Search syndication

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Search syndication is a type of contextual advertising which allows online search advertisers to buy keyword-targeted traffic outside of search engine results pages. [1] This is considered to be an alternative to advertising on search engines, since 43% of all searches occur outside of the top search engines. [2]

Contents

Although search syndication falls under the umbrella of contextual advertising, they are not synonymous because contextual advertising also includes display ads while search syndication focuses on text ads sold on a pay per click basis.

Overture, Yahoo and Microsoft

Search syndication was originated by Herman Tumurcuoglu at Montreal Meta Search Company Mamma.com in 1999. [3] [ failed verification ] Beginning as a relatively unknown aspect of search engine marketing (SEM), Overture expanded the practice before it was acquired by Yahoo.com. In 2011, Microsoft formed an alliance with Yahoo [4] to support SEM through its adCenter platform across its properties, however in the realm of search syndication, the two competed for direct deals with publishers. [5] Forty percent of the alliance’s traffic (about five billion queries per month) comes from search syndication. [5] Industry analysts now estimate that Yahoo has the most syndication partners—between 1,200 and 1,500—that request ads through its XML feeds. [6]

Yahoo’s 2011 fourth quarter revenue was $1.3 billion, a 13 percent decrease from 2010 Q4. [7]

Google

Google currently has the largest search syndication network. It adopted search syndication when it rolled out AdSense for Feeds in 2005, to address the fact that it had more advertisers than user queries to its search engine. To find additional traffic for these advertisers, Google began showcasing search ads on third-party sites across the web. These syndication partners include other search engines (including metasearch engines and downloadable toolbars), media sites, domain parking sites and retail sites. [8]

In fourth quarter 2011, Google earned $8.13 billion from search syndication (missing analysts’ forecast of $8.38 billion). [9]

Criticism

Like traditional contextual advertising, syndication networks comprise multiple publishers. Unlike a search results page, however, this means the quality of the traffic varies by ad placement.

Some Internet marketers have accused search engines of not being transparent about their syndication practices and that they were not informed that their ads were being syndicated. The majority of such criticism has been directed at Google. [10] Marketers also do not always know how syndicated paid-search ads are priced or placed across networks, which has led to lawsuits and protests against Google by competitors and advertisers, as well an anti-trust inquiry from the Federal Trade Commission. [11]

Bidding by placement

Today, several companies have built platforms specifically for search syndication, giving advertisers the ability to bid transparently by traffic source. This increases advertiser performance because it allows pricing based on traffic source quality. [5] [12]

Bidding by placement gives advertisers the ability to set bid prices by syndication partner. [13]

Types of bidding by placement

Across-the-board: This is when the search engine bids one price for clicks from search results traffic, and a lower bid for all syndication traffic. [14]

or

Bidding by individual source: Rather than discounting the entire network, syndication advertisers can specify the value of each traffic source based on its performance. There are now a handful of syndication networks that allows for bidding by specific traffic source and keyword is such as Ad.net and Admarketplace. This method has been increasing in popularity among advertisers and search syndication publishers with high-quality traffic. [15]

See also

Related Research Articles

Digital display advertising is online graphic advertising through banners, text, images, video, and audio. The main purpose of digital display advertising is to post company ads on third-party websites. A display ad is usually interactive, which allows brands and advertisers to engage deeper with the users. A display ad can also be a companion ad for a non-clickable video ad.

Affiliate marketing is a marketing arrangement in which affiliates receive a commission for each visit, signup or sale they generate for a merchant. This arrangement allows businesses to outsource part of the sales process. It is a form of performance-based marketing where the commission acts as an incentive for the affiliate; this commission is usually a percentage of the price of the product being sold, but can also be a flat rate per referral.

Google AdSense is a program run by Google through which website publishers in the Google Network of content sites serve text, images, video, or interactive media advertisements that are targeted to the site content and audience. These advertisements are administered, sorted, and maintained by Google. They can generate revenue on either a per-click or per-impression basis. Google beta-tested a cost-per-action service, but discontinued it in October 2008 in favor of a DoubleClick offering. In Q1 2014, Google earned US$3.4 billion, or 22% of total revenue, through Google AdSense. In 2021, more than 38 million websites used AdSense. It is a participant in the AdChoices program, so AdSense ads typically include the triangle-shaped AdChoices icon. This program also operates on HTTP cookies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Google Ads</span> Online advertising platform owned by Google

Google Ads is an online advertising platform developed by Google, where advertisers bid to display brief advertisements, service offerings, product listings, and videos to web users. It can place ads in the results of search engines like Google Search, mobile apps, videos, and on non-search websites. Services are offered under a pay-per-click (PPC) pricing model.

