As a follow up to yesterday's post about the adCenter QuickLaunch Program, I thought it fitting to bring your attention to a newly-released Microsoft adCenter study highlighting how hesitant many small business owners are when it comes to taking the plunge into search marketing.
According to the study, out of 400 US-based small businesses with 250 employees or less, 73% said they'd rather prepare their own taxes than set up their own search engine marketing plan. Reasons for the hesitancy included things like believing SEM to be too complex, too time consuming and fearing that keywords would be too expensive.
Other key findings of the study were...
· 59% of US-Based small businesses with an online presence don’t currently invest in paid search marketing
· Out of that 59%, 90% of them have never even tried paid search marketing
· Nearly nine in 10 (86%) feel they could be missing out on opportunities to grow their business online
· 72% of small businesses who use paid search marketing report an increase in sales inquiries and 68% consider their search marketing efforts successful
Just last year, a similar study done in the UK yielded similar results.
Between acronyms like CTR, CPC and CPA and new concepts like match types, dynamic text and AB testing, no wonder getting started in SEM seems like such a daunting task. Just learning which data points help paint a picture of SEM success or failure can make it seem like you're starting a new business all over again! Getting into the SEM game doesn't have to be difficult though, and we don't think it should be.
Whether you're starting off with "What Is adCenter?" on the Learning Center site, honing your skills with the free online tutorials through adExcellence, or looking for campaign optimization tips here on the Community site, we want to make sure you have the resources you need to be successful with your SEM efforts.
If you're new to SEM and adCenter, I highly recommend the QuickLaunch Program (also offered in the UK). Having a search expert available to assist with getting you up and running and to answer any questions you may have has proven to be an invaluable asset for many of our new advertisers. If you haven't stopped by there yet, another great resource for getting answers to your questions is the adCenter Forums right here on the Community site.
In closing, please note that this will be the final post for 2008 here on the adCenter Advertiser Blog. Like many of you, we'll be taking some time off to spend the holidays with family and friends -- we'll be back in January.
As always, you can keep up with us by becoming a fan on Facebook or through following us on Twitter.
Happy Holidays and we'll see you in 2009!