You have to spend $10000

[dvduval]

If you had to spend $10000 solely on the following services, who would you give your money to? details appreciated!!!

1.Google AdWords,
2.Overture,
3.FindWhat,
4.LookSmart Directory,
5.LookSmart Keywords,
6.Realnames,
7.Yahoo directory,
8.Yahoo preferred listings,
9.Position Tech (or similar)
10.Altavista

All of the above could easily be within $1000/year or less. I rarely hear much about services in the $1000 to $5000 range, but suggestions are welcome. I suppose there is a fine line between an "ad campaign" and an "optimization program".

[ihelpyou]

Well of course, ya scrap the "ad" campaign and do some SEO'ing yourself or hire a good one to do it for you.

There are only two in that list that I pay for... Looksmart and Yahoo.


Well, sometimes Yahoo.

[Mel]

Hi DVDuval

First of all details would depend to some extent on what product or service you are selling. Some do better on one engine than another.

First thing as Doug said would be to make sure my site was fully optimized - you can do it yourself or spend a bit and have someone do it for you .

On the must list would be:

1. Looksmart directory - not for the traffic but for the rankings on Google and MSN and the trafic that will bring.
2. Yahoo directory - again not for the traffic but for the rankings on other search engines that will bring you traffic.
3. Realnames - (if you can still find a good one) for the MSN ranking

On the Don't Bother list would be:
1. Google adwords - I have never really received any convertible traffic from there
2. Altavista - NO traffic from there now but that could change in a year or so.
3. Position Tech - The must lisitings should get you good good rankings on Inktomi engines.

On the Optional list would be:

1. Overture - if it proves to generate convertible traffic for you, perhaps only until your serach engine traffic builds up.
2. Findwhat - same proviso as above
3. Yahoo prefered listing - but monitor this carefully to ensure you are getting the traffic you want.
4. Looksmart Keywords - too new to be sure of how well this will do, but Looksmart itself has never been a great traffic getter.

Again it depends on what you are selling. for instance if you have an adult site dump everthing else and concentrate on Overture and Findwhat. If your site sells a technical product don't expect too many sales from Yahoo or AOL, etc

[Kal]

7
4
9
1
8
2

in that order and scrap the others.

[dvduval]

Thanks, Kal!

That's just the kind of response I was looking for!
Anyone else?

[MakeMeTop]

Same order as Kal - but with the addition of 10 if you have a few bucks over. I still get high quality (but low) traffic from AV.

[buckworks.com]

My take - I'm new at this, so can only comment on part of the list.

7.Yahoo directory, This is a must so you might as well do it as soon as you feel your site is ready. Give reeeeally careful thought to your title and description. The page rank clout of a Yahoo listing is a significant help for rising in the ranks at Google, or so I'm hoping.

9.Position Tech (or similar) - Your home page of course, also worthwhile for product-focused inner pages. Tweak each page until it ranks well, then rotate the URLs in your account so different pages get the two-day indexing. Tweak some more ...

3.FindWhat, - Cast your keyword net wide, and bid on as many relevant searches as you can think of. Get help from WordTracker. Start with penny bids and increase if your conversion rates justify. Are we allowed to reinvest profits here?

2.Overture, focus on highly relevant terms, and don't overbid. Their editors sometimes make idiotic decisions; don't take it personally, just appeal. Again, can we reinvest profits?

1.Google AdWords, - has never been cost-effective for me. Useful for testing responses to headlines, though.

6.Realnames, - lowest priority unless a really beneficial term happens to be available

---

4.LookSmart Directory, - No experience yet, can't comment. Uneasy with their attitude to scumware.

5.LookSmart Keywords, Ditto

10.Altavista - no experience yet

8.Yahoo preferred listings, possibly, IF it's something people actually search for in Yahoo. There are so many shopping links on Yahoo's front page that I think a lot of people just follow links instead of actively searching for products.

My 2¢ worth!

Elisabeth Archambault

[newriver]

My experience:

My budget was not $10,000...but we did use all of these services mentioned.

Must do:
Yahoo Directory
Looksmart Directory

Should do:
Inktomi (positiontech, or other) for your major urls, not all of your urls. But list a good portion of them.

Overture:
I am a proponant of using overture for smaller keywords, it is time consuming to start, but easy to manage. Don't go for high priced bids. try to stay in top ten for medium bids, and go for top 3 for low priced bids.

Findwhat:
used, waste of money especially now that excite dumped them

AV:
used them, barely paid for itself, but it did pay for itself.

Google adwords:
Used while we were below position #5 in main search results...stopped when we gained top rankings for free. Make sure that you specifically target certain search terms. otherwise it gets expensive for a less than 5% CTR. Use exact word matches only. Using exact word matches also gets you up top quicker. Our CTR was 4.5%, but we also have brand name recognition in our arena.

Never used aol keywords, or looksmart listings.

Hope this helps.

[dvduval]

These have been well thought out responses.
thank you newriver and buckworks.

Have I missed anything?
Is there anywhere else I could spend money?

I like the idea of rotating Positiontech listings. Any disadvantages? I guess I'll try and find out.

CTR stands for Click Thru Ratio doesn't it?
I might try Google AdWords again and see if I can especially target those words that rank above 5% as you advised newriver.

[nudetravel]

I agree about Yahoo and LS, but don't forget ODP which is just as important, and free. The ODP forum here has some great tips on how to get listed.

A couple of other pointers on the pay engines: Be sure and pick your terms carefully. When I first started with PPC's and PPV's I went for the terms I thought would get the most traffic - and spent money for nothing as I just got a bunch of "looki-loos". Then I thought through my terms and picked longer, more advanced search terms, and did much better. More sales, less dollars.