content item is identified for presentation along with the search results, the first eligible content item associated with the first entity. A combined content item is identified that is a combination of the first search result and first eligible content item and is to be presented as a search result responsive to the query. The combined content item is augmented including: identifying entities related to the first entity, identifying content items that are associated with the related entities, selecting at least one identified content item, and using content from the selected content items to augment the combined content item.

Abstract: Methods, systems, and apparatus, including computer programs encoded on a computer-readable storage medium, for providing content, comprising: identifying a social action that includes a preference designation for an object; determining a location of an individual user associated with the social action or a location associated with the object that is the subject of the preference designation; attributing the preference designation to both the location and to the individual user, where the attributed preference designation can be used to target further content to either the individual user or other users; and receiving a request for content that is related to the location and providing, responsive to the request, one or more content items based on the attributed preference designations.

Abstract: Methods, systems, and apparatus, including computer programs encoded on a computer storage medium, for long term targeting. In one aspect, a method includes identifying a user including assigning the user a unique identifier and recognizing the user each time the user interacts with a content management system; logging user actions and preferences as a user interacts with one or more web based resources over time, over different devices and with different browsers including storing preferences of the user; receiving from the user a request for content, the request received at the content management system; and targeting content to the user based on the stored preferences.

Abstract: Methods, systems, and apparatus, including computer programs encoded on a computer storage medium, for social media advertising. In one aspect, a method includes associating keywords with a social media network property of an advertiser, periodically obtaining from the social media network property content on the social media network property of the advertiser, receiving a keyword for an advertisement request for a user device, determining that the received keyword is one of the keywords associated with the social media network property and in response to the determination generating an advertisement responsive to the request, the advertisement including at least some of the content obtained from the social media network property, providing the advertisement for display on a user device.

Abstract: Methods, systems, and apparatus include computer programs encoded on a computer-readable storage medium, including a method for providing content. A search query is received. Search results responsive to the query are identified, including identifying a first search result in a top set of search results that is associated with a brand. Based at least in part on the query, one or more eligible content items are identified for delivery along with the search results responsive to the query. A determination is made as to when at least one of the eligible content items is associated with a same brand as the brand associated with the first search result. The first search result and one of the determined at least one eligible content items are combined into a combined content item and providing the combined content item as a search result responsive to the request.

Abstract: Methods, systems, and apparatus, including computer programs encoded on a computer-readable storage medium, and including a computer-implemented method for providing a creative. The method comprises identifying, using one or more processors, a creative for processing, the creative including a title portion, a body portion and optionally a reference portion. The method further comprises evaluating the body portion including determining when the body portion includes one or more words that can be added to the title portion. The method further comprises promoting, using the one or more processors, the one or more words into the title portion. The method further comprises providing the creative including the title portion with the promoted one or more words.

Abstract: Methods, systems, and apparatus, including computer programs encoded on a computer storage medium, for providing knowledge panels. In one aspect, a method includes determining an entity that is referenced by a received search query. Content items relevant to the entity are identified. A set of knowledge modules is selected for presentation in a knowledge panel for the entity. The knowledge panel can be a portion of a search results page in which knowledge modules are presented. Data that causes the knowledge modules to be presented in the knowledge panel is provided to a user device.

Abstract: Methods, systems, and apparatus, including computer programs encoded on a computer storage medium, for facilitating online conversation. In one aspect, a method includes determining that a user has submitted a question to be viewed by trusted participants of an online conversation, wherein the trusted participants include the user, one or more advertisers and one or more social network friends of the user, obtaining a reply to the question from one of the trusted participants, and providing the reply to the trusted participants.

Abstract: Methods, systems, and apparatus, including computer programs encoded on a computer storage medium, for facilitating online conversation. In one aspect, a method includes obtaining a search query; identifying, by a search engine, resources that are responsive to the search query, wherein the resources include information that references an online conversation in which a user has submitted questions to be viewed by trusted participants and one or more of the trusted participants has replied to the question, and wherein the trusted participants include the user, one or more advertisers and one or more social network friends of the user; and providing information that identifies the resources for display.

Abstract: Methods, systems, and apparatus, including computer programs encoded on a computer storage medium, for facilitating online conversation. In one aspect, a method includes determining that a user has submitted a question to be viewed by trusted participants of an online conversation, wherein the trusted participants include the user, one or more advertisers and one or more social network friends of the user, obtaining a reply to the question from one of the trusted participants, and providing the reply to the trusted participants.