Re: Google success story

From: Danny Sullivan <danny_at_calafia.com>
Date: Wed 07 Feb 2001 17:16:57 -0600

CHRISTIAN DAMSEN <cdamsen_at_hotmail.com> WROTE:
> I encourage all of you to look at Ask Jeeves'
> Text Sponsorship program. This is the original
> self-serving, auction based, text advertisement
> service that preceded Google's AdWords. The
> main advantage between TS and AdWords, is TS
> is not only on Ask Jeeves' properties (Ask.com,
> DirectHit), but also across their syndication
> network which includes Go2Net, MSN, Bomis, and
> many more.

OK, forget the distribution partners. The value of
being there has pretty much been lost, due to Ask
Jeeves recently deciding to run paid links from
GoTo.com in some of these locations.

Want to be at the top of the Direct Hit results that
Ask Jeeves provides to MSN? Be bidder 1, 2 or 3 at
GoTo. You'll enjoy far better placement than if you bid
to gain a position within Ask Jeeves paid links that
appear on the side of the page. Of course, you might
find that it is more expensive to go the GoTo route --
then again, the Ask Jeeves distribution partners
probably generate less traffic than being on Ask Jeeves
itself.

So, if you're thinking Ask Jeeves, it's really an issue
of how much do you want to pay to have a guaranteed
placement near the top of the Ask Jeeves search results
themselves. That can be valuable, but I don't think
worrying about the Ask Jeeves distribution network is
much of an issue, any longer.

> In addition, TS is auction-based and
> starts at a $5 cpm. So it merries the
> Goto and AdWords model.

With the important note that some run-of-site style
advertisers might bump you out of a term you want, even
though they never actually bid on it. I did a story
about someone like this, where he was number 1 for $5
CPM. Then, two people came in at $50 (fifty) CPM above
him. Whoa! Turned out these were run-of-site style
advertisers not really interested in the particular
term this person wanted, but for him to climb back on
top was suddenly ten times more expensive.

cheers,
danny

Danny Sullivan
Editor, SearchEngineWatch.com
http://searchenginewatch.com





Received on Wed Feb 07 2001 - 17:16:57 CST