Fortune writes: “The hottest vehicles driving sales leads online are search enginesand small businesses found them first.”
keyword bidding is evolving into part of an overall strategy using search engines as a lead generator. “Marketing on the Internet isn’t about finding one method that works; it’s an all-around process,” says Mark Fiala, director of Internet operations for California Breath Clinics in Los Angeles, maker of the TheraBreath line of oral-care products. The $3 million business researched better, cheaper keywords, routed leads to specific product pages rather than the home page, and set up a way to solicit e-mail addresses to turn lookers into buyers. It reduced its monthly marketing tab from $8,000 to $4,000 while increasing its return on investment to some 275%.
The tricks of the trade: better bidding and developing a diversified strategy.
