By David Utter
Expert Author
Article Date: 2005-11-08
Search engine advertising saw a small drop in year-over-year prices from October 2004 to this October, with a new average price of $1.45 for keyword ads.
Fathom Online reported a slowdown in automotive keyword pricing, with those keywords falling from $1.51 to $1.30 from September to October.
Despite another interest rate hike by the Federal Reserve, the mortgage category remained red hot. Its prices jumped 9 percent from $3.39 to $3.68 per ad.
Investing ads increased 20 cents to $1.66, while those in the telecom category cycled back down from $1.22 to $1.06. Other categories remained relatively stable.
An executive with Fathom told Marketwatch more about the trends:
"Search engine (company) revenues have soared this last year," said Gregg Stewart, senior vice president of Fathom. That's due to increased inventory and increased use of paid search, he said. "There's much more available than there was in the past."
Online retailers hope to convert more of those search ads into sales. Sites like Amazon and eBay have been gearing up new gift guides to help turn site visitors into buyers, the Wall Street Journal reported today.
Amazon has gift lists as compiled by over 40 magazines listed on its site. Users can click a magazine cover to see what that publication recommends. On eBay, a holiday toy finder aims users at popular toys listed by its online sellers.
