04.11.09
Posted in Search Marketing News at 5:26 pm by Administrator
As of May 1, 2009 Amazon.com and Endless.com no longer allow Direct Search Marketing.
This continues a trend begun by eBay two years ago when they also dissallowed direct search. Both companies still maintain affiliate marketing programs, and are both still excellent producers, although you must now create landing pages to place their ads, and run your search marketing campaigns for your own landing pages.
You can find help designing webpages, and free landing page templates, at http://www.affiliatemillions.com/web-design.html.
-T
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02.14.08
Posted in Search Marketing News at 9:34 pm by Administrator
I received the following notice from MicroSoft adCenter today;
Revisions to Microsoft adCenter Terms and Conditions We added a new section, 5(b), to your adCenter Terms and Conditions agreement called “Campaign Content.” The new section describes your rights when you receive assistance from Microsoft adCenter support and service with your campaigns. Now, the adCenter support team will have more flexibility to assist you with updating your advertising campaigns.
View your agreement online
This message is to notify you about these upcoming changes. You do not need to do anything to accept these new terms and conditions. These revisions will take effect in 30 days. The new agreement is available online starting February 21, 2008. You can review your terms and conditions online anytime. Just sign in to your adCenter account and then click the Advertiser Terms and Conditions link at the bottom of any page:
http://msmedia.microsoft.com/Key=12833.CMD.D.C.Tqqdr If you have questions, please send e-mail to our Support Center:http://msmedia.microsoft.com/Key=12833.CMD.F.C.QXttJor contact us at (800) 518-5689, seven days a week, from 6:00 A.M. to 6:00 P.M. Pacific Time.Thank you for choosing Microsoft adCenter.Sincerely,
The Microsoft adCenter Team
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08.30.07
Posted in Search Marketing News at 9:23 pm by Administrator
Microsoft AdCenter sent out the following notice today;
Microsoft adCenter is changing the way we manage our trademark policy starting September 10, 2007. While no change will be made to the trademark policy itself, this update aligns better with marketplace practices, speeds up editorial review to get your ads live faster, and ensures consumers see relevant ads.Microsoft adCenter’s Trademark PolicyAs stated above, we are not changing the trademark policy itself:
http://msmedia.microsoft.com/Key=7884.P6Q.C.C.Crpyzw
You may still use trademarked terms in your ads when you, as the advertiser, are the owner of the trademark, an affiliate or reseller of trademarked products or services, or a site that uses the trademarked term in an informational, descriptive, or non-competitive manner. Infringing use of trademark terms by direct competitors remains a violation of Microsoft adCenter policies.What’s changing?It will now be the advertiser’s responsibility to obtain permission from the trademark owner to use a trademarked term in their ads. It will also be the trademark owner’s responsibility to address ongoing incorrect usage of their trademark term(s) directly with third-party advertisers. Microsoft adCenter will no longer intercede to obtain permission for the advertiser wanting to use a trademarked term.
What does this mean for my search advertising?
- Your ads may display next to other ads that contain your trademarked terms.
- Affiliates, resellers, and third parties may show up against queries for your trademarked terms.
- Competitor’s ads may show up in search results against queries for trademarks in certain scenarios, due to match types other than exact.
For example, if a generic term is included in the overall search query, advertisers who bid on the generic term may show up in the search results.
If you are a trademark owner and you believe your trademark is being misused in Microsoft adCenter, you can submit a report by following the instructions on our Trademark Concern Form:
http://msmedia.microsoft.com/Key=7884.P6Q.D.C.DGy4fx
Visit our adCenter Blog post to read more about this change:http://msmedia.microsoft.com/Key=7884.P6Q.F.C.CzNRGland if you have additional questions about these changes please contact our adCenter Support Team:http://msmedia.microsoft.com/Key=7884.P6Q.J.C.CfwvyP
Sincerely, The Microsoft adCenter Team
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08.22.07
Posted in Search Marketing News at 9:21 pm by Administrator
Google provided the following notice;
How is the formula for top ad placement changing?
In the coming weeks, we’re improving how high quality ads are selected for top positions above Google search results. This change is designed to improve the quality of our ad results, and to give you more control over achieving top ad placement.
The core components of the top ad placement formula will remain price and quality. However, we are improving the way we factor price into the formula. We’re also adjusting the way your actual cost-per-click (CPC) is determined for ads in top spots. As always, only ads that meet our stringent quality requirements will be eligible to appear in top spots.
What are the details?
In the current top ad placement formula, we consider your Quality Score and your actual CPC, which is determined in part by the bids of advertisers below you. Even if you have a high quality ad, if advertisers below you are not bidding very much, your actual CPC may not be high enough to qualify your ad to appear in a top position.
With this new formula, instead of considering your actual CPC, we’ll consider your maximum CPC bid, which you control. This means that your ad’s eligibility to be promoted is no longer dependent on the bids of advertisers below you. Therefore, if you have a high quality ad, you now have more control to achieve a top position by increasing your maximum CPC.
Your actual CPC will continue to be determined by the auction, but subject to a minimum price for top spots. The minimum price is based on the quality of your ad and is the minimum amount required for your ad to achieve top placement above Google search results. As always, the higher your ad’s quality, the less you will pay. And you will never be charged more than your maximum CPC bid.
How might this affect me?
We anticipate that most of your ads will continue to perform as they have in the past. In some cases, you may see that ads previously shown alongside search results are now shown in top spots, and vice versa. As a result, you may see a change in the average number of clicks and average CPCs for impacted ads.
Be sure to check your stats regularly and adapt your campaigns as you see fit. Here are some quick tips:
- If you don’t want ads that usually appear in high positions alongside search results to appear above search results, check that their maximum CPCs are not dramatically higher than the actual CPCs you normally pay.
- Continue to make routine quality optimizations to keep your costs down and your performance high.
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