• December 21, 2007

MerchantCircle has rolled out a set of search marketing tools aimed at simplifying the process of managing paid search for local advertisers.

The company's suite includes ad creation, bid optimization and performance measurement tools, in addition to regularly updated reports. By offering these basic services for roughly $30 per month, MerchantCircle is catering to the hyper-local, small businesses that may barely be eking out an online existence.

According to Darren Waddell, MerchantCircle's senior director of marketing, over half of the company's 320,000 members rely on MerchantCircle as their only Web presence, "and 75% of those buying our current advertising products have never advertised online before."

Los Altos, Calif.-based MerchantCircle partnered with Webvisible to offer the SEM tools, piggybacking on the recent partnership with IAC/InterActiveCorp's CitySearch for expanded local listings and custom video ads.

--Tameka Kee