Fuel Interactive has created a PPC ROI Calculator to forecast return on investments. Brian Carter writes that the tool calculates metrics to see how to increase ROI. He steps through the process of how to forecast PPC ROI and optimize spend. Start by gathering monthly ad spend, conversion rate, cost per click and average sale. Enter these metrics into the PPC ROI Calculator and hit "calculate." Carter explains how the tool lets you play with the values to see how to "realistically" increase returns. Some things to consider include benchmarking other businesses doing PPC in the same vertical to …

Havas Digital and Yahoo have announced a measurement system that tracks how conversions happen when combining display advertising and search, according to Sean Carton. The tool demonstrates that combining display and search has a significant impact on conversions in a measurable way. It also confirms that reducing the amount spent on display to boot search may have a negative effect on conversions. Carton provides guidance on fitting both into a campaign that builds awareness and drives sales. He reminds us that marketing strategies often ignore the fact consumers likely first heard about the product in a TV spot …

Persistence, creativity and discipline create an effective pay per click (PPC) manager. Here are six positive habits to adopt that can help you build strength in campaigns to meet business goals. Some include growing keyword lists, tapping into Web analytics and keeping an eye on the competition. One habit suggests lots of "testing and tweaking." A video in the post demonstrates the process of migrating data from Google AdWords into an Excel pivot table to summarize and analyze information. A pivot table can provide a visual representation of the aggregate performance of the same ad across multiple campaigns.

Launching and tracking video results on YouTube, MetaCafe, Viddler, Revver and Vimeo takes work, but Ron Jones explains how TubeMogul makes the process of following campaigns on multiple sites much easier. He provides recommendations on distribution and keyword placement, and tracking and analytics. Include the details when setting up titles and tags, according to Jones. Descriptions should tap into a set of top keywords. The 200-character description should provide enough room to include the landing page URL. And don't forget the "http://" -- because most of the sites you submit your video to will include your description, which …

Marketers using adCenter don't need to change campaigns from Microsoft Live Search to Microsoft Bing. Andrew explains that all ads and keywords running on Live will continue uninterrupted. Advertisers in marketers such as travel, shopping, health and local search might have more impact than others on accounts in the short term. While the service will continue uninterrupted, it doesn't correct adCenter's clumsy, difficult-to-navigate and prone-to-shutdowns user interface, according to Andrew. "Expect no great leaps forward in terms of ease of use," he writes. It appears the "decision-making is strictly for the searcher."

What you're looking for, where to find good deals, and a quick plug about the topic just posted to your blog. These are "do" tweets (as opposed to don't) in the mind of Aaron Goldman, who runs down a few tweet-worthy topics for those contemplating taking up tweeting on Twitter. The don'ts? "Nobody cares... that the person next to you on the train smells" or "that you're happy it's Friday (that makes all of us)," writes Goldman.

In a video interview with Laura Lippay, director of technical marketing at Yahoo, Mike McDonald confirms it takes more than title tags to outrank competitors. The strategy also requires social media, creating buzz, getting links and more. McDonald writes that SEO is a competitive game, and staying on top requires more than standard best practices. Social media, for example, can help smaller businesses focus on what people say about their products and services, as well as how competitors "might be flailing," Lippay says.

Six months later, Joshua Palau looks back at a handful of 2009 search predictions to see where the industry stands. For instance, one prediction talks about local search and how companies that have brick-and-mortar locations need to put a program in place. Palau writes that the "prediction is true, but companies still haven't taken advantage of it." Many still lack the education on how local search works and how to keep listings clean with the most current information. And as local continues to grow, mobile services will drive adoption.

H1 tags, inbound links, correlation data, keywords, sub-domains vs. root domains and a variety of other topic were discussed this week at the SMX Advanced conference in Seattle. Matt Peterson encapsulates many sound bites in a very lengthy post from several sessions. Peterson tells us which state-of-the art SEO ranking factors still work -- "and which page, site and keyword attributes are dead by the side of the road." He provides takeaways from a panel in which Rand Fishkin released findings from a forthcoming 2009 SEO ranking factors report, a survey sent to about 100 SEO professionals worldwide.

Keep SEO in mind when blogging, but leave the ego behind. These words of wisdom from Stoney deGeyter suggest writing often, but choosing words thoughtfully. "Not to put it too bluntly, but the desire to blog often coincides with the desire for sex," he writes. "You may feel the need to get what you want to say out there for public consumption, but it's only going to be any good if you are making someone else happy with it." Still, deGeyter believes no one really want to hear about the blogger. Readers come to the blog for information …