She would have the spotlight for a short time --- like Perry. It would be then her job to seal the deal.
Perry thought he could sew-up the nomination quickly without having to work at it too much. He let his ego get inflated by those around him and he made the leap right into the flames.
Palin is smart enough to know that she is not going to just walk-in and walk-away with the nomination. She will be the target-du-jour based on her name recognition and instant popularity. They will chop her down using everything they can --- even if some is false (Perry was the victim of both real and false accusations).
I think, if she really wanted to run, she should be putting policy ideas on the table now, like Cain's 9-9-9 Plan. Those policy ideas would pave the way for her nomination.
Palin has more to lose than to gain.
If running is still a possibility in her mind, she doubtless already has her campaign promises mapped out, including policy proposals. I think she hasn’t put them out yet because she doesn’t want to hurt the other candidates if she takes door #2 instead of door #1 (and it may be they look a whole lot like Cain’s or Bachmann’s).