Yahoo! Search Marketing Is Here
By Hanil Manghani
Mumbai, Sep 27, 2006

Yahoo! has launched its 'Search Marketing' services in India, offering an added means for local advertisers to create awareness and drive sales of their products and services.

There are one billion Internet users globally, with six out of every 10 using search engines. Of last year's total revenue of the company, 55% came from Search Marketing - figures indicative of the impressive size of this segment.

Quoting comScore statistics, Sandeep Deshpande, GM - search marketing, Yahoo! informed, "Of the 21 million Internet users in India, 85% visit the site at least once a month, and 64% use its search facility. However, though the industry is still in its infancy locally, we are optimistic about its scope and growth."

Yahoo's Search Marketing involves the purchase of key words relevant to an organization's business - which may run into thousands, depending on its size and needs. With the Sponsored Search service, search result listings are placed on websites, newsletters, blogs and other relevant online publications. Content Match involves placement of listings corresponding to content accessed by the user.

Yahoo will charge customers for every listing that is actually clicked on. Rates can vary from 50 paise per click to Rs.4 for more popular words. Also, another organization can bid to pay a higher amount to see itself at the top of the result listing, ensuring an ongoing auction process.

It will also offer editorial assistance to advertisers, helping them select keywords appropriate to their business, and in developing titles and descriptions.

Yahoo also intends to educate the promising SMB sector on the potential and benefits of Search Marketing as a marketing tool, supposedly the cheapest, to drive sales and growth. It will also not allow rival companies to bid for search words/ names peculiar to a particular organization.

Already, more than 50 large organizations across travel, jobsite, matrimony, financial services and real estate services have signed up with Yahoo! for the Search Marketing services, with one advertiser buying as many as 75,000 search words. It has also partnered to supply 'Powered by Yahoo!' search facilities to Deccan Chronicle, Asian Age, mapsofindia.com and oneindia.com besides tying up with MSN to increase its search venues.