• SEM Geek, Tuesday, March 4, 2008 12:45 PM

Attaining Google AdWords Certification can be one of the first steps an entry-level search pro takes to break into the industry, since according to Greg Meyers, the tutorials and quizzes serve as a great outline of the best practices for paid search in general--not just for Google. But having that certificate on the wall or the badge on a Web site "doesn't make you a good search marketer," Meyers says. Only hands-on experience and quality campaign performance can do that.

"The Certification provides many great things, but it also becomes over-rated and does not necessarily give you a free ticket to search marketing guru status," Meyers says. For example, the training can't teach a marketer how to integrate search and other on- and offline channels, or how to account for factors like campaign seasonality.

And while the tactics learned can be carried over to the other engines--don't forget that some of the knowledge (Meyers says about 25%) will be AdWords-specific and just "what Google wants you to know."

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