I use Overture and Google AdWords. Day to day, I'm busy managing my keywords, adding new keywords, and being stuck in the details. But I want to take a step back and make sure I'm not missing any big-picture opportunities out there.

Are there any PPC programs besides Overture & Google that have become big players or "must" programs to be involved with?

Thanks. :)

NO, imo there are not any others that you need to focus on.

Gotta second MrMackin - there are others like findwhat and the like. But, personally, I've never seen enough traffic from them to justify spending time managing the campaigns - no matter how "competitive" the keywords. Until some of the smaller PPC engines can branch out and get a lot more market share - you're probably better off focusing on managing your current campaigns, conversions, copy, etc than setting up shop at some of the smaller PPC engines.

>managing your current campaigns

That is a very good point, each new PPC sign up involves an opportunity cost of "management time". Kicker may be that the smaller providers need managing more than the big guys, £ for £.

Looking at the bigger picture though there *may* be a case for identifying the 2nd tier playa's and supporting them in an attempt to in some way reign in the big guys.

Nathan Power has a list of 613 PPC ad engines (http://www.PayPerClickSearchEngines.com) :eek:

SearchPrincess,

what's your business model? if you are a retailer, for example, then you can not ignore the comparison shopping engines. they offer considerable traffic opportunity. beyond overture and google ppc, you should definitely at least *consider* overture site match -- it works wonders for some advertisers, esp. those with a wealth of database-driven content. and of course, dont forget the contextual opportunities at both google and overture, as well as kanoodle and industry brains. findwhat can be a great traffic channel for some advertisers too. and dont forget other search-related ad opportunities at MSN, AOL, United (NetZero/Juno), etc.

in short, there are a lot of options out there, and its really a case-by-case basis...you will not know if any given opportunity works for you until you give it a spin. the beauty of overture/google is that they are relatively easy to get set up, and they ensure solid distribution and traffic potential...which makes them a good place to start. but they are really just the beginning...

>managing your current campaigns

That is a very good point, each new PPC sign up involves an opportunity cost of "management time". Kicker may be that the smaller providers need managing more than the big guys, £ for £.

Looking at the bigger picture though there *may* be a case for identifying the 2nd tier playa's and supporting them in an attempt to in some way reign in the big guys.
I list about a dozen smaller ones and recomend people use AdWords or Overture before trying any of the others.

I am sure there are some markets where some of the 2nd tier engines are gold. the main problems with 2nd tier engines IMHO are:

1. management time.
2. lack of distribution.
3. traffic quality.
4. slower feedback loops.
5. they can halt improving your business model.

#5 may take a bit of explaining to make sense...

basically if you can run a business that is profitable on the largest most diverse networks then you can learn from it and continually improve it. if you can not afford those engines and are relying on a few clicks here and there from 2nd or 3rd tier search engines your business model may eventually get marginalized by competitive marketing forces.

I am of the philosophy that any traffic in your niche should be your traffic. If you had the chance in the real world to get more customers, would you say no I don't want them because they will take a little more to get... even if the profit is there.

Obviously the profit margin is part of the equation... so you should see if the profit is worth it... hey interns can be used or others in the company can oversee those accounts.

Why let the competition take the profits from the small engines so they can strengthen their positions and then compete on the large engines with the profits from the smaller ones.

Do your homework on Google and Overture and then set up the small engines with the best traffic converting terms and look at them as a portfolio - don't spend the time look at each term... there are bid management programs that will make sure you maintain a certain position or spend... use them and never walk away from potential profits.

couldnt have put it better, well posted.

I am of the philosophy that any traffic in your niche should be your traffic. If you had the chance in the real world to get more customers, would you say no I don't want them because they will take a little more to get... even if the profit is there.

Obviously the profit margin is part of the equation... so you should see if the profit is worth it... hey interns can be used or others in the company can oversee those accounts.

Why let the competition take the profits from the small engines so they can strengthen their positions and then compete on the large engines with the profits from the smaller ones.

Do your homework on Google and Overture and then set up the small engines with the best traffic converting terms and look at them as a portfolio - don't spend the time look at each term... there are bid management programs that will make sure you maintain a certain position or spend... use them and never walk away from potential profits.

What about the link value of purchasing clicks in smaller PPCs? Does this help the client's inbound links or are they not counted?

What about the link value of purchasing clicks in smaller PPCs? Does this help the client's inbound links or are they not counted?

to my knowledge, there is no value to links in a PPC situation.

What about the link value of purchasing clicks in smaller PPCs? Does this help the client's inbound links or are they not counted?
the clicks need to be tracked ... which means they go through some sort of redirect...and thus should not parse link popularity

Sorry seobook, but I am not positive what you mean by "parse" in this situation (sorry not a programmer)... are you saying that links from PPC's will not count because the data is split-up by tracking software and therefore the inbound can't be properly traced to see if it is industry-relevant?

yes :) and no
I am not a programmer either...I like the word parse just not parsely

its more that since it goes through some weird redirect they do not account where it is pointing to ... search engines do not know it is going to your site...just to the location of the click counting software script (you can kinda think of a click tracking thingie as a spider firewall)

PPC links are not counted towards link popularity. Well that is not totally true I am sure there are a few situations but not as far as search ppc is concerned.

If it were any big advertising campaign would have the added benefit of boosting organic results.

I have tens of thousands of them across 15+ engines... it is not happening.

I didn't think so, but i wanted a few supporting opinions in order to convince some others...