I told you yesterday about a booklet I received from Google with tips on increasing profitablity using AdSense ads. Turns out there was more to that than met this uninformed eye.

According to an article on Clickz.com, signs indicate that Google is having difficulty with its contextual advertising program, AdSense. You may have noticed Blog*Spot blogs (Blogger.com, which is owned by Google) no longer carry said ads, but have replaced them with a search bar.

Marketing Sherpa's Anne Holland casts a shadow of doubt on the effectiveness of AdSense. . .

"So the jury is still out. I think we're all hoping the kinks work out and this is a great program in the long run."

Click to read more ...

I received a little wire-bound booklet from Google the other day with 8 tips on increasing profitability using AdSense. (You may notice I don't have AdSense running on the site at the moment.) Turns out there is an online version at www.google.com/8tips. Check it out.

Mark Twain said it best. "If I would have had more time, I would have written you a shorter letter." So says an excellent article on the subject of writing effective Google Adwords ads. To get it right those tiny ads have to be tightly focused and contain the appropriate keywords. Oh, and because I'm in a generous mood, here's an article by Michael Wong that speaks equally well to the subject.

Rising pay-per-click prices on the top-tier services Google and Overture has marketers scrambling to find lower cost alternatives, so says a recent article from Direct Marketing News. Two promising players are FindWhat.com and LookSmart, which report "delivering millions of leads to advertisers."

FindWhat said it delivered 219 million paid clicks in the second quarter while LookSmart generated 105 million, excluding paid inclusion listings on MSN.

According to one count, over 500 of second-tier (and third- and fourth-tier, no doubt) PPC networks are in operation, so there's no shortage of alternatives available.

Google Offering Contextual AdWords Rebate

Google has reacted to the amount of AdWords advertisers that have chosen not to do contextual advertising via Google AdWords, which then is published as AdSense ads on Google Advertising Network sites. In a letter to AdWords advertisers, Google is offering a 20-25% rebate on NEW Google Contextual AdWords advertisers who run a campaign between August 4th and September 30, 2004.

Google Faces Competition Big and Small

Google faces stiff competition from Microsoft and Yahoo!. Everyone knows that. But, did you know there is a new kid on the block? And when we say "kid" we mean it. . .19 year old Nathan Enns, inventor of FyberSearch, a search engine he built and runs from his bedroom in his mom's house, and which allegedly gives more relevant search returns than Google. They better hire this kid before David topples Goliath yet again!

Local Targeting With Pay-Per-Click Ads

Both Google and Overture now offer the ability to target very specific locations, within 20 miles from a specific point by using the physical address or longitude and latitude. This precise method of targeted PPC advertising is still quite new, but will likely shift over to the second tier engines in time if it proves to be beneficial to both advertisers and searchers. The benefit such local targeting gives localized business is the opportunity to advertise online with the chance of receiving more highly qualified business.

This nifty no-cost tool allows you to type one list of action words (such as buy, click, purchase) and another list of descriptions (such as your product categories) and then it combines them into one long list of keyword phrases for your AdWords bidding pleasure. Those who have set up an AdWords P-P-C account will appreciate just how useful this simple tool could be for keyword/phrase preparation on AdWords -- or with any other P-P-C program, for that matter.

I found this info in Larry Chase's Search Engine for Marketers email newsletter.

Seth Godin's recent post called The Problem with Search Engine Optimization has sparked a small swirl of controversy over the value of using SEO as a marketing strategy.

Seth's argument is substantive. (After all, it is Seth Godin making the argument!). Basically, he asserts that SEO is "not worth the money" for two reasons:

1. SEO is "black art." It's hard to know who is good at it and who is not.
and
2. It's "blind faith." (Read the analogy he uses.)

Now, for some other POVs. . .

Search Engine "Optimist" Aaron Wall asserts that Godin is completely wrong. Of course, he makes his living doing SEO and wrote an ebook on the subject.

In his article SEO vs. PPC: Seth is Completely Wrong! Wall states,

"As long as people who know little about SEO continue to mislead people about it then the SEO market will remain cloudy. Many people doing SEO are crooks, but if you find the right person you can achieve solid returns at an exceptionally low cost."

The viewpoint that makes the most sense to me comes from ConversionRater.com. His is a middle-of-the-road opinion that assents to Seth's declaration, but at the same time, balances the argument with a testimonial of his own success using SEO.

A fellow with experience always trumps one with an argument. Being the gentleman that he is, Seth even acknowledges this in the comments section of the post.

Now, for my opinion. . .

1. I believe having a site that is optimized for the major search engines is a key element in your overall marketing mix. Search engines are woven into the "warf-and-woof" of the Internet. They are it's circulatory system in many respects. Search engines are, in the 21st century, what the Yellow Pages were in the last. There is great likelyhood that most of your traffic will come from search engines. To suggest you don't need to use SEO is sheer arrogance at best, and sheer stupidity at worst.
2. You need to use Paid-Per-Click advertising. SEO alone won't cut it, not for small businesses anyway. Google Adwords and Overture have proven themselves as extremely viable marketing venues. My own experience with them has been largely positive, and I recommend their use to all my clients.
3. You need to add a blog to your small business website. I've pontificated on here more than once how this little blog has gotten me front page returns on keyword searches that really do have something to do with my business!

I would say any small business that optimizes its site for search engines, incorporates pay-per-click advertising, and blogs routinely about the business will experience success in driving traffic its way.

If you're a small businessperson who needs help with your online marketing efforts, please feel free to contact me. I'd be happy to discuss the matter with you.

Google is angling for new AdWords advertisers with the promise of a helping hand for those who open new accounts and make a $299 pre-payment.

Marketers participating in the new offering, called Jumpstart, have Google "specialists" assigned to write ads, choose relevant keywords, and set cost-per-click amounts -- within a specified budget -- designed to maximize ad exposure.

Thankfully, the $299 pre-payment is applied to clicks, and is not an administrative fee. This should be particularly attractive to small businesses.

Link to this article from Clickz.com to learn more.