Search Ads vs. Content Ads in Microsoft adCenter: What's the Difference?

If you're a regular reader of the adCenter Blog (you rock!), you may have noticed that some of the more recent posts are focused on addressing questions that are most frequently asked of our partners in customer support.  One of the the topics that seems to pop up on a fairly regular basis is around ad delivery.  Not long ago, I addressed what goes on behind the scenes in the editorial review process once you submit your ad groups in adCenter and there's an on-going series that details the different reasons your ad might be disapproved and what you can do to fix those issues.  Today I'm going to cover the differences between search ads and content ads (available only in the US); hopefully this will shed some light on what the differences are in how each type of ad is delivered across the adCenter network.

Search Ads

Search ads are displayed on the search engine results pages in response to a user entering a search query on Bing.  Because search ads are generated in response to specific keywords being entered, search ads are highly targeted and relevant to those keywords (thanks to the afore-mentioned editorial review process).  You'll find search ads under the "Sponsored sites" header in the blue highlighted box at the top of the search results and along the left hand side of the page as shown below:

Content Ads (US Only)

While search ads are displayed to users who are actively searching for specific information, content ads are shown to users who are in a more passive, browsing state of mind; you'll find them on Microsoft-owned web properties like MSNBC.com, MSN Money, Tech & Gadgets and participating partner sites like Rodale, iVillage and NBC Universal.  Content ads are selected for display based on their relevancy to the article content they're matched with.  Where search ads are associated with a keyword search, content ads are associated with content on the page they appear on:

The Differences

Below is a quick reference guide taken from the adCenter Help section.  Note that this is a screen shot, so the linked terms below won't work if you click on them.  If you need further clarification and would like to access those links, visit the Help page where this screen shot was taken from and the links will be clickable there.

For more information on content ads, take a look at the list of posts that have filed under the content ads category.

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