• by Seana Mulcahy , March 20, 2006

Are you sick of watching, setting and making bids via paid placement search? Sure there are great tools out there these days. In fact we just started using Ion Search from BlueStreak. It is making our lives easier. However, scoping out search work is always a struggle. Many can't believe how many hours it takes. It's tough to automate a process when bidding remains a sliding landscape.

If you're like me, you're most likely trying to find ways to garner a share of voice via search. Often the big brands box everyone out. So would bigger budgets mean better results? Not necessarily. Look behind the bid and get creative. Think about linguistics. How would someone phrase their words to search for a pair of jeans, a new movie, or a vacation getaway? Chances are if you price out keywords with brand names, your jaw would drop--for instance 7 for all mankind jeans.

When you are strategizing about paid placement search (PPC), think about the copy requirements. Although you only have small character limitations, this may be the key to search success. Copywriting has always been an art. Search often has copywriters standing on their heads. For some reason or another, search is a function of media planners and buyers. If this is the case in your organization, ask them if they've consulted with a copywriter. If they haven't, they should.

Keywords that work well now, may not as early as next week. Top-tier search engines like Google and Yahoo have hundreds of thousands of components that deem search relevant. Thus search is both an art and a science. So don't take copywriting for search lightly. Effective copywriting just may be your key to cut through the clutter.

Things to consider when copywriting for paid placement search:

Clutter. Type in some words and phrases and look at who's bidding and at what price.

Linguistics. How would a friend or colleague search for something? Don't get hung up on marketing jargon.

Limitations. Paid listings have character constraints. Yahoo used to allow 190 characters. This past January the new requirements have been cut to 70 characters or two lines of 35 characters. Google Ad Words allow 25 characters in the headline and 35 in the second line.

In a recent Internet Retailer article, Charles Chin, senior associate of Google's vertical operations for retail said, "When you are limited to a very short amount of space, you have to be very concise in describing what you are providing, then also offer them something compelling to make them want to go to your site and learn more about it." One example, he said, was an ad that says, "Limited-time 15% off offer." Said Chin, "that's a promotional offer that conveys time sensitivity and therefore the idea that you want to act now."

Also keep in mind:

ROI. Ad listings are integral to achieving a stronger return on investment.

Creativity. Although limited by characters, creativity is key.

Specificity. If you are a local bank offering, let's say, mortgages to a given area, why not use local listings? Targeting by ISP will eliminate waste of advertising dollars. Don't write copy that says "home mortgages at low rates." Get specific. Try "greater Boston home mortgages."

Clicks. Let's face it, in search you want clicks. Make sure your copy includes a call to action. So using the example above, you might add "Get approved today."

Rotation. According to the Internet Retailer article, to speed up the testing and optimize campaigns based on test results sooner, Google uses a creative optimizer that will automatically rotate multiple versions of an ad and serve the one that initially received the highest click-through more often. The rationale is that's the version more people will choose to click on in the future. Yahoo also allows advertisers to test multiple versions of an ad over time, but it is a more manual process. However, automatic optimization may not be the tactic that is right for you. You can also opt out of this Google tool. When you do this, different versions of your ad will be served equally.

Change. I said it before, and I'll say it again, what works today might not work tomorrow. Copywriting for search is an ever-changing head-scratcher.

So dear readers, how do you address the challenges of paid placement search? Give us your tidbits. Post to the Spin blog.