Comments on: PPC in 5 Years: An Intractable Problem http://www.yoursearchadvisor.com/blog/ppc-in-5-years/ People are searching. Be Found. Thu, 17 Nov 2011 15:38:54 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3 By: It’s Here: Google AdWords Call Tracking — Call Tracking Blog http://www.yoursearchadvisor.com/blog/ppc-in-5-years/comment-page-1/#comment-9480 It’s Here: Google AdWords Call Tracking — Call Tracking Blog Wed, 03 Nov 2010 19:07:46 +0000 http://www.yoursearchadvisor.com/?p=1383#comment-9480 [...] Anything that raises the profile of call tracking in general is only going to create more efficient markets as advertisers learn the true ROI of their efforts and refine campaigns accordingly. As I’ve said before, only the smart will survive in future PPC markets. [...] [...] Anything that raises the profile of call tracking in general is only going to create more efficient markets as advertisers learn the true ROI of their efforts and refine campaigns accordingly. As I’ve said before, only the smart will survive in future PPC markets. [...]

]]> By: Andrew Miller http://www.yoursearchadvisor.com/blog/ppc-in-5-years/comment-page-1/#comment-3782 Andrew Miller Wed, 11 Aug 2010 20:08:21 +0000 http://www.yoursearchadvisor.com/?p=1383#comment-3782 Ha! I wish I could be as optimistic about the Bingahoo merger. I try spending as much as I can within their PPC platforms but the search volume just isn't there. And when something goes wrong with the interface, reporting or account, forget about getting good support! We haven't reached it for most keywords yet, but the "ceiling price" for a PPC click is going to be tough to break through unless the focus turns to conversion optimization, long-tail keywords and lifetime value calculations...all very difficult to implement. Ha! I wish I could be as optimistic about the Bingahoo merger. I try spending as much as I can within their PPC platforms but the search volume just isn’t there. And when something goes wrong with the interface, reporting or account, forget about getting good support!

We haven’t reached it for most keywords yet, but the “ceiling price” for a PPC click is going to be tough to break through unless the focus turns to conversion optimization, long-tail keywords and lifetime value calculations…all very difficult to implement.

]]> By: Robert Brady http://www.yoursearchadvisor.com/blog/ppc-in-5-years/comment-page-1/#comment-3781 Robert Brady Wed, 11 Aug 2010 20:02:16 +0000 http://www.yoursearchadvisor.com/?p=1383#comment-3781 That's an awful negative crystal ball you have. Can you look again and see if there is any good news in there? Maybe something about how the Yahoo/Bing merger could reduce Google's monopoly? That’s an awful negative crystal ball you have. Can you look again and see if there is any good news in there? Maybe something about how the Yahoo/Bing merger could reduce Google’s monopoly?

]]> By: Chris Leone http://www.yoursearchadvisor.com/blog/ppc-in-5-years/comment-page-1/#comment-3761 Chris Leone Wed, 19 May 2010 16:13:07 +0000 http://www.yoursearchadvisor.com/?p=1383#comment-3761 I think square one will always exist in some form, unfortunately! One thing that could delay our shared vision for the future of PPC is a change in how and where PPC advertising takes place. For example, as budgets reallocate to mobile platforms and social sites (consequently spreading the competition), advertisers may go back to being reckless in their approach. No matter what, the opportunities for the person with more data, a better strategy and more insight should always exist. I think square one will always exist in some form, unfortunately!

One thing that could delay our shared vision for the future of PPC is a change in how and where PPC advertising takes place. For example, as budgets reallocate to mobile platforms and social sites (consequently spreading the competition), advertisers may go back to being reckless in their approach.

No matter what, the opportunities for the person with more data, a better strategy and more insight should always exist.

]]> By: Andrew Miller http://www.yoursearchadvisor.com/blog/ppc-in-5-years/comment-page-1/#comment-3759 Andrew Miller Wed, 19 May 2010 15:47:02 +0000 http://www.yoursearchadvisor.com/?p=1383#comment-3759 Chris, thanks for the comment. Your last paragraph hits the nail on the head and is the only sustainable path forward. The future of PPC is landing page/conversion optimization and CPA bidding. Then again, if you had asked me 5 years ago what PPC would be like today, I probably wouldn't have guessed we'd still be at square 1 helping people calculate the value of a lead :) Chris, thanks for the comment. Your last paragraph hits the nail on the head and is the only sustainable path forward. The future of PPC is landing page/conversion optimization and CPA bidding.

Then again, if you had asked me 5 years ago what PPC would be like today, I probably wouldn’t have guessed we’d still be at square 1 helping people calculate the value of a lead :)

]]> By: Chris Leone http://www.yoursearchadvisor.com/blog/ppc-in-5-years/comment-page-1/#comment-3758 Chris Leone Wed, 19 May 2010 15:28:15 +0000 http://www.yoursearchadvisor.com/?p=1383#comment-3758 I think we bought the same crystal ball, Andrew! I remember expressing something very similar on seomoz last year and I actually received down votes for it! Nevertheless, I agree with what you're saying. More competition will only drive CPCs higher, but there has to be a breaking point. Especially when those blindly jumping in lack strong data to demonstrate their results. However something else that deserves mentioning is what this does for the future of PPC relevancy. The reason people lose money on PPC is because they fail to overlap the intent of the searcher and the page your ad sends them to (i.e. overly broad bidding). This wastes the advertiser's money and the searcher's time. The only way to make it economical is to increase the relevancy of your campaigns and website. This is what will turn your investment into sales and help earn back trust from searchers. I think we bought the same crystal ball, Andrew!

I remember expressing something very similar on seomoz last year and I actually received down votes for it! Nevertheless, I agree with what you’re saying. More competition will only drive CPCs higher, but there has to be a breaking point. Especially when those blindly jumping in lack strong data to demonstrate their results.

However something else that deserves mentioning is what this does for the future of PPC relevancy. The reason people lose money on PPC is because they fail to overlap the intent of the searcher and the page your ad sends them to (i.e. overly broad bidding). This wastes the advertiser’s money and the searcher’s time. The only way to make it economical is to increase the relevancy of your campaigns and website. This is what will turn your investment into sales and help earn back trust from searchers.

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