SEL: PPC Search Engine Advertising

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December 23, 2003

PPC Search Engine Advertising - Managing Your Costs

Fortune takes a look at search engine advertising and discusses the benefits of PPC compared to the spirraling costs.

"Most businesses, however, can't afford that looky loo, and they're discovering that keyword bidding isn't figure skating: You don't always need to be No. 1 in the rankings to take home the gold. 'We've found that as a general rule it's better to be No. 2 or 3,' says David Kim, director of online marketing for Hotwire.com, a travel website with $110 million in annual sales and 20,000 keywords (at presstime it had agreed to be acquired by Barry Diller's InterActive Corp. for $665 million). 'First place can be a nonefficient buy. You'll often get a lower conversion rate.' That's because users will impulsively click on the first link in the listings without really asking whether it's what they want. So being No. 1 means shelling out more for poorer-quality leads than the No. 2 or No. 3 bidder. "

Andy Beal | permalink | +marktd |

...the search industry queries new media