Click fraud is a type of fraud that occurs on the Internet in pay per click (PPC) online advertising. In this type of advertising, the owners of websites that post the ads are paid based on how many site visitors click on the ads. Fraud occurs when a person, automated script, computer program or an auto clicker imitates a legitimate user of a web browser, clicking on such an ad without having an actual interest in the target of the ad's link in order to increase revenue. Click fraud is the subject of some controversy and increasing litigation due to the advertising networks being a key beneficiary of the fraud.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yahoo Native</span> Internet advertising service provided by Yahoo

Yahoo! Native is a native "Pay per click" Internet advertising service provided by Yahoo.

Pay-per-click (PPC) is an internet advertising model used to drive traffic to websites, in which an advertiser pays a publisher when the ad is clicked.

An online advertising network or ad network is a company that connects advertisers to websites that want to host advertisements. The key function of an ad network is an aggregation of ad supply from publishers and matching it with the advertiser's demand. The phrase "ad network" by itself is media-neutral in the sense that there can be a "Television Ad Network" or a "Print Ad Network", but is increasingly used to mean "online ad network" as the effect of aggregation of publisher ad space and sale to advertisers is most commonly seen in the online space. The fundamental difference between traditional media ad networks and online ad networks is that online ad networks use a central ad server to deliver advertisements to consumers, which enables targeting, tracking and reporting of impressions in ways not possible with analog media alternatives.

Online advertising, also known as online marketing, Internet advertising, digital advertising or web advertising, is a form of marketing and advertising that uses the Internet to promote products and services to audiences and platform users. Online advertising includes email marketing, search engine marketing (SEM), social media marketing, many types of display advertising, and mobile advertising. Advertisements are increasingly being delivered via automated software systems operating across multiple websites, media services and platforms, known as programmatic advertising.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Microsoft Advertising</span> Online advertising service

Microsoft Advertising is an online advertising platform developed by Microsoft, where advertisers bid to display brief ads, service offers, product listings and videos to web users. Provides pay per click advertising on search engines Bing, Yahoo! and DuckDuckGo, as well as on other websites, mobile apps, and videos.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Targeted advertising</span> Form of advertising

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Ad fraud is concerned with the practice of fraudulently representing online advertisement impressions, clicks, conversion or data events in order to generate revenue. Ad-frauds are particularly popular among cybercriminals.

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References

  1. ↑ Danny Sullivan (May 13, 2008). "More Than Half Of Yahoo's Paid Search Clicks Come From Partners". Search Enbgine Land. Retrieved September 30, 2015.
  2. ↑ James Green (April 16, 2012). "Search Beyond Search Engines Can Yield Valuable Data For Advertisers". Marketing Land. Retrieved September 30, 2015.
  3. ↑ "Mamma.com". Archived from the original on July 12, 2012. Retrieved September 30, 2015.
  4. ↑ "Microsoft & Yahoo! Search Alliance". Microsoft Advertising. January 2011. Archived from the original on May 14, 2011. Retrieved September 30, 2015.
  5. 1 2 3 Laurie Sullivan (December 13, 2011). "Search's Stepchild, Syndication, Should Evolve". MediaPost. Retrieved September 30, 2015.
  6. ↑ Laurie Sullivan (December 13, 2011). "Search Marketers Demand Better Syndication Analytics". MediaPost. Retrieved September 30, 2015.
  7. ↑ Christopher Heine (January 26, 2012). "Yahoo Search, Display Revenues Dip in Q4 2011". Search Engine Watch. Retrieved September 30, 2015.
  8. ↑ "Search Syndication and Traffic Quality". May 12, 2008. Archived from the original on January 25, 2012. Retrieved September 30, 2015.
  9. ↑ Robert Hof (January 19, 2012). "Google's Q4 Revenues Miss Forecasts, Stock Falls 9%". Forbes. Retrieved September 30, 2015.
  10. ↑ Wendy Davis (February 22, 2010). "Search Marketer Files Antitrust Lawsuit Against Google". MediaPost. Retrieved September 30, 2015.
  11. ↑ Katy Bachman (January 26, 2012). "Lobby Aimed at Google's Dominance Broadens Membership New ad campaign attacks search firm's control on the Web". Adweek. Retrieved September 30, 2015.
  12. ↑ Laurie Sullivan (January 3, 2012). "Post-Conversion Data Generates CreditCards.com Ads High Returns". MediaPost. Retrieved September 30, 2015.
  13. ↑ George Michie (March 1, 2010). "Yah Hoo for Yahoo!". Merkle/RKG. Retrieved September 30, 2015.
  14. ↑ George Michie (July 31, 2007). "Click Fraud and Search Syndication Networks: What you don't know can Hurt you!". Merkle/RKG. Retrieved September 30, 2015.
  15. ↑ Michael Rovner (October 28, 2011). "adMarketplace Delivers Accountability Syndicated search for the world beyond Google, Yahoo and Bing" . Retrieved September 30, 2015.
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